Me When I Haven't Posted In Almost 3 Weeks Lol...

in my miguel o’hara era rn…

About You

(Late November 1984) Chapter 1: The Car Ride

Eddie Munson x female!harrington!reader

Chapter Summary:  In the weeks following the breakup, it’s been hard to not be in contact with Eddie.  You let your desires get the best of you. 

Word Count: 4.2k 

series masterlist here

Chapter warnings: Angst, smoking (reader), nightmare, mention of panic attack or sorts (just reader experiencing triggers), partying, +18 for general mature topics and content

You felt like you were suffocating.  It was a sensory deprivation and overload all at the same time.  

Your goggles were clouded from the particles that floated freely around your head.  You had no idea what that stuff was, and it scared you that it surrounded you like a cloud.  The makeshift mask covering your mouth, nose, and ears felt like it was preventing any kind of airflow to your lungs, making them burn.  It was dark all around you, no sense of direction, and the croaking from the hound like creatures seemed to echo around the tunnel making it impossible to tell where it was coming from.  

You screamed for somebody, anybody, to help you- but your voice was trapped in your throat.  

You leaned against the wall of the small tunnel and sank to the ground, squeezing your eyes shut. Hands clamped over your ears and head between your legs to try to stop the world from spinning.

Suddenly a hand settled on your shoulder blade and your head jerk up.  

There, in all his glory, was him.  Him with his halo of dark curls that framed his face perfectly.  Him with his worn leather jacket that was surprisingly soft and smelt like home.  Him with his snarky smile that made him seem like he always knew something you didn’t. Him with his heart full of love and head full of songs.

“It’s just a dream y/n.”

He knelt to your level and pulled your face into his hands.  He slid the goggles off your eyes and down to hang around your neck along with the bandana mask that was previously suffocating you.  His face was so close to your own that if you moved forward even an inch your lips would brush.  

“You’re perfectly safe. You can wake up.”

And with that command, your eyes drifted open and made contact with the soft light spilling into your room.  You smiled and shuffled down into your sheets as the memory of him was still firm in your mind.  You let yourself revel in the phantom sensation of his lips close to yours before reality hit you.  Like, it did every morning.

The reality that he was not yours anymore.  That he would not be driving you to school.  He would not kiss you at your locker before 1st period.  And since its Tuesday, he would not be driving you to watch a Corroded Coffin gig at the Hideout tonight.  

Ignoring the melancholy that had taken root in your bones for the past few weeks, you rise from your bed and begin another monotonous day.  

Steve and you made your way to school, arriving much earlier than usual.  Steve still hadn’t gotten use to not having to pick up Nancy on the way and this threw off your schedule a bit.  As you pulled into the lot- one of the first ones there for the umpteenth time this week month- Steve sighed to himself.  

“Well, this essay will not write itself.  Sure you don’t wanna keep me company in the library?”

“We both know that’s code for wanna fuck around so I can avoid my responsibilities, Stevie.”

You both chuckle as he swats your shoulder and reaches for his backpack in the back seat.

“Always a ray of sunshine y/n.  You’re still the one whose gonna proofread it for me out of the goodness of your heart.” He crooned to you while stepping out of the car.  

“The weathers nice so I think I’ll read on the bench till class.” You give him a half-hearted smile.

He gives you a small sad smile.  He is well aware that Eddie and you would frequent that bench before school almost daily.

“Old habits die hard.” You admitted and shrugged, the urge to defend your somewhat pathetic behavior bubbling up in your chest.  

You grab your backpack and exited the car in a fluid move that had you gliding towards the picnic bench towards the side of the parking lot.  Once arrived, you rifled through your bag to find your favorite book and Walkman.  A slow melody filled your ears as you dive in, forgetting your surroundings and circumstances.  A craving burrowed into your bones right alongside the melancholy, though.  

It’s a craving for him.  The craving for the comfort he brings.  A craving for home.  

An insatiable craving that cannot seem to be quenched.  You have unfortunately found comfort in smoking, however.  The smell of the cigarette envelopes you in the aroma of him- lulling the buzz in your body for him.  

Yet, of course, last night you had used your last smoke and not had time to buy another pack before school this morning.  So, you sat on the bench with your book clenched in your cold hands, bending the pages, as the craving consumed your body and left you with not a thing to do about it.

So, it was going to be one of those days.

Just as the buzzing settled to a low hum, a screeching broke through the music playing in your ears. The sound of Dio clashed unsettlingly with the Tears for Fears song in your ears and a rickety van pulled into its usual spot in the lot.  As he pulled into his usual spot in the lot.  The sight of his van brought thoughts of him like a tsunami in your brain. You clenched your book even harder, as if it were the only thing keeping you anchored to earth during this assault of memories on your psyche.

So, it was really going to be one of those days.

He put the vehicle in park and you watched the van as it thrummed with energy.  You felt akin to the car.  Thrumming with energy but unable to move anywhere.  

You knew you would regret the ultimate hurt the decision you were about to make was going to bring you, but you couldn’t find enough cons to out way the pros in your mind.  

I need a cigarette. I know he will have one.  I have been going mad not talking to him or seeing him.  Just one conversation will hold me over for a while.  Who cares if I have a breakdown afterwards- the high of the moment is going to feel so good.

Before you could even really decide, your legs were already moving you away from the bench and towards the van you know so well.  

Before you could even really decide, your hand was coming up to knock at the glass window of the driver’s side door.  

Before you could even really decide, you were jerking him awake from his cat nap in the driver’s seat before a long day at school.  

It took him a moment to calm down from the initial scare of the knock startling him awake.  Once he realized who was the perpetrator of the knock, his pulse picked up again.  

Eddies eyes widened and he blinked in disbelief at who was standing in front of him, and he frantically rolled his window down to destroy the barrier between you two.  

You both stared into each other’s eyes for a minute before daring to break to silence.  You found a frail voice in the back of your throat and whispered out a small hi to him.

He took in the sound of your voice, ringing like a bell and replenishing his frazzled mind before greeting you back.  You look down to your feet awkwardly before looking back up to him.

“I know this is weird but I- I was wondering if you didn’t mind me bumming a cigarette off of you?” you mumbled out.

“I- well- You smoke?” he stuttered out.

“Recently yea.” His eyes darkened understanding the implications of your words.

“Well, I- um yea. I’ve got one.”

He turned to his glove compartment and shuffled around for a moment.  The black shirt he worse stretched across the expanse of his back and highlighted his muscles moving under his luscious skin.  

You’d been practically drooling by the time he turned back around with a cigarette in hand.  He reached out to hand you the smoke stick as you extended your arm and met in the middle.  Your fingers brushed each other’s as you made the exchange- lighting your skin on fire.  Even the smallest amount of contact had you wanting to jump into the car right through the window and hold him so close that you would fuse together.  

“Thanks.” You mutter out as you hold it between your fingers, rolling it anxiously.

You slowly, and very awkwardly, began to turn around and back away from his van when it seemed that neither of you were going to say anything else.  

Make her stay, make her stay, make her stay His mind rattled.

“Well, um, do you need a light?” Eddie offered up as he sensed you about to leave.

“Oh I’m- actually I’m good I’ve got one in my bag.”

“Right cool.”

“Thanks though.”

“Yea no problem.”

You both stared again.

“So, um I guess how- “

“Don’t ask me how I’m doing Eds.  I think we both know the answer.”

“Then it’s good thing I was gonna ask how long you’d been smoking.” He halfheartedly chuckled out.

Your heart dropped into your stomach as tears welled up into your eyes.  Of course, he wasn’t asking you how you were.  He broke up with you, he doesn’t care.  

“Oh right. It’s been like- wow I don’t know this is so embarrassing I can’t think,” you chuckle to yourself while gazing down to the asphalt under your feet.  

Eddie could tell you were in distress; he could read you like a book.  Regret flooded his body over his snide comment that reduce you to this stuttering mess in front of him.  Desperately, he tried to backtrack.

“No but I want to know that too- I just figured you wouldn’t wanna talk about that.  I figured you wouldn’t wanna talk to me period.  I can’t believe you’re here and speaking to me.”

“Neither can I.  My feet just kind brought me here.”

“I miss talking to you. I mean it’s weird going from talking to you every single day to not at all.”

“I miss talking to you too.”

You both knew what you really meant.

Eddies hands toyed with the rings that adorned his fingers, twisting and fidgeting with them in an attempt to release the anxiety in his chest.  

After you walked out of his trailer that night, he knew he made a mistake.  He let his issues get the better of him and it finally messed up the best thing in his life- you.  He knew he shouldn’t have pushed you to tell him and trusted you to explain everything eventually.  It was evident that this was not something easy you could tell him.  They way you were pleading with him that it wasn’t safe for him to know yet and the look in your eye made it apparent to him, only after the fact, that this was serious.  Something major happened, and it messed you up.  This was bigger than you or him.  And rather than being there for you when you needed him to pick up the pieces, he broke you apart further.  

“Maybe we could… like… talk then? Sometime?”  

You sucked in a breath and pause.  Debating. Weighing your options.  Deciding if the heartbreak is worth it.  

“Eventually yea.  I’d really like to.” You give him a meek smile. A beam of hope.

“Good. Cool.  Whenever, no rush.” He means it.  You believe him.  

________________________________________________________________

The week flew by uneventfully.  That’s how they seem to be as of late.  You wake up, you go to school, sometimes you’ll have cheer practice after, you go home and go to bed.  Rinse and repeat.  You’ve only just now finally found the will to start engaging with your friends again. Nancy was there for you as best as she could- but it was difficult when she couldn’t enter your house in fear of coming face to face with Steve.  

But this week seemed to be a little different.  After your encounter with Eddie, you could feel his eyes on you everywhere you went.

You could see his subtle glances towards you in English and you could feel his stare across the lunchroom. His watchful eye ignited something in you that you hadn’t felt for what seemed to be an eternity.  It was hope.  Hope that he would wave to you in the hallway.  Hope that he would pass you a note.  Hope that he would offer you a cigarette.  But it was also anxiety.  Anxiety that he would watch you silently until he graduated in the spring- assuming he finally graduates this time.  Anxiety that he was waiting for the perfect moment to tell you he had moved on and was letting you go.  But you would take the bittersweet emotions over the numbness that inhabited your body like a parasite.  

The end of the week drained you, however.  

You jogged the sidewalk of your neighborhood, an afternoon exercise ritual you tried to participate in as often as possible.  You found the adrenaline and endorphins of the activity helped to unfog your mind and raise your spirits.  

Every so often, the setting Sun would brush your eyes, momentarily blinding you.  As you rounded the corner of Shirley and Maplewood, the Sun obstructed your vision harshly, making your surroundings impossible to perceive.  It was in this instant that Mr. Berkley’s dog, Flash, decided it was the perfect moment to bark as loudly as he could at your movement.  

The sound of the growl startled you, and as your spotting vision flickered towards the black hound, your temporary blindness comprehended the dog and something it wasn’t.  A creature.  The kind the kids found in October.  The kind from the tunnels.  

For a split second you brain told you This is a demo-dog.  You are in danger.  If it’s this close to you, you’re already dead.

The scream that ripped from your chest was instinctual and piercing.  The tears that sprung from your eyes were involuntary and violent, just like your collapse to the ground.  

You registered what had happened, picked yourself up, and jogged off with tears in your eyes before Mr. Berkley or a neighbor could exit their houses to question you and your seemingly bizarre behavior.  

Maybe I’ll give running a break you decided.

And stay away from dogs.

________________________________________________________________

The weekend brought better fortune.  You made an appearance at a party with your friend, Chrissy, but didn’t stay long.  

“I think I’m gonna head home Chris.” You muttered into her ear as you found her smushed against a wall in a pack of cheerleaders and basketball players, all rambling on overzealously about the typical gossip and trying not to puke on each other.

She looked into your eyes and understood.  Your social battery was drained.  You had no more energy left in you to pretend that you were okay.  You had no more energy left to pretend that you weren’t praying to every force in the universe that he would walk through that door and take you away.  But he didn’t and he wasn’t going to.  

She pulled away from the huddle of drunken teenagers and hugged you close.

“Hey, you did good.  A whole hour!  Now that’s what I call progress.” She gave you a radiant smile and you returned it with a limp one of your own.

You stalked out of the house with your head down as to avoid getting roped into any conversation. Once on the safety of the porch, you finally rose your head all the way up to the sky and breathed in the chilly night air.  You wrapped your jacket tighter around your body and reached into your pockets to put on your gloves.  As you reached in your hand was met with a crinkled cylindrical stick.  You removed it from your pocket and there in your palm rested the cigarette Eddie gave you.  

After the conversation that one morning, you completely forgot about the cigarette- leaving it unsmoked.  You put it in your mouth and reached into your purse to find your lighter.  A minute of hopelessly rummaging through it informed you that it was not on your person.  

“Dammit Stevie.” You muttered, taking the cigarette out of your mouth to have it lazily relax between your index and middle finger.  

You recalled just how your lighter was taken from you forcefully by your brother on the night of the tunnels.  They needed fire to ignite the gasoline and to complete the mission you involuntarily sacrificed it in the process.  A shudder passes through your body- not from the chilly night air.  You closed your eyes and leaned upon the banister of the porch to steady yourself.

A voice drifts towards you, carried out of the dark expanse of the night in front of you by the winter wind- rescuing you from the dark memory, “Finally need that light?”

Your eyes snap up. Emerging from his beat-up van was the man you’d been praying to see all night.  You heart skipped a beat, and it took you a moment to respond.  “Oh um, yea I guess I do, now.”  

He slinked towards you in that way in only Eddie did.  His body moved fluidly and confidently, almost feline like, as he approached your shivering figure on the doorstep.  He produced a metal lighter and ignited the cigarette you had placed back to your lips. You muttered a thank you and took the first inhale as he clinked the metal contraption shut and stuffed it back into the pocket of his leather jacket.  

He paused a moment and watched you.  Eddie always liked to watch you do trivial things like washing dishes, taking notes, or riffling through your bag.  He appreciated your existence and observed you like the most fascinating creature in the world.  His breath left his body at the sight of your lips wrapped around the smoke stick, a sight he’d never seen before, and tilt your head to the side to expel the air.  

After a beat you worked up the courage to break the silence.  “So, what brings you to this neck of the woods?”  He smiled at your question.  “My services were required.  Donnie promised me double for making a house call.” “I see I see.” You nodded your head awkwardly.  

“Are you leaving?”

“Yea I’m not really in the party mood.  I was just about to walk- “

“Walk?” He interrupted you. “Y/n you were not seriously about to walk home from here.”

Your eyes rolled, “It’s like a mile and a half.”

“Can’t Steve come get you?””

“He’s busy and I’m fine.  I’m a big girl and I walk home by myself.” You insisted laughing at his franticness.

“It’s pitch black out.” “It’s 7:30 Eds.”

His voice hitched in the back of his throat at the sound of his nickname.  He decides to potentially cross a boundary that exes shouldn’t cross.

“Let me drive you home. I’ll be 5 minutes just enough to drop off with Donnie, get my cash and get out.”

You hesitate.  “You really don’t have to do that.”  “I would sleep better tonight knowing I didn’t leave you trek across dangerous lands all by your lonesome.”

“This is Lock Nora Eddie. It’s more Hundred Acer Woods than Mirkwood.”  You chuckle out.

You both laugh at your remark.  Then the silence creeps back in.  But it’s not awkward this time.  Its comfortable like a warm blanket had been wrapped around the two of you.  You look into his eyes and discover the seriousness to his request.  

“Only if it’s not an inconvenience.”  

“You’re never an inconvenience y/n.”

Silence.

“Wait here and finish up. I’ll be 5 minutes.”  

He enters the house and takes the warm blanket with him, leaving you alone again on the freezing porch with a half-burnt cigarette in your fingers.

************

The car ride brought on the strongest bout of déjà vu you’d ever experienced.  Apparently, nobody had been a passenger since the breakup because the seat was still in the perfect position for you.  The music he usually blasted was reduced to a low hum that drifted throughout the cavernous car and his driving was abnormally slow and safe- as it always was when you were present.  

The moment was a perfect replica of so many late-night car rides, except your thigh lacked his strong grip on it and his face was now replaced with an anxious grimace instead of a content grin.  

You swallowed the lump in your throat and willed yourself to speak.  “So, how’s Wayne?”  

Eddies body relaxed into his seat as your voice filled his ears.  As he basked in your presence, he reminded himself that he might not have another opportunity to talk to you in such an intimate setting ever again or at least for a long time- so he needed to man up and respond.  

“He’s good but tired. He picked up a bunch of late shifts for his buddy whose wife had a baby- but the extra cash is nice.”  

“He ever figure out where he left is tweedy bird mug?”

Eddie grinned at the memory of the three of you ransacking the slovenly trailer for any sign of his uncle’s precious yellow mug.  “Yea he brought it over to a neighbor while sharing a smoke and left it.  Damn near cried when they called saying they had it.” “That man and his mugs.” You giggle out.

“How’s Steve?  Heard Wheeler and him split.” Eddie cautiously inquired hoping to not drudge up any undesirable topics in the little time he had with you.  You closed your eyes and sighed at the thought of your brother’s pain.  “Yea it’s been difficult for him.  He just doesn’t know what to do.  He was sad about it and he still loves her, but he’s moved on from the initial heartbreak and he’s left in this sort of limbo right now. It’s stressing him out- and on top of that he’s trying to figure out colleges and what his plan for next year is.” You admitted to him in a word vomit- try to avoid the nitty gritty details of the breakup seeing as his situation mirrored yours and Eddies.  

“Man, that’s tough.  I can’t even think about my plan I just gotta see if I can make it through this semester let alone graduate or go to college.” Eddie chuckled out in a lighthearted jest.  “Eddie- “

“I know I know y/n the whole shpeal about my potential.  I get it and I really thank you for believing in me, but I’ve got bigger fish to fry than fucking high school right now.”

“What could be more important than trying to pass Eds?” You questioned him exasperatedly, gazing upon his profile- eyes transfixed on the road.  “I can think of a few things.” he snuck a glance at you out of the corner of his eye only to be met with the sight of your cheeks dusted in a red hue- like a polaroid developing in front of his eyes.  Your gaze returned to the road and you both stared at the inky night that stretched before you.  

“I just want the best for you Eds.  I get it’s not my place anymore, but I can’t just stop caring about you and being invested in your life like flipping a switch off.  That’s not how it works.”  You muttered defensively about your intrusion on his plans.  “You don’t have to be sorry for caring about me y/n and certainly don’t have to ever stop.”  

The car stopped moving. His statement shocked you so deeply you didn’t even realize you’d arrived home, his van parked at the edge of your lawn.  The lights illuminating the windows of your home we warm and inviting- beckoning you to come inside and escape the unpleasant car ride you’d endured if only to be in Eddie’s presence for a split second.  Your hand wrapped around the handle of the door, and you craned your neck around to peer at his face.  You were met with an expression you’d never seen cross Eddies face before- it was one of a thousand words all trapped within the confides of his body: chest, brain, mouth, lungs, tongue.  

You couldn’t discern a single thing he wanted to tell you, but you understood none the less.  You turned the corners of your mouth upward in a petite smile and thanked him for the ride.  He shook his head up and down wordlessly and tried to pin you to your seat in the van with his gaze.  Unfortunately, it didn’t work, and you exited the car- swiftly and quietly, leaving Eddie alone yet again.  

He couldn’t understand what brought him to this moment.  How he let his emotions get the better of him.  How he let you get away from him.  How he let you just walk out of his van without pleading for forgiveness and a second chance.  All he knew was that the world would not be right until you were back and his arms, and he vowed to himself that he would reconcile with you if you would have him; just as soon as he worked up the balls.  Which might take a while.

He sighed, rubbed his eyes in an irritated manner and put his van in drive, steering himself away from you and towards the isolation of his empty trailer.  

Alone again.

________________________________________________________________

So excited for the next chapter (it’s truly so long get ready) :)))))

Eddie coming home to show you the stray cat he befriended at the trailer park

About You

Masterlist 

Eddie Munson x female!Harrington!reader (Y/N used)

Series TW: panic attacks, 18+ generally mature content, trauma, angst, partying, smoking (cigarettes), drinking, (in editing in case I missed anything)

In the aftermath of the events of season 2, Eddie confronts you about why you ignored him for a week and basically went missing.  You can’t tell him to protect him.  Angst ensues. 

*Eddie is not very understanding at first, but rightfully so and I feel it’s in character so... 

Prologue: The Split 

Chapter 1: The Car Ride

Chapter 2: The Dance 

Chapter 3: The Party 

Chapter 4: The Rift

Chapter 5: (in progress)

Chapter 6: (in progress)

~This is my first story so be kind to it!  I just love writing as a hobby and stranger things (*cough Eddie cough*) and thought I’d take a try.  :)))))~

i need him in a way that is concerning to feminism

About You

(Late December 1984- Early January 1985)

Chapter 3: The Party

Eddie Munson x female!harrington!reader

Chapter summary: You find it harder and harder still to resist the temptation that is Eddie.  Eventually, you let yourself take the leap, but will the plan be executed according to design...? 

Word Count: 7k

series masterlist here

Chapter warnings: +18 mature themes, panic attacks, angst, light fluff, mature language, mentions of sex, mentions of drugs and smoking (weed and cigarettes), partying, drinking (reader being heavily intoxicated), 

If you were in a staring contest with the trees in your backyard, it’s safe to say you won.  Your eyes had been glued on the foreboding lumber for 5 minutes now, daring anything in the tree line to move. Within the trees you saw yourself, weaving in and out of them with Nance, the two of you willing Barb to return with the power of your thoughts and sheer desperation.  

Your hands unconsciously bawled at your sheets, anchoring yourself to your bed- reminding you of your reality.  You are here. In bed.  At home.  Not under the ground or in a cloud of toxic particles or being chased by one of those… things.  You refused to say their names.  You refused to give them power. However, every once and a while, you would find yourself trapped in a feeling- unable to shake the notion that something bad was about to happen.  

That’s how you found yourself frozen in bed, deep in surveillance of your backyard, and on the verge of a panic attack.  

That is also how your brother found you.

Steve rapped at your bedroom door, “Y/n, you up-“

He stopped as soon as he ingested your state. Eyes glassy and panicked, trembling fists- white knuckled on your comforter-, and battling a waking nightmare.  

Your brother rushed to your bed and pried your eyes away from the window, taking your head in his hands and angling your face towards his.  His eyes searched frantically for any sign of consciousness in your eyes, drowning in a memory and needing a lifejacket.

“Y/n! Hey y/n, it’s okay. You’re home.  I’m here.  It’s okay.”

The dam finally burst, and the tears began the trek down your cheeks.  You transferred your grip from your sheets to Steve’s white sleep shirt and collapsed into his chest, a warm embrace waiting for you.  He held you as your body wracked in sobs.  “I know,” he cooed.  “I get them too.  It’s okay. You’re safe.”

He understood, so he just helped you ride out the wave of emotions.  Once your cries had died down, you removed yourself from the safety of his hug and he confronted you, “That was a bad one.”

You just nodded, unable to articulate the severity of the trance you were held in moments before.

“Do you wanna come up town with me?  Mom left a list of errands to run.  Maybe it’ll distract you? Take your mind off everything?” he offered.  You pondered the proposition, eyes darting to the window.  You heart leap at the thought of escaping the forest that threatened to consume you and nodded your head yet again in agreeance.

“Okay.  Take your time and calm down.  Come get me when you’re ready.”  He smiled and patted your shoulder.  Standing up from your bed, Steve made his way to your bedroom door, closing it on the way out.  

Your gaze shifted from your doorway to the phone that sat on your bedside table.  Your fingers almost physically itched to dial the sequence of numbers you knew all too well.  You yearned to hear a voice that would clam you down in seconds and soothe your jangled nerves.  You were almost desperate enough to call him, just to hear him say “Hello?” into the receiver- then hang up.  Almost.

You were desperate.  Not psychotic. So, you removed your gaze from the phone to squash the temptation and began about your morning slowly, still recovering from the involuntary emotional outburst.

________________________________________________________________

This was the best part of Winter Break in your opinion.  Getting to do activities during the day rather than being trapped in a depressing school building for 6 hours.  

What made it extra perfect was the after Christmas calm.  People were no longer making mad dashes from store to store to buy presents for loved ones, traffic calmed down, and there is no longer the crackle of anticipation in the air. The atmosphere of the tiny town was peaceful and content, like taking a nap with a full belly after a satisfying meal.  

You and Steve made your way downtown silently, the only noise filling the cabin of the car was the low drill of the Christmas music that would continue to haunt radio stations until late January.  You still needed time to recover from your meltdown that morning, and Steve understood, so he allowed the silence to swallow you both whole.  

As you reached the outskirts of the town square, Steve informed you of your tasks for the day. “Alright, so I’ve got to get an oil change on the car and pick up some stuff from Mel’s.  How about you wander around for an hour while I get the car taken care of and then we can head to the store together?”

“Sounds good.”  You softly smiled at your older brother.  You instructed him to drop you off in front of the local coffee shop, swiftly exiting the car with your pocketbook in hand and long plaid skirt swooshing around your knees.  The minute you stepped out of the car, a cloud of cold enveloped you- causing you to zip up your jacket over your large sweater and quickly make your way into the store.

The smell of the brewing coffee welcomed you like an old friend.  And so did Dina.  But that was because she was an old friend.  She worked behind the counter and was instructed to greet everyone who passed through the doorway.

“Welcome to Indiana Brew!” Her voice bounced around the nearly empty café, echoing off the black and while tiled floor.  “It’s Y/n, D!” you alerted her.

A crisp chuckled broke from your lips as her head emerged from below the counter, like an animal peeking out of their hiding spot.  Dina had always been what her mother liked to call a “wild-child”, her mannerisms proving the nickname correct. “Oh, thank God!  I’m so bored!” she rolled her eyes in relief.  

A man sitting a few tables away from the counter eyed the pair of girls.  Dina took notice, “No offense.  Sorry… It’s been truly a pleasure serving you.”  She gave an awkward smile, and the man returned it by scoffing and quickly leaving the two of you alone in the coffee scented shop. “Well fuck you too then.”  Dina muttered to herself as the bell above the door sounded on its journey back closed.  

“Is there buried treasure back there?”  You question leaning over the counter to inspect what your friend hand been doing on the floor before you’d arrived.  “I wish.  Unfortunately, it’s about half a pound of coffee beans I knocked over and proceeded to step on.”  She chuckled and moved into a sweeping curtsey, ducking her head, and raising her apron like a beautiful ballgown.  “The luxurious life of a barista.”  

And the wild child strikes again. 

“Sometimes your innate gift to make every job harder than it needs to be astounds me.”

“I know.  I amaze myself sometimes!”

You both giggled and you proceed to order yourself a large, warm coffee to keep you company on the cold winter day.  You bid your friend a good day and wandered out into the main street of Hawkins, looking for something to keep you occupied while you waited on Steve.  

You passed by the record store and decided the final feat to lift your spirits would be some music. So, you entered the shop hastily and dove into the rows of records closest to the door.  The sound of The Smiths drifted through the body of the store and into your ears, making you tap your foot in time with the song.

A familiar voice emerged from behind you, sounding only a few steps away. “Well, look who the cat dragged in!”

A smile cracked on your face before you even turned around.  “Hey Eds.”

You clutched your coffee to your chest as you faced the brown eyed boy, who was gleaming down at you like you’d just given him a million dollars.  His hands were shoved in the pockets of his signature leather jacket that was thrown over a thin, deep red sweater.  Eddie always ran warm, never needing many layers to protect him from the cold.

“How are you?  How was your holiday?” He questioned, eager to strike up a conversation with you.

“Real good.  Nothing too eventful happened.  It’s just been a nice break from school, especially for Steve.  How was yours?”

“Honestly, it was pretty nice.  I got Wayne a mug as always, and like every year he acted as he had no idea that’s what he would get.  He gave me a few bucks to pick out a new record. So, I’m currently searching for my new addition.  Any suggestions?”

You feigned thought for a moment. “Ever heard of Madonna?  She’s got a bitchin sound I know you’d be into!”

Eddie tossed his head back in boyish laughter, the noise better than any record in the shop you both stood in.  

You then feigned annoyance. “I’m serious!  You gotta get some variety in your collection.  If you keep listening to only metal, your brain is gonna melt out of your ears- and chicks don’t dig that.”

Eddies dimples highlighted his charming smile as we pulled his hands out of his pockets and raised them by his shoulders in defeat.  The silver chain bracelet that sat upon his wrist clanked against the safety pins on his sleeves at the movement; this caught your attention because you had given that to him for his birthday.  It warmed your frozen heart to see it still in his possession.  “Fine! You win. I will spend my Christmas money on an album of your choosing.”  

Eddie was nervous to give you such power.  The boy didn’t come by money like Wayne’s Christmas cash easily, and he knew you were aware of that.  It was quite the sacrifice to turn over his gift to you and for a split second as he proposed the idea, he wondered if he would make you uncomfortable.  

Giving you free reign to a gift like that was something he wouldn’t have thought twice about a few months ago, but now?  Now, things were different.  Would you shirk away from the bold gesture? 

Eddies brain thought up a million different disastrous reactions that could occur in a millisecond.  In even less time, you erased his worries. 

Your eyes lit up and a smile expanded on your face, almost spilling the coffee cup in your hand as you bounced up and down in excitement at Eddie relenting. “Really?  Yes!” you praised ad you skipped off further into the store, in search of the perfect record.  

“Hey, go easy on me okay?” the curly haired boy called from behind you.  “I can do Bowie or the Beatles, but I draw the line at Blondie, okay?”

“Well, you agreed to an album of MY choosing. You really shouldn’t just toss your Christmas money around that carelessly!” you rebutted over your shoulder, finding a shelf to place your cup on and take your large overcoat off.  

A small snort came from the blushing boy, a habit of his that would always come out when it was just the two of you- letting all your guards down.  A habit you found intoxicatingly endearing.  

There were only a few souls in the store, so you placed your jacket and pocketbook on top of a box of records without worry.  

Eddie groaned as he finally caught up with your energetic figure, flittering like a pixie in and out of shelves of music and waist high rows of records.  “Fine, I’m upping the ante then!”  

You eyed him suspiciously, hands dancing across the tops of records, and you listened to his stipulation.

“You only have 3 minutes to pick it out.”  

Your ears perked up. “Wait, what?”  

He gathered the sleeve of his jacket farther up his forearm to reveal is watch, studying it for a split second.  “Yep! And your time starts…”

“Don’t you dare!”  you cautioned.  

“Now!”

“Damn you!”  you cursed, taking off like a bat out of hell, shifting through as much music as you possibly could in your time limit.  

Eddie stood in place amused with his arms crossed over his lean chest, watching you dart around the store as he monitored the time.  “A minute thirty!”

You huffed dramatically and you froze in your tracks, willing yourself to concentrate.  

In the silence of your pause, you caught a melody in your ear that emerged from the record that had been playing when you first arrived in the store. “Ah ha!”

You raced passed Eddie as he counted down from thirty.  A flash of blue caught your peripheral vision.  You turned and spotted the record you needed.  You grabbed it and dashed back to Eddie just as your time ran out.

“And what shall you present me with?”  he cautiously questioned you, holding his palms out flat in front of him.  You pulled the record from behind your back and placed it in his hands, allowing him to carefully study it.  

“Hatful of Hollow?”

“Yep.  The Smiths is like my new favorite band. This is a compilation album of a bunch of their singles and B-sides.  It’s pretty life changing.”  

Eddie admired you as you gushed about the band, waving your hands animatedly around your body as your articulated their impact on you.  His hands itched to wind themselves around your waist and pull you close, and his lips tingled to have them pressed against yours.  He felt himself unconsciously drawing nearer to you as you continued to ramble, beginning to close the gap in between the two of you slowly.

You, however, did notice his drifting, and while this would be welcomed at any other time, you were still too emotionally raw from this morning to try to participate in the dance you and Eddie find yourselves performing every time you interacted.  So, you snatched the record out of his hands and dashed towards the checkout counter to put some space in between you both.

Super smooth Y/n. Totally rad when you run away from the boy you’re in love with like you’re in the first grade.  Not immature at all.

Eddie trailed after you and bought the record, while you beamed behind him at his surrender to widen his tastes.  While he finished the check out, you returned to the shelf and stack of records to retrieve your long-forgotten coffee cup and jacket.  You approached Eddie as he grabbed the bag from the counter and the both of you exited the store.  

“Hey what time is it?”

“Almost 11.”

“I should probably head over to the auto shop, Steve’s waiting for me there.”

“The prince is fixing carriages now?”

You chuckled at his mocking. “Very funny.  The tin bucket needed some oil.  I was just wasting time.”

“You want me to walk you there?”

Your heart hammered in your chest.  The thought of a public outing with your ex-boyfriend, even something as small as walking you across the square, is enough to set your nerves on edge.

This is what you want Y/n.  You’ll never get him back if you don’t get close to him again.  Don’t be a pussy.

“Sure. I’d like that a lot.”  

“Cool. Oh shit, I left my wallet inside. Wait right here.”

Eddie dashed back through the glass door and into the store, leaving you cold on the sidewalk.  

In that instance, a deafening sound invaded your space- contrasting harshly with the smooth voice of Morrissey that was in your ears only moments before. Suddenly, a flash of blue crossed your vision, and just as quickly left it, as Billy Hargrove’s muscle car raced by.  

You hadn’t seen, more like heard, that car since that night.  The night of the tunnels.  And just like that, you were sucked back into another memory- mirroring the state you were in this morning.  You gazed down the street, long after the car had turned off and out of sight- gaze unfocused and mind lost in thoughts of when you were a passenger in that car. Your beaten brother cradled in your arms as Max drove like a maniac, truly earning her nickname.  

Thoughts of your bloodied brother, of Billy's shouting, of the kids screaming, of the roaring engine, of the chaos of the events in the tunnels, all flooded your mind.  It was a noose of memories and dread, slowly getting tighter, choking you and constricting your airways- suffocating you under the gravity of what happened.  

Eddie reemerged from the music store, wallet in his pocket and bag in hand, when he stumbled upon you in a state, he hadn’t left you in.  

He had been working up enough confidence in the store to proposition you.  “So, I was thinking maybe you’d wanna come listen to this with me. I mean just to make sure I appreciate it correctly...” he trailed off at the sight of you.  When he left you, you were smiling up at him, sheepishly accepting his offer.  Your cheeks had been a shade of pink from blushing and the cold air, but now you face lacked any life- void of expression as you stared down the street.  Your body was tensed up and you seemed on high alert, yet at the same time completely unaware of your surroundings.  He’d never seen you like this before, and he never, ever, wanted to see you like this again.

“Y/n?” he called.

No reply.  Just staring.

“Y/n?” he tried again, moving closer to you.  

More staring.

“Sweetheart?” he reached his arm out to rest of your shoulder, and your face immediately snapped towards the intrusion on your personal space.  However, after snaking your gaze upwards to identify the perpetrator, your gaze softened to find the metal head you loved.  

“Oh, hey.”  You muttered, shifting your weight from foot to foot and readjusting your pocketbook onto your shoulder.

“Are you alright?  I just called your name like 3 times, and you didn’t reply.  You were just staring off…” he spoke to you as if you were a frightened deer, and it irritated you.  

“Yea, I was just lost in thought, I guess.  I’ve been a total space cadet lately.”

“That’s okay.  You ready to go?”

“Um yea, I think I better head over alone.  I just…” you began to tear up again.

Dammit.  This is so embarrassing.

The emotions of the onset of memories hit you like a freight train causing you to well up.  Eddie went to speak but you cut him off.

“Don’t.  Just… it’s okay.” You told him, darting off. You pushed past him, but your arm was caught in a steel grip.  In a moment of instinct, Eddie decided he couldn’t let you leave him like this. Not in distress.  Not in tears.  He wouldn’t allow you to be in agony for some unknown reason and let you go through it alone.  He wouldn’t allow you to be in pain and not do something about it.  So, he did the only thing he could think of.  

His arm shot out and grabbed your wrist, twisting your body back around to his before you could take off. He reached his other arm around to your shoulder and brought you into a bone crushing hug.  This hug felt like a thousand’s words, a million kisses, a hundred lifetimes together, all rolled up into one.  If soulmates existed, the power of this hug proved it.  One of his arms wrapped around your middle like he had been so desperate to do in the store and the other held your head to his chest, while both of your arms reached to secure themselves around his torso.

This was the first true physical contact between the two of you in months and it felt like an explosion had gone off in your chests.  There was no space between your bodies, and you both took the moment to soak up each other. There, in the middle of the street, Eddie held you for the first time in a long time, and he consoled you as he should have done that cold November night. That night when you came to him for support and comfort, and he returned your wish with heartbreak and misery for the both of you.

Eddie might be on his second try of senior year, but he is not dumb.  He learns from his mistakes. So, he just held you.  And you didn’t weep like you both thought you would.  The minute you were wrapped in his embrace, the tears dissipated and only warmth remained.  The blanket of warmth that appeared whenever you two were together was now encompassing you both, wrapping around you like the coverings of a mummy- entombing you both in warmth and emotion.  

A few moments passed before the intimacy of the moment became too inappropriate for the open street, where people were walking by.  You felt the action overwhelm you, and you became flustered again.  You muttered a soft “thank you” into the soft of his sweater and you removed yourself from his embrace, making the journey to find Steve- without looking back.  

Eddie watched you walk away until you disappeared down the street and around a corner. But he didn’t feel lonely.  You had left the warm blanket with him, a parting gift.  It hugged him and kept him full of love and hope. Eddie clutched the warm spot on his sweater by his collarbone where your head had heated the fabric up with your breath. A remnant of you.  A reminder that he made progress.  

He smiled to himself, proud at his achievement of not only making physical contact with you but cheering you up from your distressed state and sauntered off to his van- feeling like the king of Hawkins.

________________________________________________________________

The shrill ring of the telephone on your bedside table startled you out of concentration.  You had, only moments before, been deeply engrossed in your book- traveling across seas, battling monsters, and saving the world all within the confines of your mind.  

A thought crossed your mind as you lived vicariously through the protagonist. While most people would never know of fighting monsters besides in books and movies, you knew what it was to battle them in real life.  And reality was much less selfless and courageous as the stories portrayed it to be.  You knew what it was like to fight, not because it was the right thing to do, but because it was the only thing to do.  You’ve been presented situations before in which your only option was to fight or die.  

The sound of the phone pulled you from your intense thoughts, grounding you back in reality. The pink device screamed only a few feet away from you, so you discarded your book on the opposite side of your bed and grabbed the receiver.  

“Hello?” you heard your brother say into the receiver.

“Oh, hey Steve!  It’s Tammy.  Is y/n there?”

“Yea, I’m here Tam.”

“I’ll leave you guys to it then.”  Your brother huffed, the receiver clicking as he hung up his line.

“What’s up Tam?” you questioned, twirling the coiled cord of the phone around your index finger.

“Could you do me a favor?  I’m in a bit of a jam here.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Well, I’m finally going steady with Brad, and he was mentioning how he wanted to go to like a real rager of a New Year’s party. And I was like ‘Well you know I throw one every year right?  Everyone comes to it!’ And he asked me ‘Will there be booze?’ And I was like ‘Um, yea, this is a party not a playdate.’ And he was like ‘Will you have grass?’ And of course I said yes like an idiot knowing damn well I don’t have any grass for the party-“

“Tammy!  Get to the point!” you chuckled as she rambled on in that faux valley girl way of hers.

“Yesh, okay!  Point being, I don’t have Eddie’s number so could you call him up and ask him to come to the party?”

You paused.  

“Y/n?  You there?”

“Yea, I’m here.  I hear you.  May I ask why I can’t just give you his number and you ask him?  It is your party.”

“Let me rephrase.  I don’t want to talk to Eddie after what happened last year. But I’m willing to put it aside because I need grass for Brad.  I need you to ask him for me because he won’t do it if I ask him.”

You rolled your eyes at the thought of the events of last year’s party.  A shiver rolled down your spine as you thought about the feeling of water from your soaked hair rolling down your back- making your shirt stick to your skin- and vomit-soaked carpet underneath your bare feet.  

That was an absolute shit-show.  Never again will I mix beer and vodka.

“What makes you think me asking him will make him do it?”  

“Aren’t you his girlfriend?”

“Tammy, we haven’t been dating for like 2 months now!” 

“Well excuse me!  I have my own things going on, sorry I don’t have time to stalk you!”

“I’m hanging up now Tam.” 

“No, no, no! Okay!  I’m sorry that was like way harsh of me.  But seriously, please?  Can you do this for me?”  

You paused again and sighed into the receiver. You had shifted yourself upside down on your bed, feet resting in the air against your headboard as your hair splayed out around your head at the end of the bed.  You wiggled your toes in contemplation and stared up at your ceiling- finding shapes and patterns on the popcorn ceiling above you.  

“Fine.  But you owe me.”

“Yes!  Thank you so much y/n!  Brad is so gonna have sex with me now!” Tammy gushed as she dragged out the “so” in emphasis.

You gave a hardy laugh at her questionable morals, said goodbye, and hung up the phone.

Suddenly, the aura in your room shifted.  Now, you had a task, and you didn’t know if you had the will power to complete it.  The hour was late, and you were unsure if he would even answer the phone- but in your heart you knew that was just an excuse.  You always used to call Ed’s at this hour and were certain he would answer.

What you were unsure of was if you could handle the intimacy of it.  His gruff late-night voice, the sound of his voice against your ear, the memory of all the nightly phone calls that had come before this one.  

You needed something to anchor you, so you wrapped a quilt around your body, sat up against your headboard, and settled your telephone in front of you. Slowly, you picked up the receiver and let muscle memory take over, using your pointer finger to wind the dial in the order of numbers that you used to every night.

Funny, the first time I work up the nerve to call him is when it’s out of obligation. How disappointing.  

You took deep, steady breathes as the phone rang.

Ring, ring, ring.

Inhale.  Exhale.

Ring, Ring, Ring.

Inhale.  Exhale.

Ring, Ring, - “Hello?”

Your heart pounded so hard you swore Eddie must have been able to hear it through the receiver.  

“Eds?”

It was now his turn to pause.  Eddie couldn’t believe his ears as your voice invaded them.  He must have done something right that day to earn such a karmic reward as this.

“Y/n?”

“Hey there!  Sorry, I know it’s late- “

“No!  You’re fine! What’s up?” he interjected- quick to dispel any worries you had.

“Well, I’d love to say this call is for pleasure, but I’ve been sent here on business.”

“Business?  What kind of business?”

“Your only kind of business Eds.”

His smooth chuckled echoed into the receiver.

“Right.  Stupid question.  So, who needs what and when?”

“Well… you’re not gonna love it…” you trailed off, anxious to ask him the favor.

“Y/n…”

“Dingbat needs you to work her New Years party.”

“What?”

He took a minute to comprehend.  Then he realized, “No!  No way, tell Tammy to find another guy.  Not after last year.”

“Eddie please, I promised her you’d come.”

“Darren can do what exactly what I do.”  

“You know he only does hard shit, and I’m not trying to kill a house full of high schoolers.  Come on, it’ll be different this time!”

“That’s such bullshit y/n and you know it!  I’ll get there, sell for maybe 30 minutes before something goes terribly wrong or somebody starts calling me a freak and tries to kick me out!  It’s not worth the headache.”

You rubbed the skin in the between your eyebrows and slid down to the bridge of your nose, pinching it between your thumb and index to provide relief.

“Eddie I promise you that won’t happen.  I will personally see to it that nobody will bother you.  Andy owes me a favor- he’ll keep an eye on the table!”

“I don’t need a babysitter Y/n.”

You sighed.  “It’s not a babysitter Ed.  It’s backup.”

“Y/n…” Eddie groaned into the receiver.  

“Come on, please?  For me?  Tammy will be a bitch to me all night if you don’t do it.”  You shakily pleaded.  

“Oh, you’re going, too?” 

“Well, yeah.  I wouldn’t be asking you to come to this if I wasn’t going.”

“Fine.”

A pause.

“Wait what? You’ll do it?”

“Yes, but because you want me to do it.  NOT for Dingbat.”

You chuckled, relieved you wouldn’t have to call Tammy back with bad news.

“You are truly a selfless man Eddie.  A saint in your own right.”  

“Yea, yea, keep sweet talking me.  It’s working.  So same time and place as last year?”

“Yep!  God, thank you again Ed’s you’re a life saver.  I did not want to try to find another guy.”

“It’s fine, but you owe me now.  I can cash in one favor at any time I please.”

“Alright, I promise.  Now Tammy can get laid.  Thanks a bunch!”

“Pardon?”

“Yea, don’t think about it too hard.”

________________________________________________________________

The music thumped in time like a jackhammer, slowly splitting Eddies skull in two halves.  

He swore no amount of money was worth working a New Years Eve party, he’d learned a hard lesson last year that involved vomit, a quick brush with the law, and Tammy Thompsons pet rabbit.  Yet, here he was, for the second year in a row, sitting at her laminated mahogany wood dining table with his black, metal lunch box, a solo cup of some drink he had been nursing for the past hour, and a headache to end all headaches.  

Eddie hadn’t been sleeping well lately, his dreams plagued with nightmares of you breaking his heart over and over again, and his late nights seemed to be catching up to him.  

But, he had promised you he’d come.  And a promise to you was like a blood-oath- something he wouldn’t dare to break.

Eddie had been having a pretty successful night, selling more than enough to make up for the pain of being present.  He’d had the pleasure of meeting Brad- a jock type that wore Tammy on his arm like a drunk monkey.  

“See Brad! Grass!  Like I promised!”  Tammy slurred into Brads face- more like smushed into his cheek.  The towering boy eyed Eddie for a moment before reaching in his wallet and asking about prices.  He forked over some cash and pocketed the baggie of blunts.  

Before they could stumble away, Eddie grabbed the neon pink sleeve of Tammy’s blazer, anchoring her for a moment to pose a question.  “Have you seen Y/n yet?”

The fluffy haired blonde flipped her locks over her shoulder as she rolled her eyes curtly.  “No, I haven’t.  She said she’d get here at like 11.”  She stomped off, annoyed to be talking to the metal head.

He gathered his jacket up his arm and peered at his watch, clocking the time at 5 till 11.  You would be joining the party in mere moments, and Eddie felt a flurry of nerves brew in his stomach.  In an attempt to settle his nerves, he knocked back the rest of his drink in one go- only aggravating his headache with the sudden jerk of his head at downing the liquid courage.  

******

Your heart had been racing and your mind reeling all day- anxious to attend the party and see Eddie. You were determined to make a move tonight, to try and bridge the gap between you two and rekindle your romance.

Only one problem. Your nerves got the better of you and you pre-gamed like a maniac at your house with Dina.  So now you stumbled into the threshold of the Thompson residence, arm slung around Dina as Steve herded you both through the door.  

With a staircase to your left and a doorway to the dinning room on your right, your inebriated brain decided to chuck your thick jacket at Steve and ascend the steps, only for Steve to grab you by the waist and hoist you down from the steps- causing a burst of laughter to bubble explosively out of your chest.

“Oh no you don’t. Party is this way.”  Your brother instructed you, lightly guiding you forward through the house to the living room where the party raged on. Dina had long since left your side in search of a drink. Grace Adler made eye contact with Steve, beckoning him towards her with a silent siren’s song.  This left you alone to shift through the crowd in order to find a group to join.

In mid-conversation with Donnie, Eddie halted his sentence in its tracks.  A laugh sliced through the air; one he would recognize anywhere. He turned his head in time to watch as Steve nudged you deeper into the house, just past the wall that obstructed you from his view.  His heart skipped a beat, and quickly restarted as his friend snapped his fingers in front of his face.

“Earth to Eddie, come in Eddie!”  Donnie chuckled.  

Eddie turned his head back to the boy that sat in front of him.

“Y/n just got here.” “I know.  I heard her.  You gonna go see her?”

Eddie picked at the skin on the side of his thumb anxiously- debating his options.

He could either pussy out and avoid you all night in order to not get flustered and say something stupid. Or he could find you and try to win back the girl he loved. The latter was his only option.

*******

The latter proved to be the harder option, but not because he was scared.  He simply couldn’t track you down in the 2-story house filled with seemingly hundreds of kids.  He drifted through the house, feeling like a ghost amongst his peers who would not acknowledge him, being too wrapped up in their own drunken hazes.  

He would spot you in the kitchen, walk towards it, then find the area deserted- only for you to pop up on the living room couch ten minutes later.  You were like a sprite- flittering around the house like you had done in the record store- seemingly everywhere and nowhere all at once.  

In your own mind, you were in deep turmoil.  You yourself couldn’t spot Eddie in the crowd of teenagers, and multiple times that night you had began to believe he wasn’t present.  You would send a little prayer to the universe every so often, wishing he would appear in front of you.  You thought maybe he had decided to stand you up (technically stand Tammy up) and this only drove you to drink and dance harder.  

Eddie made his may back to his lunch box on the dinning room table, about to pack it in for the night and deciding it was not meant to be to see you that night. Somehow, over the booming music and loud conversations, Eddie heard a commotion come down the stairs.  He watched as you descended from the top, trying not to trip over your black kitten heels as you loosely clutched the railing. Your eyes were lazy, and half closed as you swayed from step to step loudly, singing along to the song playing.  

Eddie could sense that it was not a good idea to let you walk down alone, so he raced to the bottom of the step.  His prediction stood correct as you tripped over one of the bottom steps, reaching out to grab the closest thing- Eddies biceps. The boy wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into his chest.  You looked up as the adrenaline from the stumble pumped through your body- a temporary moment of clarity occurring.

“Am I really drunk or are you Eddie?” you slurred out at the beautiful boy in front of you.  Eddie chuckled and held your hips steady, as you swayed in his grasp. “I am Eddie, and you are very drunk sweetheart.”  You giggled and rested your arms on his strong shoulders, draped in his leather jacket.  

“Your always so funny, Teddy.  One of the things I like most about you.”  You tucked a curl behind his ear and trailed your finger down his jaw, neck, collarbones, to settle on his chest.

This took Eddie by surprise. Teddy was a nickname of endearment he hadn’t heard in months, and the sound of it on your lips combined with the feeling of your hands was enough to stir something within his core.  He gapped at you; face flushed.

You looked up to the ceiling and whispered a small thank you with your eyes closed.  Eddie flashed his eyes to the ceiling to try and peer at what you saw, only to eye a cream-colored ceiling.  

Numbers began to be screamed around the pair of your as you clutched onto each other at the bottom on the staircase.  Midnight was approaching and your face was getting frighteningly close to Eddies.

“Y/n, what are you doing?” Eddie demanded as he removed his grip on your waist in favor of one on your cheeks and jawline.    

“I’m gonna kiss you at midnight.” You spoke to him in your drunken stupor as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

As the final countdown began you leaned your face forwards again, determined to complete your plan. However, Eddie had other ideas. He couldn’t let the first time you kiss since the breakup be when you are plastered on a holiday where you are expected to kiss someone.  If this is going to happen again, it will happen privately, a moment solely belonging to the two of you and not the hundreds of strangers surrounding you currently.  

While winding your fingers around his neck, your nose brushed his, and Eddie revealed in the contact. But before your lips could make contact, Eddie maneuvered his thumb to press over your lips just as they came close enough to his own that he could feel your hot, alcohol ridden breath fan over them.  

Ironically, it was the vodka on your breath that sobered Eddie up, pulling him from the moment of ecstasy he lost himself in from your closeness.  He pulled his face back from yours, leaving his thumb against your lips, and moving the other hand to find purchase on your waist again.  Your eyes shot open and welled up, pulling your face back from his own so fast that the movement threw you off balance, causing you to step backwards and catch yourself on the railing that started at the bottom of the stairs.  Eddie stepped forward to catch you and simultaneously cage you, desperate to explain his actions.

He took your face in his hands again and brought his mouth to your ear.  “The next time we kiss, I want us to both be sober for it.”  He brought his face around to ghost his lips across yours once more, muttering a final sentiment that surely would have brought you to your knees if you weren’t gripping the handrail.  

It’s a shame you were too drunk to hear what he said.

The alcohol in your system, the music and shouting in your ears, and the feeling of Eddies hands on you were so all encompassing and overwhelming, that you simply didn’t process what he had said.  All you could comprehend was that you tried to kiss Eddie, and he stopped you.  And you couldn’t hear his words over the blood pumping in your ears, but it sure felt like he was making fun of you for it now.

Oh god.  What have I done.  I’m so dumb.  So very, fucking dumb.

You pushed your way out of his embrace and staggered to the front door only a few feet away.  Eddie let you, hoping the moment of separation would allow you to think.  He went back to the table- maneuvering around the bodies of kissing teenagers- to grab his lunchbox and hopefully meet up with you outside.  

The night air you stepped out into only further added to the feeling of drowning that was swelling up in your throat.  The few tears that blurred your vision burned in the crisp air- yet you managed to not fall down the porch steps and trudge your way to where your foggy memory recalled Steve had parked.  

Steve had already been in the car for 20 minutes.  His desire to socialize had disappeared around a quarter to 12 o’clock, right along with the girl he had been chatting up who suddenly “needed a smoke break” and did not want company.  

You fell into the passenger seat and the warmth of the car enveloped you like a warm hug.  You haphazardly shut the door, not caring to check if it had closed all the way, before turning your tear-streaked face to gaze at your equally drained brother.

“Home?” he pleaded.

“Home.” You agreed.  

Eddie stood on the dark porch steps and watched as Steve’s car pulled out of it’s parking spot on the grass and barreled down the street.  It seemed the Harrington's could not get away from the Thompson residence fast enough, and a horrible feeling of dread filled Eddie.

Shit.

this just unlocked something truly feral in me

I haven't posted an edit in forever. I hope you all like this one.

PLEASE

being insane about your own fics is so embarrassing like i want to scream and cry and shout about them but it’s like. my own guys.

About You

(Late January 1985) Chapter 4: The Rift 

Eddie Munson x female!harrington!reader 

Chapter Summary: After the events of the New Years party, you are actively avoiding Eddie. Will you relent and work through this miscommunication? 

Word Count: 4 k

series masterlist here 

Chapter warnings: fluffy activities with Eleven(sister behavior), unwanted flirting, slight angst, slight bullying, annoying principles 

Keep reading

So I added some OC’s into the ST universe for About You and I thought I’d share them a bit.  

Darren: Heath Ledger   Donnie:  Dana Ashbrook Mrs. Woodhouse: Meryl Streep Dina: Salma Hayek Mabel: Alicia Silverstone Andy: Rob Lowe Denis: Jared Padelecki (re-casted) Tammy: Sheryl Lee

All these characters are like the young versions of them like Mabel is Alicia like Clueless era obliviously and like Jared Padalecki is like early Gilmore Girls era. I re casted Tammy because I’ve been watching Twin Peaks and I just watched Fire Walk With Me and I feel like Sheryl Lee (Laura Palmer) could be a really good like bitchy girl fit for Tammy.  

And the title About You is inspired by the song by the 1975.  That song has been on my spotify repeat playlist for like months now and I can’t get enough of it.  I listen to it all the time and daydream about this story line. Maladaptive daydreamers unite.