-"Please, please, please, don't prove them right."
Summary: People think your reckless boyfriend isn't the one for you. You hope they're wrong.
AU: Criminal Eddie Munson
Warnings: Angst/Sm*t/Mentions of heartless vi*lence
Your boyfriend Eddie Munson was recruited to his father's reckless, incriminating ways for as long as he can remember.
You just so happened to end up being swiped up in his life of sin. The life doesn't look so bad when there's pretty brown eyes and curly hair attached to it.
You never were a complete goody two shoes kind of girl. Being that way has always been your mask, and a hidden person was within you. A side that loved seeking for a thrill.
The day you met Eddie changed you forever.
___________________________________________________
You're getting as much sleep as you can after a long, shitty, and underpaid shift as a waitress at a diner.
So naturally, you grumble when your phone rings in the middle of the night. You pick it up from your bedside table, and your voice is raspy from sleep.
Your younger brother who's always getting himself into trouble. You wonder what he's gotten himself into now. Your annoyance causes you to wake up a little.
"What the fuck did you get yourself into now?"
"There was a small bar fight...I got drunk... I'm in jail."
"You waited until now to call, you fucker?"
You already know where this is going. "How much is the bail?"
"Just $250, Tony? Do you think I'm fucking made of money?"
"No...just...I need to get out."
You take a deep breath in and out from stress.
"I swear to fuck, Anthony. Mom must've dropped you on your head as a fucking baby or something."
"Are you coming to get me? You know I have no one else to get me..." He tries his best to guilt trip you.
"Yeah, because no one's stupid enough to deal with your sorry fucking ass."
"I'll be waiting. Love you, my sissy."
You slam your phone down and get ready to pick up your brother.
You're going to have a long fucking night.
___________________________________________________
You pull up to the jail, already preparing yourself for turmoil.
After your bag security check, metal detector test, and showing them your ID, you're asked for who you're here to release by the desk person.
You give them his date of birth.
You mentally cuss while you're taking out your wallet, handing the man your brother's bail.
"Alright, wait just a minute. You can take a seat if you'd like. Discharging him will take a while. He your brother?"
"Unfortunately." You joke, which earns the man a laugh.
You thank him, then turn around and look at the chairs. You notice a man with gray hair who looks like he's been sitting and waiting a bit longer than you have. You decide to sit next to him so that he doesn't feel alone. You both exchange a small smile.
"I hear you're here for your brother." The man says. His voice is obviously tired with drowsiness.
"Yeah. He just never listens."
"My nephew's the same way." He chuckles. "I'm Wayne Munson, by the way."
You introduce yourself, and engage in a warm handshake with him. Then, you both look up due to an officer holding someone and bringing them in. You assume it's Wayne's nephew because he stands up.
Any drowsiness you had is knocked out of you instantly. His nephew's tall and lanky, maybe 5'10. His brown curls are tied into a low ponytail, though there's a few curls that seemed to escape it and are trailing in front of his face. He has a tattoo of bats on his right forearm.
You also take note of his long and slender fingers along with his hand veins.
You scold yourself internally before you look at the lower half of his body.
Your face heats up at his print stretching his pants.
You must've missed out on whatever Wayne and his nephew were saying to each other, because by the time you've stopped oogling him, they're both looking at you.
"This is my nephew Edward."
"Eddie." He corrects, looking slightly embarrassed of his full name. You stand up and extend your hand to show courtesy.
You give him your name, and he repeats it with a small smirk.
"What are you doing here? I suspect you're too pretty to be one of the guards."
You huff and roll your eyes. "Sorry to rain on your parade, but I'm here for my brother."
Eddie looks you over. "Interesting."
"We'd better get going before I fall asleep at the wheel." Wayne yawns. He's too tired to pick up what's going on between you and Eddie. "It was nice meeting you. Hope you won't be here too long."
Wayne and Eddie walk past you, and you feel a gentle pat on your lower back. You prod at where you felt the tap, and rip off the sticky note.
Eddie gave you his number.
___________________________________________________
Driving your brother home would've pissed you off to your usual max, but tonight was different.
Anthony notices you haven't called him a "sorry piece of shit" since you picked him up.
"Mhm." You hum, thinking about rushing home so that you can sleep the hours away until you call Eddie.
"You not gonna ask what happened?"
"You were stupid, that's what happened."
"Ha-ha, real funny." Anthony deadpans. "Look, I just remember drinking a lot...a lot. And then before I know it I'm knocking people over and some guy comes up and tells me to quit. But..."
"You fucking didn't. You never do."
"Well, yeah. I kept pushing him until a real fight started and well...a few hours of Shawshank Redemption. Until you came up, my lovely sissy."
"Whatever, dumbass. What did the guy look like, anyway?"
"Uh...tall, brown hair, tattoos. Of bats or some shit."
You nearly bang your head against your steering wheel.
You're more pissed than before now.
"Just shut up and let me drive."
___________________________________________________
After getting a concerning amount of sleep due to your brother's stupidity (and the fact you don't have work today), you decide to call Eddie when you've truly settled in for the late hour of morning.
You stare at your phone for five minutes before getting over your thumping heartbeat to dial Eddie's number and press it against your ear. You play at the cord as you wait for him to answer.
"Hey. It's me. From last night?"
You hear something clink in the background.
"Holy shit. Hey. Figured you would call eventually. But, also thought you forgot about me."
"Well, my brother didn't exactly make last night easy for me. I'd like to say sorry."
Your heart falls to your ass.
"My brother told me about the fight he got into, and out of pure curiosity I asked what the person he fought looked like..."
This is embarrassing. You should disown your brother right now.
"My brother was the one you fought with."
There's a long pause. Then a giggle.
"Oh. Well, if it makes you feel better, your brother can't punch for shit."
You laugh before you can stop yourself.
"Then why'd you laugh?" He chuckles.
"Because it's true. I kicked his ass growing up. Still do from time to time."
"Oh? I knew you had something in you. Especially when I caught you staring at my crotch."
You almost bang your phone against the wall.
"It was a casual glance of your presence, nothing more." You lie, even though you know he won't buy it.
"Sure it was. Why don't you tell me about yourself?"
"Well. I'm a waitress at Benny's, and I probably sleep more than I've been to parties or bars lately. But yeah. I read and watch movies and shit like that. My life is relatively... normal. And you?"
"Sounds cute. I'm in and out of trouble most of the time. Okay, maybe all the time. I help my uncle out at home with money that I haven't truly told him how I got it. I'm a reckless, dysfunctional mess and I live for thrill. Think you can handle that, sweetie?"
Anyone would hear that and run. But you don't.
"If I was... What would you have in mind?"
"You need a night out of drinking and some pool."
"I don't think I would be good at it-"
"Is this your way of rejecting me?"
You hear the shit eating grin in his voice. "So you do want to go out with me."
"Be ready by 8, gorgeous."
When the call ends, your whole body is screaming.
___________________________________________________
You and Eddie pull up to the semi-crowded bar, the air filled with the smell of cigarette smoke.
"You come here often?" You ask him.
"Sometimes. It's a good way to get out of your head and realize the world in your head doesn't exist."
You sit on a barstool and Eddie follows behind. The bartender gets closer to you and Eddie.
"Eddie. What can I get you and your young lady?"
"Hey, Roc. Two henny's, please."
"Henny? Eddie, I'm going to be ruined, you understand that, right?"
"You need to have fun." He smiles. He looks at you long enough for you to feel shy and look away.
"Two Henny shots right here." Roc says, handing you each a Henny with a lime on the side of the glass rim. Eddie chugs his down like it's a joke. You follow shortly after, then cough at the rancid taste and acidity from the fruit.
Eddie pats your back before helping you up.
"Come on. You gotta learn some pool."
At the pool table, Eddie grabs a pool stick.
Eddie bends over and sticks out his tongue to concentrate. He then strikes, and lands all the pool balls into the table holes. Your eyes widen when he hands you the stick.
"Are you crazy? I can't do that-!"
"Try?" He looks at you until you give in.
You bend down to get a feel of the table, and Eddie holds your hip.
You hold in a deep breath, then release it when you tap a pool ball.
Not all of them go in, put a pretty damn good amount does. You stand straight and gasp.
"Not bad, for a beginner." Eddie teases.
"Watch yourself, asshole."
Eddie chuckles. "Whatever you want, boss."
"Let's continue. First person to get the most points has to buy each other another drink."
Eddie pretends to give it some thought. "What happens if you lose? You seem like a lightweight."
"I will shove this stick where the sun doesn't shine."
He holds up his hands. "Fine, you win!"
___________________________________________________
After the competitive pool run that Eddie beat you at, you buy him another drink of his choice. Surprisingly he settled for a lime with water instead of an alcoholic beverage.
By now you're tipsy and ripping into the nachos he bought you, while he's munching at his meatball sub.
Eddie's watching you as he does, trying to read you.
"You know, you're fun to hang out with."
You almost choke on a chip. "What makes you say that?"
"You and I are just being ourselves. We're not trying to be perfect. You don't look at me like..." He looks down at the table when he trails off. "...Like I disgust you."
The confusion in your face urges him to continue.
"I think you should know more about me. My name. Munson. It's. A plague wherever I go. My father's a criminal, I'm a criminal. The only clean one is my uncle Wayne who took me in. And my mother was, too. But she passed when I was 6. I think part of why I lost my restraint is because I don't have her. She... She would probably try to kill me if she saw what I am today." He finishes his statement with a laugh.
"You can always put yourself on track, you know. It won't be easy, but you can."
"It's kind of hard when I look in the mirror everyday and see the very person I hate."
"You, Eddie. Not your father. You can never choose what man he will be. But you can choose who you will be."
He looks at you, his eyes carrying a hint of amusement.
"My uncle said the same thing."
"Your uncle's a smart man."
___________________________________________________
Eddie pulls up to your place, shutting off his van.
"Come on, I'll walk you to your door. It's late."
"Who knew you were a gentleman?" You joke.
"I can be a lot of things."
"Like a womaniser?" You ask with a smirk.
"I can be anything you want me to be."
He gets out to come open the van door for you, and takes your hand to walk you.
Once you're at your door, you turn to face him.
"I had fun tonight." You look at him, taking in how the moonlight makes him look as handsome as ever.
"Me too. And...thanks for the talk. I guess I got too comfortable."
"Or maybe you felt safe."
He examines you before he slowly begins to smile. "Maybe I did."
The realization that you're scared you'll never see him again slams into you like a truck.
"Don't do anything stupid, Eddie."
Would you be moving too fast if you kissed him? Would he think you're too clingy?
He holds your cheek and goes in for a few kisses, confirming that you were worried about nothing.
"Goodnight. You better dream about me."
"Don't worry, I have nightmares quite often."
Eddie pretends you shot him in the chest. "Cruel words, lady."
You unlock your door, and take one last look at him before going inside. You blow him a kiss and he pretends to catch it, then pats at his crotch. You roll your eyes before shutting the door which makes him laugh.
You sit by the window and watch him walk away to his van.
Whatever he's got you into, it's too late to turn back now.
___________________________________________________
Your dates with Eddie have become more frequent, and you often find yourselves enjoying time with each other.
It's only right that you and Eddie eventually become an established couple. Not to mention the many nights you've both gotten lovedrunk and fucked wherever had stability to hold you both up.
One night, he shows up at your doorstep unannounced. He has cut on his lip, and a bruise on his forehead. You immediately pull him in.
"Jesus, Eddie. What the fuck happened?"
"Don't worry darling, I've got it all under control." He tries to laugh it off, but he's clearly in pain. "Just got a little punch in my gut."
You sit him down on the couch as you rush to get alcohol, a qtip, and some frozen peas that you let get freezer burned.
You plop next to him and dip in the qtip. When you raise it to place on his lip, he moves away.
"Okay, okay! Just..hold my hand or something?"
You hold his face because you have to keep it steady. He hisses from the alcohol burn.
"Sorry." Your face winces at the sight of him being pained.
You give him the small bag of peas wrapped in paper towel and he places them on his forehead. He mumbles a small, soft 'thank you'.
"Eddie, I can't be in the dark about your life. I need to know what happened."
Eddie drops the peas onto his lap. "I owe some guys some money."
"Two thousand. But my dad will help me get it."
You run your hands over your face.
"You mean your no good, deadbeat of a father?"
"No, Eddie. You can't trust him! What happens if shit hits the fan? He won't be there to save your fall."
"Babe, I've got it." His voice softens. "I'm sorry for not telling you but I didn't want you to worry."
"No more secrets, Eddie. No more."
He mumbles a soft "come here" and wraps his arm around you, bringing you to lay on his shoulder.
"I'm gonna be alright, okay?"
You do the best you can do to put your soul at ease.
___________________________________________________
Your brother stops by unannounced the day after, and you're thankful Eddie left hours before.
"Hey, sissy. How's it going."
"Quaint. What brings you by. Need some money again?"
He rubs his hands together, his dry palms emitting a chafing noise.
"Well...see, I'm in some trouble."
"I really don't have time for this right now, Tony."
Especially not after learning what Eddie told you yesterday.
"Tony, I just spent money bailing you out! Seriously, when are you going to grow up?"
"I'll pay you back for all of it! I just need this, just this one time."
"Just this one time? That's been several times for years! You don't mean shit you say."
You cross your arms, and one of the rings Eddie gave you of his stands out on your finger. His simple silver band.
"That's none of your business."
Your front door lock clicks, and Eddie walks in from wherever the hell he went. You'll ask later.
Eddie's expression hardens at the sight of your brother.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
Anthony stands from the couch. "I could be asking you the same thing. What are your intentions with my sister?"
"That sure as shit isn't any of your business."
You stand from the couch as well. "Look, I don't want a fight-"
"What the hell are you doing with a guy like this? I thought you were smarter than this."
"The hell is that supposed to mean?" Eddie's face is getting a flush of red from anger.
"Whatever you think you're going to drag my sister into, you better forget it."
"Anthony, stop it. I'm making my own decisions."
"This prick ain't no good for you."
Eddie advances forward, clearly ready to strike but you hold him back.
"I'm old enough to know what I'm doing, Anthony. This is none of your business."
Anthony looks between you and Eddie, then scoffs with bitter amusement.
Anthony leaves with the slam of the door, and you huff from stress.
"What was he doing here?"
"...I was with my father. He's going to help me get the money."
"He knows this guy we can sell drugs to."
"Illegal drugs at that, Eddie."
"Honey, I have to do this."
"I don't like this one bit, Eddie."
"We'll be okay. After all this, I can finally live a normal life with you."
"You better mean that, Eddie."
"I never say anything I don't mean."
His small smile makes you smile, too.
"Real nice. The first time you say those words without a punchline attached to it." You playfully roll your eyes.
"No, I mean it. I love you."
"Yeah?" You ask, and it comes out a lot more seductive than you meant it to.
Eddie's eyes sweep over you. "Yeah."
He sweeps you up and takes you to your room, on a mission to show you how serious he is.
It's not long before you're clawing at his back, leaving behind marks that he's sure to admire later.
Earlier, he ate you out until you cried and then some. Now he's erratically fucking himself into you with no mercy, and you're loving every moment of it. So is Eddie.
He's a sweating and panting mess above you.
His words stutter into your ears. He's telling you he loves you over and over.
His brows furrow and his body tenses up when he's undone himself inside you and coaxes you to pleasure.
His forehead dawns itself upon yours. You feel his chest rumble when he chuckles.
___________________________________________________
Before Eddie leaves again that night, he's lying in bed beside you, and you both share a cig.
"I've always talked about my troublemaking. What's the worst thing you've ever done?"
His voice is a deep rasp.
"I really wanted to go to prom. So, I stole $100 from my mom's purse and blamed my brother. With his reputation, they believed it in no time."
Eddie coughs a laugh, smoke leaving his mouth.
"So he's always been a little shit?"
"Can't believe you're related to him."
"If I could change that, I would."
He ashes out the cig in the ashtray on your bedside table, then turns to you. He props himself up on his elbow. His other hand goes to stroke the side of your tummy.
"I'll try to wrap this up as soon as I can. Try to get some sleep tonight and not worry too much about me."
"That's going to be hard, Eddie."
"My dad's going to meet me where we're paying off the guys. He promised he would have the money."
"Yeah. He's my dad. He wouldn't fuck me over, at least like that."
He can tell you're still skeptical.
"Baby, I'll be fine. Then we can live. Really live. I'm talking a real, legal job. I'm gonna work until I pass out, and buy us a house. A nice house." He smirks. "Then I'm gonna blow you up with a baby."
You chuckle, and whack his bare chest. "You're awful."
"What? You don't want my baby?"
Eddie's face glows. "I'll see what I can do." He flirts, giving you a peck before he gets out of bed.
"I already ate." He winks.
"For food, Eddie." You laugh.
"No baby, I'm okay. I kinda want to hurry and get this payment meeting over with."
After getting dressed you walk him to the door. You gave him a small orange juice box from a pack you had because you refuse to let him leave without at least something to fuel his system.
There's a sinking, unsettling feeling in your stomach.
"Eddie, can you please be careful?" You plead.
"I'll be fine, sweetheart." He's looking at you. Really looking at you. Taking in every detail of you.
Then he pulls you in for a kiss so powerful that it feels like a farewell. Like he's saying goodbye. You shake it off. Maybe you're being paranoid.
When he pulls away, he hugs you tight and kisses your head.
"I love you so much. This is the ticket to our life, baby. It'll all be over soon."
"I love you too. More than anything."
Your tears drip onto his leather jacket.
He pulls away to look at your face one more time, and wipes away your tears.
"I have faith in you, always." You tell him. You feel like he needs to hear it.
He thanks you with a kiss to your forehead, before looking at you one last time before walking out of the door.
Every step away that he takes from you makes him feel like there's glass in his shoes.
___________________________________________________
2 days have passed, and you haven't even heard from Eddie.
Your mind has been a whirlwind.
Is he what everyone says he is?
But what if he was lying?
The news hasn't helped much, either.
Young man shot and killed, left for dead.
You get sick of your mental turmoil and decide to drive to Wayne's house. It would be a sudden visit, but not too much. He knows what you mean to Eddie.
When you arrive there, there's arguing so loud you can hear it from outside.
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" Wayne shouts.
"If there's anything that I have ever been sorry about, it's this."
You knock on the door, feeling anxiety course through your veins.
A man you've never seen before opens it.
"We're not buying anything."
The man looks back towards him. Wayne gives him approval to let you in.
"Hi, Wayne. I'm sorry for just showing up. Have...have you seen Eddie?"
Wayne and the man share a look.
"...No. At least I haven't."
The man seems to be ashamed. "Wayne-"
"No. You tell her, and you tell her now. She's Eddie's girl, she deserves to know."
"Who are you?" You turn to the man.
"I'm Alan. Eddie's father."
You feel a smidgen of relief.
"Thank goodness. You were with him last, weren't you?... Where is he?"
Alan runs his hand along his mouth.
"We went to pay off the guys. But I couldn't get all the money in time. I came up short. I tried to negotiate. When I did that, things got ugly."
Rage courses through your veins.
"You told him you had the money."
"I thought I could make a way. I had most of it. Anyway...the guys started catching on that I didn't have it. They started getting hostile. One of the guys pulled out a gun. It doesn't take the smartest person in the world to know they were set on killing me."
"What does this have to do with Eddie?" You ask, your voice cracking.
Alan struggles to muster the words. "He...he took it. He took the bullet for me."
Your whole world crashes down.
Eddie was the man found dead.
You sit down on the first thing you find, which is the couch. Your legs feel numb and your body shakes profusely.
"He told me he loved you."
The tears from your eyes don't sprinkle, they spill.
"You left him, you son of a bitch. Your own son." Wayne spits. "You better get out of here before I do something ugly in front of the lady."
Alan trudges towards the door. None of his regret makes up for what he did. The door shuts closed, and he's finally gone.
Wayne sits with you on the couch, offering you respectful comfort. His eyes are glossy too. He comforts with you pats on the back, and cries with you to show you that you're not alone.
___________________________________________________
Attending the funeral is the most painful thing you've ever had to do.
Someone might as well have thrown knives at your body.
It's just you and Wayne attending, but that's more than enough.
Because you both know the true Eddie.
The one who was just right for you.
