Chapter 25.// Chapter 26.// Chapter 27.// Chapter 28.// Chapter 29.// Chapter 30.// Chapter 31.// Chapter 32.// Chapter 33.// Chapter 34.// Chapter 35.// Chapter 36.// Chapter 37.// Chapter 38.// Chapter 39.// Chapter 40.// Chapter 41.// Chapter 42. // Chapter 43.// Chapter 44.
Summary: Prom night at Hawkins High is in full swing, and the dance floor quickly turns chaotic as music blares, the punch proves to be stronger than expected, and Chrissy Cunningham ends up a little more intoxicated than planned.
While you try to keep things under control, Eddie seems far more entertained by the entire situation — especially once the music really gets going.
In the middle of the noise and flashing lights, a slower moment appears when Eddie surprises you by asking for a dance during Faithfully. For a few minutes, the chaos of prom fades away, leaving just the two of you swaying together beneath the disco ball.
But prom never stays quiet for long, and soon the night explodes back into music, laughter, and wild dancing.
And even as the gym begins to empty and the night winds down, it’s clear the evening isn’t over yet.
Author’s Note: This is Part Two of Chapter 44, continuing prom night at Hawkins High.
Because the full chapter ended up being nearly 8,000 words, Tumblr wouldn’t allow it to be posted all at once, so the chapter has been split into multiple parts.
Part One covered arriving at prom and the early chaos of the night.
Part Two (this chapter): focuses on the dance floor moments — Chrissy getting into the spiked punch, Eddie finally agreeing to dance, the slow songs, the return of chaotic 80s music, and Robin’s very successful conversation with Vickie.
Part Three of Chapter 44 takes place after prom, when Eddie and the reader return to the trailer and the night continues in a much more personal and emotional way.
Thank you for sticking through the split chapter — I promise the full story is worth it.
Disclaimer: This chapter contains adult characters (18+) and is intended for mature audiences. Part Two includes prom-night scenes set in Hawkins High during spring 1986, references to alcohol through a spiked punch, mild language, romantic tension, and light suggestive humor between characters.
This section focuses mainly on dancing, friendships, and character interactions during prom night. Later parts of the chapter will contain more mature and explicit themes, including sexual intimacy between consenting adult characters.
Reader discretion is advised.
Chapter 44. Part 2. Under the Disco Ball
The dance floor was packed.
Blue and silver lights flashed across the crowd while the bass thumped through the speakers, vibrating through the wooden gym floor and up into my shoes.
The disco ball spun slowly overhead, scattering tiny reflections across the room like glittering stars. Everywhere I looked there were couples dancing, friends laughing, someone attempting an ambitious spin move that almost took out two other people.
The whole place buzzed with energy.
A moment later someone appeared beside me.
She looked gorgeous in a pale pink dress that shimmered softly under the lights—but there was something slightly off about the way she was standing. Her balance swayed just enough that I noticed it immediately.
“Isn’t this a great song?” she said excitedly.
We started dancing together as the music shifted smoothly into Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran, the opening synth line instantly sending another wave of cheers across the gym.
Chrissy threw her hands in the air dramatically.
“Oh my God I love this band!”
For a minute we danced with everyone else, the music loud enough that we had to shout over it. Chrissy spun once, laughing, then tried again—but the second spin wobbled a little too much.
I caught her arm before she lost her balance.
“Okay,” I said carefully, studying her face. “How much punch did you have?”
Chrissy tried spinning again.
I grabbed her arm gently but firmly.
“No!” she protested, laughing. “I wanna dance!”
“You can dance after water.”
Chrissy leaned into me like she suddenly remembered gravity existed and she was negotiating with it.
Her laugh was still bright, still Chrissy, but it came a half-second too late—like her body was responding after her brain had already moved on.
She tried to wave off my concern with a dramatic little flick of her wrist, except the gesture ended up bigger than she meant it to, her arm drifting wide like she was conducting the band.
“Okay, okay,” I said, keeping my voice light even as my grip tightened around her forearm. “You’re not dying, but you’re also not doing another spin.”
Chrissy pouted, but it melted into a giggle as I guided her off the dance floor. The lights strobed faintly over her face as we wove between couples.
The gym felt hotter near the center—bodies pressed close, perfume and cheap cologne mixing with sweat and that sugary punch smell that hovered in the air like fog.
She tried to glance over her shoulder toward the punch bowl.
“No,” I cut in gently, already shaking my head.
Chrissy sighed like I’d personally ruined her entire evening, then leaned closer and stage-whispered, “You’re like… responsible.”
“I know,” I said, half amused and half worried. “It’s horrifying.”
She laughed again, and then her steps went a little wobbly. I steadied her just in time, sliding an arm around her back so she didn’t topple into a passing couple.
“No food though,” she mumbled. “My mom will freak out.”
“Is she still on you about your weight?”
She looked momentarily confused, like the thought had gotten lost somewhere halfway through her brain.
I steered her toward the table where Eddie and Robin were sitting.
Robin was slouched in her chair, elbows on the table, looking very much like someone who had just witnessed their entire romantic plan collapse in front of them. Her tux jacket hung loose on her shoulders, sleeves pushed up unevenly, tie crooked like she’d given up halfway through fixing it.
Eddie sat beside her with his chair tipped slightly back, one boot hooked around the leg like he was anchoring himself to the floor. His suit jacket was still on, tie still crooked, rings catching the light every time he shifted his hands.
Across the gym, Nancy and Steve were already dancing under the spinning lights.
They both looked up when we approached.
Eddie’s eyes flicked immediately to Chrissy, then to the way she was leaning into me.
“Uh-oh,” he said slowly, eyebrows lifting.
Robin’s gaze sharpened, instantly assessing the situation even though she was trying very hard to look like she didn’t care about anything tonight.
Chrissy blinked at them both, then lifted her hand in a slow, wobbly wave.
Eddie’s mouth twitched like he was fighting a laugh.
Robin stared at her for a beat longer than polite.
I eased Chrissy down into the chair.
“Okay,” I said, keeping one hand on the back of the seat so it didn’t slide. “Somebody got into the punch.”
Chrissy nodded solemnly like I had just delivered a very serious medical diagnosis.
“I dunno,” she said vaguely. “He walked off with Patrick earlier.”
She frowned suddenly, staring at the table like a thought had just fallen out of the ceiling and landed in front of her.
She said it with absolute drunken conviction.
Eddie leaned forward slightly, clearly entertained now.
Robin leaned back in her chair, arms crossing like she was preparing to testify in court.
“Huh,” she said casually, voice innocent in a way that could only mean the opposite. “Wonder how that happened.”
I slowly gestured toward Chrissy, then toward the punch bowl across the gym like I was presenting evidence to a jury.
Robin blinked—big, wide, angelic.
Eddie snorted beside her and ducked his head, trying and failing to hide it.
Robin put a hand to her chest dramatically.
“I am deeply offended by this accusation.”
Then she shrugged like the weight of honesty was simply too exhausting to carry.
“Robin,” I hissed, half laughing and half horrified.
Robin waved a hand dismissively.
“It was supposed to loosen people up,” she said defensively—but not really defensive, because she wasn’t sorry at all. “Prom is basically a social experiment designed to test how long teenagers can survive under fluorescent lights and romantic pressure.”
Eddie muttered beside her, “She’s not wrong,” sounding weirdly impressed.
I sighed and glanced down at Chrissy.
Chrissy had already slumped forward slightly, chin hovering over her corsage as she stared dreamily at the tablecloth like it might start telling her secrets.
Robin nodded immediately, switching back into practical mode so fast it was almost impressive.
Eddie leaned closer, voice low.
“Get two,” he said. “One for her and one for you. You look like you’re about to commit a felony.”
I shot him a look, but he was smiling—soft, amused, fond—like even my stress was something he liked watching.
As I turned to go, I glanced across the gym again without meaning to.
Nancy and Steve were slow dancing under the blue lights, Steve leaning down to say something that made Nancy laugh quietly against his shoulder.
His hands rested carefully at her waist like even Steve Harrington understood that tonight mattered in a way that wasn’t about showing off.
I grabbed two cups of water from a nearby table and headed back, weaving through clusters of students and chairs while the music shifted into something softer as the DJ flipped through records near the stage.
Behind me, the last of the upbeat song faded out in a burst of cheering and scattered applause. The gym lights dimmed just a little more, blue and silver reflections sliding across the walls as the disco ball spun lazily overhead.
By the time I reached the table again, the opening piano notes of a new song had started drifting through the speakers.
My heart sank immediately.
Not in a bad way exactly—just that quiet, aching kind of disappointment that sneaks up on you when something you’ve been imagining for weeks suddenly becomes real.
The one I had secretly been hoping for all night.
Chrissy was still slumped forward in the chair when I set the water down in front of her.
She lifted her head slowly like gravity had doubled.
“Is it punch?” she asked suspiciously.
Robin leaned forward on her elbows across the table, watching the dance floor again like she was still scanning the crowd for Vickie.
Eddie wasn’t watching the crowd.
I turned slowly toward him, glancing briefly at the couples already drifting onto the dance floor.
Students swaying together under the spinning disco ball.
“Maybe we should just go,” I said quietly.
It wasn’t even really meant to be sad.
Because sitting at the table while our slow song played felt worse somehow.
So fast his chair legs scraped against the gym floor.
Before I could even process what he was doing, he stepped closer and held out his hand.
Like he was offering me something fragile.
He nodded, suddenly looking a little nervous, like maybe this was scarier than fighting interdimensional monsters.
“(Y/n)… will you dance with me?”
The dance floor looked completely different now.
The energy had softened. Couples moved slowly under dim blue lighting while the disco ball scattered tiny reflections across the gym like distant stars. The loud chaos from earlier had settled into something quieter—something warmer.
Eddie guided me onto the floor, one hand settling carefully at my waist like he wasn’t entirely sure what he was allowed to do.
I wrapped my arms around his neck.
For a second we just stood there.
“I feel like I should apologize in advance for my dancing.”
I laughed softly and rested my head against his chest.
Not nervous-fast exactly.
“This song,” I murmured after a moment, listening to the piano swell through the gym speakers, “I love this song.”
“This should be our song.”
The chorus swelled around us and Eddie’s arm tightened slightly around my waist, pulling me a little closer as we continued to sway.
Around us the rest of the gym blurred into color and motion.
A couple bumped into us and apologized.
Across the room I could see Steve gently spinning Nancy before pulling her back into a slow sway.
But for that moment it felt like everything else had faded away.
When the final piano notes of Faithfully faded out, I pulled back slightly and looked up at him.
Before anyone could even think about leaving the floor, the DJ smoothly transitioned into another slow track.
The soft synth and piano opening of Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper drifted through the gym.
A few students groaned dramatically.
Someone shouted, “Another one?!” from across the room.
But most couples stayed right where they were.
Eddie looked down at me again.
“Well,” he said with a small smile, tightening his arm around my waist, “guess we’re committed now.”
I laughed quietly and slid my arms back around him.
This time the dancing felt easier.
His chin rested lightly against the top of my head while we swayed slowly beneath the spinning lights.
“You still alive over there?” he murmured.
We stayed like that until the final note faded out and the DJ grabbed the microphone again.
“Alright Hawkins High… hope you enjoyed the romance because we’re about to wake this place up again!”
A cheer erupted across the gym.
The opening guitar riff of “Rebel Yell” by Billy Idol ripped through the gym speakers like lightning.
A wave of cheering exploded across the room.
Eddie’s entire face lit up.
“Oh,” he said, eyes bright. “Now this—”
Before I could even answer he pulled me toward the center of the dance floor again, the two of us laughing as the beat kicked in harder.
The mood in the gym changed instantly.
Where the slow songs had been soft and swaying, now the energy came roaring back. Students rushed onto the floor again, dresses swishing, shoes squeaking, jackets abandoned on chairs as the music pounded through the speakers.
Eddie immediately went full Eddie.
One arm pumping slightly as he danced in that loose, chaotic way that looked like he didn’t care who was watching.
I laughed and joined him, the two of us dancing somewhere between ridiculous and completely free. The bass vibrated through the floor while blue and silver lights flickered across the room.
Eddie spun once dramatically, nearly colliding with someone behind him before catching himself.
“Still alive?” he shouted over the music.
Across the floor I caught sight of Nancy and Steve again.
Steve was laughing as Nancy dragged him into the chaos, his perfectly styled hair bouncing as he attempted something that might have been dancing but looked more like enthusiastic flailing.
Steve turned, saw Eddie, and burst out laughing.
A second later the four of us were dancing in the same loose circle, the music blaring as the crowd around us jumped and clapped along with the beat.
Eddie leaned toward Steve.
“Careful Harrington,” he yelled. “You might actually have fun.”
Nancy laughed so hard she had to grab Steve’s arm to steady herself.
The song roared through the gym, guitars and drums crashing together while the entire room seemed to move as one pulsing mass of teenagers blowing off every ounce of nervous prom energy.
For a few minutes it felt like the whole world was just music and flashing lights.
And the room exploded with applause again.
The next song kicked in and we got pulled right back into the chaos of the dance floor.
The DJ barely had time to finish hyping the crowd before the music exploded through the speakers again, bass vibrating through the wooden gym floor as a fresh wave of students rushed back toward the center of the room.
We spent the next twenty minutes dancing like absolute idiots.
Eddie went full metalhead immediately—head banging, air-guitaring, singing every word at the top of his lungs like the entire gym was his personal concert. His tie had already come loose somewhere along the way, curls bouncing wildly as he moved.
He grabbed my hands and spun me once.
The second spin nearly took both of us out when he lost his balance, boots squeaking across the gym floor before he caught himself and burst out laughing.
At one point he actually lifted me off the floor for a second, arms wrapping around my waist before setting me down again like he couldn’t quite believe he’d done it.
The lights flashed across the gym—blue, silver, red—while the disco ball scattered fractured reflections over the walls and the crowd jumped and clapped along with the beat. Dresses swirled, tux jackets got tossed over chairs, and someone somewhere started a terrible attempt at breakdancing that ended with half the floor cheering.
By the time the song finally ended my legs were aching and my lungs felt like they were on fire.
Eddie dragged a hand through his hair, breathing hard but still grinning like a maniac.
“Okay,” he laughed. “I might actually die.”
We stumbled back toward the table together, both of us breathless and laughing.
She had one elbow propped on the table, twirling the straw in a plastic cup while she watched the dance floor with a look that suggested things were finally starting to go her way.
“You two look like you need a drink,” she said, giving us a knowing little wink.
I pointed a finger at her across the table.
“I should kick your ass, Buckley.”
“Promises, promises,” she shot back immediately, completely unfazed.
Eddie snorted beside me, dropping into the chair like his legs had officially given up.
Just then Vickie walked up to the table.
She looked a little nervous but determined, fingers fiddling with the edge of her bracelet as she stopped beside Robin’s chair.
“Robin?” she said softly. “Can we talk?”
Robin blinked up at her like her brain had temporarily shut off.
She stood quickly, brushing imaginary dust off the front of her oversized tux jacket before glancing back at us like she needed moral support.
Then she followed Vickie toward the edge of the gym floor where the lights were dimmer and the music drowned out most of the noise.
Eddie leaned in closer to me, his shoulder bumping mine.
Robin was talking quickly now, hands moving everywhere while she tried to explain something to Vickie, the sleeves of her tux jacket sliding down her arms every time she gestured.
Then she reached out and lightly touched Robin’s arm.
Like someone had unplugged her brain.
Eddie’s eyebrows shot up slowly.
“Oh,” he murmured, watching the moment unfold. “This is happening.”
“You’re absolutely staring.”
Robin glanced around nervously like she’d suddenly remembered half the gym existed and might be watching.
Her ears were bright red.
Vickie leaned closer and whispered something to her.
Robin’s entire face turned pink.
“Twenty bucks says they’re making out before the night’s over.”
I sighed, shaking my head.
The next couple songs came and went while Robin and Vickie stayed tucked away near the edge of the gym.
Eddie and I didn’t go back to the dance floor right away. Instead we lingered near the table, sipping water, occasionally drifting out for a song or two when something good came on.
Steve and Nancy passed by at one point, still laughing about something Steve had said, Nancy’s hand loosely looped through his arm as they made their way toward the punch table.
Across the room, couples swayed beneath the spinning disco ball while the DJ transitioned between songs, the music bouncing off the gym walls and blending with the constant buzz of conversation.
Every once in a while Eddie glanced toward the far side of the gym where Robin and Vickie had disappeared.
“You think you lost twenty bucks?” I asked.
Eddie shook his head confidently.
But even he looked curious.
Time stretched out like that for a while—music, laughter, the occasional shout from someone across the gym—until eventually the song changed again and the crowd shifted.
That’s when Robin and Vickie finally made their way back toward the table.
Robin looked like someone had plugged her directly into the electrical grid.
She was practically glowing.
Her hair was a little messier than before and she had the kind of smile that clearly meant something had happened.
And right there on her neck—
Just above the collar of her tux shirt—
Was a dark purple hickey.
A matching one was blooming on Vickie’s neck.
When he followed my gaze his eyes widened instantly.
He coughed loudly, thumping his chest.
“Sorry,” he said quickly. “Something in my throat.”
Robin dropped into her chair like her legs had forgotten how to function.
Eddie leaned forward slightly.
“So,” he said casually. “How’d the conversation go?”
Robin just stared at him.
I laughed under my breath.
“I think we’re gonna get going,” I said after a moment, smiling at them.
Robin nodded like she was still processing the last twenty minutes of her life.
Vickie gave us a shy little wave.
We were halfway across the gym when Eddie leaned closer to me again.
“Damn,” he muttered. “That’s kinda hot, isn’t it?”
“Seriously, that did it for you?”
He shrugged like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“I’m a guy, babe. Two girls? That’s like… the dream.”
I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop smiling.
We were almost at the doors when someone stumbled directly into our path.
“You guys aren’t leaving without saying goodbye!”
Her words were slurring together like they’d gotten tangled on the way out.
“Are you okay, Chrissy?” I asked, steadying her before she tipped sideways.
Just then Steve and Nancy walked up behind her.
“We heard you guys were heading out,” Steve said.
“Yeah,” I said, gesturing toward Chrissy. “But we ran into this situation.”
Steve took one look at her.
“She drank the punch, didn’t she?”
“Yeah,” I said. “So we probably need to get her home.”
“I can take her,” Steve said immediately, stepping forward. “I’ll get her home safe.”
Chrissy pointed at him approvingly.
Nancy laughed quietly as Steve took Chrissy’s arm and started guiding her toward the exit.
The gym was already starting to empty out now.
The music had softened, the DJ lowering the volume as the night slowly wound down. A few couples still lingered on the dance floor beneath the spinning disco ball, swaying lazily as the last songs played, but most people were drifting toward the doors in loose clusters—heels dangling from fingers, tux jackets slung over shoulders, hair a little messier than when the night began.
Laughter echoed across the gym as friends said their goodbyes, promises of summer plans and movie nights and whatever came next after graduation.
Eddie and I hung back near the entrance for a moment, taking it all in.
The decorations looked slightly sad now—streamers drooping from the basketball hoops, confetti scattered across the polished floor like leftover glitter from the night.
Like the end of something.
Eventually we said our final goodbyes and stepped outside into the cool night air.
The change in temperature hit immediately after the warmth of the crowded gym, the breeze brushing against my flushed cheeks. Somewhere across the parking lot a group of seniors were piled into a car, music blasting through open windows while someone leaned out laughing.
The parking lot was quieter than it had been earlier in the evening—cars slowly pulling out, headlights sweeping across the pavement as people headed home.
Eddie shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket as we started walking across the asphalt together.
He glanced back over his shoulder at the school.
“Well,” he said. “You survived prom.”
I smiled, brushing a loose strand of hair back behind my ear.
He grinned, that crooked, slightly mischievous grin that always made it impossible not to smile back.
“But you did it with me.”
I rolled my eyes a little, but I could still feel the warmth lingering in my chest from the night—from the dancing, the laughter, the ridiculous bet about Robin and Vickie, all of it.
That made the entire night perfect.
For a moment neither of us said anything.
We just stood there beneath the dim glow of the parking lot lights while the last few cars pulled away and the music from inside the gym faded into the background.
Then Eddie nudged my shoulder lightly with his.
“C’mon,” he said, jerking his head toward the far end of the lot.
“Your van is not a noble steed.”
He gasped in mock offense.
But he was already walking, glancing back to make sure I was following.
Somewhere between the terrible dancing and the chaos and the ridiculous jokes—
Prom had turned into something I never expected.
A night I’d probably remember for the rest of my life.
