Penny For Your Thoughts - Summer Of '89 (young Parents!Eddie Munson X Fem!reader)

Penny for Your Thoughts - Summer of '89 (young parents!Eddie munson x fem!reader)

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author notes: i should be working on my series, but every time i think about it’s timeline, i end up wanting to post about that specific thing, so here’s a little bit of eddie munson x fem!reader as the young parents i constantly think of them as. it’s gotten worse with all those eddie look alikes with babies pics going around. oh, and reader and eddie eloped on graduation night like i know we ALL would have done. Technically part of the CYM verse but can be read out of it. Can't put a read more thing because Tumblr won't let me, sorry. reader is 22 and Eddie is 23.

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You were on the edge of a nap, not quite out of it but not quite present. An American Tail was playing in the background, but the noise grew further and further away from your subconscious. Until you felt a sudden blunt, rough jab against your closed eye. That definitely brought you back.

You groaned, a hand reaching up to press and rub against your eye as you heard a quiet chuckle from the right of you. Once the pain had subsided, you tried your hardest to glare at your husband. It was more of a squint than anything. He didn’t even attempt to hide his smirk from his place, sat man-spread on the couch with his arms over the top cushions. “I thought about stopping her, but she looked too cute concentrating like that.”

Your gaze shifted towards the culprit, curled up nearly on top of your side. Your daughter grinned at you, displaying her tiny little teeth. Staring up at you with her father’s big brown, Bambi like eyes, and a wild head of curls that looked to be a mix of both of her parents’, it was obvious she was unapologetic and satisfied with herself for abruptly coaxing you from what was promising to be a nice nap. You had been spread out on the floor in front of the tv, playing with your daughter whenever she grew bored of the cartoon displayed before her. Eddie had been tuning his guitar before she’d woken up from her nap, and had switched to simply observing you two. Eventually, the movie had gained her attention, and you had decided it was your turn for a nap but apparently not. “Penny, ow.” You frowned at her gently. You weren’t big on punishing her because she was a pretty good kid, but she’d just entered the terrible two’s and you were hoping to put off the terrible for as long as you could by encouraging her to recognize good and bad.

“Mama ow?” She repeated, voice full of innocence and surprise, because obviously your baby hadn’t intentionally meant to hurt you. Once you nodded, still faking a frown, she made a face of her own—you loved how expressive she was, definitely something she got from Eddie—and moved further up your body until she was eye level with you.

You could immediately tell what her intentions were, so your eye shut to prepare for the kiss she pressed to it. “Mwah! No ow!”

“Thank you, Penny!” You cooed, pressing kisses into her round, chubby little face. “Awe, my girls! Love it when they kiss and makeup.” Came your husband’s responding coo. You blew him a kiss from your place on the carpet, fingers stroking over Penny’s curls. “Thanks for no help.”

“Hey—I warned you she’d have me wrapped around her drool covered fingers. Besides, I couldn’t have got to her in time.” He made no move to join you on the ground, too taken with watching you interact with the literal proof of your love for each other.

Two whole years later, and he was still often left stupefied as he watched you with her, completely in love with how she was a perfect mixture of you both, so much that it was difficult for most people to decide on who she looked like most. If people saw her with just Eddie, she looked like his little twin, albeit with a little more saturation and curls much more voluminous than his, and if they saw her with you, she looked like your Mini Me, with a lower saturation.

That’s how Eddie saw her. You’d argue that her facial expressions imitated his, but all he saw was the same cute little nose crinkle that had been his doom when he’d first met you, peering up at him.

Penny had his eyes, there was no denying that. Now that he was a victim to your daughter’s puppy dog stare, he often liked to wonder about how much you had allowed him to get away with because of his own. His kid was using his own tricks against him.

“She’s a girl on a mission,” You muse, your attention returning to the two year old in question, but it wasn’t your attention she had wanted in the first place this time.

Penny’s stare was focused on the area of your body she’d previously been resting against. And then like a snake, she struck. She dove for your covered boob, mouthing at it so aggressively you couldn’t do anything but burst out laughing. Eddie quickly joined you, hand forming a fist to press against his mouth as he shook with it. Penny had been clingier than ever since you had slowly, but surely, started to ween her off your breasts; however, what with being a baby and all, she still lacked the impulse control to keep her desperation at bay. “Oh, yeah.” Eddie’s chest puffed out once you’d both calmed down, and you had caved to your daughter’s demands, lifting your shirt over your boob so she could nurse. Penny seemed so pleased with herself for amusing her daddy because she also couldn’t stop bobbing around while she was attached to you. “That’s my baby girl.” You rolled your eyes affectionally, turning your head to stare at him while she played more with your nipple than nursed. You were hoping if you stayed relax, she somehow wouldn’t remember she had teeth. “You know, this is all your fault. You’re always going on and on about how you were the main ingredient for her recipe, but I’m the one she gnaws on. It’s not fair.”

“I agree,” he snorted. “It should be me gnawing on your tit.”

“Eddie!”

“What?” He laughed out, his pretty eyes getting all squinty as he stayed fixated on you with a look no short of adoration slapped on his face. “It’s true! I can barely get to second base ‘cause she always leaves your nipples sore. I love her so much, and I’ll let her twist my nipples off,” Penny had decided that was what they were best for once she realized she couldn’t get anything from them like she could yours after a few misguided attempts, “when we’re cuddling before bedtime, but she refuses to share you. And all I get to do is sit back and watch her have fun.”

That wasn’t entirely the truth, while the green eyed monster did flare its head for about .1% of the time he spent watching you take care of her and nurse her, the other 99.9% felt absolutely primal. It was crude, but the reality of it was Penny had originally been a creampie, just with a surprise in it. You’d both been stunned when you learned you were pregnant, though he had suspected it due to a few subtle changes in your behavior. It wasn’t something you really panicked over, it was just that something was. . .well, it just was.

It also helped that all he wanted out of life was to be happy with you and by the grace of some God, you shared that desire. So, Penny had come to fruition. And just like when he’d met you, Eddie found himself discovering another thing he wasn’t sure how he had lived so long without. Fatherhood.

No gig, no high, nothing would ever compare to that immense pride, that absolute satisfaction that coursed through him as he watched you hold her tiny little body against your bare chest in that hospital room for the first time before she’d been whisked away to the NICU.

“She has been clingy,” You agreed, eyes glazing over as you recall the last time you and Eddie were able to completely ravage each other and not just fuck whenever you could. It had been like four days ago, but that was still too long. “But.”

Eddie’s head tilted, his stare darkening as he waited patiently for you to continue.

“But, but, but. Since she hasn’t had as many opportunities, I’m not all that sore and tired anymore.”

Eddie sprang up from his place on the couch, plucking Penny right off your boob. It was obvious even to him that she was just playing with it at that point, and it was time he had his turn. “C’mon, little bitty pretty one, Uncle Dustin and Uncle Steve want to babysit you for an unforeseeable amount of time today.”

Algiz: Protection ~ Professor! Oscar Isaac x Reader

Summary: Everyone knew loving your teacher was wrong, but what happens when that teacher is your soulmate, your one true love, the person created for you. Your forever, eventually at least.

Pairing: Oscar Isaac x Redar

Tags: Professor au! Age Gap, Professor/Student

Warnings: Age Gap, Professor/Student, fluff, weak angst, eventual smut

This series will post every Wednesday until completed

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Join the series taglist here!

Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3 || Part 4 || Part 5 || Part 6 ||

dead channels

Eddie Munson x Reader

Summary: Eddie finds dead channels on a walkie-talkie to vent about his feelings and everything he goes through. One day, you happen to stumble upon his frequency.

A/N: I can't remember where I saw a prompt like this, but I knew that I had to write something about it. I think it's important to say that I know very little about how walkie-talkies work. And yes I went way overboard with this story but I truly loved how it turned out; it's a big one, the biggest one shot I've ever written, but I promise, it's worth it.

Word count: 11k

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February 7, 1985

You were annoyed, and Dustin would hear about it for giving you a walkie-talkie without telling you what channel you were supposed to be using.

You paced in your living room, switching the frequencies, finding dead channel after dead channel. For ten minutes the only noise coming from the device in your hands was static.

Until you turned the switch one more time, and the static stopped. You clenched your fist in victory, sitting down on your couch and about to voice your frustrations to your younger friend.

"… I hadn't seen him in four years, man."

To your surprise though, someone on the other end of the connection spoke first.

A deep frown etched itself into your face when you heard the muffled voice. It wasn't one you could recognize, clearly not Dustin's. The words were laced with a distant sizzle, maybe because the person talking was too far from your location or the walkie they were using was too beat up. The tone was quiet too as if spoken without the intention of anyone hearing it.

Against your better judgment and with the help of innocent curiosity, you didn't switch channels.

"I don't know what I was expecting. Shit, I shouldn't have been expecting anything. Uncle Wayne was furious when he walked in on us and saw my bloody nose, he chased him off, yelling for him to never come back, not even caring what he needed the money for. I- I wanted to say something too but… Damnit.."

You heard what you assumed was a sniff before the stranger kept on talking.

"Dad did always make it clear that I was his biggest mistake, guess I just wasn't expecting him to come back and throw it at my face after all these years. Again."

The words were a private confession you weren't supposed to hear. There was no answer for the muffled voice. This person was using what he thought was a long-forgotten channel as some sort of diary, maybe. At least that was your first assumption.

You ran a thumb over the grey plastic of the walkie-talkie on your hands, finger hovering above the switch. Your knee bumping up and down. Should you say something? Should you change frequencies and forget this ever happened?

You changed channels, but not before memorizing the frequency.

February 19, 1985

Almost two weeks went by before you heard the lonely voice on the dead channel again. You told yourself it wasn't creepy to set your walkie-talkie to the channel when you weren't using it.

You stood in front of your kitchen counter, cutting up potatoes for your dinner. The chicken was already heating up and you sneaked tiny pieces of it to your dog when your mom wasn't looking.

The walkie rested on the dining table, you liked to keep it close these days. One never knows when the upside-down might decide to pay a visit.

"So uh, Hellfire has a new member."

You nearly cut your own finger when the static buzzed and, right after, the stranger's voice was invading your house. You turned around, carefully, as if the person knew you were listening in.

"His name's Gareth, seems like a cool guy. Honestly, I'm just happy that we now have enough people for a full campaign, I- I have all of it planned out and I think it's gonna be great, the storyline is thrilling…"

Subconsciously, you found yourself smiling. The kitchen was empty, save for your dog wagging his tail, and you were smiling as if someone had just told you the good news you were waiting for.

You didn't know this person, this was the second time you were hearing his voice, yet the almost childlike excitement that laced his tone today filled your chest with similar joy. A stark contrast to the last time you heard him.

Was it too weird to feel like you were starting to know him?

February 20, 1985

It didn't take long for you to hear from him again, not even a full day had gone by.

You had just gotten home. Throwing your car keys on top of your bed and removing your coat. On the horizon and past houses and trees, the sun was starting to lower itself, you looked at the orange rays through your window, stretching your arms.

You were rummaging through your wardrobe in search of pajamas when you heard it.

"I fucking… this school, man… Jaso-… ruined my da-"

The voice was laced with static and fading in and out of connection, the sound muffled by your backpack. You were in the process of removing your shirt as you raced towards your bag, almost tripping over your discarded sneakers.

Pulling open the zipper, you snatched the walkie and adjusted the antenna.

"… been working on that campaign for weeks man, weeks, and that douchebag just… He- he…"

You sat down on the floor of your bedroom, in nothing but your jeans and a bra; the tone of his voice slicing through your heart and making it bleed. Your eyes were unfocused as you loosely held the device, waiting for the lonely voice.

"Ripped it to pieces and threw it in the mud as if it was nothing. It's not fair. Shit, it's not fair, and I- I wanted to fight back y'know? But…"

You heard a sigh, heavy and tired.

"Yeah I froze, it's not like three against one would be much of a fight anyway."

The static came and the voice was gone. You stayed there, the wooden floor starting to become cold under your knees. Your eyebrows pulled slowly into a frown. Does this person study at Hawkins High? It's not like Hawkins had many options regarding school but still, it left you all the more frustrated that you couldn't pinpoint who it was.

Granted, your only normal year in high school was the first, and you didn't remember much about it. After that, Will went missing, and… Your mind had been a bit numb to the normal days ever since, you wouldn't be surprised if this person was a classmate of yours.

Abril 29, 1985

After a couple of months, you genuinely felt as if you knew this person.

It was odd if you so much as stopped to think about it. He opened his heart to what he thought was an abandoned channel, yet you were always there, listening; but never talking back. You knew his voice by memory, yet he didn't even know there was someone on the other end.

Sometimes — most of the time — there was a pang of nagging guilt at the back of your mind. But you'd usually think to yourself; what if, someday, something happens and he needs someone?

Well, you'd most likely be there, and if anything, the thought made you feel a little better about your curiosity.

The lonely boy on the walkie-talkie became your secret. A secret, for the sole reason, that he also became your comfort. These days your house was mostly always empty. You slept with the device resting on your bedside table. If you closed your eyes forcefully enough, you could almost feel as if he was there with you. He became a constant presence in your day, even when he didn't speak, you knew he was there. Knowing there was someone else out there made you feel less alone.

Sometimes, when the sizzled voice coming from the device was too shaky, laced with tears and sorrow; the guilt made itself more present, you wished you had the courage to speak up. To tell him that you were there too, that you could be there for him if he wanted you to, the same way he involuntarily was there for you.

After a long Thursday, you were sleeping, the rain outside had lulled you to an easy slumber tonight. However, when your bedside clock hit 2:08 AM, a distant voice started pulling you away from dreamland.

The sound was distant to your ears at first, waiting for your body to fully wake up. You opened your drowsy eyes with a frown, looking around your bedroom that was still engulfed in darkness, with only the street lamps making the raindrops on your window shine.

And then you heard the familiar voice again, quiet, molding itself into the night.

Maybe it was a bit foolish of you to leave the walkie on during the night, but these days, you couldn't help yourself.

"… and Wayne found a picture of my mom. He says I have her eyes."

He continued, apparently. You pushed yourself up with your elbows, the covers pooling at your waist. You wondered how much of his monologue you had missed.

"I don't…"

The tears staining his voice were pretty noticeable tonight.

"I don't remember her that well anymore, I wish we'd had more time… Shit."

And that was all. Static, and then he was gone again. It was fast, part of you wishing you hadn't slept at all.

July 4, 1985

You took a deep breath in, bracing yourself for the pain. With one hand grabbing onto the bathroom sink, you draped the antiseptic-covered cloth against the wound in your abdomen.

The paramedics at the mall did a good enough job, but some cuts still needed a bit more attention.

It had been one hell of a week and you barely had time to breathe between being trapped in a Russian elevator, finding a Russian base, being drugged and tortured by said Russians, and for the cherry on top, fighting a human flesh-based giant monster.

You were heavily considering a vacation from Hawkins.

Biting into your lip, you carefully closed the bandage over the wound. The white sink of your bathroom was covered in blood, as were the tip of your fingers and parts of your clothes. Tonight, you thanked the heavens for your mother's busy schedule, providing you with an empty house and plenty of time to clean up the mess.

Steve, the ever-sweet boy, offered to stay with you and help with… whatever you might need. You said you were fine, which, was a lie, but he had enough pain of his own to take care of.

You discarded your shirt to the bathroom floor, looking at your exposed skin in the mirror with a grimace. Long sleeves and sunglasses would be your go-to for a while if you wanted to avoid questions. You were popping open the buttons of your jeans when the crackle and static of the walkie-talkie made you jump. The warm voice of the stranger buzzed through right after.

"Starcourt just burst into flames."

You placed a hand over your racing heart, tightly shutting your eyes before reaching out for the walkie that rested against the tub.

"Yeah it's- it's crazy, the new town mall just burned to a crisp, at least that's what the news is saying. But I don't know man, I was making a deal near there when I heard the ambulances, there were so many of them; I mean, they said a lot of people died, so…"

You sat down on the edge of the tub, holding the walkie tightly between your hands as you listened intently.

"But still, I walked up to see what was happening and the place was filled with cops, army even, and well, ambulances. I had never seen something like that. And the weird thing is that there were some people from school there, Harrington for one, I also saw some kids from middle school and… Y/N was there…"

A chill ran up and down your spine when you heard him say your name. This person, the one you've been listening to in what was supposed to be a dead channel, the one who chased away the cold feeling of loneliness; knew you. Your lips hung open in shock, he said your name with such ease. He saw you there, he recognized you from a distance and under the blinking lights of the ambulances. Your chest constricted around your heart, squeezing tightly up towards your throat. You wanted to know him too.

You felt guilty for not being able to pinpoint who he was. Okay, the sound of a voice through a walkie-talkie is not the best or clearest. Still, if he knew you so easily, he definitely went to the same school as you, had the same classes, walked the same hallways.

Raising a hand, you rubbed your eyes and clawed at your hair. Urging yourself to think of someone, anyone.

"She- I saw her, she was sitting by herself in the back of an ambulance and I think she was crying. I'm not sure but, she looked so beat up, and- and hurt and I was walking, I mean, I was going to walk up to her to see if she was okay but a cop didn't let me. Maybe for the best, would just end up scaring her more I guess. To be honest, I don't know why I'm talking about it, I just felt like… Nevermind."

Scare you?

Your unfocused eyes stared ahead for long seconds. The cold from the tiles seeping through your body because of your bare feet.

One person came to your mind.

You hugged yourself, arm closing around your abdomen, feeling the cold, bruised skin underneath.

You thought of soft and unruly brown curls, tattoos, metal band t-shirts, and leather jackets.

You had never talked with him, shared maybe one class, literature; he rarely said anything then too. You passed by each other in the hallways, and you once caught him watching you in the cafeteria, he had been so flustered when it happened that you found it adorable. You then started shooting him small smiles here and there, and he reciprocated with big ones of his own.

Robin told you about him once. The School's Freak, she said people called him.

______

There was no way for you to be completely sure it was him, it's not like you could walk up to him one day and ask about it.

But you did start paying more attention to him, Eddie. It was hard when you only had him in the same class as yours one time, and other than that, only bumping into each other in the hallways didn't leave much room to observe.

You could walk up to him and talk, he seemed sweet. You didn't have all that courage yet though.

So you kept on listening, and your eyes kept on searching for him in the crowds. A few months went by like that, and you grew attached to someone you had never talked to.

December 6, 1985

Cold wind was raging outside and you were glad to have a working heater in your house. No amount of it felt enough though, as you sat on the carpet in front of the lit fireplace.

Your dog lay beside you, as you annoyed yourself by trying to set up the Christmas tree; it was a bit too big for the flower pot you had at home.

Slowly letting go of the branches, you said a quiet "yes" when the tree didn't topple over.

You started with putting on the blinking lights, turning them on to bathe the room in a multitude of colors. And as you rummaged through the trinkets, your ears caught in with the familiar static;

"So, I felt like setting up a Christmas tree this year. It's in the kitchen and it's not big, but it's there. I- I even bought some lights and there were some ornaments tucked away in a box that I found…"

The walkie was resting on top of your couch and you found yourself yet again smiling alone because of the pure happiness that came from your unusual companion.

"Christmas was never a very… happy holiday for me but, maybe this year will be better."

"I hope it is." You caught yourself answering back quietly, for no one to hear.

January 3, 1986

Winters could be pretty harsh on Hawkins. The break was over and it just so happened to be pouring rain on the first day back to school.

The skies were grey, heavy drops of water hitting the pavement as you turned the wheel into the parking lot. Of course, it was packed with cars, no one wanted to walk when it was raining.

You groaned as you pulled up in one of the farthest spots from school. Closing the zipper of your jacket, you grabbed your backpack and a small yellow umbrella you always had in your car.

The little thing didn't do all that much in keeping the rain from reaching you, with help from the wind, the only part of your body you managed to keep dry was your head. With one hand holding the umbrella and the other a strap of your bag, you took quick steps towards the school; walking forward with purpose when actually you should be paying attention to the puddles and many leaves the wind knocked down last night.

Water splashed around your boots, but before you could even get annoyed at that, your foot was slipping on brown leaves; the motion sent you falling back and you could only think of your backpack being submerged in the puddle.

It never happened though. You closed your eyes bracing for the impact, and instead felt two arms around your waist, your back hitting someone's chest instead.

"Woah hey, careful. That would've been a disaster."

You clutched your sorry excuse of an umbrella, slowly standing up and removing yourself from the embrace that caught you. His voice reverberated through your body in the form of a shiver, making your heart pump blood faster. The tight grip you had on the umbrella was mimicked from the one in your lungs. You couldn't breathe, because you knew that voice.

Turning around, you met the chocolate brown eyes you had been secretly wanting to see this up close for months now.

Eddie looked down at you with the ghost of a smile, he wore a black hoodie to protect himself from the rain; still, some droplets of water clung to his hair and eyelashes, shining.

And your silence must have sent him the wrong message because he stuffed his hands in the hoodie's pocket and took a few steps away from you.

He cleared his throat, eyes moving to look at something over your shoulder. "Yeah, sorry. I just didn't want you to fall, didn't mean to overstep or anything."

You internally kicked yourself multiple times for being a weirdo. "No, you didn't overstep, at all. uh- thank you." You breathed, managing a reassuring smile. "Really, you saved me from a massive embarrassment and from being cold all day."

You quickly maneuvered your umbrella to cover both of you, moving to stand beside Eddie. "Come on, let's get out of this rain."

Eddie's cheeks flushed pink at the unusual kindness. He walked side by side with you, bodies close under the yellow umbrella. Butterflies fluttered inside his stomach because he finally talked to the girl who held his heart's affection.

Once inside the school, Eddie headed to his art class whilst you walked to your science one. He waved a shy goodbye at you and that was it.

Even if you tried, you couldn't possibly concentrate on what the teacher was saying or the notes you were supposed to be taking. Eddie Munson was the lonely stranger who had been keeping you company over the last year. Seeing the clear picture now, you were frustrated for not putting two and two together sooner.

You were fidgeting with the pencil on your hands, biting your tongue until you almost tasted blood because now the person who spoke over the static of the walkie was suddenly so real, so tangible. And if anything, knowing it was Eddie only made your heart swell harder for him.

January 23, 1986

Friday nights were your nights, the time you always gave yourself to simply relax. You'd pick up a movie at Family Video, taking the opportunity to hang out with Robin and Steve at their new place of work for a while; then get home and change into your most comfortable pajamas, make some popcorn, and lunge on the couch. Just as you are now.

You lazily stroked your dog's fur, who was passed out beside you. The lights were off and the only thing illuminating your face where the images on the TV.

Last time you checked it was around 8 PM, but after a long week, your eyes slowly started to drop with tiredness. That is until the walkie-talkie inside your backpack started buzzing with the familiar static, and you were suddenly more awake than ever.

You scrambled to grab it, quickly raising the antenna before throwing yourself onto the couch again. You lowered the volume of the TV, waiting.

You heard a pained grunt first and then;

"Jesus man, they got me good today. Ugh shit- I feel like a truck ran me over or something."

Concern etched itself into your face instantly, you grabbed your blanket closer to yourself, praying for some kind of elaboration from Eddie.

Eddie. It still felt so foreign to have a name for the lonely voice now.

"I should- I should be used to it by now but… I just want it to stop. Whatever man, I'll just strap a band-aid to it and sleep it off."

"No, no, no. Don't do that." You mumbled to yourself. You ran a hand through your hair, stomach twisting in anxiousness. Running over every possible scenario in your head, even with most of them Eddie hating you in the end, you decided that you wouldn't leave him alone today.

You took a deep breath, bracing yourself for what you were about to do, crossing your fingers for it to not be a mistake.

You pushed the button on the walkie. "You should clean the cut first."

Silence, there was silence for a long time. His voice was smaller when he spoke again, hesitant.

"I- I'm sorry I thought this was a dead channel… No one ever answered, I'm- I didn't mean to.."

"It's okay," you closed your eyes, interrupting him. "It was a dead channel, I think; I just stumbled upon it a while ago — not long, promise — and I heard you, and, I don't know it felt like you could use some company I guess. But then, I- I never really said anything."

You bit your lip, nerves making you tap your knee incessantly. "I sort of just, hung around in case you… I wasn't listening like a creep or something just- I'll switch channels in a minute okay? I just need to know, are you hurt?"

You let go of the button and groaned audibly, facepalming because of your own words.

"A little, yeah."

His quiet voice was a relief, part of you expected him to leave you hanging. You leaned back on your couch. "Okay, uh listen, if it's a cut, you need to clean it up, if you don't have antiseptics just use water. And if it's just a small one, it's best to leave it open, so it can heal on its own."

"You have a lot of experience with this stuff?"

You smiled. "Yeah, you could say that."

Eddie was surprisingly chill about your whole predicament. You walked him through patching himself up. From what he told you it wasn't that bad, just a few punches here and there that would leave him sore for a few days. It still made you feel sick to your stomach though.

Talking with him was easy, the way his voice addressed you made you smile. About an hour had passed when you deemed he was taken care of.

"Hey, I'm sorry for never telling you there was someone else on this channel. It was a shitty move, I just never managed the courage to speak up I guess." You told him before ending the call. "But I promise I'll never switch to it again."

You held the walkie between both your hands, the movie on your TV had long since been over.

"It's okay. Anyone could've found this random frequency, I'm glad it was you. I uh- usually change them, from time to time. But this one was always silent, so I figured I'd stay."

Picking at a loose strand from your blanket, you pressed the button again. "I'm sorry." You mumbled again. "It was never my intention to intrude. Just so you know, I wasn't always listening, to you, I mean… Sometimes it happened but, like I said I thought that maybe one day you might need someone to talk to or something."

Eddie must have heard the worry in your tone because his next words calmed you;

"You don't need to apologize, it's okay. To be honest I don't know why I started doing… this. I guess I just wanted to pretend like someone cared to listen to my whining. It feels- it feels nice to hear a voice answering back for a change. You don't need to leave."

And so you stayed.

______

The routine that you both created was different, to say the least. You didn't realize how much you were dreading having to leave his channel on the walkie until he said you could stay and you felt the weight being lifted from your shoulders.

Now, you were actually talking to each other. You felt like a thirteen-year-old with her first crush each time you heard Eddie's shy voice calling out for you over the walkie-talkie. He was always hesitant, always a bit too quiet in the beginning. But he seemed to enjoy the company just as much as you did.

You saw him at school every day, sharing nothing more than a few 'good mornings' here and there. Maybe he knew it was you who he talked to on the supposedly dead channel. Maybe he suspected it could be you, just like you did in the beginning. Either way, he never asked.

And you didn't either. It was a silent mutual understanding that names didn't need to be exchanged. You knew he felt more comfortable this way, after all, he was sharing his heart out with what he thought was no one before you spoke up.

You let Eddie set the pace, this was his safe space. When he felt ready to talk in person or ask about you, you'd be there.

February 4, 1986

"Come on guys it's no fun if you just stay sitting there," Max complained, before dropping her skate to the ground and making her way to the ramps.

You and Steve sat on a blanket under a big willow tree, one of the few shadows surrounding the skate park. The day was sunny and the place was filled with teens.

"Alright, I think I'll go then." Steve got up, stretching his limbs and picking up the rollerblades. "You coming?" He turned to you.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a minute." You smiled at him. He shot you a smile back before making his way to the cement slopes in the park.

You closed your eyes, breathing in the fresh air of the trees around you.

"Hey, um, you- you there?"

Hearing the sizzled voice coming from the walkie near your backpack, you stretched an arm to grab it; pulling the antenna up and pressing the button. "Hi, yeah, I'm here."

"Cool, is this like, a good time, am I interrupting something?"

You smiled with Eddie's voice, your eyes following Steve's wobbly movements on his rollerblades. You laughed when Max had to rush to him so he wouldn't fall.

"No, it's perfect," You told Eddie.

That was the day you held your first normal conversation with him. He had called just for that, to talk; and your heart just about melted. You told him where you were, told him how a friend of yours was kinda bad at skating and the younger one was a pro. And Eddie told you about going to lunch with his uncle, how the man sometimes was the dad he never had.

March 12, 1986

"And then he just ran over the living room, dragging mud everywhere. God, I was so mad." You giggled, laying down on your bed and holding the walkie over the pillow next to yours.

A soft static came and Eddie's voice followed. You heard his laugh first, making your smile widen.

"I can imagine the mess. But it's so cool that you have a dog, man. I've always wanted a cat, or a dog too."

You turned around, eyes fixed on the pillow beside you, a tiny part of you hoped to see Eddie staring back at you. Outside your window, you caught a glimpse of the evening sun, orange and pink rays announcing its departure for the day. "Yeah, he's good company. Makes me laugh even if I get mad first."

Silence followed after. You closed your eyes, conjuring up an image of Eddie raking his mind over what to say next. It was cheesy. You didn't care.

"You know, I- I've been learning a new song, I play guitar, and I've been learning this new song. It's pretty sick, it's not perfect yet but… Do you- do you wanna hear it?"

You pushed yourself up on your elbows, breathing out a chuckle. Your heartbeat was drumming against your ribcage, happy that he was slowly becoming comfortable enough to share more things with you. "I would love to."

"Okay, here goes…"

You could hear the smile on his words, and as he started strumming the cords on his guitar, you decided that you loved hearing him play.

March 22, 1986

You'd never wanted this to be the way for you to see him again.

After calling a bunch of people and searching up every Rick in town just to find Eddie, then finally getting a hold of him in a secluded house at Lover's Lake and sort of filling him in about what was potentially happening; your friends were now deciding how to continue.

"Are we just gonna leave him here?"

"I mean it's not like we can walk around town with him."

"Then we can, I don't know, stop at a market by morning and bring him some food."

Dustin, Steve, and Robin talked amongst themselves, their faces illuminated by flashlights and the moonlight seeping through the shack's windows. You were leaning against the iron wall in the far corner, gaze trained on the swaying boat but not really focused.

To put it lightly, things went to shit. The upside-down was showing its claws again, but your main concern is that Eddie was being accused of murder.

Slowly, your gaze found him, and the mere sight tore your heart into two. He was slumped down in the opposite corner of the small shack, hugging his knees to his chest and shaking violently; his cheeks had tear tracks on them, no doubt his mind was reliving what he went through.

You wanted to go to him. Hug him close and tell him everything would be okay. But things weren't so simple. Until now, you still hadn't spoken to him in person again. You didn't know where boundaries started or ended.

"Okay, it's settled then." Steve decided. "Hey man, we're gonna bring you something to eat by morning yeah? Until then just… Try and get some rest." He addressed Eddie, who could only look at him.

One by one, your friends exited the fishing shack, walking out into the night, your gaze switched between the door and Eddie's small figure against the wall. You took slow steps to the door but stopped by the threshold.

"Steve," you called for your friend, hand resting on the doorway, "I think I'm gonna stay too, it's not good for him to be alone."

Steve walked back to you with a frown, his sneakers crushing the leaves underneath. "Are you sure?"

You nodded, reaching out a hand to squeeze his. "Yeah it's alright, I don't want him alone."

The look in your eyes didn't leave much room to argue. Steve left with a reassuring smile and the promise of food by morning.

As the car sped off in the distance, you closed the door behind you and turned to Eddie. He hadn't moved, his eyes were clouded with dread.

You took careful steps towards him, wincing at how the old wooden floor screeched beneath your feet. You moved to sit down in front of him, leaning your back on some wooden crates.

"You didn't have to stay." Eddie forced out, with a quiet tone that broke in the middle. His gentle brown eyes were glistening under the fading moonlight.

Gulping down a lump in your throat, you managed a smile. "I wanted to."

Eddie's gaze drifted from yours, the curl on his lips was bittersweet. "It's you, isn't it? Who- who I've been talking to."

You could hear your own heartbeat. "Yeah." You breathed out.

Eddie bounced once in his seat, leaning forward with a real smile. "I knew it!"

His excitement made you chuckle. You thought about how this would happen, you never imagined it this way though. Yet somehow, sitting with him in an old fishing shack in the dead of night while hiding from authorities, felt weirdly right.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything before, I just didn't want to…" You trailed off.

"Mess it up?" Eddie finished for you and you nodded.

He picked at a loose thread on the rip of his jeans. "Yeah, me neither. I mean, I had a feeling, that it was you, I thought your voice was familiar but… I never had the balls to ask."

Eddie looked up at you then, pupils blown as he took you in. You, the person who became his safe space. The one who could take his breath away with just a simple 'hello'.

Since the first time you shot him a dazzling smile at school his heart had been entranced with you. People rarely spared him the time of day, yet you graced him with a genuine smile every day. And Eddie wholeheartedly meant it the day he said he was glad it was you who found his channel on the walkie.

Back then he didn't know how much he was hurting, aching for someone that would care about him, about listening to him. And that day, when your voice came through the once dead channel, his lungs took a deep breath of fresh air after weeks, months of drowning in murky waters, alone.

Eddie counted the minutes to your conversations each day, it was the best part of his day, the one he looked forward to the most. Talking with you was easy, he became addicted fast, and fell even faster.

You decided that it wouldn't be a problem for you both to sleep inside Rick's house, it's not like anyone would come looking, and sleeping on hard wood or inside a boat was less than ideal.

The house was a mess inside, looking like it had been abandoned for some time. Dust covered the surfaces, most things being out of place and haphazardly thrown around. You searched around for rooms with Eddie close behind you.

There were two bedrooms, you stood in the hallway between both doors. "I can take this one and you take the other?" You pointed to one of the rooms.

Eddie nodded hesitantly, he was fidgeting with his rings, uneasy. You could tell something was bothering him, and you had a feeling about what it was. "Or, we could just take the same room."

"Yeah," Eddie let out a relieved sigh instantly, "please." He was dreading the feeling of being alone. Even if you were in the other room, it was too far.

You both removed shoes and unnecessary layers of clothing, laying down on the bed with a reasonable distance between you. The bed smelled… old, like it hasn't been used in some time, but it looked clean.

Eddie was as stiff as a rock beside you, even not touching him you could feel it. You turned to him, adjusting the covers over you. "Try to relax Eddie, you need to rest."

He breathed out, lower lip wobbling with the motion before he turned to you as well. Eddie clutched the covers closer to his chest, a cheap attempt at seeking some kind of comfort. "You know I didn't do it, right?" He tentatively raised his gaze to yours after he spoke, barely being able to make out your face in the darkness of the room.

You frowned, for a split second wondering what he was talking about until the worry in his voice caught up to you. "Of course I do. Eddie, I- I know you, and I know you would never hurt anyone. It's just not who you are. You're good." In a bold move, you reached out and took his hand in yours, squeezing and running your thumb over his knuckles.

Eddie felt his whole body filling with goosebumps at your touch, air getting stuck on his throat as he savored the feeling. He scooted closer to you, only a little, and didn't let go of your hand through the whole night.

March 24, 1986

After Max figured out she was most likely next on Vecna's list, you had to leave Eddie's side to help your friends.

Steve's car was waiting on the side of the road for you to get in, a breeze was flowing through the grey sky, rustling green and brown leaves.

You put on your jacket and prepared to leave Eddie's hiding place, walking to the front door of the neglected house, with Eddie right behind you. You turned to him before you walked outside. "Are you sure you'll be alright on your own?"

Eddie stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking around the house. "Yeah, I don't think anyone will come looking here. Plus, your friends need you."

"You're my friend too." You told him quietly, tilting your head as your eyes remained on him.

Gentle brown eyes found yours, Eddie pursed his lips before taking half a step towards you. He was about to reach out for you but hesitated, clearing his throat awkwardly before lifting a hand to the back of his neck and extending the other for you to shake.

His attempt at pretending he wasn't about to give you a hug made you giggle. You closed the gap between you with a smile, pulling Eddie to you and holding on tightly.

His arms went instantly around your waist and he lowered his head against your shoulder. "Be safe, yeah?"

After being separated from Eddie; Nancy, Robin and you took a trip to Pennhurst, managing to speak with Victor Creel just in time to save Max's life.

March 25, 1986

Between saving Max and finding Victor's abandoned house, only now do you and your friends have time to check up on Eddie.

Your knee was bouncing incessantly the whole car ride there, your stomach was twisting with a weird bad feeling like something wasn't right. And sure enough, when you finally arrived at Rick's old house, it was surrounded by cops, nosy civilians, and the town's reporters. Yellow tapes blocked the access to the area and you just about felt your heart dropping to your ass at the sight; surely going a few shades paler at the thought of anyone finding Eddie.

Luckily, he seemed to have gotten away. Your fists balled in anger when you heard the chief of police making Eddie's name public as the prime suspect of the damned murders.

"Dustin? Can you hear me? Y/N?"

You had never been so relieved to hear Eddie's voice through the familiar crackle and static of the walkie-talkie. Before Dustin could even think of answering, you were already snatching the walkie from his backpack and taking a few steps away from the crowd to answer.

"Eddie? Thank god, you almost gave me a heart attack, are you okay?"

From the other end of the frequency, crouching under a massive rock in the middle of the woods, Eddie dropped his forehead against the walkie held between his shaky hands; a single tear escaping his eye.

"Not really, sweetheart. But shit, it's so good to hear your voice through this thing again, you have no idea."

You smiled, tension leaving your body in waves for the very same reason. "Where are you? I'll come find you."

"Skull rock, you know it?"

"I know where it is," Steve told you, all of you already making a beeline for the car.

The woods you were walking through to find Skull rock were dense, everywhere you looked sort of seemed to be the same place and you could only pray that Steve and Dustin knew where they were headed.

All you could think about was finding Eddie, making sure he was okay, and then never leaving his side again. Leaves and branches crushed beneath your sneakers, Robin and Nancy spoke softly behind you, their voices mixing with the birds singing around the forest. Despite the situation, you found yourself smiling because of the unlikely bond you had formed with the long-haired boy.

Steve squeezed his way past dense bushes with a huge grin, revealing the giant rock. "There she is Henderson, Skull rock. In your face man." He said happily, apparently winning whatever discussion he'd been having with Dustin.

"Doesn't make sense," Dustin said beside you, making you turn your head to him with a soft frown.

"Yeah, even with it staring you right in the face, you can't admit it. You just can't admit that you're wrong, you little butthead." Steve shrugged, lightly mocking the teen.

A loud thud came from behind you, then. Making you jump on the spot and quickly whip your head around.

"I concur, you Dustin Henderson, are a total butthead." Eddie took a deep breath in, hands resting on his hips.

Your lips turned up with a relieved smile, you didn't waste a second before walking the remaining steps towards him. You pulled Eddie to you with a stronger grip than before, closing your eyes to just feel him, there and safe.

"I was so worried, thought they got you." You mumbled against him.

Eddie held you back with the same intensity, one hand running up your spine and to your shoulder blades. "Yeah me too, sweetheart." He squeezed a little tighter, basking in the feeling of comfort only you can give him.

______

You could safely say that being in the upside-down was not on your bucket list. Yet here you were, swinging oars at cursed bats that decided to feast on Steve's torso. The sight was nightmarish, it was your Hawkins, only much darker, with a never-ending red storm in the sky, dust particles that made it hard to breathe, and gross vines crawling everywhere.

And only after — sort of — winning the fight against the bats and losing the creatures with help of the forest; that you finally felt the nagging pain in your leg.

You were walking beside Eddie, who was still freaked out. Steve, Nancy, and Robin just a step ahead amidst the looming trees. It started with just a distant pain that had you limping, then you felt wetness running down your ankle and soon enough you were light-headed, some trees doubling themselves in your vision.

You didn't register you were falling until Eddie was scrambling to catch you.

"Y/N? Shit, don't do this to me. What happened?" He was already on edge and right now it'd be safe to say he was on the verge of panic. He had both arms under yours, maneuvering you to sit on the ground with your back against his chest.

His voice alerted the others, who came running back.

Nancy crouched in front of you, concern evident on her face as she checked for injuries. "I think she was bitten on her leg."

She lifted your jeans slowly, causing you to groan with the sharp pain shooting up and down your leg. You could feel Eddie squeezing your hand, his chin coming down to rest on your shoulder as you heard his soft voice telling you you'd be okay.

Using Eddie's bandana, Nancy managed a tourniquet around your leg. The bleeding ceased to a minimum, and you allowed yourselves at least five minutes to breathe given that you and Steve had been hurt pretty badly.

Eddie rested his back against a nearby tree, and even if you asked, you didn't think he'd let you go. So you remained in his arms, comfortably resting back onto his warm chest.

He had his arms wound around your abdomen, grip never wavering. You brought a hand over his, brushing over his knuckles.

You felt him tense momentarily behind you, then he started lazily playing with your fingers. "Getting back at me for making you worry earlier?"

A chuckle escaped you, leaning your head back on his shoulder. "Something like that, yeah."

Several heartbeats passed before you felt Eddie turning his head, his lips grazed your hairline. "I can't lose you, man. I just- can't."

His voice came out quiet and broken, if you weren't literally feeling his breath against your ear, you wouldn't have heard. Goosebumps filled your body, you grasped his hand in yours.

"You won't." You promised.

March 26, 1986

It was almost bittersweet, the momentary peacefulness of the green fields, when you knew what you would be heading into soon. The place was gorgeous, a hidden treasure maybe. The blue of the sky contrasts with the endless grass plains, with numerous trees surrounding the clearing.

You sat by the trailer Eddie and Steve stole, preparing molotovs with Robin. You opened one of the bottles, pushed the cloth inside, and heard a familiar laugh in the distance; looking up, you saw Eddie wrestling with Dustin, both boys running around on the green field with smiles on their faces.

"How's your leg?"

Robin's voice from beside you made you aware of your own smile. You tried to hide it, focusing back on your task, but not before stealing a last glance towards Eddie. "It's better. Bothering a little but nothing I can't handle."

When Robin didn't answer, you glanced up to meet her eyes. She had a shit-eating grin on her face, making you raise an unimpressed eyebrow.

"You two are adorable, y'know?" Robin mused, smile persistent as she put another finished molotov to the side.

"We're friends, Robin." You grumbled, feeling your cheeks heat up.

"Oh yeah, you totally are."

From far away, Eddie swung his newly made shield around, with an excited bounce on his feet. "Hit me, Henderson."

Dustin jabbed the makeshift spear into Eddie's shield, both of them smiling when both weapons held up well.

Twirling the spear in his hands, Dustin rolled his eyes when he noticed Eddie sneaking a glance towards the stolen trailer for the thousandth time. "When were you going to tell me about her anyway?"

Eddie's head snapped towards Dustin, and he straightened in his stance, both hands holding the shield to his chest. "What are you talking about, man?"

Dustin spread his arms and pointedly raised his eyebrows as if to say 'seriously?'; "you and Y/N obviously, when did that happen and why am I always the last one to know?"

"There's nothing to know and nothing to tell, alright? We're just friends." Eddie told him nervously, pushing away strands of hair that the wind had brought to his eyes. "She deserves much better anyway." He grumbled to himself.

The incredulous look on Dustin's face would have been comical if he hadn't all but shouted his next words; "spare me, dude, everyone can see it, you like each-"

"Jesus christ, shut it Henderson." Eddie sprinted towards him, shield pointed at the boy who had no other option than to stop talking and defend himself.

______

The moment you crossed the portal back to your Hawkins, and Eddie hesitated, you could swear you felt your heart freezing in your chest. Before he even cut the rope, you were already begging him not to do it.

The makeshift rope fell on your hands and he might as well have plunged the spear right into your heart. Eddie was looking up at you from the upside-down and your throat was already closing with dread, you were screaming at him, words you couldn't even remember. When he walked away from the portal with the promise to come back, for the first time, you didn't believe him.

Everything had happened in a haze, you told Dustin to not dare move as you managed a way up and back through the portal. The wounds on your leg were stinging with each of your movements, more so as you hit the ground on the cursed side of Hawkins.

Your pain hadn't been a concern then, the sole thing on your mind was to find Eddie. You had thrown open the trailer door and ran out into the upside-down world as fast as your legs could carry you, not stopping once, sneakers thudding against the grey ground.

When you saw the swarm of bats circling only one spot, in a hurricane-like manner, hundreds of them going from the ground and up to the sky; you knew Eddie was there, in the eye of the storm. With no regard for your own safety, air stuck in your lungs in a mix of fear and adrenaline, you ran to him.

You could remember the particles in the atmosphere clouding your throat, the blood flowing down your leg.

You had found him there then, tears collecting on the bottom lid of your eyes. You didn't stop though. Eddie was on the ground, with the tail of one of the bats around his neck and a few others trying to claw at his abdomen.

What lasted about five seconds felt like an eternity. You had spotted Eddie's spear, grasping it tightly in your hands and slicing the bat's tail clean off its body, aiming for the ones attacking Eddie next.

When Eddie stumbled up beside you, wobbly on his feet but still standing, shield in his hands; you had already felt a faint relief.

Not even a minute after, all the bats surrounding you were falling from the sky as some sick resemblance of rain. Dead. You thanked whoever did it. Dropping down to your knees — to catch the first real huff of breath ever since the rope had fallen heavily in your hands — you looked Eddie over, who had also been breathing heavily beside you. He was hurt, yes; a few bites and scratches here and there, but he was okay. No air seemed to be enough for you though, almost like the beginnings of a panic attack that you tried to chase away.

Eddie had extended a hand to you, you had seen the worry in his eyes that no doubt were mimicking yours.

And that had been the last look you gave him. You had pushed his hand away weakly, standing up on your own, with legs that almost didn't have enough strength to carry you. Your chest was going up and down with difficulty. You had dropped the spear to the ground with a thud, slowly limping back to the portal on the trailer. Eddie followed, you didn't look at him.

Now — after Steve, Nancy and Robin had found their way back through the portal as well, and you all but collapsed into Steve's arms because your body had simply given up — you sat on the couch at the back of the stolen trailer. Steve was driving, telling everyone all about the fight with Vecna, Nancy sat on the passenger's seat and Robin sat with Dustin near the front, along with Max, Lucas, and Erica after you picked them up.

And Eddie, given his home still sported a portal — a slowly retreating one, but it was still there — sat beside you. You put a distance between you both though, pressing yourself against the end of the couch and looking out the window.

You could feel the way his eyes hardly left you, most likely wondering why you were so quiet. Thing is, you couldn't bring yourself to look at Eddie, or talk to him. Anger was bubbling inside you because of what he did, because of how reckless his actions were. You knew the raw fear was lingering too, however.

"Hey guys, where should I drop you off?" Steve looked at you through the rearview mirror.

"I'll go to uh-" Eddie started, but you spoke over him.

"My house, he's coming with me."

"Yeah that- that's exactly what I was going to say." Eddie agreed quickly, his hands incessantly fidgeting with the hem of his green vest.

Your house arrived quickly, you said goodbye to your friends with a tight hug to each of them, making them promise to take care of themselves whilst they made you do the same.

The night was cold as you slowly limped your way up the stone path that lead to your front door. The lights on the house were turned off, you weren't surprised. It was late, you didn't know how late but the whole town seemed to be asleep already, unaware of the evil that had once again been defeated just minutes ago.

Eddie walked close behind you, one hand lingering against his stomach as the other stayed ready to catch you if you stumbled.

You hadn't bothered to lock your front door and for once you were happy about it, your guard dog came running to greet you, making a beeline for the stranger behind you.

"Hello to you too." You grumbled to your dog and turned on the lights in the living room.

"Oh, it's your dog, hey dude." Despite his wounds, Eddie was happy to crouch down and shower your dog with pats. Huge smile on his face as he bit his lower lip, fingers disappearing amongst the fur.

From your place in the hallway, you stole a glance at them. Instantly, tears were prickling at the back of your eyes.

Shaking your head, you walked to your bathroom. Turning on the lights, you winced at how the white tiles reflected the brightness. Bracing yourself on the sink counter, you met your own eyes in the mirror. To say you look awful would be a massive understatement. You had a rather big cut on your cheek that you didn't even know was there before now, droplets of blood and dust covered a good part of your skin, your hair all over the place, and not even counting how your whole body was complaining in pain.

You definitely needed a vacation.

Eddie slowly appeared behind you, brown eyes finally being able to find yours through the mirror. You saw how his hand reached out for you, and how he pulled it back before he could touch you.

"Are you- are you okay?"

And his voice was so gentle, so soft that you wanted to grab him and not let go, ever. You closed your eyes, lowering your head with a sigh and gripping the edge of the sink until your knuckles turned white.

Eddie shuffled, now standing beside you. He was confused, worried. His body was screaming at him to just hold you, but now, he was afraid of overstepping. "Are we just… not gonna talk?"

"Just sit down." You told him, voice steady.

He nodded, gulping down his feelings as he sat on the edge of the tub and you grabbed the first aid kit from under the sink.

You opened the small box, rummaging through mainly for antiseptics and bandages. You silently motioned for him to take off his shirt.

Eddie tried to do it on his own, but when the movement of raising up his arms elicited more than one pained grunt from him, you stepped in, carefully lifting his shirt above his head.

Seeing the gashes on his skin got your breath stuck in a massive lump in your throat. It wasn't too bad, but there was still blood and he was still hurt. In the back of your mind, you thought about the first time you answered him on the walkie.

"We can count this as progress right?" Eddie tried, a tender smile gracing his lips, his eyes looking up at you with blown pupils. "Last time you were giving me instructions, now you get to do it yourself." Apparently, he remembered it too.

His words made the tiniest smile come to you, which made his only get bigger.

You treated Eddie's wounds with the utmost care. Cleaning them up the best you could and closing the bigger gaps with white bandages that would soon be painted a slight red.

You didn't notice the unsteadiness of your hands, how they shook over his wounds; or the permanent frown on your eyebrows, or the lone tear that escaped your eye and slid down your cheek when Eddie hissed when you touched a particularly sensitive spot on his skin.

Eddie noticed.

Leaving the small cut on his jaw for last, you crouched in front of him, biting the inside of your cheek and raising a hand to clean his face.

Eddie's gaze was heavy, dark eyes fixated on you. You could see the turmoil going on inside his head.

He winced slightly when the wet cloth made contact with his skin, you mumbled an apology. Being so concentrated on what you were doing, you jumped a little when you felt his fingers gently grazing your cheek, over the dried tear track.

A shaky exhale passed through your nose, you met his eyes and saw they were glistening under the bathroom lights; swimming in the feelings he kept guarded inside his chest.

"Talk to me sweetheart, what's wrong?" Eddie asked tentatively, dry lips hanging open, waiting for an answer that never came. "Please." He tried again, quieter.

As much as you might want to, you couldn't bring yourself to do it. You let your hand fall to your lap, avoiding his eyes, you were basically sitting on the floor now.

Eddie pushed a stray hair behind your ear, his eyes roamed your face for a minute and then he was standing up and left the bathroom.

You frowned, but didn't follow after him. You heard as he walked back, your back was still turned to the door and you focused on the sound of his movements.

Eddie sat down against the wall to your right, hissing sharply at the cold tiles, his knees tucked close to his chest. Wordlessly, he reached out and gently dropped the walkie-talkie on your lap, before hugging his knees with one hand, the other holding onto his own walkie.

The grey device on your hands was nothing but a blur through your tears.

You heard the familiar crackle and static. You almost broke down then and there.

"I know you don't wanna talk right now, at least not with me. I just hope you know that I'm here, and I'm- I'm gonna be here whenever you feel ready."

You heard his voice, both from the walkie and from right beside you.

"And… I also hope you know that you're like, the most important person in my life, I think you don't even know how much you've helped me. You're the one thing that takes my mind off of all the bullshit this town has thrown at me… Shit, you make me happy, and maybe you're much more than anything I'd ever deserve; but I'm here for you too, so if you could just- just give me a sign that you're okay, I'll give you peace, or space, or whatever you need. I just need to know if you're okay, please."

Eddie finished, voice growing quieter by the end. He let go of the button on his walkie, making the device sizzle with static.

The tears in your eyes were on the brink of spilling over, chest impossibly tighter. You chanced a glance to the side, to him.

Some tears clung to Eddie's eyelashes, and a few others made their way down, collecting on the end of his chin or stopping at the corner of his lips. His eyes were pleading, burning a hole through your soul.

Running your tongue over your lips, you carefully raised the walkie to your lips. You pressed the button, hesitating only a split second.

"I'm okay, as… okay as one can be after that, but…" You started slowly, each word following a beat of your heart. "Damn it, Eddie, I thought I lost you."

Throwing away the walkie-talkie, you turned your body to him. "Do you have any idea, of the panic I felt when you cut that damn rope? What were you even thinking?"

Eddie put down his own walkie, opening his mouth to answer. You didn't let him;

"It was so- reckless." You uttered out shakily, running a hand through your hair, brows scrunched in anger. "I mean you- you could have fucking died for those damn things if I hadn't gotten there in time, and for what? A little extra time?"

You didn't register you were crying, you didn't register the sobs; and when Eddie reached a hand out for you, you slapped it away. "You don't get to tell me to be careful, or- or say that you can't lose me when you do stuff like that. This goes both ways for fucks sake." Your tone was louder, wobbly, mixed with sobs and tears as you groaned in frustration and hastily wiped your cheeks.

You only noticed that Eddie had successfully managed to grab you when you were pressed against his warm chest. Your head tucked against his neck as both his arms closed around you tightly. Both your legs became a mess of tangled limbs, Eddie lowered his lips to the crown of your head, squeezing you to him and mumbling countless "I'm sorry" and "I'm here" and "it's okay".

His skin was warm under your hands. Your ear, resting just above his heart, allowed you to hear the constant thudding; the reassuring sound slowly but surely calming your trembling body and ragged breathing.

"I never wanted to hurt you. Promise." Eddie spoke against your skin, fingers tracing lazy patterns over your body. "I- when I saw the bats, breaking through the door, all I cared about was keeping you safe. I knew I had to draw them away from you and Dustin. Maybe it was selfish but, I couldn't risk them getting through that thing to reach you."

Shaking your head, you pulled away only enough to look at him. Finally being able to take him in, he was just as much of a mess as you were. The sight made you chuckle.

Eddie felt his heart bursting with warmth at the sound of your laugh, a small smile coming to him as well.

You reached up, thumb carefully tracing the outline of his lower lip, engraving the image of him to your heart forever. He leaned towards your touch. You almost kissed him.

"Just, please promise me you won't do anything this reckless ever again."

Eddie hummed, his hands around your waist tentatively pulling you towards him. "For you, I'd do it again in a heartbeat." His words held a playful tone, accompanied by a cheeky grin. They also held the truth.

"And I'd go after you in a heartbeat." You raised an eyebrow at him, your hand burying in his hair.

"Good, then we got each other's backs on our reckless decisions," Eddie mumbled, his breath ghosting over your lips.

He glanced down to your lips with a silent question, a plea. You answered by closing the gap between you, both hands cradling the back of his head and pulling him to you desperately, urging for closeness.

Here, with your body flush to Eddie's, his lips mapping yours in a motion of love; you couldn't be happier for having stumbled upon him on that dead channel.

⋆* ☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ

Thank you for reading this story. It was one that took weeks of writing, rewriting, and editing, so feedback and reblogs are very much appreciated so I can keep bringing you these stories. <3

Eddie’s taglist: @alicefallsintotherabbithole @boooil @science--hoes @cherrypieyourface @tssf-imagines @daph-505 @astream-ofconsciousness @fentyreligion @fantasylovestoryme @justabeautiful-letdown @crazyrapunzel @yessica41 @dancing-hillary @bakugouswh0r3 @hehehehannahthings @jakebasement @zervopoulouu @forverdaydreamer-blog @fromthedt @oeuryale @mcueveryday @palah @witchbinchstories

@call-me-magpie @loveshineslikethesky @luvmybbies @tvserie-s-world @agirlsguidetolove @hallothankmas @ribyourtoplip @sweetpeapod @harringt8ns @forsaken-letters @hazydespair @fangirling-4-ever @electric-cabaret @ollyoxenfrees @linkpk88 @twinkofmydreams @paola-carter @masterlistmanic @xceafh

in a land far, far away

a warm summer day and some reading help you tell eddie you want to be more than friends | 1.5k, friends to lovers, fluff and a little flirty, fem!reader, feat. lord of the rings

The summer sun shines through the trees onto your face and you tip it back, closing your eyes for just a second, setting your sandwich down on the picnic table. It's probably a little too hot to be sitting in the woods eating lunch, but Eddie asked you to hang out with him, and of course you said yes. You'd spent almost every day this month together, whether it's watching him practice with the band or planning the fall campaign or hanging out with his new gaggle of friends. But today he wanted to spend time with just you, which made your stomach flutter so hard you thought you'd float away.

"At last all such things must end," Eddie says, his voice taking on a noble quality for the character he's reading. You can feel him shift from where he's sitting on top of the table. "But I would have you wait a little while longer..."

One of the things you love doing with your best friend is reading together. You're on the last Lord of the Rings book -- Eddie's pick -- and he's insisted on reading it out loud to you for the full effect. But lately, you've found it hard to listen to the plot and find yourself wondering what it would be like to kiss him.

The thing is, you have a huge crush on Eddie. You love knowing him and learning things about him and spending time with him. He's kind and funny and strange and wonderful to you. Sometimes you think his flirting is something more, but most days you tell yourself you're alright being his friend. There's no way he'd be into you the same way you're into him. So what if you've slept in his bed, worn his clothes, patched up his wounds. So what if you know him better than you know anyone else. So what if you dream about him, think about him first thing in the morning, look for him first in every room you enter. So what if you think you might be in love with him.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Eddie's hand is soft on your shoulder and your eyes fly open, a guilty expression on your face. "I know you weren't listening." He smirks, dog-earring the page of the book and putting it down on the picnic table, leaning forward to focus on you. Eddie has a way of making you feel listened to whenever you're talking to him. You scramble for something to say that isn't a lie but isn't the truth.

"Love," you say. His eyebrows fly up his forehead. "In the book." He sweeps his hand out, encouraging you to say more.

"Well," you swallow, eyes darting to the trees around you. You can practically taste your own confession on your tongue, but swallow it for now. "Aragorn loves the fellowship, even though he was reluctant about it at first. And he loves all of them, and they love him. And he loves his people, and Arwen. It's just a lot for one person to feel."

"I agree," Eddie says, still watching you, puzzling over why you've chosen this topic. "Lots of the themes are about love over evil, that kind of stuff. But there's complicated love, too. With Eowen, or Elrond, or even Middle-earth itself. It's powerful but it's not always easy." He falls silent and you look at him again. Eddie tries his hardest to maintain an image with most people, but you've always been able to read him. You can see the confusion on his face at your words, but there's the undeniable fondness that you see whenever he looks at you. Always present.

"Do you think they'll make a movie of the whole series someday?" you blurt out. Eddie breathes in sharply, pulling away from you.

"Oh, babe," he whispers. You shiver. "That would be...so sick!" He stands on the table like he used to do in school and paces a little, excited. "All of the battles and the languages and the politics and the drama!" You laugh at his eagerness, sure he's putting at least at bit of it on for you. "The makeup would have to be so good for all of the orcs and goblins and elves and stuff. And the swords! It would have to be more than one movie,"

"They'd have to cast someone amazing for Aragorn," you say. "He's so lovely and heroic." Eddie stops his pacing and hops off the table to sit next to you on the bench, straddling it so he can face you. "I think he's my favorite character," you continue, hoping you aren't flushing at his sudden closeness.

"Oh yeah?" he asks softly. "What do you like about him?" Before you even open your mouth you know that you're just going to be describing the beautiful boy in front of you.

"Well," you start, "he's brave, he cares a lot, and he's willing to fight for the people he loves." You reach up to pick some tree fluff from Eddie's hair and his eyes track the movement. "And he's handsome, of course. At least I imagine him to be."

"I agree with all of that, obviously," he replies. "Aragorn is like, the definition of metal. And a total babe." You laugh, leaning into his space to do so. Eddie always knows how to make you laugh, always tries to get a giggle out of you and looks proud of himself when he succeeds. You cling to that thought and plow on.

"Would you see the movies with me? If they came out?" you ask, wondering if he'll understand what you're really saying. He looks a little taken aback for a second, before putting on the doe-eyed look that you dream about.

"You'd want to go? I know these books were all my picks, and you've been real nice about it." He sounds shy in a way even you rarely get to see.

"Yeah." He looks so pretty. And you feel brave. "Maybe as a date?" you ask, your voice turning up at the end the only sign that you're nervous beyond belief. Maybe he'll say no, maybe he'll say yes. Either way, you know for certain you're safe with Eddie.

"Oh?" You're surprised him, the color rising in his cheeks as he looks at you intently. He reaches out a hand and taps one thigh, signaling he wants you closer. You swing your leg over the bench to mirror his straddling pose. You move to cross your arms but he snatches your hands out of the air and brings them between you. "You want to go on a date with me, sweet thing?" He's a little breathless, something like awe on his features.

"Yes, Eddie," you say firmly, grinning at what you've done to him. "I'd like to go on a date with you." His thumbs run over the backs of your hands, his rings a cool kiss to your flushed skin. You're not nervous anymore.

"Do we have to wait for these movies to come out?" He scoots a little closer, his knees running into yours. "Could be years."

"No," you answer. It's like the world has disappeared around you as you hitch your knees over his, a move that makes Eddie's pupils widen and your own breath hitch. "We don't have to wait."

"You free tonight?" he breathes out, releasing your hands to bring one to your thigh and the other to your jaw, his wide palm curling around the side of your neck. "I'll pick you up. You'll be looking real nice. We can go anywhere you want, baby." You can feel his breath on your face, he's so close.

"Actually," you say, leaning into his palm, "I'm free right now." His pupils are totally blown now and you lick your lips, his eyes following the movement.

"Fuck." He sounds pained. "Can I kiss you?" You nod and he surges forward, clinking your teeth a little. You laugh against his mouth and adjust, drinking him in, your best friend. He kisses you deeply, slowly, settling into a rhythm as he squeezes your thigh. Your hands tangle in his hair, tugging a little. He pulls back with a gasp and all you can think about is how pretty he is and how this is better than you imagined.

"Thanks, sweetheart," Eddie says, breathing a little uneven. "You imagined this?"

"Did I say that out loud?" you murmur. He just grins at you, and you plunk your head down on his shoulder, burying your face in the fabric.

"I imagined this, too," he says into your hair. "Since forever. Since I first saw you. Didn't know it was possible." You sit up to face him, hands coming to rest on his shoulders.

"Dream about you all the time, Eddie." His pupils are still huge, his hair a mess from your hands, lips a little swollen. "I've wanted you for a long time." The sweetness of the moment threatens to overwhelm you, so you pivot, a sly grin spreading across your face. "More than I want Lord of the Rings movies."

"Well, shit," Eddie laughs, planting a sloppy kiss on your cheek. "Best thing I've ever heard."

want to be added to my tag list for full-length (non-ask) fics? send me a message and specify for steve, eddie, or both! reblog, send feedback, requests open, masterlist here!

Leave a Mark pt. 2

Warnings: mentions of abuse, cursing, cleanup of injuries, sexual references

Word count: 5.42k

Pairing(s): Eddie Munson x Henderson!reader

Not proof read :p

Summary: After a harsh encounter with your father, Eddie continues to clean you up in his trailer now that the coast is clear.

You and Dustin decided that sleeping over Eddie’s was a good idea. Dustin was supposed to do it anyways, and you didn’t feel in the condition to drive home, especially with him in the car. Your head was still killing you, and it hurt to walk for the most part.

After the boys had settled down from their little play session of running around the trailer, Eddie went in his room and grabbed some blankets and pillows for Dustin. “Woah, wait a minute. I’m not sleeping in a bed?” Dustin asks, as he follows Eddie out of his bedroom and onto the couch, where you sat. “Nope! I like you Henderson, but I will not be giving up my precious bed. Capisci?”

“But-“ Dustin turns to you to protest but you’re already giving him a death glare. “Eddie was nice enough to let us stay here. You’re lucky you’re not sleeping on the floor,” you say while Dustin’s shoulders fall in defeat. He turns to Eddie and Eddie wiggles the pillows and blankets. “Yeah, keep complaining Henderson and you’ll be outside.”

You chuckle slightly as Dustin accepts sleeping on the couch, and you get up so Eddie can set it up for him. “Where should I go?” You ask softly, rubbing your hands together. “You, lovely lady, can go in my room. I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Why does she get your room!?” Dustin protests, but Eddie hits his arm. “She’s hurt. And besides, she hasn’t been complaining this entire time. I think she’s starting to become my favorite Henderson.” You blush at his playful words, but Dustin is just kinda disgusted. “Don’t you dare start flirting with my sister! I liked it better when you two weren’t friends. Fuck.” You laugh a bit and glance at Eddie, but he’s already looking at you with a sparkle in his eye, causing your breath to hitch in your throat for a quick second. His eyes were beautiful.

“I-I’ll be.. I’ll just go now. Yeah..” you say a bit awkwardly. You clear your throat and walk toward Eddie’s room, hearing his chuckle fade. You walk into his room and it matches him exactly. It’s exactly what you thought it would look like. Posters of Metallica, Dio, and Black Sabbath hung on the wall, worn down but still standing. Magazines of metal bands flooded the floors and his desk, along with guitar picks and music sheets. On the nightstand besides his bed was a little notebook titles “dnd campaigns” which made you smile. It was cute how Eddie hated English class and yet kept a notebook of creative ideas for a game he was so passionate about.

You picked up the book and sat on his bed. You scrolled through the notebook, glancing at the thousands of words plastered on the pages. There were also some doodles on the corners of a couple pages, which made you smile. But there was one that made you stop scrolling and your smile widen.

It was Dustin. A cute little sketch of Dustin wearing his hat that said “thinking cap.” The sketch wasn’t as good to put in a museum, but the fact that you were just able to see that it was your brother made you smile widely. You knew Dustin loved Eddie like a lot, but you didn’t really put together that Eddie shared that same love. Now you definitely understand how wrong you were about him. You had always thought he liked to be feared, that he was a scary cult leader but really, it was the total opposite. 

“Snooping, sweetheart?”

You jump from being startled, dropping the notebook on the floor and turn to face Eddie leaning against the door frame. “I-I’m sorry,” you apologize. “I know I shouldn’t have been looking through your stuff, but your room is awesome. It’s exactly how I thought it would be.” He smirks, a small blush forming on his cheeks at the mention of how awesome you think he room is. “So, you’ve imagined what my room would look like?” Your eyes widen as you chuckle at his playful banter, picking up the notebook. “In your dreams, Munson.” He puts his hand on his chest like he’s wounded, and sits down on his bed. “Who told you about my dreams?” You sit down next to him and throw your head in a circle, ignoring his rhetorical question. “How’re you feeling?” he asks with concern. You turn to look at him but he’s already looking at you with those goddamn puppy eyes. “Honestly, my torso hurts a bit.” He jumps up which, yet again, startles you. You were confused as to what he was doing when he went to his drawer and started looking through it, mumbling things you couldn’t quite understand. You see his tongue stick out a bit, which you find absolutely adorable. “Ah! Here it is,” he says quite loudly, turning around to face you. 

In his hands were a couple of elastic bandages. “We can wrap these around you to help with the bruises on your torso and legs. Besides, it’ll make you look badass.” You chuckle softly as he sits besides you again, making the bed dip down. You admired how easily he can make you smile or laugh, even in the shittiest of moments. You never knew he had such a sense of humor. Maybe that’s why Dustin got along with him so well, so quick. You stare at Eddie as he unravels the bandage, ready to put it around your torso first. “You can totally do this yourself if you’re uncomfortable, but I need you to lift your shirt a bit so I can wrap this around you sweetheart.” You were a bit hesitant.

Not because it was Eddie, but because you didn’t want to reveal such a bruise. You felt it even if there was no pressure on it. It was throbbing and the pain was definitely there. For some reason, you were embarrassed.

Eddie noticed your hesitation and was quick to reassure you. “I know I’m supposed to buy you dinner first, but I promise I’m still a gentleman. Say the word, I’ll leave the room, and you can patch yourself up.”

“I know you’re a gentleman,” you say a bit too quick. “I just get a bit nervous to show people my injuries. Don’t know why,” you chuckle nervously as he gives you a small smile. “You don’t want me to see you differently,” he says. You tilt your head in confusion, wondering how he was able to connect with you so easily and understand what you were feeling. “My childhood wasn’t the best,” he admits. “Before moving in with Uncle Wayne at around 7, I lived with my dad. My mom split when I was young. Never really knew her,” he chuckles sadly, but you just continue to listen, leaning in a bit so he knows you’re really listening.

“My dad was a selfish prick, exactly like yours. Textbook definition and all. I always defended him though. Always told people he was amazing and the best father ever, even though he would do that same thing to me,” Eddie admits, pointing to your face quickly as he mentions the last couple words. Your eyes widen in surprise a bit, not expecting Eddie to share the same experiences as you and your brother. “It wasn’t until Uncle Wayne took me in that I started to notice the real reason I never told people the truth. I was embarrassed. Everyone spoke about their parents being the highlight of their life yet my highlight was a fantasy board game about warlocks and dragons and creativity. No wonder people call me a freak, huh?” Before you could respond, he shakes his head.

“But this isn’t about me. This is about you, sweetheart. I never told anyone that, but I needed you to know that I understand you. Maybe not personally, but I’m not exactly in the dark here, you know? So I get it. I’m here for you.”

I’m here for you.

Those four words were words you were longing for, and you didn’t even know it. Eddie saw tears form in your eyes as you just inhaled slowly in silence. “I’m sorry you went through that,” was all you said before a couple tears starting falling. “Hey, don’t cry. Come on, we should be patching you up like a potato head.” You chuckle in confusion, wiping a tear as he scoots closer to you. He was so weird.

“Like a potato head?” You question.

“Yeah,” he says nonchalantly. “Like, those weird doll things. That you put together and stuff? You can take off their eyes and mouth and then put them back on.”

“How does that relate to me?”

“Cause like.. you know. Putting you back together.”

“But I’m not broken.”

“Well no, but I mean, you’re not a potato either so don’t take it too literal, sweetheart.”

You hummed, smiling at him in silence. “You can patch me up,” you say after a moment. “I trust you. And besides, with these bruises, I don’t think I have the strength to turn too much.” He nods slightly and picks up the bandage again. “If you would be so kind, m’lady,” he says, mimicking the action of lifting up your shirt. You do exactly that, lifting up until it reaches right below your chest area. You saw Eddie’s face drop a little bit when he noticed your bruises, and it made your heart hurt.

It was a deep purple and it looked like it wasn’t done forming yet. The color circled from your belly button to your back, and went up about two or three inches. It was one hell of a bruise. Eddie had never seen anything like it. He was shocked this wasn’t from a car accident or something along those lines.

“Y/n,” he whispers, looking up at you. But he saw you were looking down with a slight redness to your face from embarrassment. So, Eddie being Eddie, he tried to make you feel better with the one thing he did best - humor!

“Ever go mechanical bull riding?” He asks, starting to wrap you up with the bandage. Very lightly, but it still hurt when you get his fingers graze your stomach. “What’s that?” You ask in curiosity. He looks up at you and scoffs. “What- wait, you don’t know what that is?!” He asks in disbelief. You smile and shake your head, as he mentally praises himself for helping you loosen up a bit. “You get on this mechanical bull, hence the name, and the operator tries to throw you off. It starts off slowly, but the longer you stay on, the quicker and harder it gets. Eventually you get thrown off. You only hold on with one hand though.”

You laugh, imagining yourself on it. “I’d get thrown off almost immediately. It sounds like a lot of fun though. I’d pay good money to see you ride it, Munson.” Eddie laughs, halting his hands and looking up at you. You were smiling wide now, almost as if nothing had happened within the last 24 hours. God, did he love your smile.

“Well guess what, sweetheart? I’ve gone on one before.” You gasp in surprise, your eyes widening as you lean closer to him. “No way!” You squeal. “Yep, no bullshit. Went with my band once and-“

“Corroded Coffin, right?”

He almost died right then and there.

“Y-yeah. That’s us,” he smiles. “Anyways, they dared me to do it,” he starts off, continuing to wrap you up. He was almost done. ”Once I got up there, it was actually decent. Stayed on for quite some time. Until that shit starting spinning. Let me just tell you, it was not a pleasant experience. Almost shit my pants and puked at the same time.” You laughed for probably the hundredth time tonight, and yet Eddie could listen to it until he died. He loved to make you laugh. It was his new favorite hobby.

He laughed along with you, finishing the wrapping of the bandage, admiring his work. You lower your shirt with a strain and a wince after a couple of minutes, causing him to look up at you. “You alright?” He asks in a sincere voice. You sigh, but nod. “As good as I can be. I just hope that little one out there is okay.” You say with as much concern as Eddie, turning your head to the door. “Oh he’s got a 5 star couch for the night. He’s more than okay, sweetheart.” He knew you meant about the whole situation. About your father and the fear and the hurt. But Eddie promised both you and himself that he’d protect the Henderson siblings. That meant both physically and emotionally. And he’s not one to ever break a promise.

You smile and put your hand on top of his, making him tense for a second. It was unexpected. “I can’t thank you enough.” He flips his hand and interlocks it with yours. “Don’t need to thank me sweetheart. It’s the bare minimum.”

You hum, knowing he’s right but still finding it a bit unbelievable that someone can be as funny and sweet as him. You hated how people called him a freak. You felt guilty for ever thinking of him other than a good guy. Dustin was right about him. He was so right.

“Anyways!” He says with enthusiasm, jumping up from the bed and slapping his thighs. “Let’s get you ready for bed, huh? It’s already..” he glances at his watch and is somewhat shocked. “12:17. Damn.” He opens his drawer, searching for some clothes he could give you. “Aha!” He says, similar to when he found your bandage. He pulls out a hellfire shirt, most likely an extra one since he was wearing his, and some black pajama shorts that were way too similar to boxers.

“I hope this is okay,” he asks. You smile as he places the clothes next to you on the bed. “It’s more than enough,” you reassure him. “Thank you Eddie.”

“Like I said sweetheart, no need to thank me.” He pulls out clothes for himself as well. An oversized Metallica shirt and red and black flannel pants. “How’s my outfit for the night?” He asks, putting the clothes up to his body and posing. You chuckle and shake your head slightly. “Makes you look like Metallica’s number one fan,” you joke. “Matter of fact, are you part of their band? With all the merch you have..” your voice trails off as Eddie smirks in satisfaction that you’re opening up to him.

“Ah, she’s got jokes, huh?”

“Guess you’re rubbing off on me, Eds.”

Eddie pauses, his breathing becoming a bit quicker than before. “E-Eds?” He repeats in a whisper. Your eyes widen in nervousness. “I’m sorry! I just thought that- I mean you call me sweetheart, so I thought a nickname for you would make sense. I’m sorry, I’ll stick with Eddie, I wasn’t thinking-“

“No!” He interrupts, making you stop talking. “I liked it. Trust me, I liked it. It was just unexpected, that’s all. Please, keep calling me that.” He knew he sounded kind of desperate, and he had to admit it was a bit embarrassing. But not to you. Your still expression turned into a happy one, as you bit on your bottom lip for a second. “Eds it is then,” you grin.

“I guess I am rubbing off on you, sweetheart. Nicknames, jokes. Third base for me is using humor to cope. Seems like you share that same trait, huh?” You chuckle, grabbing the clothes he left for you on the bed. “Don’t think so, Eds. Third base is me telling you about my father.” He smiles as you were able to make a small joke about the harsh events that had happened.

“Marriage seems like the next plausible option then,” he continues.

“Let’s elope.”

“Dibs on Dustin being my best man.”

“No fair, I wanted him as the flower girl!”

This time, it’s Eddie’s turn to laugh. Never in a million years had he thought he would be joking about third base and marriage with Y/n Henderson. Life surely is unpredictable.

“You go change now,” he says, his laugh fading a bit, but his smile ever faltering. “Let me check on Dustin.”

“Ever the babysitter,” you huff with a playful tone.

“Hey, that’s Harrington’s job.” You smile and glance at him once more, before disappearing into the bathroom with a click erupting from the bathroom lock.

Eddie is frozen in his room, replaying the encounter in his mind over and over again. You were definitely something else and he absolutely loved it.

You on the other hand were a blushing mess. “Okay,” you whisper to yourself, looking at your reflection in the mirror. The bathroom was quite small, considering it was a trailer home but you didn’t mind one bit. It was still spacey enough to change in.

After a couple minutes, you changed into the hellfire shirt and the shorts. The hellfire shirt was somewhat long on you, and when you would move a certain way, it made it seem like you didn’t have pants on. It made you chuckle a bit.

When you walked out of the bathroom and back into Eddie’s room, he was no where to be found. He was probably still checking in on Dustin and changing into clothes as well. You sat on the bed once more and lifted up the shirt to view the bandage. You ran your fingers along the material, feeling it’s rough surface. You winced a bit, but the bandage helped soothe the pain a lot.

You got back up after lowering the shirt and decided to explore Eddie’s room some more. Even though you did briefly before, it was cut short after he had caught you. You go over to his guitar hanging on the wall and play a couple of strings. It makes a small sound which causes your mind to drift to how and what Eddie would play. Definitely Metallica that’s for sure. You thought about if he would play Iron Maiden or even Möntley Crüe. After a couple minutes of thinking, you came to the conclusion that he for sure knew how to play songs from those two bands.

You shifted your attention the his nightstand beside his bed where you had previously found his dnd notebook. There were some cassette tapes and you knew you just had to go through them. What kind of music did Eddie Munson really listen to?

Majority of it was metal bands, of course, but there was one cassette that made you chuckle to yourself and smile widely.

Abba.

Eddie Munson listened to Abba. Maybe not religiously, like he did those other bands, but holy shit.

And as if on cue, Eddie walks through the door of his bedroom. The sight of you in a Hellfire shirt holding a Metallica and Abba cassette in each hand made his heart absolutely swoon. “I see someone’s snooping again,” he says with a bit of a shaky voice. Sure, his demeanor was confident, but seeing you in this way made his nervous. In a good way, of course.

“And yet again, I’m sorry,” you apologize. “But Abba?” You question. “No way the Edward Munson listens to Abba in his free time.” He scoffs at the name ‘Edward’ walking up to you and snatching the cassettes out of your hands, throwing them into his pajama drawer. “Calling me Edward makes me seem like an 80-year old grandpa.”

“You sure look like one.”

“Henderson with the jokes! Where is this coming from?”

“Like I said before Eddie, you’re rubbing off on me.”

“I think you’re right. I even have you in a Hellfire shirt.” Eddie couldn’t help but imagine that the shirt was his shirt. It was an exact match, they only had one design. It made him blush ever so slightly, but it went unnoticed by you.

“This is pretty comfy,” you say with happiness, gripping the ends of the shirt and hopping on his bed. You yawn softly and he notices, turning on the lamp next to him bed. “Why don’t you sleep, sweetheart? It’s been a long day, you need to rest.”

You nod slightly, getting under his comforter and laying down. He shuts off the overhead light and walks over to you, smiling while looking down at you. You meet his gaze and smile. “I know you told me not to thank you Eddie, but that’s all I can say right now. Thank you for helping me and Dustin.” He smiles at your kind words and nods, not trusting his voice to respond. He turns around to leave, but he feels you grab his wrist. He doesn’t move his body but turns his head so he’s looking at you once more.

“Where are you going?” You ask, a slight worry hidden in your voice. “I’ll just be in Uncle Wayne’s room. It’s right across the hall.” He tries to reassure you but your grip on his wrist doesn’t falter. “Please don’t go,” you whisper, making his heart beat faster than he thinks it ever has. “I.. I don’t want to be alone. I’ll know you’ll be in the other room but-“

Eddie doesn’t allow you to finish. With his other hand, he grabs yours that’s on his wrist and smiles widely at you. “Y-Yeah,” he stutters a bit. “Of course I’ll stay.”

He walks over to the other side of the bed and grabs a pillow, ready to set up on the floor. You sit up in his bed and look over at him. “What are you doing?” You ask, hands folded in your lap. “Setting up on the floor,” he says nonchalantly. “Oh..” you say in disappointment, and this doesn’t go unnoticed by Eddie. “What’s the matter, sweetheart?” You bit your lower lip in hesitancy. “Nothing, I just.. is it weird to ask if you c-can stay up here.. with me? I mean, the bed is big enough for both of us- obviously you know that, it’s your bed,” Eddie chuckles as you ramble on. “You don’t have to sleep with me- n-not like that, obviously! I mean if you don’t want to l-like.. fuck, I’m totally botching this, huh? I’m gonna go crawl in a hole.”

Eddie laughs, putting the pillow back on the opposite side of the bed and tilting his head toward you, silent for a moment. “Yeah that totally sucked,” he admitted, making you throw a pillow at him. It hits his face but he catches it before it hits the floor, making you laugh for a second. “Shut up,” you scoff. He sits on the bed with a hop, handing you back the pillow. You put it back under your head and lie back down. He looks at you as you snuggle yourself in his comforter, wondering what it would be like to see you like this every night. Magical is the only word he could come up with.

Soon he mimics your actions and turns toward you as you stare up to the ceiling. You were silent, the injuries on your face still very much evident. Eddie took his time to really take in your appearance, past the bruises.

Your side profile was beautiful. He had never seen anything like it and mentally degraded himself for ever ignoring you. You looked peaceful just laying on his bed and wearing his clothes. He allowed his mind to drift to what it would be like to go star gazing with you, or even take you out to Lovers Lake and have a picnic. He normally hates doing those sorts of things. It just wasn’t his style. But the more he got to know you, the more he realized that he’d do anything you’d ask him do. Dare he say, even listen to Tears for Fears and The Cure.

Your voice brought him out of his little daydream, as he realized you were now facing toward him and your lips were moving. “You’re not uncomfortable, are you?” You ask with concern. “Not one bit,” he admits a little too quickly. You smile, relaxing a bit and turning back to face the ceiling. “I hate that this is my life,” you whisper, causing Eddie’s smile to drop. He doesn’t say anything though. He just allows you to continue. “I just want a family. I want Dustin and I to be able to sit at a dinner table with others besides just us two. I want to talk about nonsense and have someone listen to me anyways because they care about me. I just want someone besides Dustin to care about me.”

“I care about you.”

“You basically just met me. You didn’t know me before.”

“And look at the impact you made. I could listen to you talk for hours.”

You turn your head to Eddie once again, feeling your heart race. “Really?” You whisper in disbelief. “Are you kidding?” He whispers back. “I was a fool to not have known you sooner. We could’ve been eating those microwaved dinners together and talked about nonsense for years!” You smile at the mention of microwaved dinners. Sure they tasted like shit most of the time, but they provided you comfort. Dustin too. He must’ve told Eddie about them.

“Maybe we can do that then,” you say with some confidence. “Like every Saturday or Sunday or something. The Henderson’s and the Munson’s. If that’s okay with Wayne, of course!” You had never met Wayne, but just by the way Eddie’s eyes lit up at his name, you knew he was a good parental figure toward him. “That sounds perfect, sweetheart. I’m sure Dustin would love it. Maybe we can teach you and Wayne to play dnd.” You chuckle at the thought of you playing the one game you swore you never would. Yet when Eddie mentioned the idea, you couldn’t help but feel hopeful that it would become a reality. “I actually really like that idea, Eds,” you admit. He hums and you could hear the happiness he radiates.

“I’m tired,” you whisper. “Sleep then, sweetheart. We’ve always got tomorrow to talk and goof around.”

“Eds?”

“Yes?”

“Are we friends?”

“I think sleeping in the same bed unlocks that level of our bond, don’t you think?”

“I do. I just wanted to make sure you thought the same way.”

“Don’t worry. We’re on the same page.”

You felt your eyes getting heavier as each word spilled past your lips. Sooner or later, you had fallen asleep, not even realizing the lingering touch of Eddie’s hand on yours.

Hours later, you presume, you woke up to a bright light shining through Eddie’s beat up window. You felt very warm, and looked down to realize that you were tangled up with Eddie, kind of like a knot. You felt your face heat up almost immediately when you say how your head rested on his chest and your legs were engulfed in his. His arms were wrapped around your figure, somewhat keeping you from moving or shifting without waking him up. You had to admit, it was the most comfortable you had been in a while.

You look up and see Eddie snoring slightly, his eyes closed and his mouth in a small smile. You wondered if he was dreaming and what it was about. While admiring him, his eyes fluttered open and instantly, he made eye contact with you. His raspy voice comes out in a whisper. “Hello sweetheart.” You smile at him and yawn, nodding to reciprocate the greeting. “How long have you been awake?” He asks, not breaking eye contact with you. “Just a couple of minutes,” you admit. Before he could respond, a harsh opening of the bedroom door startles you both, causing you to break eye contact and glance at the door. It was Dustin.

“Eddie! Where the hell is the milk? I’ve been looking for-“ his little rant was cut short when he takes in how you and Eddie are in each other’s arms, in the same bed, under the same sheets. “Please don’t tell me you two were fucking!” Dustin screams, turning around quickly. A deep blush creeps on your face almost instantly as Eddie starts to laugh. “Dustin!” You scold. “We weren’t- God, I need to teach you how to speak properly.”

“We’re out of milk,” Eddie says nonchalantly. You wondered how he could be so chill about what Dustin said, but when you looked up at him, you realized his cheeks were just as red as yours. It made you smile.

“How can you not have milk?” Dustin protests, turning back around to make eye contact with Eddie. “And more importantly, why the hell are you all over my sister?”

“He’s not all over me!” You yell, causing Dustin to roll his eyes. “I can see his hands wandering!”

“You must be hallucinating because his hands are-“

Before you could finish though, you were interrupted by Eddie’s fingertips circling your right thigh under the sheets. There was no way Dustin could see, but you would still deny it until your last breath. At first, you were confused why Eddie was doing what he was, until you looked up at him to see he was smirking but not looking toward you.

He was teasing you.

“J-Just go drink s-something else,” you stutter, trying hard to ignore the butterflies erupting in your stomach as he grips your thigh. “But I want milk!” Dustin says, stomping his foot. Eddie then speaks up. “Henderson, how about you drink some water? Stay hydrated, huh?” You were glad Eddie spoke up when he did. You didn’t trust your voice to not crack or stutter. Dustin huffs in annoyance, and leaves Eddie’s room with a quiet close of the door. One thing you had taught him was to never slam doors. Once Dustin was out of view, you slapped Eddie slightly on the chest.

“What the hell was that?!” You ask, getting up out of his embrace. You felt cold without him. “No way you’re mad at me,” Eddie fights back with a smile, getting up with a stretch. “I’m not mad, I’m just..” you didn’t really know how to feel. “Turned on?” Eddie jokes, which causes you to throw a pillow at him. “Am not!” You contradict, chuckling as he catches what you threw. “Sure Henderson, deny it all you want.” All you do is scoff playfully, looking at him with a smile. “Eds-“

“Go on a date with me.”

Your eyes widen in confusion and surprise at his sudden boldness. “W-What?” You stutter. He was on one side of the bed with you standing on the other side, so the distance wasn’t too far. “Stop me if I’m reading this wrong but I enjoy hanging out with you,” he admits. “And yeah, I love being your friend now but.. I want to care for you in a different way. I don’t want to apologize for my lingering touches or glance at you only when you’re not looking. I want to try with you. And hey, if it doesn’t work out, then it doesn’t work out. But I want to try this, Y/n.”

Y/n. That’s how you knew he was serious. Not sweetheart this time, but your actual name.

You were silent for a second before walking over to his side of the bed and smiling up at him. “I never would’ve thought that Edward Munson would be asking Y/n Henderson out on a date.”

“Again with the Edward.” You chuckle and pull him into a hug, which he doesn’t mind reciprocating. “Of course I’ll go on a date with you,” you accept. Your soft voice tickles his neck but he doesn’t care, it felt good.

“Yeah?” He whispers.

“Are you kidding?” You say, pulling away from him. “I’d be a fool not to. You helped me and my brother so much, it only proved how good of a guy you are. I want this, Eds. I want to try with you.”

He smiles, looking down at you. You’ve never seen him smile like that, not even when he’s playing dnd.

“Eddie! Get your ass out of that room! I want fucking milk!” You both hear Dustin scream with a voice crack. You laugh along side Eddie, not breaking eye contact. “Your brother is a handful.”

“What gave you that idea?”

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Eddie Munson

Heavens on Fire

Eddie Munson x OC

Who is Tess Henderson?

Chapter 1

Chapter 2 

Chapter 3 

Chapter 4 

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