Stevehharringtcns​:

Funnily enough, this was the second time in his life Cole Montgomery was sneaking into a girl's house. First, it was Max telling him to be quiet and not wake up her mother; now, Robin sending him straight upstairs. The fact that Robin had invited him over at all was surprising to Cole; sure, they'd talked and had mutual friends, but they weren't super close. At least, until the cemetery fiasco. He guessed that living through something like that meant they were bonded for life, or something.

Cole saluted Robin, turned on his heel, and marched upstairs. "Yes, Sergeant Buckley," he joked, keeping his voice low. Cole peered around the corners, taking the opportunity to snoop before Robin got upstairs. He stepped through a doorway that he assumed was her room and surveyed the walls.

Just as she threw the soda, Cole turned and managed to catch it. Hey, maybe those 'football lessons' forever ago with Adam paid off. "Thanks," he cracked the soda open and lifted into the air as if to cheers her. Cole leaned against the wall, taking a sip and shaking his head in disbelief. Fucked up was an understatement. He still couldn't get the vision... or whatever it was.. out of his head. "You could say that," he paused, hesitantly. "Did anything... weird happen to you? Like, other than the fire going out and me falling into an open grave, I don't really remember anything."

𝐖𝐇𝐎: robin buckley + @colemontgomeryx​ ! 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄: buckley residence

robin didn’t really invite anyone over to her house, she was used to just keeping her home and social life different. steve was an exception to the rule and he’d been there more times than she could count, although robin had to tell her parents that they weren’t dating way too many times. then there were the odd few occasions where she’d had one of the others over for some reason or other. and today, she’d took a literal leap and invited cole over for the first time. which would only welcome a barrage of questions from her mom who was currently home, but if she didn’t actually know that he was here then…

robin was watching out her bedroom window for cole’s arrival, and as soon as she spotted him she took to carefully making her way down the stairs as if to not make a single sound. she opened the front door with ease, slowly shutting it behind him once he made his way inside.

“please go straight up, i really don’t want my mom to ask any questions!” having said that, robin snuck away to the kitchen and to the fridge hoping for some beers, for their ‘trauma bonding’. sadly there was nothing but cans of soda so she grabbed two anyway before quietly making her way up to her room. “catch!” robin threw one of the cans at cole, assuming that he would catch it or alternatively, it would land on her bed. “so the other night was really fucked up, right?”

Cole didn’t know Eleven particularly well. He knew of her, because, well, who didn’t? But they hadn’t spent too much time together. He knew she was a survivor of the mall fire, and he could imagine that she was feeling even more uncomfortable than he was. And, like him, it seemed she had been hitting the keg pretty hard.

“Hey, El,” he put out a hand to stabilize her, plucking the cup out of her hand so she didn’t spill more. “You were looking for me, huh?” he chuckled. “Anything in particular I can do for you?” he asked, putting her cup to the side and glancing around the foyer. He knew Max and El were close, maybe he needed to have a backup plan in case El was really not okay to be here. 

WHERE ; Blue Quarry Mall Protest

WHO ; Cole &. El

To say El was lost - happened to be an understatement. Her first time at StarCourt was it’s own experience but now… this was frustrating. “ Have you… ? “ trying to speak over the constant beat from the ‘ boombox ‘. Maybe that fifth red solo cup should’ve been enough. Now fully aware the appeal of this ‘ liquid fuel ‘ being passed around. Stumbling mildly, eyes trying to focus on something other than bodies swarming around them.

Pushing through the crowd, the distinctly sweet scent of the beer spilling over herself and the other. “ Sorry! “ El’s apology rushed with the sudden movements of trying to keep the liquid in the cup. Desperately failing. Finally peeking around for an escape, rushing towards a familiar face through blurry eyes. “ Hey! “ practically shoving as she approached. “ I’ve been looking all over for you! “

eddiemcnson​:

+++

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?”

XX.

Cole felt bad, but he laughed at Eddie's inability to accept what he was told. It was a defense mechanism, he assumed, after many years of having to keep this part of him secret. For a moment, Cole was grateful for Adam-- grateful he had someone to share it with; in a way, it made this whole ordeal easier. More natural.

"He was my boyfriend-boyfriend," Cole explained. "As in, we fucked," he took a drag of his cigarette, granting Eddie time to take in what he said. "Sorry to be so explicit, but wasn't sure what else to say," Cole explained, though he wasn't really sorry. Part of him liked seeing Eddie squirm. He liked the effect his words had on the other.

Cole smirked, letting his eyes linger on Eddie's lips. He figured it would never happen, but he was open to all possibilities. Especially possibilities that looked like Eddie. "Well, I'm a gentleman. I'd take you out to dinner first," he winked, taking another drag of his cigarette.

eddiemcnson​:

+++

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.

xx.

Cole’s eyes sparkled with amusement and curiosity as he searched his brain. Dorothy? Flagging? What was Eddie trying to ask him? And why was he speaking in this obscure code? At first, Cole wondered if it was a DnD thing, but then realization hit when Cole spotted a bandana in Eddie’s back pocket. He instinctively reached for the bandana he’d tucked in his own pocket and the amusement on his face morphed to something akin to wonder. 

At Eddie’s question, Cole nodded and held out the pack, though his eyes were still glazed over. As Eddie plucked out a cigarette, Cole offered his lighter. He wanted to say something, at least to put Eddie at ease, but he wasn’t sure if he was ready to say it out loud. No one knew yet... well, that wasn’t true, because there was Steve and then there was Max. What the hell?

“I am, too,” Cole said, abruptly. He lowered the cigarette from his lips and looked at Eddie, motioning to the flag. For some reason, he felt the urge to prove it. God forbid Eddie thought he was playing a mean prank. “Do you remember Adam Richards? Tall, broad, blonde? He was my... well, you know,” Cole stumbled through his words, feeling his cheeks heat up. He was never this awkward. 

Cole had a lot on his mind. Despite the glaringly obvious-- being pushed into open graves, having horrific visions, and his boyfriend coming back to life-- now they were fighting. Kind of. It wasn’t a fight, really, but things were tense in a way they never had been before. And Cole really didn’t know how to handle himself in a fight-- he could give great advice to people like Steve, sure, but when it came to him? He was miserable and whiny and terrified to say too much or not enough.

He’d been going over the whole night all morning-- everything he said, every look they exchanged, looking for anything to find comfort in. And it was driving him crazy. So crazy that he decided to go into work on a day he wasn’t scheduled. He had leftover inventory to do, anyway. Cole clicked ‘The Queen is Dead’ into his Walkman and skated over to the Music Center. The Smiths were, objectively, the perfect music for wallowing in self-pity.

A few hours passed of Cole listening to the album on repeat and getting a surprising amount of work done. It was nice to drown out his brain for a while, uninterrupted except for when the clerk told him that he was singing out loud again. As he finished up cataloguing the folk section, Cole looked up to see Jo walking in. His cheeks flushed involuntarily-- this Keith guy’s paper had been pushed to the back of Cole’s mind, but not forgotten. 

Stepping through the aisles, Cole approached her and lowered his headphones. “Good album,” he commented, always a little relieved when someone with taste came into the store. He offered an awkward smile-- it looked more like a grimace-- as she commented on his state. “Not quite, I just have naturally dewy skin,” he joked. His hangover was certainly still with him, as per the pressure behind his eyes. “You feeling okay?”

He laughed, relief evident in his tone. Thank God she had brought it up. “No, no, yeah, I didn’t think you... I mean, even if you did...” Cole groaned at how awkward he was making this. “Jo, you’re great. I’m just... not... I don’t feel that way! So, I’m glad we’re on the same page.” He said, finding his words at last. 

Cole knew better than to listen to anything published in that shitty paper when Keith suggested that Cassie Conrad go for Thad or Adam. Talk about misreading the room. But still, he didn’t want to give anyone the wrong idea, or completely ignore it and come off like an asshole.  

“Anyways,” he said, dragging out the syllables. “Can I ask you something? About the keg party?” Cole knew that Jack and Adam were close, and thought that maybe, if Adam had said something to Jack, maybe Jack had said something to Jo. Worth a shot, at least. 

where: the music center

what: jo’s browsing through some new sweet tunes !

who: @loverboymontgomery​​ + jo

truly, it felt like her first day off in weeks, and jo intended to spend it as follows: lounging in bed as long as possible ( until her mother started passive aggressively vaccuming up and down the hallways, seeing as this was her day off, too ), driving down to the music centre to browse through their latest releases and then straight back home to work on the board. a perfect day, in her humble opinion. or as perfect as it got in hawkins, indiana.

with the first part of her day off concluded, jo had wasted no time grabbing her walkman, pulling her headphones over her ears before she’d even left the house to drown out her mother’s incessant sighing. not even half of side a was finished when she’d reached the music center - a new personal best - and she quickly locked her bike, rushing into the store, straight to the aisle with the new releases.

humming happily to herself, a content smile on her face as she inspected a copy of the new cocteau twins album, jo jumped sligthly as a figure came into view. she looked up, pulled her headphones down around her neck. “oh - hi, montgomery.” said somewhat awkwardly, she gave him a smile. it felt a bit silly, calling him by his last name with how often jo came into the store. “i see you’ve recovered from the keg party.”

a couple of beats passed, jo hesitated, drew in a breath - no, it wouldn’t leave her mind. she had to say something. “listen - keith is an ass.” a bold yet true statement, another beat passed before jo continued. “like… i don’t know if you’ve seen his stupid little paper, but.. .i don’t know, he’s spreading rumors that i, like, have a thing for you? and i just wanted to make clear that i don’t. i’m not into you, cole, i promise!”

zccming​:

.

“you take a hit like a dude.” max countered, feeling a momentary wave of relief as he returned the hug. his arm was warm, and heavy, and very much alive. he was alive. she pulled back, wincing herself when he pressed the ice pack against his torso. no way that felt good, but again, at least cole was there and breathing. max couldn’t be too upset with that outcome. she was sure it would hit her later, but she’d already shed a few silent tears in front of cole, she didn’t want to shed anymore. 

at his next comment, max’s brows rose as she looked at adam beside him, “what? you’re telling me you didn’t know he was here?” she rolled her eyes, relishing in the fact that this almost felt normal as she teased, “you’re fine. big baby. at least pretend you’re grateful i stole an ambulance for you.” she moved from the floor to a chair while cole reached for his water. she pulled her legs up into the chair with her and when cole asked if she was hurt, she flashed him her nasty looking hands. it hadn’t been related to the explosion, but it was an unavoidable truth. she had gotten hurt, a little. “i’m thinking about getting some boxing tape, i’ll look real tough.” max said dryly, then dropping her hands. cole’s next question left max mute. she shrugged, wanting to melt into the chair, “i didn’t see it all go down.” she admitted, “but, dustin said something about a bomb? and explosive fireworks? unbelievable.” sighing, she felt like she had to ask, “does that ring a bell to you?”

xx.

“It’s all those years of football,” Cole flexed the arm closes to her, pathetically. “I was a varsity athlete, you know... Technically,” he added before she could correct him. He took another sip of water, his throat burning at how much talking he was doing all of the sudden. But Cole didn’t care; he craved this sense of normalcy, even if it was just a distraction. He figured they were both owed that. Following her gaze to Adam asleep in the chair next to his bed, Cole’s expression softened. “Well, you were the one sobbing over me. Hard to notice anything else,” he joked. 

Cole choked out a laugh, “You stole an ambulance? Christ, Max. You’re compiling quite the record.” Concern flooded his face at the sight of her hands. “Max,” his tone was intentionally stern. “You need to get them looked at.” He motioned to the button by his bed, “We can call for a nurse. Then you can have your boxing tape.” The apprehension on Cole’s face only grew at Max’s mention of a bomb and fireworks. Admittedly, he didn’t remember much after the Tunnel of Love. He was preoccupied thinking Adam was going to die again; if he thought hard enough about it, he was sure he remembered Steve and Dustin arguing over something, mentioning ‘bomb’. 

“What the fuck,” he muttered, shaking his head. “Kind of...,” then he dropped his voice, not wanting Adam to hear his next words. “He was acting weird. Like before. He was fighting with me... physically. Telling me to leave him alone,” he confessed, hoping Max knew what it meant. Hoping more than anything that it was an easy fix, though the heaviness in his gut told him he knew better. 

“I have done nothing all summer but wait for myself to be myself again —”

— Georgia O’Keeffe, in a letter to Russel Vernon Hunter, from Georgia O’Keeffe: Art and Letters (via luthienne)

Cole had been extra stressed lately. What with the graveyard debacle, the rumors he’d heart about the border, his boyfriend coming back from the dead, and him and aforementioned undead boyfriend almost drowning in Lovers Lake, Cole hadn’t been sleeping well. Most nights, he averaged three hours-- give or taking depending on if Adam was with him; he was the only thing that really helped, as usual. 

So when Julie Foreman had called, saying she was back in town and selling again? He jumped at the chance to connect with an old friend and hopefully sleep easier for a few nights. Julie was a few years older than him, but they’d had a few classes together. She’d actually been instrumental in keeping Cole from getting his ass kicked on more than one occasion; upperclassmen were not typically a fan of his sarcastic comments. Go figure.

A smile broke out on Cole’s face as she stumbled over to him. “Foreman! They let you out this time of night?” he teased. He knew what her parents were like well enough from high school and, though she was twenty-three now, he doubted they were much different. “Who among us can resist the allure of the skatepark at,” he checked his watch, “twelve fifty-two?” 

Cole pretending to think on her offer for a moment before nodding. “Deal. It’s kind of sad to smoke alone, anyways,” he remarked, as if he hadn’t done it just last night. Details. He passed her the money and leaned back on his hands, stretching out under the dim streetlight. “Nothing too thrilling... working at the Music Center. Wrecking my mom’s car,” he said with a laugh. “Laying low because of that. If all goes according to plan, I’ll be back at Indiana State in August.” With a sideways glance, he asked her the same question. “And you? How’s college and... everything?” he tacked on the end, in case she wanted to talk about the Jack thing. And if not, her choice.

WHO: Julie Foreman & @loverboymontgomery​

WHAT: Look away, Keith. No drugs here!

WHERE: The park after dark 

So far, Julie actually hadn’t snuck out much since she’d gotten back. Her parents had become earlier risers as they got older, making it much easier for Julie to just use the front door when she wanted to go out at night. But, old habits died hard, and with her father up watching some sporting event on TV, Julie had gotten out the rope ladder she’d made in high school and existed out her window tonight. It wasn’t the most glamourous exit, but it was kind of fun, honestly. It was climbing back up that sucked. 

As she arrived in the park, she smirked at the sight of Cole Montgomery. She’d grown a soft spot for the nerd in high school, making it her mission to defend him from the other upperclassman in his advanced classes. Julie had also been his weed dealer, and with her getting back into the business this summer, she’d hit him up to see if he was interested in buying from her again. Thankfully for her wallet, he was. 

“Montgomery!” She greeted with a dramatic wave, laughing as she stumbled closer in her doc martens. “Fancy meeting you here,” As if Julie hadn’t suggested it. God, it was good to see him though. She missed the smartass more than she would have thought back in high school. “Don’t worry, I’ll give you the friends and family discount because I’m feeling generous tonight. But, you have to let me split some with you,” Julie tacked on. It actually probably wouldn’t come out to much of a deal if he let her share it, but she was hoping her company would be payment enough. “So what the hell have you been up to anyway?” 

For the first time in his life, Cole was thankful for the mundanity of his job. Usually, by 11 a.m. he'd be bored out of his mind, hoping that anyone would walk through the doors; but after what happened at the cemetery, he'd rather not speak to anyone. His mind was too busy playing the 'vision' over and over again. As he plucked the string of an acoustic guitar, he wondered if he was going insane... and if he was, if anyone would notice.

Hearing the door jangle, Cole stifled a groan and was at the counter in two long strides. Pasting on a smile, Cole surveyed the customer. Tessa. He'd known her in high school, of course, but they'd never really spoken... until Robin's 'kickback.' A pit formed in his gut as he wondered if that's why she was here; or, worse, if she hadn't experienced anything at all and needed help finding a guitar pic, or something.

"You got lucky, we're usually slammed this time of day," he said, dryly. "What can I do for you?"

Who: @tessacallovvay & @colemontgomeryx

Where: the music center

Locking her car, Tessa's heels clicked against the sidewalk as she made her way towards the grimy looking Music Center. Some cross between a music store and a record store, Tessa didn't really know much about it other than the fact you could hear it down the block. And the fact that one Cole Montgomery worked there. The know-it-all boy from high school. And one of the five other people who'd been there at Robin's disastrous attempt at a party. One of the people who'd... seen something.

Memory of blood running down her back, covering the frills of her dress, slipping over her face and streaming down her eyes-- Tessa paused at the door, shaking the visions away. Mm, no. No, thank you. Pushing through the grimy door, Tessa scanned the rows of guitars and other instruments before spotting an unfortunately familiar face. Walking to the main desk, she smiled wide at him, "Cole. Have a minute to talk, hon?"