“being scared in the closet” and yet look at him now playing will byers and defending will and coming out on fucking tiktok knowing how many people will see it and noah schnapp i think you are the only person ever i don’t feel real
okay so i keep seeing people on tiktok making like edits of how hopper and eddie have definitely met in the past and i’d like to think that hopper remembers everything because this kid got picked up so many times for the randomest shit and became a lil tyrant at some point and hop just stopped caring lol anyways here’s this also yeah there’s steddie in this fucking fight me
word count: 1165
warnings: none, steddie if you’re homophobic
The first time Steve brings Eddie around to the Byers-Hopper household, Eddie practically hides behind Steve the entire time. They were just over for dinner, since Joyce wanted to meet Eddie properly and had been bugging Steve for months to bring him over, and Eddie had been excited about it all week so Steve was confused when he avoided the common spaces. Eddie was hitting off well enough with Jonathan and El, really got along with Will since all they talked about was D&D, but would leave a room if Hopper would walk in.
Oh.
Steve had forgotten completely that Eddie was a delinquent back in his teenage years and more than likely had run into Hopper quite a few times.
Hopper, on the other hand, was finding this more than entertaining. He knew the Munson kid well and despite the fact that he had clearly aged and matured, he wouldn’t hold back from absolutely ragging on the kid and his history with him. They had both come back from the dead, basically, so Hopper held no ill will towards Eddie anymore. He helped clear his name, after all.
So, at dinner, everyone was eating politely and complimenting Joyce on her cooking just like any normal day. Eddie was staring at his plate and would only lift his head and nod at something Steve had said before looking right back down. Hopper was staring at him the entire time, a smug look on his face that his partner definitely picked up on.
Joyce sent a swift kick to his shin under the table, making him shout in pain and look over at her with a look that said, “what the hell?” while making everyone else look over at them in confusion at the commotion.
“Stop staring at Eddie,” she told him sternly. “You’re making him feel unwelcome.”
Jim scoffed a little bit at the accusation, shrugging his shoulders. “No, I’m not,” he responded, looking over at Eddie now. “I’m just remembering all the good times we had together oh so fondly.”
Eddie groaned softly, placing his head in his hands and his elbows on the table. “Oh, here we go…”
“Elbows off the table, Eddie.”
Eddie was quick to sit up, hands in his lap. “Sorry, Ms. Byers.”
Steve leaned towards his boyfriend, a shit-eating grin on his face as he stared at him. “What good times, dear Edward? Care to explain?”
Eddie shook his head vehemently, pretending to zip his mouth shut and throw away the key. Hopper stood up when Eddie refused to explain, slapping the kid on the shoulder. Eddie yelped, not because of pain but because of the surprise he got, before his eyes widened in mortification as he stared at Hopper. “You wouldn’t,” he said in a low voice.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Hopper laughed as Eddie groaned loudly, putting his head back in hands. “Who’s ready for a story or two?”
When the reception he received was positive, that began a long but hilarious detailed list of every single encounter Deputy Jim Hopper and a young Eddie Munson had. They are as follows:
• In 1976, shortly after Eddie’s 11th birthday, Hopper was called to the Munson residence when Wayne found Eddie had run away from home. It had been not only one month after Eddie’s deadbeat father had left him at Wayne’s so he was going through a rebellious phase. Hopper had found the kid trying to climb the bell tower in the middle of town. Eddie had claimed he wanted a better view of Hawkins if he was gonna live there forever. Eddie called it a shithole. Hopper didn’t disagree.
• In July of 1978, Eddie was picked up outside Melvald’s General Store. He stole an ice cream bar from the little freezer and Joyce, being as nice as she is, decided to call Hop personally at home to take the kid home.
• In 1981, Eddie broke into Hawkins Middle School for shits and giggles despite having been in high school already and was found spray painting the words “Old Hag” on the chalkboard of the teacher that he hated the absolute most. Hopper took him in that time, since the kid technically committed breaking and entering.
• In 1983, just after Will Byers went missing, Eddie was picked up on the road leading up to the Quarry. Ever the conspiracy theorist, he wasn’t convinced that the body found was Will’s and was found poking around for “clues”. Hopper gave him hell since he could potentially be tampering with a crime scene, but let him go with a warning. Hopper had his suspicions too, after all.
• In 1984, he was caught trying to break into an arcade machine to steal their quarters for whatever reason. That was also the first time he ran from Hopper, throwing quarters behind him the entire time he was being chased to get ahead or something.
• Also in 1984, he was caught sneaking into the construction grounds of Starcourt Mall. He wanted to be the first person to ever set foot in the brand new business, despite not technically being the first person to set foot in the brand new business. Hopper had been working security on the building that night. The second Eddie spotted him, he just turned and ran off shouting, “Goddamn it! Every time!”
• In 1985, after Starcourt opened to the public, several businesses in the mall reported Eddie to the police for being a little nuisance. Being the dramatic little shit he is, he would do anything to annoy the patrons of the mall: steal food from randoms in the food court, hide in the clothing racks with his friends and scare employees, and even tried to get into the back of Scoops Ahoy to get “the fresh shit”. Robin and Steve tried to convince their boss not to call Hopper but y’know, that didn’t work. Eddie would just outrun Hopper whenever he ever did end up coming to kick him out of the mall, throwing random shoppers into the Chief’s path to get away.
• Also some pick-ups for drug possession, but Eddie would always get away midway through being cuffed. He even stole a pair of handcuffs while bolting. Hopper never pursued, as he just didn’t care about drug charges too much.
At the end of Hopper’s stories, everyone was howling with laughter while Eddie’s face was beet red with embarrassment. He had a smile on his face, however, as he was just so glad to see the man that he swore hated him share those stories so fondly. Steve wiped away his tears from laughing so hard, still chuckling as he took his boyfriend’s hand and gave it a supportive squeeze.
“You know what, Eddie,” Joyce spoke up, a smile on her face that made her cheeks hurt from all the laughing they had done. “I oughta thank you. I think you’re the one who kept Hop as limber as he is. Kept his fat ass in shape!”
y’all me and my bff are high as fuck and we were talking about abomination ships in stranger things right and the bitch goes “eddie and vecna should be called edna” and i haven’t known true pain until this moment
summary: in which you got stood up, again, and eddie is determined to lift your spirit, even if it means admitting the one thing he’s been able to hide for years…
notes: not to be sad on main but i wrote this based on what actually happened today irl and i needed some eddie comfort so this is a tad bit self indulgent but we all need an eddie pick me up sometimes. im also a sucker for the best friends to lovers trope so- i copied and pasted from notes so it’s unedited, be warned, some insecure thoughts but just know you are loved and very much wanted <3
word count: 3k, i got carried away
it happened again.
you got your hopes up.
you woke up earlier than usual, you took extra time styling your hair and even picked out your favorite outfit. you had work all day and knew you’d be able to clock out and meet this cute boy downtown for a date. a first date.
you hated the dating game. it physically made you ill to admit you’ve been putting yourself out there in attempt to break the record for being single the longest in your friend group. after countless rejections and guys who straight up to your face said “you’re pretty and fun to be around but i just don’t have feelings for you,” you finally felt confident about this one.
you met when you passed by each other at the store. he flashed a smile and asked for your number. pulled all the right cards. this guy actually asked you out on a date. it wasn’t a “hey come over to my house and we’ll watch a movie” which was code for “i just want to get in your pants.”
so when you showed up to the small diner on the outskirts of hawkins at the time you agreed to over the phone the night before, you weren’t expecting to be left stranded. you waited an hour. the waiter took pity over you and gave you a free milkshake which you gladly accepted before making the trek back to your car where you drove home in silence.
it was around 10pm when you heard the ring of your house phone and you picked it up to hear the familiar buzz of metal music playing in the background.
“hello?” your voice gave away your sad mood.
“L/N, i’m in desperate need of a late night drive partner. been itching to get out all day. this final project has been kicking my ass. damn you, o’donnell.” your best friend, eddie, rambled into the phone.
apart of you wanted to nicely decline and continue your sad romantic movie bing with ice cream but another part of you knew eddie would help distract you from your problems.
the only thing was.
you didn’t tell anyone you had this date. you didn’t want it to be another tragic date story. so you kept it to yourself. it explained why eddie was clueless to your abnormal sad tone.
“sure, eds.” a small smile forcing its way onto your face.
“perfect! be there in 10.” he hung up causing the buzzing noise to suddenly drop and you were back to feeling that pull in your stomach.
-
“you look rough, girl. what happened to you?” eddie playfully asked as you jumped into his van. the linger of smoke and alcohol stained the leather seats. you took in the familiar scent with a long inhale before shrugging.
“finals been kicking my ass too.” you lied.
“it looks like you’ve been crying. seriously, y/n, what happened?” his voice was laced with concern now he turned to face you more in the van. you just continued to stare forward. almost regretting this. you didn’t want to think of the familiar feeling of rejection any longer.
“nothing, i thought we were driving?” you snapped.
leaving it alone and trying to pretend you didn’t practically bite at him, he started the engine back up and drove away.
you and eddie have been best friends since middle school. what started out as a talent show rivalry turned into life long friendship. now, as seniors, or one repeat senior and former junior, you were attached at the hips. you were the rhythm guitar and background vocals in corroded coffins and a current level 15 half-elf bard in the hellfire club. after being friends this long, the idea of being more was off the table. your middle school crush was pushed so far down in your mind, it was almost nonexistent. that was why rejection hurt so much more. no way did eddie see you that way and as it turns out, no one else did either.
eddie could tell something was eating you alive. maybe it was fate that he felt the urge to call you up and invite you for an impromptu late night drive. he missed you, it felt like lately you’ve been avoiding him. now, he realizes something else was keeping you away from him. he could feel you becoming distant.
it was his goal now to make you smile and to hopefully fix whatever was making you upset.
the idea that came to mind was one he should have thought of when you first got in the car. as he turned onto creighton road, trees on each side of you, he rummaged through to find the mixtape you made for these late car rides.
with a quiet aha, he put it in and a smile came to his face when the familiar favorite began to play.
heaven and hell by black sabbath.
you could see his premature head banging from the corner of your eye. the song yet to transition to the part where you both would normally go all out. you knew he was trying to get a reaction out of you.
“nothing? come on, L/N” he began to drum at the steering wheel. “it’s a crime to sit still in the presence of metal. and with dio? that’s just plain disrespect.” he joked around, poking at your leg as he drove.
he screamed the lyrics, occasionally singing in silly voices or purposely being off key which caused you to finally look over at him with a face of disgust.
“you sound terrible.” you laughed quietly.
“ah she speaks!” he exclaimed, taking his hands off the steering wheel for a slight second to applaud.
“shut it, munson.” you sat back in the passenger seat with your arms crossed, starting to relax with a comfortable smile on your face.
the transition you were waiting for took place and you found yourself slightly nodding your head.
“there she is! best part of the song come on now!” he yelled over the music that was way too loud.
“oh what the hell” you shook your head before jumping up in the seat and fully head banging to the black sabbath song blasting from the speakers.
beneath the loud intricate melodies playing in the van were you and eddie’s laughs and off key singing.
a true distraction. for a second, the world stopped and it was just you and eddie.
when the song faded, eddie pulled into the empty parking lot you both would sneak to smoke when skipping class. it was your hang out spot outside of the hidden place in the woods where eddie did his dealings.
there were two sources of light at this hour. a light post and the flickering neon sign of randy’s music shop. the sign flashing green and red making eddie’s car light up like a christmas special.
once parked, eddie turned off the music with a heavy sigh.
“okay, trouble. spill it. what’s wrong?” eddie asked, his voice softer than before.
you went back to your defensive stance, with arms crossed and staring out the front windshield.
he didn’t deserve the attitude. he deserved the truth. he came to you when rebecca rejected him in front of the whole basketball team. he came to you when susan asked him out as a joke and ran off laughing when he said yes. you could tell him about being stood up.
for the third time. hoping he didn’t think it was as embarrassing and pitiful as you felt.
he just looked at you in silence as he saw the hesitation painted on your face. your eyes flickered between your feet and the light right outside the car.
“is something wrong with me?” you finally blurted out after what seemed to be years of silence.
eddie scoffed, “woah what? is something wrong with you? no, why would you think that?” you were his best friend of 6 years, his crush the majority of the time, and the sweetest most amazing person he’s ever met. of course there was nothing wrong with you.
you shrugged, tempted to go silent again.
“i’m starting to think there is. it’s the only explanation.”
“for what?”
“why today was the third time a date stood me up. i'm a complete joke.” you responded, so soft he thought he misheard you.
a date? you went on a date and didn’t tell him? he felt a pang in his chest.
he just looked at you with a sad face as he put the pieces together as to why the past few months you’ve had these small moments. three different times, three different dates have stood you up and you kept it to yourself.
“Y/N… nothing is wrong with you. you are pe-“
“you’re my best friend. i give you full permission to tell me straight forward. what is it about me that makes me seem like a joke?” you asked, genuinely. you stared at your hands that fidgeted in your lap.
eddie’s eyes widened at the question. how could he answer that?
he touched your shoulder to get you to look at him but you couldn’t. you knew if you did, the tears that you were trying so damn hard to hold back would finally let go. with a sigh, he grabbed your chin to force you to look at him.
his eyebrows were raised in concern and a frown appeared in his face, adding to his overall sad puppy look. it was his big sad eyes that got you.
“and no pity” you added, not fighting the small sniffle that came to you.
“sweet girl, there is nothing wrong with you. i mean that, full heartedly. cross my heart.” he ran his finger across his chest in an x-pattern. you rolled your eyes and tried to look away before he turned you back to him, staring into your eyes hoping it showed you he was serious. “those guys… they’re complete idiots. cowards even. and honestly, it’s their loss. they are missing out on one amazing girl.”
“you’re just saying that.” you wiped under your eye, trying to catch the tears before they ran down your cheeks. “you have to.”
“no i don’t, y/n. im serious. ive known you for six years now? im pretty sure i have the credibility to say that. any guy would be lucky to even be in your presence. so fuck those guys huh?” he laughed.
“then why do i feel like i’m never wanted.” you said quietly, the dark fear that haunts you being revealed. “i’m always someone’s second choice or entertainment for when they’re bored or until they find the next thing. i just want to feel desired for once.” you rambled, not caring anymore about the judgement of your best friend.
sure there was a small hint of pain in your voice caused by the boy next to you. the first hint of rejection was in fact the day eddie came home to tell you about this cheerleading captain from your class and how he couldn’t stop staring at her at lunch. but eddie didn’t have to know.
it hurt eddie to know that you have been hanging onto this feeling for awhile now. he didn’t like knowing his best friend was looking at herself in the mirror and telling herself she was undesirable when he in fact have been pushing away his own feelings toward her for years. he even forced an infatuation with chrissy cunningham, the queen of hawkins high, in order to get over you. he himself felt unworthy to be anything more than your friend.
that’s why it confused him as to who and why these boys were breaking your heart.
silence.
eddie cleared his throat.
silence.
when he finally spoke up, he said your name so soft as if it was fragile. as if, spoken at any louder volume, it would break. he mustered all the courage in the world to look into his best friends eyes and hope that what he said didn't make this worse. didn't make you feel worse.
"freshman year, we just started corroded coffins, right?"
you nodded, confused to what he was getting at.
"we played at whatever festival it was that year and that guy came up to us after just to talk to you."
the memory recollected in your mind.
a student, who seemed to be a year or two above you, came up to you clearing not interested in the band as a whole. he just thought it was hot to see a girl play guitar up on the stage. you didn't like the situation one bit.
"you came and wrapped your arm around me and called me babe." you snickered.
"thanks for coming and seeing the band, we appreciate the support."
"well, I was actually wanting to ask-"
"my girlfriend here was amazing. weren't you babe?"
"oh- uh- yeah she was." the dude walked away rolling his eyes and you laughed so hard as you took eddie's arm off you.
"good one, eds."
"yeah, well. if we're being honest tonight..." he started, clearing his throat to stall. "I was jealous."
"j-jealous?"
"I hated how easily the guy came up to you with confidence. I was scared he would sweep you off your feet. I did that not only to save you from a disaster waiting to happen but also because I didn't like the idea of another guy taking my spot."
"eddie..."
guilt from the way you responded that day creeped in, mixed with your own hurt from rejection.
"when you laughed, I told myself that we were clearly just friends. you didn't see me as anything more. so i accepted my place as the best friend."
silence.
he shook his head, chuckling nervously.
"no hard feelings, I promise. Im just telling you that to say..." he was scared to look into your eyes again, afraid he'd melt at the way you stared at him now. "you are very much in fact desirable. I would know, because I've had a stupid crush on you since the seventh grade. i've just been too scared to tell you. scared you would laugh in my face and i'd lose out on an amazing band mate, my best campaign partner, the one person that knows me more than I think I know myself sometimes. it makes me so angry to know that others don't see you the way that i do. god damn it, Y/N, you have no idea how wanted you are. there's nothing wrong with you. not one single thing. every part of you is my favorite. and if I just made this whole thing awkward, im so sorry I just- I hope it makes you-"
"eddie"
"feel better because I hate seeing you upset."
"eddie"
"what?"
"can I kiss you?"
he nodded with his wide eyes and slightly parted lips, wondering how you both got here. he wasn't complaining. not when the girl of his dreams was currently grabbing his face and pressing her soft lips against his.
years of mutual pining and the both of you being idiots led to this moment. a soft kiss that pushed to be more passionate. unspoken feelings being expressed by the way eddie gently grabbed the sides of your face, pulling you closer. you ran your hands through eddie's hair as you tried to get as close as the front seat would let you. pushing up onto your knees causing eddie to moan as you slightly tugged at his curls.
if breathing wasn't a vital part of living, you don't think you would have ever stopped kissing him. there were so many times during your friendship with eddie that you were scared he caught you staring at his lips. now you were able to finally say that his lips were softer than expected.
you pressed your forehead against his as you both slowed your breathing.
"in case it wasn't obvious-" you laughed between breaths, "i've had a stupid crush on you ever since you beat me in the talent show."
"i still think it was rigged, you should have won."
"not the time, munson" you both laughed. everything feeling peaceful.
"we're really big idiots aren't we, sweetheart?"
"i really had to get stood up three times to finally get a kiss from eddie munson."
you sat back in your seat and stared up at your best friend. his smile turned into a sympathetic frown.
"i'm sorry, again."
you shrugged.
"it's alright. it's their loss. i'm no longer available anyways."
"oh really now?" he asked, the biggest smirk on his face.
"mhmm."
"and who's the lucky fella?"
"i'm staring right at him." you smiled, both of you never daring to look away.
"can i take you out on a proper date? I want to do this right. i-i'm gonna get you flowers, i'll even wear a button up and tie. i heard there's this nice Italian restaurant downtown-" eddie rambled again. he swore he would never let you feel rejected or undesired ever again. this meant he would do any and all he could to make up for what the other guys took from you. what you deserved.
you reached over and grabbed his hand to give a reassuring squeeze.
"i was thinking we could go rent a movie and stay at your place." you shrugged. you didn't need fancy dates. you didn't need eddie to change how he dressed or waste his money on flowers and jewelry like all the other guys did to prove their love. you just wanted him. your best friend. "i just want you."
fuck off fuck right off one of my favourite songs of all time is heaven and hell and I ALWAYS THINK OF THIS REALLY FUNKY UMMMM NSFW SCENE WITH EDDIE AND i won’t say me but let’s be real here ANYWAYS I SAW THAT FUCKIN SONG TITLE AND MMMMMMM noice
you meet eddie and his daughter roan. ficlets about falling in love and becoming a family (these are vaguely non-sequential/chronological, can be read in any order but the first three might be a good place to start)
all in once place
eddie meets you for the first time, roan has a meltdown
eddie tries to get roan to stop clinging to you
eddie loses roan at the store, you find her
eddie asks you to pick roan up from daycare
eddie and roan awe at how pretty you look for a date
eddie takes you and roan for coffee, you look like her mom
eddie calls you sweetheart so much that roan copies him
roan loves you so much she hides your shoes
roan won’t let you and eddie cuddle
roan defends your honour when eddie play fights with you
eddie asks you over late at the night, roan finds you
eddie and you cut a date short to go take care of roan
roan colours eddie’s tattoos
eddie asks you to be his girlfriend
eddie and you comfort roan after a nightmare
eddie and you make breakfast, roan joins for cuddles
eddie and you get roan ready for bed
eddie gets more than he bargains for when he calls ‘babe’
eddie finds you and roan awake in the middle of the night
every argyle headcanon is so good and canon to me. he’s a closet millionaire. a garfield enthusiast. he could rub two braincells together and solve the apocalypse but he’d rather be chilling. him and jonathan have definitely kissed.
—summary: joseph and y/n take the friendship test, but it seems they may be more.
—warnings: nothing but pining.
—word count: 3k
—additional notes: this is sort of different than how i usually write, i’ve watched most of these interviews and went through them again to choose which ones i wanted to add to this one, after putting the ones i wanted turns out it’s just joe keery and gaetan matarazzo’s one. guess i just love that one.
⋅𖥔⋅𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐃𝐔𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍. ⋅𖥔⋅
Joseph’s Introduction.
Joseph stood in a white striped shirt, black trousers lean to match the outfit and one hand found the comfort of his pocket while the other scratched the stubble over his jaw. “I mean, yeah, I’d say we’re pretty good friends. Y/n’s been working on the show for years before me, so I was really nervous meeting not only her but the entire cast. She was the first person to really sit down and have a conversation with me that day.” He nods with a teasing smirk upon his face reminiscing the memory, “since then we’ve got to work together pretty often, had a lot of scenes together, and uh— yeah, she’s great. Really great.”
Blush was quick to reach his cheeks, tinted red as he continued to fidget his fingers over the scruff of his facial hair, his palm landing flat against his cheek as he tried to contain his happy grin.
Y/n’s Introduction.
Y/n nearly matches the same expression as Joe, much shyer seeming as she clasps her hands in front of her body when she begins to speak upon the question, “Joe’s very easy to get on with. He wasn’t an original part of the cast, but he immediately fit in like one. He has this ability to immediately light up a room and he had no problem fitting into the dynamic we’ve created even though you could tell he was worried he would be intervening.”
She eagerly nods while talking, a smile quite like Joseph’s never leaving her lips as she spoke about him. Always so highly, there was nothing about him that brought a negative cloud when he joined, always the bright light shining with days on set. And through the friendship they had it was easy to tell they got along.
Although, hidden feelings through the years creeping upon the surface. Within simple sentences, compliments, glimmering eyes upon the other’s name, or the quirk of a smile upon the corner of a lip,. All easily able to show that either saw each other as more, but were yet to discuss such.
⋅𖥔⋅𝐄𝐗𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐎𝐍𝐄. — Give each other compliments. ⋅𖥔⋅
Now standing across from one another, a clipboard and pen in either’s hands, Joesph and Y/n giggle thoughtfully as they write down compliments to one another.
Joseph’s hands scribbled fast, quickly noting down each five compliments they were limited to and his tongue reaching his top lip as he thought about which ones he should include compared to the number he had in his head.
Hums left Y/n as her gaze flitted to Joseph every few seconds while slowly writing on each little sheet, easily able to flow which compliments she had in mind. Watching as his pen knocks fast against the card and when their eyes meet they each laugh with a slight awkwardness of the situation but an overall excited gaze.
Y/n clicks the pen lid on, passing that and the clipboard to the side as she holds the cards between her hands with quick gleeful glances towards the camera and then Joseph as he continues to write, even letting out a frustrated grunt as he scribbles lines rapidly through one sentence.
“This is hard,” he mutters through his poked tongue as he begins to write something else. Y/n scoffs jokingly, holding her cards to her chest as she sways side to side on her feet in anticipation while she waits for him to finish, “thank you,” she teasingly replies.
Joseph shuts his eyes as he shakes his head in disagreement before meeting her eyes, “no! you knew what I meant!” Y/n laughs at Joseph’s reaction as he finishes off the last of his points, “sure I do.”
Finally, he follows suit, clicking the pen lid shut before handing it over with his clipboard to then look properly at Y/n. It felt like all they did was smile, Joseph winking playfully at Y/n as he grasps the cards harder while letting out an excited, “right. Lay it on me, ladies always first.”
“Always such a gentleman,” Y/n starts nervously, looking down to her board at her first point but being interrupted quickly by Joseph, “was that the first one?”. His chuckle is louder than Y/n’s when he watches her shake her head, “a bonus compliment, let’s say.”
“Okay, Joe,” Y/n starts, a quick glance down to the card before looking up at his expectant eyes with a fond gaze. “You have the ability to put a smile on anyone’s face,” Joseph quirks already at the first one, eyebrows pulling when he continues to listen. “After days on set, my cheeks hurt from how effortlessly you make me smile, and it’s always clear around the others.”
“Thank you.”
Y/n puts the first card to the back of the pile, glancing over the second option before looking back into his eyes which stare. “The next one, you’re a great actor,” Y/n nods lightly as she spoke, Joseph feeling his heart tug further upon each sentence, “from the very beginning of meeting you, it was clear they casted the right person because you played your character very well and you’re so hard-working.”
Joseph wants to say thank you between each one, but refrains from doing so until she’s finished as to not interrupt her. But the continued compliments were overwhelming and Joseph didn’t know how to take it.
“Thirdly,” Y/n states, shuffling the cards, “you’re by far the kindest person I’ve ever met.” Joseph’s eyes flicker, taking in what Y/n’s just stated. “You’re always looking out for me and for others, and you’re really sweet.”
“Oh god,” Joseph murmurs quietly, eliciting small giggles from both parties when Y/n flicks to the following card, “you’re comforting.” Joseph feels himself getting emotional, tears welling up in his eyes and threatening to fall, if the previous one didn’t get him, this one might. “You make me feel safe and I’m always comfortable around you, that’s why I loved taking naps in your trailer between scenes.”
Joseph chuckles at the end between tears he’s refraining from falling, a small sniffle to contain it. His eyes watch as she turns to her last card, smiling to herself before looking back up at him, “and finally, you give great hugs.”
Joseph extends his arms immediately, offering a hug as he steps forward to force her into one. Not only from the statement, but also a thank you. Y/n pushes him back for a moment, holding his bicep to stop him when she finishes her compliment with, “the best hugs even.”
“C’mere,” his cards gripped in his hand graze her shirt when he pulls her in, engulfing Y/n into a hug. “Thank you, love,” he murmurs against her head, pressing a quick kiss there before pulling back, “see what I mean,” Y/n states, placing her cards to the side when Joseph laughs affectionately.
It turns to Joseph, both refixing themselves in front of the other, he clears his throat dramatically, fixing his posture to stand completely straight and smirking with a quick wink sent Y/n’s way. “You ready?”.
He clears his throat again, before starting, looking over to Y/n after glancing at the card, “you have the most perfect smile.” Y/n widens her eyes, as if she still didn’t expect the compliment, turning to her feet as she shuffles embarrassed. “Seriously, It could light up a whole room. It does, actually! It’s lit up tons of ‘em,” Joseph continues, trying to coax Y/n back to him while grinning from ear to ear.
“You’re compassionate.” Y/n shakes her head, unable to take the compliments very well but Joseph is far from stopping, enjoying the way she squirms because it’s cute. But he also believes she needs to hear these things more often, “you are always so kind to me. No matter what. Ever since the first day we met, I knew.”
Glancing back down, shuffling the cards to the next one, Joseph reads, other compliments he couldn’t decide between creating a scribbled mess across the white sheet. “Oh, this is an important one,” Joseph starts.
“You’re patient with people during scenes,” Joseph begins, leaning down slightly to catch Y/n’s misdirected glance, “if someone’s struggling one day, you’re never judgemental with them and wait until they’re ready. You’re especially patient with the kids, which I think is amazing.”
“Your talent is admirable.” Y/n inhales sharply upon the compliment, “Joe…” she trails off, but it doesn’t stop Joseph from continuing. “I knew you were talented, already watched the show. But my god, watching you work, I really got to see how great you are at your job.”
Joseph doesn’t have to glance at the last one, resting his hands by his front as he continues to watch her, “and the most important one, lastly,” Y/n’s hesitant, nervous and while she thinks it’s sweet to what he’s saying, she can’t wait for it to be over so he can stop complimenting her so kindly. “Your laugh… my favourite sound in the world.” Just friends? Right?
⋅𖥔⋅𝐄𝐗𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐖𝐎. — Stare into each other’s eyes for four minutes. ⋅𖥔⋅
“Okay, starting now?” Y/n asks after standing back in front of him, both close enough so they can properly stare at one another. Someone indicates the time has begun and both Joseph and Y/n giggle awkwardly as they are met with the silence, and the task to not look away.
For around a minute, neither of them says anything, sometimes giggling, and sometimes smiles dropping as they gaze across each other’s face comfortably. Joseph was good at eye contact normally, so it wasn’t terribly different than normal, only now they were being forced for prolonged time.
After a minute, Joseph tugs a smirk upon his lips before shaking his head, “I don’t know why I didn’t put beautiful eyes on there, because you really do.” Y/n joins him, shaking her head to contain the giddy expression from arising upon her features, instead opting for a simple line back, “ditto to you, Quinn.”
However, he continues to try and make Y/n flustered. After another moment of waiting, she suddenly laughs, bright and nervous as she wonders why they put themselves in this position, and Joseph smiles upon the noise.
He looks to the crew at the side for a moment, aiming his sentence towards the camera, “see? What did I say? Best laugh in the industry, I swear.” Y/n’s mouth drops open, some laughter through her shock as she points to him, a playful hit following, causing him to turn back, “you looked away!”.
“Oh, shit, sorry.”
They stare at one another again, Y/n jokingly pointing to the side where people stood, but refusing to move her eyes away from the man in front, “restart the timer, he made us lose.”
“It’s not a competition, love,” Joseph tries once they’re back in a rhythm, him now worrying and trying harder to not look away, not that he really wanted to as her eyes beautifully gazed across. “We can make it one, however,” Joseph says.
“What do you mean?” asks Y/n, confused. “Staring contest, first one to blink is out,” Joseph explains, leaning down slightly so his face is threateningly closer to hers, “but we can’t look away?” replies Y/n.
“Just keep playing until the four minutes is up,” Joseph tries, clearly desperate to make it a bit fun, and Y/n agrees.
This leads them to continue the exercise to their own amusement, blinking rapidly as Joseph counts down, all the while still looking at one another before finally starting the competition. Y/n was better, Joseph quick to struggle against the air as he lets out little yells of frustration when Y/n hardly reacts.
However, after losing for a third time in a row, he begins to blow air gently into her face or pretend to poke her eyelids so she would blink, both of them laughing light-heartedly and it was very clear how close they were, enjoying their intimate time together.
The cameras easily able to pick up on the way their eyes didn’t only look at one another, but really gazed into the other, in admiration and what can be interpreted as more than friendship.
⋅𖥔⋅ 𝐄𝐗𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐒𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄. — Trust falls. ⋅𖥔⋅
This time the camera pans on them getting ready for the next exercise, Y/n shaking her arms nervously while Joseph gives a look towards the camera, “this is easy.” He turns to Y/n before pointing, “you trust me, yes?”.
Y/n turns away, back to Joseph as she lifts her arms to either side of her, creating space for Joseph to hold her when she falls back, “yes, of course.”
Joseph prepares, moving himself into the perfect position behind her and planting his feet, even wiping his hands as if it would help. While he does so, Y/n turns to the side with a whisper, “not only generally, but physicality as well, I mean…” Y/n trails off knowingly, referring to his wide shouldered frame and big arms, knowing it will be simple for him.
“Huh?” Joseph asks, glancing up after Y/n spoke, his eyebrows furrowed and a playful glint in his eyes from catching an idea of what she said. His arms were outstretched, ready to catch her when she was ready.
“Nothing, nothing,” Y/n starts, shrugging it off to begin with, voice getting smaller, “you’re just very tall… and big.” She gestures over her shoulder to explain his broadened frame, causing a blush to arise over Joseph’s cheeks, “compliment exercise is over, love. No need to flatter me anymore.”
After a moment, preparing herself, Y/n falls back. She finds herself immediately caught by Joseph, arms slithering under her underarms to hold her steadily, but instead of pulling her up, he lets her down further to the ground.
Y/n squeals from the sudden drop, Joseph’s face coming into view as he chuckles before pulling her back up, allowing her to stand straight and hold her heart from the different route. “Again?” Joseph asks excitedly, clapping his hands together in the process.
“I mean, yes. I trust you; I just didn’t like that drop at the end, I got a fright,” Y/n giggles, she just got a little fright but from her compliments exercise it was clear she felt safe around him and she knew Joseph wouldn’t do anything to scare her intentionally.
He’s immediate to reply, “okay, no worries. No more drop, I’ll catch you.”
The second time is smoother, he catches her just as easily as the last time before lifting her back up to stand. Joseph pulls back, both their arms lifting above their heads as they cheer victoriously. Y/n turns back to him, high fiving Joseph in the process.
This time Joseph turns around, starting to uncontrollably giggle, trying to contain himself when he glances towards the camera with his knowingly teasing glint in his eyes, “I’m nervous.” He already knows Y/n’s reaction without having to see her, her mouth agape and a small gasp emitting, “you don’t trust me?”.
Joseph shakes his head, “I trust you more than anyone, and I know you’ll try to catch me. But that doesn’t mean it’ll work, you know.” Y/n shakes her head in disagreement, the camera catching her offended expression while she extends her arms forward, palms facing his back and ready to prove him wrong.
“Shift it, Quinn.”
Joseph takes his time, hardly reacting as he crosses his arms over his chest and takes breathes of preparation, eyes shut to accommodate. Y/n grows more impatient and faking disappointment as the seconds pass by.
With a push, Joseph leans back and allows himself to fall, a wavered yell from his throat as he does so. However, he hardly falls back, only a couple of inches from leaning back before she pushes her palms flat to his back and grunts while pushing his tall weight back up.
“Yay! I knew you’d catch me, love,” Joseph states with pride when he turns back over, turning into a yell when he avoids Y/n’s hand which tries to playfully slap his arm, “shut up, no you didn’t!!”.
⋅𖥔⋅ 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐂𝐋𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍. ⋅𖥔⋅
“So, how was that for you?” Joseph asks with a quirked smirk, both facing towards the camera once again to form their own conclusions on the friendship, his eyes glancing to Y/n.
Friendship.
Y/n nods with a slight swing against her heels as she tries to undercut the flustered feelings sitting at the pit of her stomach, pretending it’s from the anxiousness from the different style of interview and not from her rethinking of Joseph’s eyes looking back into hers.
Or the honesty and deepness of his voice when he complimented her.
“I think it was great, I think this showed to everyone that we are good friends outside of the show,” Y/n glances at Joseph and matches his loving smile as they gaze at one another while he replies, “great friends, yeah.”
“No, but I do trust her, with my life. I really just don’t trust her physicality sometimes,” Joseph teases, facing forward as he speaks leaving Y/n to gape at him once again. “I’ll have you know; I am strong but when I’m having to hold up a giant then—” before Y/n can continue, Joseph cuts her off, thumb pointed her while he mutters to the camera, “she’s so dramatic.”
“You should’ve added that to your compliment list, then.”
“Isn’t a compliment, love.”
With another look at one another, they hold their glances for another moment and the joking words fizzle into a comfortable silence, prompting Joseph to turn to the camera and finish off their interview. Leaving them to their friendship behind the screen.
With that, there was a clear sign of something more than friendship there, the trust in a friend being one thing but the longing stare with one another, a telling on platforms for days thereafter discussing their completely obvious infatuation with one another. Which inevitably leads them to finally discussing it.
⤸
taglist form . the library . joseph quinn masterlist
i need need NEED A FLUFFY FOLLOW UP WHERE THEY GET TOGETHER AND ITS JUST PURE FLUFF
okay but like imagine them just having a chill movie night as “best buds” 👀 do and they just get to talking over the movie and omg it just all falls into place i’d melt
nah i’m still mad about s3 because if will stayed a SECOND longer with dustin he would’ve been a part of the secret russian code storyline and he wouldn’t have had to get hatecrimed by mike
content & contains: requested!! set during s4. you were on watch duty with steve, he convinces you to share the special treatment you receive at the wheelers.
reader wakes up to steve grinding against her, lil bit of perv!steve (my beloved), choking (steve receiving), thigh riding, hints of hung steve!size kink, hand job, pussy job, fingering (f receiving), unprotected sex, creampie. mentions of bruising/hickies, tearing up, and scratching.
author’s note: realized after that this is all technically happening at his ex girlfriend’s house……… sorry nancy. all my love to @yellowharrington & @chestharrington who always encourage every unholy thought i have and eagerly read whatever brain rot i give them at all hours of the day.
word count: almost 4.9k
i’ve dreamt about you nearly every night this week
Out of all the random kids who run around his house, you’re Ted Wheeler’s favorite.
Everyone else was stuck piling into the cramped basement while Ted made a big show of letting you know that the guest bedroom was made up for you. It would be embarrassing if you weren’t so entertained by the groans of protest coming from Dustin and Steve.
Steve who then, suspiciously, made sure he was on watch duty with you.
summary: as a nomadic traveler that lives in a van, your only source of socialization is talking to strangers on a ham radio.
You woke up to the sound of birds chirping and the sun shining brightly in your face. It was your first week back on the road after a long winter, longer than you had anticipated but it had gotten strangely cold in Texas that year. Usually, until the rest of the country defrosted, you could be out in your van almost all year but you had bunked with your parents over Christmas.
The second the sun came out, though, you were packing your bags and heading out on the road to ring in 1985.
You had been living this nomadic lifestyle for only two years now, ever since you had finished fixing up your dad’s old VW camper van. He gave it to you for a graduation present and you were off that very summer with the goal of visiting every state and all the Canadian provinces. Being January still, however, you were sticking to the southern states to avoid frostbite.
Rest stops and RV parks were your home, and you adored it. You kept to yourself, and you filled your time with reading, crocheting, cooking, and talking on your state-of-the-art ham radio. Your dad had put in the unit, bought brand new from the shelves at Radioshack, so you could talk to your family no matter where you were in North America.
It was nice. You loved your family and missed them whenever you were away.
However, you could only talk to your family so much before the events in their life started to repeat themselves. So, every once in a while, you would sit at your radio and switch through random channels in hopes to talk to someone new. A stranger, someone you didn’t know personally. They always had amazing stories.
So, when you woke up that morning, you sat up in your bed and stretched out your arms with a big yawn. You had a late night last night, staying up talking with your family, so you felt drained even though you slept in. You didn’t want to do anything today, not even cook, so you crawled your way into the driver seat of the van and turned it on.
To the McDonald’s drive-thru you went.
Having the convenience of fast food while on the road was dangerous. You were already chubby before you left home, but the ease of drive-thrus made your weight go up a little bit. Nothing drastic, but your family always felt the need to comment on it whenever you went home.
You parked in one of the spaces once getting your breakfast, unwrapping the McMuffin as you turned on your radio. The signal could pick up anywhere but it always worked the best in more populated areas like towns or cities. You cleared your throat as you took a bite of your sandwich, then picked up the speaker and clicked down the button. “Hello, is anyone out there?”
When no one responded for several seconds, you switched the frequency and tried again. Repeating yourself with each new frequency, you began to grow frustrated with the lack of response. Usually by attempt five, someone would come in but there was no response. On your tenth try, you had finished your breakfast and tossed the bag out the window and into the garbage can right outside your window.
“Okay, assholes, this is your last chance,” you spoke into your handheld speaker, taking a sip of your coffee. “Is there anyone out there?”
“Well, this isn’t what I would necessarily call a good first impression, but it’ll do,” a sultry voice responded through the radio, making you jump a little in surprise with your eyes focused on the radio. “Who am I talking to?”
You breathed out a sigh of relief when you finally got a response, and this person sounded young. You usually got fifty year old truckers so this was a nice change. You pressed down on the button. “Sorry for calling you an asshole,” you said first. “Well, I was just talking to the wind but you get what I mean. My name’s Y/N.”
“Y/N,” the voice repeated, and you could hear the smile in his voice. Your name sounded like sugar coming from him. “A pretty name for a pretty girl, I’m sure. I’m Eddie.”
The blush that rose to your face was almost immediate. Despite this man being completely unknown to you, the way he spoke to you gave you chills. He could be forty for all you knew, but someone you knew that wasn’t the case.
“Eddie,” you repeated softly, a smile spreading across your face as you pressed the button down once more. “It’s nice to meet you, Eddie.”
From that day forward, you checked on that specific frequency every day. You had written it down after your first conversation with Eddie Munson. It differed slightly depending on where you traveled, but you were always able to find him again.
March of 1985, you were driving through Wyoming. While the state paled in contrast with things to do than other states, it more than made up for it with the beautiful skyscapes. You had never seen such beautiful sunrises and sunsets before.
“Y/N, are you there?” Eddie’s voice suddenly crackled through your radio, making you avert your gaze from the gorgeous sunset for a brief moment before looking back out the windshield. You were driving, after all, so you technically had to focus on the road.
“Come on, sweetheart, I know you’re there. You live in that damn van, where else can you be? Come in, over.”
You playfully roll your eyes as you pick up the speaker, clicking down the button. “Sweetheart, huh? Getting awfully comfortable, aren’t we?”
The sound of Eddie’s chuckle coming through the radio had you melting in your seat. The way you two had gotten to know each other over the last couple of months was astonishing. You basically trauma-dumped on him the first day you met, but he was still a bit reserved when it came to his past. He told you plenty about himself, just not much about his life. It was easy for you to tell him everything, as you didn’t know what he looked like, but he seemed a little more apprehensive.
You didn’t mind, though. All in due time.
“Well, we’ve been talking every day for the past two months so I say we’re in pet name territory,” Eddie continued, a slight roughness in his voice that could either mean he just woke up, smoked a huge bowl, or finished a show. Considering the time of day, as well as the fact that it was a Tuesday, you guessed it was two out of the three. “Where are you today?”
You hummed softly as you leaned forward a bit, one hand on the wheel and the other on the speaker, to get a better look at the approaching road sign. “About ten miles outside of Riverton, Wyoming. I am staring at the most beautiful sunset.”
Eddie let out a little whistle. “Wyoming, huh? That’s not too far from Indiana. Why don’t you come by for a visit, sweetheart? I could show you something even more beautiful to stare at.”
“Oh yeah?” You responded with a giggle, taking a turn down a road just outside city limits that directed you towards an RV park. “What do you have there in Hawkins, Indiana other than a batshit crazy lab that killed a girl and a brand new, shiny mall?”
“Ouch, sweetheart!” Eddie laughed, his voice crackling through the radio as you came to a slow stop at a free spot within the park. You adjusted the damn thing to hear him clearer. “There’s more to Hawkins than just those. There’s also hicks and douchebags galore.”
“And where do you fit in, dear Edward?”
“Well, with the freaks, of course.”
You smile a bit to yourself, shaking your head fondly. The thing you loved most about your unconventional friendship with Eddie was that neither of you needed to say “over” when you were done talking. You two just knew when each other was done talking.
“You and me both, Eddie,” you responded to him in a soft voice after a moment, finally parking your van at a spot and relaxing back into the driver seat. You smiled a little to yourself, wondering briefly how you got yourself into this weird friendship. But you didn’t mind.
“You and me both.”
July of 1985 was so strangely hot, especially since you were in the middle of Canada. You were in the boonies of Saskatchewan in a town called Moose Jaw, staying in a campground within the city limits. You never knew Canada could get so hot.
Due to the heat, you only wore a pair of high-waisted jean shorts and a neon green bikini top. It was completely tame and everything was covered, so you didn’t understand why some people were staring at you as you walked around the town.
That was until a group of teenagers moo’d at you.
You slammed the sliding door to your van, hiccuping as you tried to force back sobs. Normally, you didn’t let digs at your weight get to you but being taunted like that was too far. You furiously wiped your eyes as you crawled into your driver seat, grabbing the speaker and pressing down the button.
“Eddie,” you croaked out softly, immediately cursing yourself. You didn’t want Eddie to hear you cry. You cared for him way too much and were scared of what he would think upon hearing you cry. “Eddie, do you copy? I need to talk, Eds, please…”
“I’m here, sweetheart, I’m here,” Eddie responded immediately, literally under a second after you finished talking. He sounded so concerned, his voice sweet and comforting. “What’s wrong, princess, what happened?”
You sniffled softly to yourself as you looked down at your lap, remaining quiet for a few minutes before pressing the button down. “I know we agreed to not say anything to each other about what we look like until we meet, but I just need to. F-For context.”
“As long as you’re alright with that, darling.”
You breathed out softly as you gathered the courage, and Eddie thankfully gave you the time you needed. He was always so good about that. “Okay, so,” you spoke up after a moment. “I’m not…I’m not the ideal image of beauty.”
Eddie was quiet for a little bit. He wanted to let you speak without interruption, but he couldn’t keep to himself. “Sweetheart, I haven’t seen you yet but I just know you’re drop dead gorgeous. No matter what you look like.”
Your lower lip quivered a little as you took a deep breath. He knew exactly the right words to make you swoon, but today was different. You didn’t believe him. Eddie sounded so handsome that you were sure he deserved a bombshell. Not someone whose thighs touched and whose arms jiggled when they waved.
“Eddie, you don’t understand,” you finally let out a soft cry, hands trembling as the attempt to hold it in finally failed. “I was moo’d at today! Like a fucking cow, Eds! It’s so fucking hot here today so I wore my favourite shorts and a bikini top and these fucking teenagers moo’d at me!”
You just sniffled softly to yourself now, tears falling down your reddening cheeks as Eddie remained quiet on the other end. You didn’t know what he was thinking. Hell, if you had to guess, he was probably going through what you looked like in his head to determine if he even wanted to still talk to you.
“I’m not skinny, Eddie. Far from it,” you murmured softly into the speaker after a minute of silence. “I don’t know exactly what I weight but if I had to guess–”
“Don’t,” Eddie interrupted you, making you look at your radio in surprise. He never interrupted you before. “Don’t. It doesn’t matter, darling, okay? People who think weight matters are fucking assholes. You can still be drop dead gorgeous and have a few extra pounds, yeah? Which, by the way, I’m sure you are. A little extra to hold at night is such a plus, too. It gets cold up here in Indiana.”
The blush that adorned your cheeks was downright embarrassing. If you had been in front of Eddie at that moment, you were sure he could figure out your crush for him in under a second. “Eddie Munson, you really know how to make a girl feel better,” you replied after a moment, a smile returning to your face as you wiped your eyes. “And you’re sure you don’t have a girlfriend?”
Eddie’s laugh was music to your ears. “No one here in Hawkins wants to date the freak, darling. Besides, I have someone far better for me in mind than any of these hicks.”
Your eyebrows immediately shot up and jealousy began to bubble in your stomach. Your one hand clenched the speaker tightly, pressing the button down. “Oh yeah?” You ask, trying to hide the jealousy in your voice. “And who would that be?”
“Well, my dear Y/N, all I know is that they have the most addicting voice I have ever heard,” was his response, and that made butterflies erupt in your tummy now. “I mean, I talk to her every single day. She’s kind, funny, and beautiful. Even if I don’t know what she looks like yet, I know she’s beautiful.”
Your face was now bright red, and you were unable to control yourself as you burst into a fit of happy giggles. “So, what are you saying, Munson? You got a crush on me? Ew.”
Your laugh grew louder as Eddie let out a dramatic gasp through the radio, throwing your head back against your seat. “You’re damn right I do!” Eddie shouted, just making you laugh louder.
“Well, good,” you responded with a kind smile, wiping away tears of laughter now. “Because lucky enough for you, the feelings are mutual.”
On Halloween of that year, you were in Louisiana. So far in your trip, you had gotten to twenty states and five Canadian provinces. While you were making better progress than you anticipated, Indiana was still far down on your list. You weren’t sure if you were even gonna get there before March.
Eddie understood the fact that you wanted to stick to your plan, since you had family things to work around, but it didn’t mean it didn’t frustrate him.
“I wish you were here tonight,” his voice crackled through the radio, making you stop crocheting so you could grab the speaker. The two of you had been dating for three months now and you still talked every day, just with an extra special type of call that took place at night.
“Tonight would be the perfect night to curl up with my best girl in front of a scary movie, drink a couple of beers,” he sighed longingly, making you smile softly. “Are you sure you can’t squeeze in a visit to Hawkins before you head back home for the winter?”
You hum softly, placing your crocheting into your lap so you can press down on the button. “I head back to Texas first thing in the morning,” you told him with a little sigh. “Hawkins is already twelve hours away. I’ll freeze my tits off in my van, Eds.”
Eddie whined like a child in response, making you laugh at his childish behaviour. “Life is so unfair,” he huffed after about fifteen seconds of annoying yet adorable whining. “You can’t get to me until March? That’s bullshit.”
“You are my first stop when the weather in the Midwest gets nice again,” you assured him, a smile on your face as you could imagine the cute pout on his. “Besides, me being there will distract you from studying for your first semester finals. You’re gonna graduate this year, Eds.”
“I know, I know,” Eddie replied sadly, and you so wanted to somehow jump through the radio and into his room so you could squeeze the life out of him. God, did you wish that was possible. “Hey, uh, I finally got my hands on Live After Death. Did you wanna listen to it with me?”
You smiled softly. You could hear the disappointment in his voice, but you both knew it would all be worth it in no time. “Sure, Eds,” you replied softly. You then picked your crocheting back up as Eddie taped his button down, smiling as the sound of Iron Maiden began to fill your van.
Your two months at home seemed endless. You still talked to Eddie every day, at which your parents were fairly confused, but you ignored them whenever they raised their concerns. They were valid concerns, like how you didn’t really know Eddie, but you didn’t listen. Even without meeting him, you knew he was genuinely who he said he was. And you loved him all the same for it.
You left home once more in January, travelling around the warmer states as usual while keeping your daily conversations with your boyfriend. As March approached, you two got more and more excited. Spring break was finally coming up for Eddie and that meant at long last, he got to meet the woman behind the voice he fell in love with.
Until everything went to shit.
“Eddie, do you copy?” You said into the speaker. You had been trying for the better part of two hours to get a hold of him, as you were just entering Indiana and therefore would be in Hawkins by early that morning. “Eddie, I’m really starting to worry here. Eddie, pick up, for the love of god.”
After only receiving more static, you placed the speaker back in its hook with a frustrated sigh. You didn’t know why he wasn’t answering, as he should all the time in the world to answer you, but it just made you begin to worry. So, you began switching the frequencies again in hopes to get any of the radio stations from Hawkins. After twenty minutes of getting different towns’ stations, you finally hit the jackpot.
“--rocked the small community of Hawkins once again last night. A Hawkins High student was found murdered in a trailer in the Forest Hills Trailer Park and police are now on the lookout for their prime suspect. Edward Munson, age twenty, was the last person seen with the deceased and the Hawkins Police are asking all citizens to keep an eye out for–”
You turned your radio off. Your face was sheet white. Eddie was wanted for murder? Murder? You couldn’t believe it. No, you didn’t believe it. You wouldn’t. Eddie couldn’t harm a fly let alone a person. You were silent as you pressed your gas pedal to its limit, deciding that you needed to get to Hawkins as soon as humanly possible.
You tore into town so fast, you were sure the cops were going to be called on you but they were still busy at the trailer park when you arrived. Your original plan had been to go to Eddie’s trailer to meet him, but he was at large and so you had no idea where to go.
After driving around for thirty minutes, as it did not take long to drive around Hawkins, you parked along the downtown area and placed your head on the steering wheel. It was nine in the morning and you were lost, so lost on where to start looking for your boyfriend. You had no idea if he was even safe or not. Hell, he could’ve already been arrested and you’d never find out. This situation was bad.
Movement out of the corner of your eye made you look up. Two young teenagers, one boy with shaggy brown hair and a girl with fiery red hair, rode up to the store you were parked in front of and ditched their bikes right outside of it in such a hurry, it made your eyebrows go up in surprise. You watched the two as they stormed into the store, Family Video, and immediately began harassing the two young workers inside. You watched curiously, eyebrows furrowed as you tried to catch glimpses of their conversation.
Your eyebrows raised, eyes widening a little bit, as the younger boy said the name of the man you had been panicking over for the past ten hours.
Eddie.
You got out of your van so fast that you almost tripped onto the pavement, but you were able to catch yourself before hurrying into the Family Video. The four people inside, the female worker picking up tapes and the two boys arguing, all stopped what they were doing and looked at you in confusion. You had run in like your life depended on it, so of course they were confused.
“Uh…” the older girl said, her voice slightly raspy as she stared at you. “Welcome to Family Video?”
“Are you guys looking for Eddie Munson?” You asked before any of them could get anything else out. “Do you know where he is?”
The boy with the curly hair straightened his posture, face filled with what could be described as concerned as well as a little bit of shock. “How do you know Eddie?” He asked, a slight lisp to his voice.
You ran a hand through your hair with a soft sigh. You knew this was going to be weird, since you were not from Hawkins so none of these people knew you or perhaps even knew of you, but you had to tell the truth. With a shrug of your shoulders, slapping your hand down on your thigh, you looked right back at the kid. “I’m his girlfriend. And I have no idea what’s going on but I’m really worried, okay?”
“Girlfriend?!” All four people shouted at once.
While Max, Robin, and Steve ran the investigation from inside Family Video, you and Dustin sat in your van fiddling with the radio. Dustin knew ham radios like no one’s business so you had your full trust in him as he messed with it. He had the idea to try and contact Eddie the way you had before: fucking with the frequencies. Even if Eddie didn’t have his walkie-talkie, maybe he was still in the vicinity of one.
“Eddie, do you copy?” You repeated into the speaker for the millionth time, sighing softly as you received nothing in return yet again. You hit the speaker against your forehead gently a few times, before pushing down the button again. Licking your lips, you breathed out softly as you closed your eyes. This situation was so stressful for you, but you just couldn’t imagine what Eddie was going through. He must be so scared.
“Eddie, baby, I’m here. I’m here, okay? I don’t know what exactly happened, but I want to help,” you said, voice as soft as silk. If Eddie was there, anywhere, you needed him to know that he would be safe if he chose to reveal himself. “Even if you don’t want my help, just…just let me know that you’re alright. I know something really scary happened to you, and I know that you’re innocent. Okay? Please, Eddie…do you copy?”
Dustin glanced at you as you two awaited a response, your leg shaking anxiously as you listened to the radio silence that came through the damn thing. After thirty seconds, both of your shoulders slumped as the kid reached to change the frequency again.
“Y/N, you need to go home…” Eddie’s voice finally said, making both you and Dustin jump but then look at each other in excitement. The kid quickly left your van to run into the store, needing to alert the others that they found him.
“No, Eddie, I’m right where I need to be,” you replied quickly, buckling up in preparation to leave whenever he gave his location. “I met your friend, Dustin, and a few others and we all know you’re innocent, alright? We all wanna help you. You just have to let me know where you are.”
It was silent for a moment before your radio crackled back to life. “Baby, it’s not safe, okay? Y-Y-You have to go home, it’s not safe! If you get caught with me, I-I don’t know, I don’t want you to end up like her! Okay?! An-And if you’re ever caught with me, you’ll be arrested!”
You raised an eyebrow in confusion when he mentioned some “her”, but you just let him continue talking. He obviously needed to talk out whatever happened to him. “Eds, it’s okay. No one in this town knows who I am, they’ll never suspect anything,” you explained to him gently. “Please, baby, tell me where you are. As much as I wanna see you, I know you need support now more than ever. I love you, Eddie. I love you so much.”
“Oh my god…” Eddie sighed out softly, and you could just imagine how stressed he was but unable to hide the smile on his face at your confession. “Sweetheart, you can’t do that to me, damn it…fine. Fine, alright? You’re lucky you’re cute.”
When Dustin looked back over at you, you were frantically waving your arms to get his attention while also frantically around the front seat area for a pen and paper. The four inside quickly got the hint and sprinted from the store, Robin locking it behind her before they all piled into your van. The way your tired screeched upon peeling out of the parking lot made you cringe slightly, but you had bigger things to worry about.
Reefer Rick’s house was definitely out of the way. Not being a local of Hawkins, you had no fucking clue where you were going and had Steve yelling at you nearly every turn you missed. Finally, just after the sun fully set, you arrived at Reefer Rick’s house and parked in front of it.
You breathed out softly as you leaned against the steering wheel a little bit, looking at the slightly decrepit lake house in front of you. “Yeah, this isn’t creepy at all.”
“I’m not the greatest fan of this either but what other choice do we have,” Steve sighed from the passenger seat as he unbuckled, Dustin opening the sliding door so the three in the back could hop out. You and Steve followed, and the five of you approached the house with Dustin going first. Max, Steve, and Robin carried flashlights and shone them in front of your group as it was pitch dark. You stood slightly behind Dustin to his left, arms crossed anxiously as he pressed the doorbell once.
Then a second time five seconds later.
Followed quickly by a more impatient third time, which was then proceeded by the kid pressing the button repeatedly with no break in between. If Eddie had been hiding there, he was definitely way too spooked to come out.
Steve sighed, raising his shoulders as he did so. “Okay. Well, that’s settled. I guess he’s not here,” he said in a monotonous voice as Dustin began pounding on the door and yelling Eddie’s name. “Great.”
“It’s Dustin!” Dustin continued, completely ignoring Steve. “Look, we just wanna talk, okay? No cops, I swear! We just wanna help. Eddie!”
Dustin pounded on the door again as Max and Robin began to quietly move around the side of the house, you following a bit behind them, but Robin was quick to shush Dustin despite the kid continuing to press the doorbell.
“Rick! Reefer Rick!”
“Don’t scream that!”
Dustin continued shouting into the dark house while Steve tried to shut him up, the three of you girls now venturing a bit more into the property to look around. Since you didn’t have a flashlight, you stuck close to Robin while Max approached a rickety looking boat house.
“Hey, guys!” She called out, mainly to get Dustin and Steve’s attention as those two were sharing a brain cell and it wasn’t enjoying being shared at the moment. Nevertheless, the rest of you hurried to where she was standing to look at the boat house. While you were all silent, you all knew that if there was somewhere a criminal would want to hide, it’d be in that building. So, you all hurried down towards it.
Robin shone her flashlight through the window as you began to make your way around the outside to get to the door, leading your group as she pushed it open. “Hello?” She called into the darkness. “Is anyone home?”
The rest of you followed her inside, the floorboards creaking beneath your feet as you looked around the small shack. It was filled with what a typical boat house usually had, like fishing gear as well as a few random pieces that definitely gave the hint that a drug dealer owned this property. In the middle of the boat house was a boat suspended over the water, covered by a tarp.
“What a dump,” Steve commented with a slight scoff. He then clicked off his flashlight and walked over to one of the walls, grabbing an oar off of it. You watched in curiosity as he began prodding the tarp covered boat, raising an eyebrow.
“What are you doing?” Dustin asked as he turned to his friend, as he was standing right behind him and Steve’s sudden movements had spooked him. “What are you doing?”
Steve shrugged slightly as he continued practically stabbing the boat and whatever contents were hidden under the tarp. “He might be in here.”
You crossed your arms as you looked at him. “And you think it’s a good idea to repeatedly hit him with an oar?”
“Just take the tarp off!” Dustin shouted.
“If you’re so brave, you take the tarp off,” Steve snapped back at him.
He continued to prod around the boat with his oar, causing you to roll your eyes and continue walking around the boat house while Max and Robin approached a workbench. Max shone her flashlight across the surface to show some extremely recent food wrappers.
“Someone was here,” she said quietly as Robin moved over to stand next to her.
“Maybe he heard us,” the older girl theorized. “Got spooked and ran.”
“Don’t worry. Steve will get him with his oar,” Dustin commented sarcastically with a shit eating grin, making you giggle quietly as you stopped to stand next to Robin and Max.
Steve was quick to respond, obviously fed up with the constant teasing from Dustin. “I know you think you’re being funny Henderson, but considering the fact that everyone in this room has nearly died about a hundred times, personally, I don’t find it funny in the slight–”
The tarp that Steve had been stabbing suddenly burst upwards as someone stood up underneath it, and the person quickly leapt out of the boat and grabbed Steve by the collar. The figure pushed him back into the nearest wall, and you could see the glint of the knife pressed against his neck. Your group was loud, with Steve repeatedly shouting for the assailant to wait while Dustin was shouting at said assailant.
You froze right in place as you stared at the scene in front of you. The figure that had burst out of the boat was your boyfriend. And he was holding a knife to someone’s throat. Dustin continued to shout for Eddie while Robin and Max went to stand to the kid, who was standing next to Steve and Eddie with his hand outstretched. Eddie quickly looked over at him, obviously on edge and very stressed. Dustin quickly looked over at you, eyes wide and begging for help.
You quickly cleared your throat and hurried to stand next to him, arms up slightly in defense as you walked into his line of sight. “Eddie, it’s alright,” you told him. Now that you could see his face fully, your heart did a little flip. Now was not the time to get flustered, but this was the first time you were seeing your boyfriend’s face. “Eds, it’s just us. It’s me.”
Eddie’s shoulders visibly relaxed when he heard and recognized your voice, eyes never leaving yours as you stood a mere six feet away from him. His hands were shaking, one hand gripping Steve’s shirt and the other to the knife. His lower lip began to tremble, but he was still scared so he continued to just stare at you.
“I know you’re scared,” you told him gently, arms still up but you moved them down slowly with every slow step you took towards him. “But we’re only here to help, okay? You know Dustin, okay, you talk about him so much. The curly-haired weirdo in Hellfire. Would he ever betray you? Or Robin, from band? How she blew her trumpet in Jason’s ear so loud, he went deaf for a whole period? Trust us, baby. Trust me.”
By the end of your little speech, you were mere inches away from Eddie now. Tears were brimming his eyes as he just looked at you, before finally letting out a defeated sniffle and dropping Steve and the knife. “Y/N,” he croaked out pitifully as he stepped towards you, and you were quick to wrap your arms around him and hold him tight.
The two of you sunk to the floor, you holding Eddie as close to you as physically possible, as he hid his face in your neck. Your heart broke for your boyfriend. He was usually so confident and you knew that in different circumstances, he’d still be that Eddie, but things were different. He was wanted for murder. That would fuck with anyone’s head. So, you just held him and kissed his forehead while he silently cried.
After a few minutes, Dustin approached the two of you with the rest of the group behind him. The kid crouched down next to you, making Eddie look over once he had wiped his eyes. “Eddie,” he spoke softly. “We just want to talk.”
Dustin reached towards Eddie to place a supportive hand on his arm, but he flinched away and further into your arms. Robin then crouched down next to Dustin, looking at Eddie despite the man avoiding eye contact with everyone. “We want to know what happened,” she added, voice quiet and reassuring.
Eddie was quiet for a moment, before sitting up a little bit so he could finally look towards them. He sniffled, his voice a bit broken as he spoke. “You won’t believe me.”
Max shrugged her shoulders a little bit. “Try us.”
Eddie looked confused for a moment as he looked at his neighbour, but once he saw how serious you all looked, he just nodded and began to explain what had happened the night prior. The head cheerleader at school, Chrissy Cunningham, had gone to Eddie’s trailer to buy drugs. She had been dealing with some shit at home and wanted them to essentially give her a little relief, but that’s when something straight up paranormal happened.
“Her body just, like, lifted into the air and uh…and she just, like, hung there. In the air,” he said near the end of his explanation, this part obviously really hard for him to get out. You sat next to him now instead of holding him, but you still held his hand. “And her bones…uh, she…her bones started to snap. Her eyes, man…it-it was like there was something, like, inside her head, pulling.”
You gently placed your free hand on his shoulder, giving him a supportive squeeze. While this story really was hard to believe, Eddie was terrified and traumatized. How could he be lying when he was so obviously affected by this?
“I-I didn’t know what to do, so I…I ran away. I left her there,” he continued, shaking his head a little bit as he sniffled. He then scoffed after a moment of silence, looking away from all of you. “You all think I’m crazy, right?”
“No, we don’t think you’re crazy at all,” Dustin responded immediately.
“Don’t bullshit me, man!” Eddie shouted, nearly interrupting Dustin. His voice was cracking like he was on the verge of tears again, and the sound of it broke your heart. “I know how this sounds!”
“We’re not bullshitting you,” Max told him seriously.
“We believe you,” Robin added.
Eddie scoffed like he didn’t believe that they believed him. How could they? It sounded batshit insane. You looked at the four people in front of you, wondering what they knew to make them sound this serious. The way they were behaving just confirmed to you how real this was.
“Look, what I’m about to tell you might be a little…difficult to take,” Dustin said to Eddie softly, then looked at you. “You need to promise that you don’t tell anyone about what I’m going to say. Got it?”
You and Eddie both nodded. “Okay,” you both said simultaneously.
And that was the night where you learned how fucked up Hawkins, Indiana really was. And you were going to get Eddie out of there even if it meant that you died trying.
So you're telling me, they just left his body there? In the upside down forever? That no one cared or mourned but Dustin? That they let him be called a murderer and cult leader with no one fighting back against those allegations? That max can survive several broken bones and a whole standoff with vecna but Eddie dies in vain to fulfill some heroic redemption arc that wasn't necessary? He deserved better than that. Fuck you stranger Things and the way you introduce characters just to kill them off.
eddie simp™️ @dumbeddiesimp - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
amandla
izzy806
theartofmadeline
stormborns
