Part Two is here
Steve likes to clean headstones at cemeteries.
CW: drug mentions, weed being smoked, glossed over panic attack (I didn’t want to write on it too much), and Steve is so incredibly lonely.
3018 words. Not edited but I was EXCITED.
Steve had always enjoyed going to the cemetery. He had family buried there, sure, but that wasn’t what he went for.
He was the kind of guy who went to clean off the older headstones that no one else did. There was just something so honest and relaxing in giving people their names back.
A water bottle, a soft bristle toothbrush, and an old credit card were all he took out of the car with him whenever he parked. Steve cleaned in sections, giving each stone the time and care it needed to get all of the dirt and grime off of it and out of the names. As soon as the names were clean, he’d gently place his fingers over them and smile.
“Hello, Clarence.” He said softly. “It’s so nice to see you again.”
The only answer was a slight breeze and a crow cawing.
“Hello, my love,” he said to the bird before carefully pushing himself to his feet.
His knees were sore. That headstone required a lot more precision as it was a lot older and one wrong move would probably leave it crumbling. He had told the front office a few times about it, but they wouldn’t take care of it.
“We can’t make money upkeeping stones of people who have no family left to mourn them.”
He lost track of how many times he had been told that. It didn’t stop him from cleaning the stones and letting whoever was the receptionist that day know.
When he was done for the evening, he’d allow himself to bask in the peace that came over him and warmed him. He’d have a smile on his face that lasted until he got home.
The contentment would leave as soon as he saw that big house that he lived in. His parents were never home and he had no siblings to help him fill the empty halls with noise.
Steve used to throw a lot of parties, just so he would have other people under his roof with him. He hadn’t done that since the night that Nancy called their relationship bullshit and then immediately got into one with Johnathan. It hurt him more deeply than he could express, but it was a much needed wake up call.
The Upside Down was another wake up call, but he tried to ignore that one.
Now, if he wasn’t at work or hanging out with The Party as they liked to call themselves, he was cleaning headstones until he had to leave. He thought it was ridiculous that the cemetery closed at night. If he could, he’d probably stay the night in the mausoleum just so that the people resting there would know that they weren’t forgotten about. Not while he still had air in his lungs.
Most people would tell him that there were healthier things to do with his time. Less morbid things in any case. But he felt so alive when he was alone with the stones and birds. It was better than being alone with half a house he wasn’t even supposed to go into.
His room, the kitchen, the bathroom. That was what his parents wanted him to confine himself to. Not even the living room because he wasn’t supposed to have guests over when they weren’t home. And they were never fucking home.
Steve parked the car in the driveway and stared at that stupid fucking door that had nothing behind it and sighed. Deeply. The car was still running and his fingers tapped on the steering wheel.
No.
He couldn’t do it. Not tonight. He couldn’t stand the thought of being so utterly alone right now.
So, he backed out of the driveway and started driving again. He wasn’t even really sure of where he was headed, just that he wasn’t going to that house right now. If he went too far, he was going to have to stop for gas at some point and he didn’t get paid for a few more days. That meant he might go hungry for a day. That was fine. He’d cross that bridge when he got to it.
Eventually, he found himself at the trailer park. Wayne’s truck wasn’t there, but the van was. A good sign that Eddie was home and that his uncle was at work.
This time, Steve did turn off the car when he parked. A moment of hyping himself up later, Steve got out of the car and went to knock on the front door. Thirty seconds after that, he heard someone tripping over something. Then the door opened.
The smell of cigarette smoke rolled out into the fresh air and he couldn’t help but to breathe a little deeper.
Eddie looked good, his long curly hair pulled into a messy bun and baggy sweats hanging a little low on his hips. Any other circumstance, and Steve was pretty sure he’d feel blessed that he got to see Munson without a shirt on. He might have been scrawny but those tattoos were a work of art. He was a work of art. Fuck.
Steve had to blink a few times to realize that the other male had been talking to him.
“Sorry. Rough night,” he explained. Though, it hadn’t been rough until he started thinking about being alone. Again.
“How can I help?” Eddie’s voice was smooth and Steve had to swallow before he could reply.
“Do you, uh, have anything left in that lunch pail?”
“Is Steve Harrington really at my door, asking to buy weed from me?”
“Is that a yes or a no answer, Eddie Munson?”
“It’s a get in here and give me a minute answer.”
Steve didn’t need to be told twice. He went inside as soon as Eddie moved out of the way before closing the door behind him. He ran a hand through his hair as he took another step, just so he wasn’t right against the door.
Eddie wandered off, back to his room probably, and Steve stayed where he was. He looked around the small place and realized that this was a home. A place that was lived in, a place where love resided. His house could never compare. It was bigger and in better condition, but that meant nothing to him.
“You’re in luck, I have a baggie with your name on it.”
“I swear to god if you just used that sharpie to write The Hair on that bag…”
Eddie tossed the sharpie away from himself and whistled innocently. Steve wanted to be annoyed, but he actually laughed.
“So. How much?”
Eddie tilted his head.
“For the stuff?” Steve continued.
“You’re going to buy and smoke it, but you draw the line at saying weed?”
It should be illegal for someone to look that good while being that condescending.
“How much for the weed, Eddie?” Steve gave in.
“For you? I’ll take ten bucks.”
“Damn,” He replied as he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. “That’s highway robbery.” A sly smile tugged at his lips as he pulled out a Hamilton and held it out for the older male.
Eddie took it and put the baggy in Steve’s still outstretched hand. “Now get out of here. I have a reputation.”
“You? What reputation?” He teased.
Eddie grinned. “The one where I don’t hang out with jocks. See you tomorrow, Harrington.”
“Not if I see you first, Munson.”
Steve shook his head before heading toward the door. Their interaction kept him warm all the way home.
That time when he arrived in his driveway, he stayed there. He pulled the keys out of the ignition and locked the doors to the vehicle before walking around the side of the house to get to his backyard. He knew better than to get into the pool while home alone, even if he was on the swim team. But that wasn’t where he was headed. He kept walking until he was in the woods, at his usual haunt.
He had built himself a little structure that was barely big enough for two people. It was tight and comfortable. Very underwhelming compared to the house that constantly felt like Too Much. He sat down on the small pile of pillows and wrapped a blanket around himself in an attempt to get that warm feeling back from his interaction with Eddie.
He grabbed his bong, which was always in his little hut, and the nearby water bottle before setting it up. Next he grabbed the lighter and flicked it a few times to make sure that it still worked. He didn’t smoke weed a lot, a baggy could probably last him a few months, but sometimes he just needed to be under the influence in order to handle being in his room. With the hazy feeling, it was easier to pretend that there was someone in the other room. Or, at least easier to believe that it could be true.
One hit was all it took for him to realize that Eddie had given him the good stuff. A huge smile tugged at his lips. He’d make him some cookies or something to thank him. He’d have to come up with a good excuse to stop by that Hellfire table at school and drop off a plate, but he could figure it out later. When he got that far.
A second hit gave him the feeling that he was after. Steve felt so cool when he realized that he didn’t choke like he usually did. He took care of everything properly before hiding the weed under the pillows that he had been sitting on.
He wandered back to his house, feeling a little better about the whole Alone Situation, and went in through the backdoor so he wouldn’t have to walk around the house again. Steve got a few steps away before remembering to go back and make sure that the door was locked. That had him checking all of the rest of the doors and even the windows.
When he got to his room, he stripped down to his boxers before crawling between the sheets. He pulled the covers up to his chin and snuggled in before closing his eyes and letting his mind wander until he fell asleep.
—
It was five o’clock in the morning when Steve’s eyes flashed open. His heart was pounding as he worked on untangling himself from the sheets. Trapped. He felt trapped.
Somehow, he ended up on the floor with a solid thud that knocked the wind out of him. He was gasping, but at least he was free of the blanket that had him pinned in place before.
“F-fuck,” he groaned as the tears started to slide down his face.
He gave himself a few minutes before forcing himself to his feet and stumbling to the bathroom. Shower. He needed a shower. So that was exactly what he did.
One fifteen minute cold shower later, Steve was feeling more himself again. He dried off and got dressed before taking his time to make sure that his hair was perfect.
After all of that it was still too early to head to school, which meant that he found himself going to the kitchen and pulling out the ingredients to make some chocolate chip cookies. It was a safe choice. Everyone loved chocolate chips and there were no nuts in case someone had an allergy.
A double batch of cookies later, the phone was ringing.
“Hello?” Steve greeted, cradling the receiver between his ear and shoulder as he wiped his hands on the apron that he had put on before he started baking. He adjusted the phone onto his hand as he straightened up. “Hello?”
“Stevie!” His mother’s voice came across the line. “We’ll be home for a few weeks soon!”
“That’s great, mom. I can’t wait to hear about this adventure.” It was hard to sound excited.
All that complaining about an empty house and knowing his parents were coming back didn’t help. His mother would fuss for a day or two. His father would act like it hadn’t been months since they’ve seen each other. They’d probably even ignore him as usual, to be honest. His parents tended to think that making sure the bills were paid was more than enough. It wasn’t. Steve was done trying to convince them of that, though.
They talked for a few minutes, her words not really sinking in. Then he hung up and leaned against the wall, trying to convince himself to not cry. He took a deep breath and almost called Eddie before just hanging up the phone again and walking away from it.
Steve slid all of the cookies into a Tupperware container before grabbing his backpack and heading out to the car.
He was still going to be too early for school.
Which meant that he headed to the cemetery to clean a few headstones beforehand.
—
Steve was rolling through the motions, something that no one picked up on despite his reputation as King Steve. He was grateful for that.
His morning classes blurred together and then it was lunch time. He didn’t even have an excuse in mind when he walked over to Eddie’s table. If anyone told him anything, he ignored it. Instead, he set his bag down and unzipped it before pulling out the cookies and handing them to the older male who looked at him strangely.
“I didn’t poison them, Munson, jeez.”
Then he was zipping his bag back up and walking over to sit next to Tommy and Carol. Steve tried to focus, but he found himself looking toward the DND group a lot. Eddie was grinning as he wiped some cookie crumbs from his mouth.
Good.
The afternoon classes also passed in a blur, and then he found himself at the cemetery again.
It was a nice place to be, especially on a day like this. It was warm and sunny with a light breeze and some clouds in the sky. A crow was talking to him and he was talking back, saying things like “hello, my love” and “how is my pretty baby today” and “who should get their name back today, hmm?”
Eventually, he did find the headstone he wanted to clean. It was in a corner he hadn’t gotten to yet because of the beehive and swarms of the little stingy friends. Steve was allergic to bee stings, but he was calm and collected as he walked past them. He knelt down and gently brushed away what he could get with his hands before opening the bottle and splashing some water down. Then, he gently used the toothbrush to clean away dirt and moss.
Steve wasn’t sure how much time had passed, though he did look up when he saw a shadow. He was surprised to see Eddie looking down at him.
“Whatcha doing, Harrington?”
He leaned back so he was sitting on his feet and used the back of his hand to push his hair away from his face. There was no use trying to say that this was anything other than what it was.
“I like to give people their names back.” He shrugged. “It’s stupid, I know. But I think that they know they’re being remembered, or at least thought about, when someone can read their name.”
“It’s not stupid, Steve,” Eddie said softly before squatting down on the other side of the headstone.
They looked at each other for what felt like ages. It was probably only seconds. The older male pulled out his handkerchief and gently rubbed away enough that Steve could read the last name on the stone he decided to clean.
Munson.
“Who was she?” He asked softly.
“My aunt. Wayne’s wife.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I barely knew her. But sometimes I come out here because he can’t. And she deserves to be remembered.”
Steve felt like he was seeing Eddie in an all new light. He didn’t want to make the other male think about it too much. Besides, it seemed like he wanted to change the subject.
“I, uh… I come out here almost everyday. Clean different headstones based on who I feel could use it the most that day. I talk to the crows, too. Sometimes I let them pick for me.” He was blushing again.
“Did you bake those cookies?”
Steve was the one grateful for the subject change this time.
“Yeah. This morning. I realized how good of a deal you gave me last night and I just… wanted to thank you.”
“They were amazing.”
“Thank you. That recipe is the only thing I got from my grandma before she passed. She did make me promise to not tell anyone the secret ingredient, though.”
“Was it crack? It tasted like crack. I couldn’t stop eating them.”
Steve laughed at that before pushing himself to his feet and offering Eddie his hand.
“You caught me. I have a huge supply of crack for baking purposes.”
Eddie snorted. “I knew it.”
They released hands and Steve had a feeling that it was reluctantly on both sides, not just his.
“I’m glad you found me.”
“Yeah?” Eddie seemed surprised.
“Yeah. I’m actually highly allergic to bee stings and I might have needed some help with the epi-pen if one got me.”
They both laughed at that, though Steve did notice that he was being guided away from the stingy friends after that. The hand on the small of his back felt like friendship, though he’d never say it.
Once they were far enough from the bees that the older male stopped feeling the need to keep them walking, Steve met his gaze.
“What about your reputation?” He joked.
“What about it? Just because I don’t hang out with jocks doesn’t mean that I’m going to let one die because they wanted to give my aunt her name back.”
“I think you might have a soft spot for me,” Steve joked.
“Yeah,” Eddie murmured while glancing at Steve’s lips. Their eyes met again. “Maybe I do.”
Let me know if I should do a part two.
