Written for the @steddiebingo Splash of Summer Mini Bingo Prompt Ahoy
Eddie shuffles through the doorway of Scoops Ahoy, adjusting the stupid hat on his head. The damn thing is way too small for most adults and because of that, it always feels like itâs going to fall off.
His coworkers are already here, the pair of them bickering as usual. He doesnât know why the pair of them donât just stop dancing around each other and fuck already. Instead, Harrington is always flirting with the girls who come in. Alphas, betas, omegas, Steve doesnât seem to care all that much about their designation. And Robin enjoys keeping track of his failures on the whiteboard.
âMorning, Buckley. Harrington,â Eddie grumbles, taking his place behind the counter.
âHey, Eddie,â Robin chirps back, throwing a playful elbow at his ribs on her way past him. It takes everything inside him not to flinch away. Not because heâs afraid of her, but because his first instinct is to protect his unborn pup.
He hasnât told anyone about his pregnancy yet, and heâd really rather not until he absolutely has to. But this pregnancy is the whole reason why he decided to work at Scoops Ahoy in the first place. He doesnât know why his unborn pup is obsessed with strawberry ice cream, but he isnât going to argue. He is, however, going to take advantage of the perks of working at an ice cream parlor. Free is free, especially when heâs having cravings twenty-four seven.
âAhoy, ladies!â Steve calls out far too enthusiastically. âWelcome to Scoops Ahoy! My name is Steve Harrington, and Iâll be your captain today. Are you ready to set sail on this ocean of flavor with me?â his voice grates on Eddieâs sensitive ears, and he shoots a glare at the alpha out the corner of his eye.
The group of female alphas roll their eyes at the obvious attempt at flirting and scoot over to Eddieâs counter instead. The girl in the front, a redhead with a face full of freckles, smiles at him. âHi, there,â she squints at his name tag, âEddie. What flavor do you recommend?â
âOh, canât go wrong with pistachio,â he says, returning her smile. âBut, if youâre allergic to nuts, I can also recommend the mint chocolate.â
âOh, I do like mint. I think Iâll have that. What do you girls want?â She twirls a stray curl around her finger as she turns to address her friends.
Eddie can feel Steve seething beside him and chooses to ignore it. He canât be blamed for Steveâs failure to woo the opposite sex. He scoops up the ice cream, trying to walk the fine line between friendly and flirting that he knows will get him the big tips.
âDo you have a pen?â The cute redhead asks, still twirling her hair around her finger.
âUh, yeah.â Eddie hands her one, and she plucks a napkin out of the dispenser, jotting something on it and sliding it over to him, along with the payment for the ice cream. Her nameâJennifer, with a little heart over the iâand phone number.
âCall me,â she says. She tucks a pretty sizeable tip into the cup next to Eddieâs register, tossing a wink over her shoulder as she and her friends walk away, licking their ice cream in what he assumes is supposed to be a suggestive manner.
He wads up the paper and shoves it into his pocket to dispose of later.
âSave some for the rest of us, Munson,â Steve gripes, rolling his eyes. âYou know, if youâre not gonna call her, you could at least let me have her number.â
âIf she wanted you to have her number, sheâd have given it to you, Harrington,â Eddie snaps back.
Steve sighs, clearly not having a rebuttal for that, and heads out to bus the empty tables. Heâs arguably better at that than he is at customer service. Plus it saves Eddie having to do it. Despite only being about eight weeks into his pregnancy, he feels exhausted most of the time, and walking around only makes it worse.
His gaze follows Steve around the restaurant. Every time the alpha leans over to pick up some trash or wipe down a table, Eddie gets a nice view of his ass. He tries not to be too obvious with his staring, but when he heads into the back to get a fresh pack of sample spoons, Robin catches his eye and smirks.
âYou should just ask him out already,â she says.
âPlease,â Eddie scoffs. âYou think I want to sit and listen to him ramble for hours about his hair? Iâm content to admire from afar, thanks.â
Robin laughs. âYou know what? Fair.â
âWhat about you? The two of you bicker like an old married couple. Maybe you should ask him out, Buckley.â
âMe? Oh, no no no. Steve is definitely not my type. Gross.â
âIf you say so.â Heâs not sure he believes that, but he also isnât going to push. Some people just arenât willing to admit their feelings until they come around to bite them in the ass.
He grabs the spoons and starts to head back to the front, nearly colliding with Steve when he comes barreling through the swinging doors at Mach ten.
âPretty sure thatâs an OSHA violation,â Robin quips.
âWhat? I didnât run into him, did I?â
Eddie leaves them to their âtotally platonicâ bickering, choosing to ignore the rush of heat in his face and between his legs from being that close to Steve. He smells like waffle cones and strawberries, and now Eddie is both hungry and horny.
Eddie is sitting in the back room, picking at his bowl of ice cream. Heâs hungry, but heâs also fucking nauseous, and the idea of actually eating the ice cream is making his stomach turn.
âHey, you okay?â Steve asks, bringing in an armload of trash. Sometimes Eddie thinks having dishes to wash would be better. At least theyâd have something to do on slow days.
âYeah, fine.â Eddie shrugs, stabbing his spoon into his ice cream.
âYou donât look fine.â
âJust not feeling great today.â
âOh. Is it because of the pregnancy?â
Eddie jolts, his head whipping up fast enough that his hat actually falls off his head. âWhat?â
âAre you⌠not⌠pregnant?â Steve looks almost embarrassed now, leaning down to pick up Eddieâs hat off the floor. âYour scent isâ I mean, you just smell kind of like you are. Sorry.â He offers the hat like itâs some kind of peace offering.
Eddie takes it with numb fingers. âDonât tell anyone.â
âDonât worry, I wonât. So, is that why?â
âYeah. Iâve been feeling nauseous all morning. I thought maybe eating would help. But the thought of actually swallowing food makes me feel worse.â
Steve nods, taking a seat across the table from him. âDo you⌠I mean, I assume you know who the father is?â
âMother,â Eddie corrected him.
âOh. So⌠you do like girls? I was under the impression you wereâŚâ
âWhat? Go ahead. Say it.â
âLook, all Iâm saying is, youâre not exactly subtle. I mean, Iâve seen you looking at me.â Steve shrugs. âI donât care if youâre gay, Eddie.â
Eddie squints at him, his hackles going up. This feels like a trap. âReally.â
âYeah, man. Do whatever makes you happy.â
Fuck it. Heâs been thinking about what Robin said. That he should just shoot his shot with Steve. Even if she meant it as a joke or a jab, she wasnât necessarily wrong. After all, whatâs the worst that could happen? Steve says no?
âYou know what would make me happy, Harrington?â he asks, fixing the alpha with a smug little smile.
âA date. Specifically, a date with you.â He points his spoon at Steveâs chest.
Steve blinks a few times, saying nothing for long enough that Eddie begins to wonder if he overstepped. âOkay.â
Surely he misheard that. âWhat?â
âOkay. Iâll take you on a date. We can go to the fireworks show, if thatâs cool?â
Eddie honestly feels like the floor has dropped out from under him. Is this a joke? Some kind of test? Workplace hazing?
âUh⌠yeah. Okay. That sounds⌠suitably date-ish.â
âGreat, Iâll pick you up. Say around⌠seven?â Steve smiles, making Eddieâs heart do a funny little squeeze.
âYeah, sounds good.â He pulls his notebook out of his backpack and jots down his address and his phone number, handing it to Steve. âIâll see you then.â
Steve reads over the address, a smile curving his lips, when the power suddenly goes out. Everything goes eerily still and silent. The hair on the back of Eddieâs neck stands up, and he instinctively lays a protective hand over his stomach.
Itâs only out for a few seconds before coming back on again. Steve frowns, looking up at the ceiling panels. âWeird. Must have been like, a power surge or something.â
But he doesnât look completely convinced. Eddie is about to ask him why he looks so scared, but then Steve just shrugs it off, tossing Eddie a wink before heading out to help Robin man the counter.
Since this is technically his first date ever, Eddie puts a bit of effort into his appearance. He showers, combs his hair, and tries to find something in his closet that doesnât have holes in it. He even takes a damp cloth and tries to rub some of the dirt off his battered sneakers.
By the time he finishes, itâs a quarter to seven. He looks at himself in the mirror and decides he looks pretty nice. He even managed to find a t-shirt big enough to hide his growing baby bump.
Not that he thinks Steve would really care. He already knows, after all. Mostly, itâs to avoid giving the people of Hawkins any more reason to stare at them. Itâs bad enough theyâll be seen together. Doing⌠date-ish things.
Eddie goes and sits on the couch, waiting for Steve to show up.
And waits until seven oâclock comes and goes, then eight oâclock, then nine. Eddie can hear the fireworks exploding in the distance. He steps out onto his porch, staring up at the starburst patterns lighting up the sky, barely visible all the way out here.
He should probably be surprised, or angry. Maybe even sad. But he isnât. He just feels numb. A small part of him had known this would happen, and heâd prepared himself for it.
Still, heâd gotten all dressed up, so he might as well go and have fun. So he climbs into his van and drives to the fireworks show, alone.
He tries to rationalize it. He wouldnât have had fun anyway, going with Steve. People would have seen them together and laughed at them. Maybe Steve realized that, and he chickened out.
Still, Eddie canât help feeling a little bitter about it. Heâd been looking forward to this date. The two of them would eat way too much greasy fair food and maybeâjust maybeâSteve would win him one of those stupid oversized teddy bears.
Itâs pretty much everything Eddie stands against, but that doesnât really stop him from wanting it. And once he arrives and sees all the couples walking around, holding hands and laughing (and the omegas all having their own oversized teddy bears to lug around), it only hits him harder.
Steve Harrington stood him up.
And Eddie isnât even surprised. Hell, he canât even be mad about it, because everyone in Hawkins knows that Steve Harrington is a flake, that heâs always hopping from one girl to the next, leaving a trail of broken hearts in his wake.
Eddie is just his latest casualty.
He wanders up to one of the carnival games. Heâs not any good at sports or anything even sport-adjacent, but heâs upset and he wants to at least try. He deserves a fucking teddy bear, damn it. He came all this way.
After his third failed attempt, he wanders off to spend the last of his tip money on food. The pup is hungry, and fried ice cream sounds amazing right about now. Once he has acquired his snack, he meanders to a corner of the fairgrounds and sits down on the grass.
âEddie?â a familiar voice jolts him out of his thoughts, and he looks up to see Jeff and Gareth standing in front of him. He also notices that theyâre holding hands, but he doesnât say anything or give any indication that he sees it.
âOh, hey guys.â He smiles, knowing it doesnât reach his eyes. âI didnât expect to see you here.â
But he should have. He really fucking should have.
âWe could say the same for you.â
âYeah, well. It beats sitting at home bored.â
âHey, why donât we go play some games?â Jeff suggests. Eddie notices Garethâs distinct lack of luggage and figures that must be why he brought it up.
âIâm all out of money,â Eddie says. âYou guys should go, though. Enjoy yourselves. Youâve earned it, especially after last nightâs campaign.â
âNah, come on. Youâre coming with.â Jeff all but hauls him to his feet. âYou think weâd just leave you here by yourself while we have all the fun?â
Well, yes, because you two are clearly on a date*, Eddie thinks but doesnât say. Instead, he smiles again. âNo. Of course not. Lead on, gentlemen!â
The three of them head back to where the game booths are set up. Eddie feels like a third wheel, and because of it, he misses Ronnie. At least if she were here, it wouldnât feel so much like he was intruding on Jeff and Garethâs date.
Itâs not the first time heâs missed her since she left for college, and he knows it wonât be the last. His hand automatically wanders to his stomach before he notices and lowers it, not wanting to raise suspicion.
Jeff, as it turn out, is not half bad at these carnival games, and soon, both omegas have an overly large stuffed animal to tote around the fairgrounds. Gareth looks at Jeff like he hung the moon, and Eddie is just glad to have something to cover his bump with.
Although⌠if Steve knew he was pregnant just from his scent, is it possible Jeff does, too? Maybe thatâs why he invited Eddie along on his and Garethâs date. Maybe he felt bad for him or something.
He doesnât want to think that way. Jeff is his friend. He doesnât have to have ulterior motives for wanting to hang out with him. But still, Eddie canât shake the feeling that the pair are just pitying him because he showed up alone.
âOkay. Spill.â Once again, Eddie is startled out of his thoughts.
âThis isnât your scene, Eddie. Not by a long shot. In fact, this is probably the furthest thing from your scene as you can get. So why are you here, looking like you just got dumped?â
âWow. Okay, first of all, tact, Jeff. Discretion. Learn it,â Eddie huffs. He knows heâs being short, but he doesnât appreciate being called out so openly. âSecond of all, I didnât get dumped. I got stood up. Thereâs a difference.â
âNo one. I mean, no one important. Obviously.â Eddie hides his face behind his giant stuffed Garfield.
âRight. Thatâs why you came here. All dressed up, looking and smelling like you actually put in effort. Because theyâre ânot importantâ.â Jeff shakes his head.
âIf they were important, theyâd have shown the fuck up!â Eddie snaps. âThey wouldnât have lied. They would have picked me up at seven like they fucking said they would and I wouldnât be interrupting you guysâ date!â
He throws Garfield at Jeff, mostly because he is tired of carrying it, but partly because he wants to lighten himself up to run away. He wants to be alone so he can cry. So he doesnât feel like heâs ruining his friendsâ evening just like Steve ruined his.
Thankfully, Jeff and Gareth donât follow him.
Eddie hides in the back of his van, hugging his knees to his chest, crying into his arms. He doesnât know why he cares so much. Itâs not like he and Steve are even⌠well, anything. Hell, they arenât even friends. Just coworkers.
And they have to work together tomorrow. Eddie isnât looking forward to it. Well, maybe a little. He canât wait to see the look on Robinâs face when he tears into Steve for blowing him off.
Or, maybe⌠theyâre together. Neither of them are here, Eddie realizes. And Robin should be, for sure. The rest of the school marching band is here. And where else would she be?
Eddie drags himself out of bed, pulls on his stupid uniform, and shuffles out to his van. The drive to the mall feels longer than ever. He doesnât want to get to work. He doesnât want to see Steveâs stupid, smug face and hear his stupid lies about why he never showed.
And, somehow, his prayers are answered, because as he pulls up in front of Starcourt, he finds the entire building cordoned off behind crime scene tape. Fire trucks, an ambulance, and several cop cars are lined up all across the parking lot, along with various news vans.
He climbs out of the van, looking around. âWhat happened?â he asks the nearest police officer, who just glares at him without even answering.
Sensing he isnât going to get answersâand figuring the mall being closed means he doesnât have a job anymoreâEddie climbs back into his van and drives home. At least he can take off this stupid uniform.
He changes into something comfortable and plops down on the sofa. A part of him wants to drive out to Steveâs house, but heâs scared of what he might find. So he stays put and tries to distract himself with crappy daytime TV.
Itâs around noon when the phone rings.
âHello?â He expects it to be a telemarketer or something, but a familiar voice comes over the line, sounding a little bit sheepish.
âHey, Eddie. Iâm really sorry I missed our date,â Steve mutters. âAnd, Iâve been trying to call you all morning, but your phone number got smudged in my pocket, so I dialed the wrong number a few times.â
Eddie is genuinely taken aback. âWhat the fuck, Harrington? Where were you? Why didnât you show? I waited for hours!â
âI was⌠busy. Look, I really canât get into itââ
âOh, yeah. I bet you were busy. With Robin, I assume. Did the two of you have fun? You know she told me she doesnât even like you?â Itâs cruel, but Eddie is hurt and angry and he kind of wants to hurt Steve back.
âWhat? I know Robin doesnât like me, Eddie. And yeah, I was with her, but it wasnât like that.â
âThen what was it like? What could possibly be so fucking important you had to stand me up?â
There is a long silence on the other end of the phone. So long, in fact, that Eddie wonders if maybe Steve hung up on him. But finally, he speaks.
âLike I said, I canât get into it. All I can tell you is that Iâm sorry I didnât show up. I wanted to. I really did. But other stuff came up, and I couldnât.â
âSo, what? Iâm supposed to just forgive you? Give you a second chance? When you wonât even tell me the truth?â
âNo. Thatâs not why I called. I just⌠I didnât want to leave you hanging. You deserve an apology. I mean, hell, you deserve an explanation, and Iâm sorry I canât give you one. If you never want to talk to me again after this, I get it. But I couldnât just leave things how they were.â
Now itâs Eddieâs turn to be silent. The truth is, he doesnât really know what to say. Steve sounds like heâs being sincere. He doesnât sound like heâs lying or trying to trick him.
âCan you give me another chance?â Steve asks.
âOkay. You get one more chance, Harrington. Meet me at Skull Rock in an hour. And you better not come empty handed. I want ice cream. Strawberry.â
Steve laughs. âYou got it. Iâll be there, Eddie. I promise.â
Eddie hangs up the phone before he can start to get cold feet. He takes a quick shower, then drives out to Skull Rock to wait for Steve.
He knows this place is known as âthe make out placeâ, but that isnât why he chose it. He wants to hang out with Steve somewhere quiet, where he wonât feel out of place or like he has to put on a show.
And Steve arrives right on time, trudging out to where Eddie is sitting, holding a gallon tub of strawberry ice cream in his hands. But that isnât even the first thing Eddie notices.
The first thing he notices is the massive shiner Steve is sporting, and his busted lip.
âHey,â he says, smiling as he offers Eddie the ice cream. âItâs kind of like, melted. Sorry.â
âItâs okay. I mean, you didnât have to get such a big containerâŚâ Eddie accepts the tub regardless, looking back at Steve. âWhat, uh, what happened to your face, man?â
âOh, this?â Steve laughs. âWould you believe me if I said it was evil Russians?â
âNot even a little bit.â Eddie laughs. He pries open the tub, then frowns. âFuck. I didnât bring aââ
Steve shoves a spoon into the ice cream, a smirk playing across his lips. âI got you, Munson.â
Eddie mutters a quiet, âthank you,â before taking a bite of the ice cream. âYou know, youâre the only person who knows. At least, as far as I know. About the pregnancy, I mean.â
âYour friends donât know?â
He shakes his head. âNo. Itâs⌠kind of complicated?â
âDo you wanna talk about it?â
âMaybe. But you didnât come all the way out here to listen to me talk about my problems.â Eddie takes another bite of ice cream.
âI came out here to hang out with you, Eddie. That means talking, listening, drawing stick men in the dirt. Whatever you wanna do.â
Eddie huffs a laugh. âWell, like I said, I havenât told anyone else about it. The baby is⌠my best friendâs. She caught me at a particularly bad time. She was in rut, and I was in heat. It was a one-time thing.â
âOh.â Steve stares at the canopy overhead, letting his foot bump against Eddieâs. âYouâre right. That is complicated.â
âYeah. It would never have happened otherwise, and⌠Iâm sure sheâd probably rather forget it ever happened. Which is kind of impossible when you have actual living proof.â
âSo you just kept it a secret. But, you have to tell her eventually, right? I mean, sheâs gonna start to notice.â
âSheâs⌠not in Hawkins anymore. She moved away for college. NYU. Iâm so fucking proud of her, man.â Eddie is smiling. âShe got out. I canât just drop a baby on her. Sheâd feel obligated, you know? To stay. To help out.â
Steve clears his throat. âI mean, she wonât have to. Not if you already have someone to help you.â
âOh, yeah?â Eddie smirks up at Steve. âAre you volunteering to be a step-dad, Harrington?â
âCan I tell you a secret? Since you told me yours?â He leans in close to Eddieâs ear. âIâve always wanted pups.â
Eddie feels his face heating up. And maybe other places. âYeah?â
âEven if theyâre not yours?â
âIâm pretty much used to it at this point. Iâm like, the designated neighborhood babysitter.â Steve smiles, cupping Eddieâs face in his hand. âI donât care whose pup it is, Eddie. If youâre with me, itâs mine.â
âI kind of want to kiss you right now.â
âI kind of want to let you.â
Eddie sets his tub of ice cream aside and turns to face Steve. âJust donât make fun of me if Iâm not very good at this. Iâve only ever kissed like, one person ever.â
âIâm not gonna make fun of you.â Steve leans closer.
Eddie closes the distance, feeling a slight thrill shoot through him as their lips meet. Steve tastes like strawberries, and his lips are so soft and plump, Eddie canât help but bite down on them. Steve grunts, pulling away. "Ow. Careful. I got beat up by evil Russians, remember?"
Steve smiles, leaning back in, and runs his tongue along the seam of Eddieâs mouth, making him gasp. He seizes the opportunity to deepen the kiss, guiding him along slowly.
Eventually, they end up a mess of tangled limbs, Eddie perched on Steveâs lap while they make out, his hands shoved up beneath Steveâs shirt, tracing his ribs with shaky fingertips. Steveâs hands rest on Eddieâs waist, not pushing for more, content to just take whatever heâs willing to give.
When they break apart, both are breathless, and Eddie lets out a soft laugh. He rests his forehead against Steveâs. âThat was really nice.â
âMhm.â Steve just keeps trying to steal more kisses.
âHarrington, Iâd really love to make out for another hour, but⌠I have to pee. Like, really bad.â
âOkay. Let me walk you home? Iâll carry your tub of melted ice cream.â He helps Eddie to his feet, making sure heâs steady before standing up himself.
As they walk, Steve slips his hand into Eddieâs, interlacing their fingers. Itâs such a small, casual gesture, but it makes his heart skip.
Over the days and weeks that follow, Eddie discovers that Steve loves in a thousand quiet little ways just like this. With casual gestures and small acts of service. With remembrance and attentiveness and small, ordinary surprises. And each one only makes Eddie love him even more.
Eventually, Eddie gets brave enough to tell his friends about his pregnancy. It helps that he has Steve with him, holding his hand, giving it gentle little squeezes to encourage him to keep going.
Jeff and Gareth agree not to tell Ronnie about the pup. The plan is to let her know when she comes home to visit for the holidays.
Steve is already invited to Thanksgiving, despite it being months away. Heâs already wormed his way into Wayneâs heart.
And Eddie honestly couldnât be happier. One day, when his pup is grown, heâll tell them how they facilitated him meeting his soulmateâtheir dadâall because Eddie was constantly craving fucking strawberry ice cream.
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