Steve gets caught with his hand down Eddie’s (metaphorical?) pants, and his dad kicks him out and cuts him off with an ultimatum: he leaves Eddie for good and enrolls at Huntington University in a respectable major and he’ll have money again.
At first, they made it work. Three men squeezed into the one bedroom trailer (with promises to Wayne that they’ll behave when he’s home).
But then Steve can’t find a job. Wayne only brings home so much and Eddie’s mechanic position is only part time.
They don’t have enough money.
So it’s beans and rice for dinner again. Eddie’s begging for more hours at the shop, but Thatcher is giving him all he can afford. He tried to see if another mechanic would hire him for the other hours, but none want to hire him after the murder allegations.
Eddie’s lucky Thatcher was a family friend.
They found out why Steve couldn’t get hired when Wayne tried to pull strings at the plant to get Steve a job.
Richard Harrington had strings to pull and ruined Steve’s name. Nobody would hire him due to Richard’s reach.
Suddenly, they felt the weight of that ultimatum.
Eddie was waiting for the day that Steve couldn’t take another canned meal and accepted his dad’s offer. Eddie’s lived like this as far as he remembers. Off of cheap meat and rice and stretching a dollar for a decent meal.
Steve grew up with good quality meats and fresh vegetables, along with going out to eat regularly. Eventually, he’s going to miss having a good fulfilling meal over boxed macaroni with powder cheese.
So when he got home and found Steve starting the rice for dinner and a can of spam on the counter, he started to get antsy.
“You ever —“ Eddie trailed off. Steve looked up, eyebrow raised in curiosity. “You ever think about accepting his offer?”
“Whose?” Steve asked, covering the pot of rice. He glanced back at Eddie, eyes wide as realization hit him like cold water. “My dad’s?”
“Yeah,” Eddie said quietly. “It’s just — we keep eating shitty food. It’s all we can get and — we’re just getting by. I just…”
“Oh, baby,” Steve stepped away from the stove, cupping Eddie’s face. “I’d eat beans and rice every day if that meant I got to be with you. Nothing else matters if I don’t get to keep you,” he leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to Eddie’s forehead. “I’d rather be dead than forced to accept his offer. Plus —“ he dropped his hands to hold Eddie’s, giving a gentle squeeze. “I got good news that I was gonna share over dinner.”
“Good news?” Eddie asked, raising his glance to meet Steve’s eyes. Steve beamed with excitement.
“I got a job,” Steve grinned. “It’s not much, but it’s janitorial at the library. A couple hours in the evening.”
“A foot in the door,” Eddie smiled. Steve nodded. “Sweetheart, that’s amazing!”
“It’s not much,” Steve reminded. “But it’s pork chops or Dairy King occasionally.”
“A chuck roast,” Eddie said. “It’s a good omen; that everything’s going to get better.”
Steve smiled. “Yeah,” he nodded. “But can we keep spam and rice in dinner rotations? It’s honestly my favorite now.”
Eddie laughed, pressing a kiss to Steve’s lips. “Of course. Sweetheart. Anything you want.”
theartofmadeline
gracieabrams
discoholicmusic
snowghoul
izzy806
turnnoffyourmind
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
andulkaphoto
gummygunk
ellievsbear
