#That's one small life dream off the checklist

[queen-of-the-boos]

"Heehee... You look like you know how to have a good time... Mhm. I've decided! You'll make a lovely playmate for my pokemon! You are the one we've been waiting for... Come... Come play with us FOREVER~!"

Uh-oh! Looks like you've met eyes with Pyre, a girl who enjoys chasing legends as much as she loves giving people a good scare! Treating her to a good battle may cool down her trickery. Only one way to find out! (Custom battle music made by LaunchpadVGM on twitter!)

#HEHEHE I HAVE A BATTLE THEME NOW #That's one small life dream off the checklist #sonas #pyre #may reblog this with a team build later #if i can make up my mind #PLEASE go comm Launchpad you wont be dissapointed #music box

[blainesebastian]

a dream is a wish your heart makes

words: 1,287 ship: austin butler x reader summary: (anon request) “sequel to Disney proposal fic”  notes: this is a small part 2 to ‘full of magic’, you should read that first :)  warnings: none tag list: @killerqueenfan, @karamelcoveredolicity, @elizabethrosecresswell, @gigisworldsstuff, @stylespresleyhearted, @rairaielv

You'd never consider yourself that much of a worrier, there's never seemed like much of a point. In your opinion, worrying is just gonna mean that you'll suffer twice, so, why bother? Clearly in all the times you've told yourself this, you were never planning a wedding—so what do you know?

You know that wedding planners exist and that maid of honors and family members usually help with this sort of thing, getting all your ducks in a row...because at this point all you feel like you're doing is putting out small fires for something else to pop up in your peripherals but. One of the mistakes you think you make is that you kind of insist on doing everything on your own. And so much of it feels doable? You make lists all the time and get shit done and only accept help when you absolutely need it—but then a year turns into five months and now you're at three and then one and...you're worried about a day that's supposed to be one of the most perfect in your life.

And maybe that's the issue. Too much pressure for a 'perfect' day and not allowing anyone to take things off your plate (or well, checklist). You can figure out most of this on your own, right?

Right...that's why you're drowning in a sea of paperwork on your dining room table and you've lost at least two mugs underneath somewhere. Swallowed up. You frown—you're beginning to forget what this table actually looks like beneath.

The thing is, everything major is booked—this is just the little things, which are somehow worse and more stressful. These are the placecards, the flowers, the reception favors, the small cards and giftcards for the caterers and other people who are gonna work to make this wedding perfect.

"What was I thinking?" You mumble, shifting papers around. Getting proposed to at Disney was one thing...but now getting married? Whole other can of worms.

Of course, it seemed like such a good idea at the time--why wouldn't it? You were also completely swept up in the romanticism of having a Disney wedding. Austin was willing to spend any expense, even though you insisted that you didn't need to. You had joked about having your wedding at Disney once and that was kind of the end of it, those comments became checklists, and those checklists became plans. To be fair, it's not that you're not excited...even though you're incredibly stressed, it's just...it almost feels like part of a dream. Though how could it not when you're going to get married in the most magical place on earth?

Admittedly, you love Disney—you've always been a huge fan even though it's taken you a bit to get there. You're definitely able to associate perfect memories with Magic Kingdom, given that's where Austin proposed to you. Being with him within itself feels magical, so—and you know how corny that can sound on the outside, but...you're not gonna deny that's how it feels. So how can you pass up that opportunity to continue it there?

There's this gazebo before the Boardwalk near the Beach Club resort and it overlooks the bay, the Swan and Dolphin and Yacht Club resort. It's simple, beautiful but there's so many hoops to jump through, I's to dot, T's to cross. You run a hand over your face, pinching the bridge of your nose as you close your eyes.

You feel rather than see Austin come into the room, his hand slipping along the back of your shoulders and running down your back. He leans down and presses a kiss to your head, a small shiver coursing down your spine as you catch a hint of his cologne.

"I keep having nightmares I'm gonna get buried under paper."

Austin chuckles lightly, squeezing your shoulder before slipping into a chair next to you. "You're gonna give yourself a migraine—you know we got other people to help you with this, right? Including me?"

You sigh a bit dramatically and tip your head back before rolling your gaze to your fiancé. "I know," You reply quietly, a soft smile tugging the corners of your mouth, "I just keep thinking about everything that needs done and I get tunnel vision."

He hums before nodding, reaching for a few pieces of paper aside. He knows you, doesn’t need to elaborate on that—he gets exactly how you’re feeling. But he’s also right. You can’t take utter control over all of this. For starters, there’s way too much to do that you can easily delegate to some other people to help and secondly, the last thing you want to do is associate your wedding with negative feelings of stress and general ickiness.

Alright, fine. You’ll get some help, stop trying to control everything, because it’s not possible anyways.

“I guess I just wanted everything to be perfect.” You let out a soft laugh, shaking your head as you push the chair back from the table. You turn your body, facing Austin, knowing how cliché that sounds.

You should know better, at this point, than to be a perfectionist—there’s no good reason to be. And yet it’s difficult to stop when those nagging thoughts come rolling in. Austin’s pretty good at shushing them, though, sometimes with a simple touch. He shifts slightly in his chair to take a look at you, brushing your hair over your shoulder in a fond gesture. He gives you this look which you know says—you worry too much.

“It will be.”

You crinkle your nose because…you know that Austin is an optimist but, “How can you know that?”

He holds your gaze for a long moment and before he speaks, you can tell how serious he is about the words that are going to leave his mouth, an emotion you can’t quite name in the depths of his blue eyes, “Because I’ll be with you.”

And despite the fact that there’s a slight glimmer of added mischief a moment later in his gaze, you know he wasn’t kidding. You laugh softly and roll your eyes, making Austin grin.

He takes your hand and squeezes, pressing a kiss to your knuckles, “What, you didn’t like that? I was gonna make it part of my vows.”

You playfully push his cheek with your other hand but he’s quick, grabbing it and using it as leverage to tug you closer, kissing you.

Needless to say, you definitely have a necessary distraction for the afternoon.

--

And it is pretty perfect, as if you had any reason to doubt or think otherwise.

You think one of the most surprising aspects is just how fast everything goes—all that planning and worrying for it to be over and done in the blink of an eye, in the flash of a camera bulb, a heartbeat.

You go back to where Austin’s proposed before you both leave Florida for your honeymoon, standing in front of Cinderella’s castle, looking down at the ring on your finger. A small smile tugs at the corners of your mouth, running your thumb over the underside of the band. The sky is orange this time, candied pink, as the sun dips down behind the soft blue and silver structure.

To face the future with another, who means more than any other, is to be loved.

You can’t help but smile as you feel Austin come up behind you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. He presses a kiss to your shoulder, your jawline and your cheek before you turn your head and your lips brush. Your thumb runs over his wedding band.

That’s definitely the magic of love.

--

The line in italics come from the Disney movie The Rescuers.

#austin butler #austin butler x reader #austin butler imagine #austin butler fic #mccall writes things #elvis 2022

[hangmanssunnies]

16 - needing their cuddles even though they have something else to do 💜💜

House We Share Jake! <3 Predeployment...

"Sit down with me," you had requested in the middle of the end of his preliminary post-workout checklist.

Jake struggled to ever resist giving you the things you wanted. At least things he could give you, oh, he was always hoping it was enough to make up for what he couldn't. There was this small pleased smile that graced your face anytime Jake did something for you. As if he had surprised you or you had gotten a welcome but unexpected gift. That smile was one of his favorite things about you. Last month he caught himself dedicating four pages of his sketchbook to get it perfect.

His feet moved before his brain could catch up. Jake thinks it's nice you have that power. It's similar to how he feels after a good run, wholly grounded in the moment and his body. He goes from circling the kitchen island to sitting beside you on the couch. Answering your smile with a grin of his own. He playfully taps his elbow to your ribs, nudging you. Ignoring your complaint about his sharp elbows when you elbow him back and motion for him to scoot closer to you. While tempted to sink into the couch with you, Jake also had a million things he needed to get done; at every corner he turned, something caught his attention. Patching the drywall, setting up an appointment with the landscaper, checking the HVAC system, and regrouting the kitchen backsplash.

When was the last time the fridge water filter was replaced? Jake suddenly thought to himself, worried. He almost shoots up from the couch. The need to add the filter to his checklist before he forgot it struck him. Before he does, your hands are in his hair, and Jake wants to fall apart. If Jake has an off button for his brain, you discovered it while playing with his hair. Sure, his hair was played with in the past, but no one had ever made him feel like he does when you do it.

"I have so much to do," Jake whines, not wanting to pull away from your warmth. You shush him gently, tugging on his hair harder. He knows you think it's a playful punishment, a reminder to keep him in place. But God, if it doesn't do a million and one things to him. Jake briefly considers the likely hood that he would spontaneously combust. Which would be preferable to the forbidden things he actually wants to do. It's why he can't let himself think about you in too much detail. Details lead to longing and yearning, and obsession. Jake once again reminds himself that being obsessed with your roommate is a creepy thing.

"It'll be there tomorrow. Nothing's going anywhere… not yet, at least."

"Sugar," he groans quietly. "I'll have more stuff to do and less time tomorrow."

"We both know you were stress-pacing for the last 10 minutes. And you aren't doing this by yourself, Jakers," you remind him firmly but still with a kind edge.

"I will help you get everything done. I promise the list will be finished before you have to go. It's all going to be okay." Your words feel like a small weight off his shoulder. You are the most reassuring person in his life. Jake briefly tries to remember how he did this before he had you around. Maybe he didn't do it at all.

"Well…" Jake starts to respond.

"No, wells or buts. Do you know what I need right now?"

"What is that, sugar?"

“I need you to cuddle with me on this couch. And I need you to watch this movie." You say, gesturing to the TV. Jake honestly couldn't care less about whatever movie you picked. Not in a mean way, but it wasn't on his list of priorities to watch.

However, he did care about you, so fucking much. Jake would go to extreme measures to fulfill any want you had any need and desire could fill. Jake stopped walking down that path, considering how he was behaving. In a typical Jake fashion, he was trying to overcompensate for the things he couldn't do. The small but persistent thing he knew, guessed, assumed, hoped, dreamed, prayed, thought you wanted most from him. So, Jake would give you the cuddles you wanted, and he does his damnedest to make sure the house is perfect for you trying to think of and prevent as many problems as he could.

You snuggle closer to Jake, and he takes a deep breath, appreciating your scent. Jake is trying to pay attention to the movie since he knows you want to talk about it later. However, it is difficult to do so because the most captivating thing in the room is you. Having you around already made everything about his deployment worse; having you around makes everything about being home better.

#THank you for the request #these have been fun #Ummm #He is sweet because i say so #He is also stressed #house we share #jake seresin x reader #Hangman x you #house we share drabble #Jake's POV

[slytherinshua]

NAPTIME

genre. fluff. warnings. kissing. soohyun is sleep deprived (what else is new). one suggestive joke if you squint like your life depends on it. pairing. soohyun x fem!reader. wc. 756. a/n. tagging @wheeboo cause i actually need her to see the cuteness that i have just created im literally crying.

“Soohyun, it’s naptime.” You stated, grabbing the notebook that he was scribbling in from his hands.

“What?” He stared at you, trying his best to keep his stare as just that without it morphing into a glare. He didn’t like glaring at you. He could glare at anybody else, but not you. 

“You worked the night shift last night. You didn’t get home until 3 am.”

“How do you know that?” 

“Door sensor. I set it up so it goes to my phone too.” You said simply, swiftly dodging Soohyun’s attempts at getting his notebook back.

“Y/n, that’s practically spying on me!” He complained.

“Well… you give me no choice when you work the entire night! I’m just worried about you.” You sighed, “I’m allowed to be worried about my boyfriend and his lack of sleep.”

“I don’t want you worrying about me, though.” 

“Don’t you worry about me?” You asked him. You were scanning through the pages of his notebook, most of which were filled with his organised notes in his small handwriting. As you flipped to the next page, you didn’t find it filled with lecture notes, but instead was a checklist.

Things I want to do with Y/n.

1 - spend our 6 month anniversary together

2 - go on regular dates

3 - tell her I love her

Soohyun snatched the notebook back before you could read any further, slamming it shut and forcing it into his backpack, “Of course I worry about you.” He stammered.

You smiled, “You’re so hypocritical. You always nag me about sleeping and eating and going outside. You don’t expect me to also nag?” He stayed silent, pursing his lips. “I told you, it’s naptime, and if you don’t want to be labelled a hypocrite again, you’ll do what I say.” 

“What do you want me to do?” His eyes followed you as you stood up from your chair and walked to your bed.

“Come here.” You sat down, patting the space on the bed next to you. Soohyun seemed hesitant, but he followed your direction regardless, sitting next to you on the bed.

“No. Lie down. And take off your jacket, you’ll be uncomfortable with it on.”

Soohyun turned to you, “Are you sure this isn’t just a trick to get me to take my clothes off?”

“No! Just do what I say. Gosh, you’re so stubborn.” You huffed, staring Soohyun down until he was laying down like you wanted him to. Once he was, you let yourself lay down as well, on your side and facing him.

He rested his head on the pillow, cheek cutely squishing against the surface of it. Staring at you with his dark eyes, he let his lips curve up into a smile. You smiled back at him until you could see his dimples pop out.

“What do we do now?” He whispered.

“Nap. I just want you to get some sleep.”

“What about you?” 

“I can sleep too. Sleeping is spending quality time with each other, you know.” You reasoned.

“Are you really that worried about me? Naptime? I’m not a toddler.” He muttered.

You giggled, “Sometimes you act like it, though. You’re unreasonably stubborn. You don’t do what other people say either.”

“I do what you say.” 

“Only because I’m just as stubborn as you.” You smiled and extended your hand to his forehead, brushing away a few stray strands of hair. He closed his eyes on instinct. “That’s right. You need sleep. Keep them closed. I’ll talk to you until I invade your dreams.”

Soohyun tried to suppress his smile, but his dimples gave him away. You continued to speak softly, telling small anecdotes about the past weeks— anything that could act as soft background noise to help lull your boyfriend to sleep. It seemed to work well, and once you thought he was asleep, you shifted closer to him. 

“I know I worry about you a lot…” You whispered, “But it’s only because I love you so much.” 

“Me too.”

Your eyes widened, “Soohyun, I thought you-”

“I love you too.” He opened his eyes only slightly, just enough to be able to locate your lips before he was kissing you slowly. You didn’t protest at all— you were quick to kiss him back. It was only when the kiss naturally came to its end that you got back your stubbornness.

“Are you going to sleep now?”

He hummed quietly, pulling you even closer to him until you were nestled near his chest. “Now we can sleep.”

↳ k-drama taglist: @yeonjuns-redhair,, @wolfmoonmusic,, @edensgardenn

#﹒fics 𓈃 ⵌ #soohyun #at a distance spring is green #at a distance spring is green fic #at a distance spring is green fluff #soohyun fic #soohyun fluff #nam soohyun fic #nam soohyun fluff #bae inhyuk #bae inhyuk fic #bae inhyuk fluff #kdrama fic #kdrama fluff #kdrama fanfic #at a distance spring is green fanfic #soohyun x reader #nam soohyun x reader #bae inhyuk x reader #fluff #fanfic #fic

[steddiecameraroll]

Must Have/Can't Stand Checklist

Steve decides to move to Chicago for a fresh start after everything is settled with Vecna. Three years later, he returns to Hawkins for the kids’ graduation and rekindles some feelings he discovered years earlier for Eddie.

Getting together, domestic fluff, sweetness, with delicious smut read whole fic on ao3

Chapter 1 - 19,816 words (she a long one)

Steve’s hand hesitated and hovered over the Wheeler’s door for a moment. He hadn’t seen everyone in about three years and was nervous. No, he wasn’t nervous to see the kids. No, he wasn’t nervous to see Nancy or even Jonathan if, by chance, he was there. No, he was nervous to see that metalhead he never stopped thinking about. 

------------------ 

After the Vecna mess somehow got cleaned up and buttoned into a perfect little bow, Steve decided he needed to get out of Hawkins. He’d spent so many years taking care of everyone else around him that he finally decided to do something for himself. Moving to Chicago wouldn’t be a significant life-altering event to some people, but it was huge for Steve Harrington, the King of small-town Hawkins. 

He kept in contact with Robin, made Saturday phone calls, and regularly checked in with Dustin, but he never spoke to anyone else again. He’d get his fill of details from Dustin, who would tell him that Eddie had gotten cleared of all charges, or that he thinks Will and Mike are dating, and that Nancy and Jonathan broke up. 

Robin moved to Indianapolis to attend college, so she usually didn’t have any Hawkins news to share. Sometimes she’d talk about Nancy, but it would be surface information and short. He was happy the two of them hit it off and became friends after everything in the Upside Down. 

Steve was sure Robin had a girlfriend over there but wasn’t telling him. She’d make side comments but catch herself and try to blow it off. Steve wouldn’t give her a hard time about it, though, since she had been really supportive of him when he admitted back in late 1986 that he thought he liked guys. He had also not been forthcoming about how he figured out that new fact. Or mentioned the curly mop of hair and brown button eyes he continued dreaming about. 

Eddie Munson had affected Steve so hard that it pushed him into a bisexual panic. Steve would visit him regularly when Eddie was hurt and spent weeks in the hospital. Mostly when Eddie was unconscious, though. Steve enjoyed being able to just look at him and watch him breathe and sleep peacefully, stirring something inside of him. 

Once Eddie was awake, and everyone seemed to be ok, Steve wanted to leave. He didn’t have a plan or a direction. He just knew he needed to get out of Hawkins. He told Robin the week before he was packing up the BMW and driving to Illinois. He took all the kids to the arcade the Friday night before he left and told them that he would be moving. The group had an array of emotions, but Dustin was the furious one. That’s why Steve waited until the last minute. He couldn’t bring himself to have Dustin walking around town while he was still there, upset with him. 

The Saturday morning, he had driven to the motel Eddie, and his uncle were staying in, his car already packed up. 

“Harrington? What are you doing here?” Eddie leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. His hair was thrown into a messy bun, and he looked disheveled and sleepy. Steve’s heart lurched a little inside his chest at the idea that Eddie must’ve just woken up. 

“I wanted to tell you that I’m leaving,” Steve kept his eyes down and chewed a little on the corner of his bottom lip. 

“What do you mean?” Eddie’s trying to catch Steve’s eyes. Um,” Steve thumbed behind himself, pointing to his car. “I’m, um, I’m moving to Chicago.” 

Eddie’s eyes follow Steve’s hand motion and see the BMW stuffed to the brim with boxes and bags of items. 

“Today? Right now?” Steve’s not sure, but Eddie’s voice is shaky. 

“Yeah, didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye, though.” Steve finally looks up and sees an indistinguishable emotion on Eddie’s face. 

“Wow, um, so that’s it then, huh?” Eddie drops his arms down, and Steve thinks he looks nervous. Why does he look nervous? 

“Yeah, I just kind of decided it was time. I didn’t really think about it much. I don’t even have a place or a job lined up.” Steve awkwardly laughs, trying to break whatever weird tension has built between them. 

“Oh shit, so, like you’re just getting out of here?” 

“Yeah, no one needs me anymore, so I figure it’s time. Y’know?” 

“No one needs you anymore?” Eddie’s voice gets quieter, and Steve strains to hear him. 

“Um, yeah, the kids are safe, Robin’s moving to Indy for school, and Nancy picked Jonathan, plus you’re good now.” Steve’s eyes awkwardly flick away from Eddie’s face. 

Eddie huffs out a laugh. “Sure, if you call having insomnia and terrible PTSD ‘good.’” 

“I just mean, you’re out of the hospital and better. You never needed me anyway, so I guess that’s not it, but you know what I mean.” Steve rubs the back of his neck and wants to run away from the rest of this conversation badly. 

Eddie’s face looks defeated, and something else Steve can’t put his finger on. 

“Uh yeah,” Eddie tries to laugh, “but I did like having you around, Harrington. Even with your stupid hair and terrible taste in music. Well, good luck, man.” 

“Thanks, um,” Steve awkwardly puts his arms out for a hug. 

Eddie hesitates, and Steve sees his throat bob. Eddie steps out of the doorway, and they cautiously toss their arms around each other. Steve lets his eyes close for a second to bring all of his senses to focus on the feeling of Eddie pressed against his chest. He thinks he hears a deep inhale next to his ear but shakes it off when they pull back and avoid making eye contact. 

“Keep in touch, man. You have my number, right?” Eddie crosses his arms, and Steve notices the hem of his shirt lift, exposing a little of his stomach above his sweatpants. 

“Yeah, yeah, for sure. When I end up getting situated, maybe you and Rob could come up or something.” Steve doesn’t know why he’s suggesting it because he knows it won’t happen.

“Sounds good, yeah.” 

They both stand there, unsure what else to say, but Steve doesn’t want to leave yet. He knows when he walks away, this will be the last time he speaks to Eddie Munson, and it’s tearing a deep hole inside his chest. 

“I just made a pot of coffee. Do you want a cup before you go?” Eddie asks. 

Steve thinks maybe Eddie can feel it too but shuts that thought down before he gets carried away. He’s just being nice. 

“Oh, uh, I really should go. I’m supposed to meet an apartment manager at 1 pm in Chicago, and I don’t know the city well enough yet.” 

“Right, yeah, makes sense. Well, then I guess this is it.” Eddie runs his hands through his hair and grips it at the top of his scalp. “Wow, I did not think this was how my day would go. Um, so yeah. Drive safe, I guess.” 

Steve thinks Eddie’s trying to get rid of him now, moving him along quickly to avoid prolonging this conversation, but Steve doesn’t want to go. 

“Sorry I didn’t...I-I didn’t tell you sooner. I only told Dustin and the others last night.” Steve runs his hand over his face and exhales hard. “I shoulda told you....” 

“Yeah, coulda had a going away party and finally gotten to see a stoned King Harrington.” Steve’s relieved Eddie’s not angry with him. 

“No one needs to see that.” Steve gives him a shy smile. “You’ve seen the drunk version of me. That’s close enough.” 

Eddie bites back a grin, and Steve’s breath catches in his throat. He loves those dimples. 

“I’m gonna miss Drunk Harrington,” Eddie says quietly. 

“He’s gonna miss you too,” Steve says without thinking. When the words catch up to his brain, he nervously itches to take it back, but when his eyes look at Eddie, he’s met with a somber-looking face. 

“Steve?” 

Eddie steps forward closer, and Steve has a deja vu. Just like in the Upside Down, just like in another moment when they knew they might not see each other again. Steve can feel every molecule in his body pause, waiting, hoping, wishing Eddie will actually say it this time. 

“Give Chicago hell.” 

Steve can’t stop the smile that hits his face. It’s sad and melancholy, but a gentle warmth spreads in his chest. He nods at Eddie and swallows back tears he can feel prickling at the corners of his eyes. 

------------------ 

Steve inhales deeply and lets his knuckles rap against the wood door. A moment later, Karen Wheeler pulls it open and gives Steve a warm smile. 

“Steven, so nice to see you. The kids are all downstairs.” She motions for him to enter the house, and he steps forward. 

“Thank you, Mrs. Wheeler. It smells good in here.” He puts his hands in his pockets and looks around the house. 

“Oh, I’ve got a cake in the oven for later.” She gives him a bright smile and scrunches her nose.

“I bet it’s going to be great.” 

“WHO IS IT, MOM?” Mike yells from down the basement stairs. 

“It’s Steve. Stop yelling!” Karen furrows her brows and rolls her eyes, motioning Steve to the stairwell. 

“STEVE!” 

Steve can hear a barrage of footsteps running up the stairs and prepares for the onslaught that is about to hit him. Dustin is the first one to reach him and wraps his arms around Steve’s middle thumping the air out of Steve’s lungs. Next comes Lucas, then Mike, which surprises Steve, and behind them, he sees him...standing on the stairs smiling wide, Eddie. 

Steve shrugs at Eddie and then tries to extricate himself from all of the tall teenagers enveloping him. 

“Ok, ok, that’s enough. You’re all much taller than you used to be, and I can not breathe.” Dustin pushes the other boys off and holds his arms out and around Steve, acting like a barrier. “Let him breathe.”

“Thanks, kid. Where are the girls?” Steve looks around, trying to find El or Max. “They’re...they’re not here,” Mike replies awkwardly.

“Are they coming later?” Steve asks, not realizing the uncomfortable glances between the boys.

“No,” Lucas replies, “they...they weren’t invited.”

“What?” Steve looks at each one of them carefully, trying to understand. 

“Boys night,” Eddie butts in, putting his hands on Mike and Lucas’ shoulders and giving them a little shake. “Right?” 

“Yeah.” “Yeah.” “Yeah, boys’ night.” Dustin agrees. 

Steve’s brain spurts when he hears Eddie’s voice for the first time in three years. It’s rich, deep, and slightly sweet. It reminds Steve of honey. A warm blush hits his cheeks when he remembers where he’s at. 

“So just us then? What’s on the agenda? Big deal, high school graduation and all.” Steve tries to pull his eyes away from Eddie’s face, but Eddie is making it difficult because all his attention is on Steve. 

“Mom’s making cake, and we’ve got pizza on the way. We were going to play some D&D for old times’ sake.” Mike replies with a smirk. 

“D&D?” 

“Yeah, come on, Stevie, it’s about time you learned.” Eddie winks in that casual way he always did, and Steve’s mouth goes dry. 

He knew this trip was going to test him, knew he was going to run into Eddie, and he tried to give himself a pep talk the entire drive to Hawkins. 

Steve has dated a couple of guys in the last three years, tried to get Eddie out of his head, and thought maybe it was just because it was his first male crush that that’s all it was and maybe if he met someone else that it would go away, but it never did. He even went after guys that were complete opposites to Eddie and tried making sure he could never compare them, but he always did. None of them made his stomach flip like Eddie did. None of them made his insides melt with a smile or a glance, and none called him Stevie. 

An hour later, Steve was rubbing his temples, trying to understand, for the third time, what Dustin was explaining to him. 

“Can I just watch? Please?” Steve sighs, defeated. 

“That’s probably for the best, Harrington.” Eddie casually pats Steve’s forearm, and Steve’s heart leaps into his throat. “Ok, he’s out. Great, let’s continue.” Eddie claps his hands in front of his chest and commands the others’ attention. Steve watches adoringly. 

------------------ 

“It’s good to see you, Harrington,” Eddie slaps his hand on Steve’s back as they walk to their vehicles later that night. 

“You too, Munson.” Steve gives Eddie a crooked smile.

“Why don’t you come over?” Eddie nudges Steve’s shoulder, almost pushing him off balance.

“Now?”

“Yeah, what is 9:30 too late for you, big boy?” Eddie clicks his tongue, teasing Steve.

Big Boy . Steve stutters as Eddie delivers the words that made him question his sexuality.

“N-no, yeah, sure, I’ll follow you?”

“Yeah, we’ll stop at the liquor store first. It’d be nice to see Drunk Harrington while you’re here.” Steve can’t hide the blush rolling up his neck. 

“Only because you asked so nicely.” Steve puts his hands in his pockets and leans against his car. Eddie bites his tongue and walks backwards to his van, keeping his eyes on Steve.

“You better keep up. I’m not going to watch if you’re following behind.”

“You drive. I’ll keep up.” He’s missed this. 

They arrive at Eddie’s new apartment after a brief stop at the liquor store, picking up a 6-pack and a bottle of Jagermeister that made Steve wince a little. 

Eddie flicks on the living room light, exposing a sparsely decorated apartment. Eddie’s place could’ve been described as the opposite of Steve’s. He barely had any furniture, with only the necessities of a futon for a couch and a broken coffee table that was being held up by a couple of milk crates. Work boots were sitting next to the front door. They looked dirty and worn in. A couple of band posters were taped to the walls, and a small TV sat across from the futon near a stack of Rolling Stone magazines. 

“Sit wherever, man. I’ll put these in the fridge.” Eddie takes the alcohol into the small kitchen just off the living room, and Steve hears the tinkling of the refrigerator door being opened. 

“Nice place, man.” Steve pushes some mail off the futon and sits down. 

“You don’t need to lie. I know it’s a shit hole. It’s all I can afford right now, and it’s all fucking mine.” Eddie steps out of the kitchen with a wide grin holding two shot glasses. He offers one to Steve. 

Steve stands up and takes the glass. Eddie gives Steve a wicked grin, clinks their glasses together, and then shoots the Jager back quickly. Steve watches Eddie’s throat as he swallows the bitter liquid. 

“Cheers,” Steve puts the rim of the glass to his lips and closes his eyes, shooting it back quickly. His face reacts in disgust, and when he opens his eyes again, he sees Eddie observing him. “I fucking hate Jager.” 

Eddie laughs and takes the shot glass from Steve’s fingers. 

“It is the worst, but it does what it’s supposed to.” Eddie returns to the kitchen and refills the shot glasses coming out a moment later, offering them back to Steve. 

“You really want to get me drunk, don’t you?” Steve takes it and cocks his head to Eddie. 

“Maybe...I told you I missed Drunk Harrington. Drink up, Stevie boy.” Eddie shoots his shot back just as quickly as his first one and watches Steve closely. 

Steve swallows hard and takes his shot, hoping it’ll help calm his overextended nerves. He hasn’t stood this close to Eddie in a while, and it feels like his body has an electrical current running through him. As if something had been turned off, and being this close to Eddie flicked it back on. Maybe Eddie can feel it, too. Because his eyes seem to be lingering over Steve’s face, it feels like maybe. 

“Another?” Steve holds the empty glass between them, and Eddie licks his lips slowly. 

“I’ll just get the bottle.” Eddie backs out of the room, and Steve thinks maybe it’s because he wants to keep an eye on him or maybe because he can’t keep his eyes off him. Either way, he loves it. 

Eventually, they forego the shot glasses and pass the bottle back and forth. Steve finds himself looking at the mouth of the bottle each time Eddie hands it to him, seeing the small amount of spit left behind. 

“So, you moved to Chicago just to work at another Family Video?” Eddie laughs, and Steve loves the way it sounds against his ears. 

“I only worked there for a few months. It was an easy job I could get right away. I’m not still working there. Shut up.” Steve knocks the bottle against Eddie’s knee. “What about you? What are you doing now?” 

Eddie turns his body to face Steve, lifting his right leg onto the cushion. The piece of furniture is smaller than a full-sized couch, and this shift in their bodies brings Eddie’s knee against Steve’s thigh. 

“I work at an auto-body shop down on Randolph.” Eddie takes the bottle from Steve’s hand and tosses back another swig. “Shit gig but consistent and gives me my nights free for the band.” 

“You still play?” Steve can feel the alcohol weaving through him. 

“Fuck yeah, I do. We’re putting a demo together.” Eddie shifts his weight, and his knee presses firmer into Steve’s thigh. 

Steve takes the bottle from Eddie and takes another chug. He sets it down on Eddie’s knee and taps it once. He doesn’t know if it’s the Jager or the proximity of Eddie’s body to his, but he feels better than he has in a long time. 

“That’s awesome, man.” Steve can’t pull his eyes off Eddie. 

“So, what about the love life, Harrington?” Eddie takes the bottle and wiggles his eyebrows at Steve. “You having to beat the ladies off with a stick?” 

“No,” Steve chuckles and lets the alcohol finish his thought. “I’m single, have been for a little while. My ex turned out to not be the guy I thought he was, and it got messy, so I just decided to take a break.” He reaches over and pulls the bottle back to his mouth, not realizing Eddie is frozen in surprise. 

“Wh-what?” 

“Yeah, he was kind of a dick. I sure know how to pick ’em.” Steve lets his head fall back, and it awkwardly hits the back of the futon. He huffs a breath out and finds it difficult to keep his eyes open. “Shit, I think I’m drunk.” 

Eddie doesn’t speak, and Steve thinks maybe he passed out next to him. He sits up, feels the room swish with the movement, and looks over to find Eddie staring at him. 

“Are you ok? Is there something on my face?” Steve rubs his hand over his mouth and chin, trying to remove something that doesn’t exist. 

“Y-yeah, I’m fine. No...there’s nothing on your face.” Eddie reaches for the bottle and begins chugging. 

“Dude, what? What are you doing?” Steve laughs. “You’re gonna puke later.” Eddie wipes the back of his hand across his mouth.

“Yeah, probably.”

Steve laughs and lets his head fall back again. “Fuck, I missed you.”

“Me too, Steve, me too.” 

“Wait, I wanna hear some of this music. We should put on some music.” Steve pushes himself up using Eddie’s knee as leverage. He reaches his hands out for Eddie to help pull him up. 

Eddie lifts his free hand up and presses it into Steve’s. Steve smiles and bites his lip, sighing at how warm it feels. He squeezes his fingers around Eddie’s hand and pulls him off the futon. Eddie stumbles to his feet and bumps into Steve’s chest. Steve laughs and leans forward, almost brushing his nose against Eddie’s cheek. Eddie’s arm wraps around Steve’s back, steadying himself. Steve suddenly becomes aware of how close they’re standing and holds his breath. His eyes fall to Eddie’s mouth, and he wants to slip into them. They’re beautifully parted and begging to be kissed, and he knows if he just leans in just a little, he could finally feel them. 

“Sorry,” Steve chuckles and pulls back. “Music, man, I wanna hear it. I bet it’s still that metal stuff you used to like.” 

“Fuck you, man” Eddie’s laugh starts out slow and low and grows into an uncontrollable stutter.

“What?” Steve sways while he tries to understand. 

“Of course, of fucking course. Beautiful Steve Harrington, just-just standing there. Coulda been here the whole time...you left...you left me.” Eddie’s face falls, and his eyelids feel heavy. 

“What?” Steve steps in closer, wanting to wrap his arms around the man in front of him. 

“I thought...but no, you just didn’t like me.” Eddie’s voice cracks on the last word. 

“Eddie, what?” Steve’s head is swimming, and he’s trying to understand. 

“I l-loved you. You didn’t know that, did you?” Eddie slurs and begins to sway on his feet. 

“W-what?” Steve thinks his ears are playing tricks on him, and he’s blinking hard, trying to focus. 

“You left and and...and...boyfriend?” Eddie is barely holding himself up, and the bottle of Jager slips between his fingers, thudding to the ground and spilling onto his carpet. 

“Eddie?” Steve points to the bottle on the ground, trying to get Eddie’s attention. 

“Hmm? Y’know how pretty you are?” Eddie’s words smush together, and he stumbles forward, his arms falling into Steve’s chest. 

“Oof, hi,” Steve smiles and puts his hands on Eddie’s shoulders. Eddie looks up, his eyes heavy and unable to focus. “Why’d you leave me?” 

“I had to,” Steve’s response is slow. He runs his hands up Eddie’s arms and onto his face, holding his cheeks carefully. Eddie’s eyes flutter shut, and he wobbles a little on his feet. Steve’s eyes can’t focus and keep moving back and forth between the two sets of lips before him. Seeing double. “I wanna kiss you.” He didn’t mean to say it out loud. 

“Do it,” Eddie’s eyes were still closed, but he lifted his chin slightly.

“What?” Steve thinks maybe Eddie has read his mind and is confused. 

“Kiss me,” Eddie opens his eyes and looks up at Steve’s face. 

Steve nervously pulls back, and Eddie stumbles forward, having had all of his weight on Steve’s chest, and falls onto the floor. 

“Oh shit, Eddie?” Steve leans over, presses his hand to Eddie’s back, and feels it shaking from laughter. 

“Fuck, Steve.” Eddie rolls over onto his back, and his mouth falls open. A few seconds later, he’s snoring softly. 

“Eddie? Eddie?” Steve tries to shake Eddie carefully but gives up and lies down. He’s perpendicular to Eddie’s body and uses Eddie’s chest as a pillow. The careful thud of Eddie’s heartbeat lulls him to sleep. 

------------------ 

Eddie wakes up to an arm slung over his chest, and someone nuzzled into his neck. His back hurts, and he realizes he’s on the floor of his living room. He lifts the arm slung over his body but doesn’t recognize who it is. He reaches up and presses his fingers into their hair, trying to pull back a little to see their face. He groans as his hangover bangs against his head. His mouth falls open as his eyes take in Steve Harrington’s face. 

Fear fills his chest as he realizes Steve is the one slung over his body with his lips pressed against his neck. 

“Fuck, fuck, shit, uh.” Eddie tries to extract himself carefully from Steve’s body because he’s sure if Steve woke up right now, he would freak out and never want to speak to him again. He can slide out from beneath him and push himself up to his feet. His head aches and pulses painfully behind his eyes. He looks around the room and notices the bottle on the carpet. 

“Shit,” he picks up the bottle and inspects the carpet, “shit.” Eddie goes into the kitchen and grabs a giant wad of paper towels. When he returns, Steve groans and tries to sit up. 

“Fuuuck.” He smiles painfully up at Eddie. 

“Yeah, we made a mess.” He motions to the wet spot on the carpet.

“What is it?” 

“The Jager was on the carpet. Must’ve knocked it over or something.” Eddie leaned next to the wet carpet and pressed the giant wad of paper towels over it, trying to soak up as much as possible. 

“Shit, what happened? Did I pass out on the floor?” Steve looked around himself and then back up to Eddie. 

“I guess so,” Eddie chuckled. “I wanted Drunk Harrington, and I guess I got him. Too bad I was super inebriated Munson and don’t remember it.” 

“Fuck, my head. We need trashy diner food.” Steve ran his hand up his face and into his hair.

“Mmm, bacon, get up. Let’s go.” 

“I don’t have any clothes or anything. I can’t wear this. I look like I slept in this on the floor.” Steve cautiously pushes himself onto his feet and waits as his head catches up. 

“I have clothes, dufus.” Eddie groans and starts to walk down the hall.

“Oh god, I have to pee. Bathroom?” 

“Follow me,” Eddie heads down the small hallway and motions to the door on his right, then steps into the door on his left. “Hurry because so do I.” 

Steve enters the tiny bathroom and sees his reflection in the mirror. He looks rough. He has dark circles under his eyes, and his hair looks like he had sex, like someone gripped it and pulled on it. His cheeks get hot as he thinks about what could’ve happened, but he realizes he’s still fully clothed, belt and all, and sighs in relief. 

He steps out into the hallway a couple minutes later, and Eddie shoves a handful of clothes at him, then heads into the bathroom himself. 

Steve goes into Eddie’s small bedroom, and it suddenly feels intimate. It’s messier than the rest of the apartment, with clothes and shoes strewn across the floor. His guitar is lovingly hung on the wall, and Steve’s not surprised. He smiles with a warm fondness for the instrument. More band posters are taped up, and his stereo system is clearly one of the most essential features of the space. It’s centered on the opposite wall of Eddie’s bed, surrounded by piles of cassette tapes. 

“I thought you were going to change?” Eddie says, bringing Steve back to the present. 

“Yeah, I was just checking out your room.” Steve sets the clothes in his hands on Eddie’s bed. 

“I’m sure it’s just like any other 24-year-old’s room, man.” Eddie pulls his shirt up over his head without hesitation, and Steve awkwardly averts his eyes. Eddie doesn’t notice Steve staring up at the ceiling. 

Steve carefully untucks his polo and slowly lifts it over his head, leaving his undershirt underneath. Steve hears Eddie’s zipper and the whoosh of denim falling to the floor. His heart is beating out of his chest, and he stares at an errant mark on the wall in front of him. 

“Where should we go?” Steve tries to keep his voice calm but isn’t sure if he’s being successful. He shakes out the black, of course, band t-shirt and pulls it carefully over his head. He runs his hands over the Guns ‘N Roses logo, someone Steve’s maybe heard of. 

“What time is it?” Steve can feel Eddie move behind him. “Ok, noon, not too bad. We don’t have to meet back up with the kids until 3, so great, plenty of time to kill this fucking hangover. Uh, let’s go to Sunshine Cafe. Doris makes a killer cup of coffee.” 

“Great, yeah.” Steve cautiously unzips his pants, nervous energy buzzing through him. What’s wrong with him? He’s done this before, hundreds of times, it’s not like he’s not undressed near a man. Hell, he’s had sex with a man before. What is happening? 

“Dude, you ok?”

Steve looks back and sees Eddie eyeing him. 

“Yeah, just making sure I don’t puke.” Always blame it on the hangover. 

“Oh uh, yeah please don’t do that facing my bed, that would not be cool, Harrington. Oh, hey I’ll grab some new music for the van. You can ride with me, we’ll leave your car here. Do you need to go back to your hotel room or anything?” Eddie walks around Steve and starts digging through the pile of tapes. 

“I do need to brush my teeth at some point.” Steve takes a deep inhale and pushes his jeans down trying to act as normal as possible. 

“Oh, uh, I think I have an extra one. Let me go check.” Eddie gets up and goes to the bathroom. Steve hears him digging around in a drawer. 

Steve takes this opportunity to quickly pull on the jeans Eddie was loaning him, black, of course again, with an array of holes and rips across the denim. Steve thinks he looks ridiculous and does not understand the point of torn denim. Eddie stumbles a little on his feet when he comes sliding back into his bedroom, holding a toothbrush in his left hand. 

“Wow,” Steve looks behind him and sees Eddie’s eyes scanning over him. “Um, not bad, King Steve. Maybe there’s a metalhead inside of you yet.” He shakes his head a little, and Steve thinks maybe he’s clearing his mind, hoping of inappropriate thoughts. 

Steve crosses his arms and tries to act nonchalantly. “I don’t know. I’m sure you’ve always hoped to put a little metalhead in me.” Steve’s eyes widen as embarrassment floods him at the double entendre he awkwardly just said. Eddie’s mouth opens a little, and Steve flusters to cover up what he’s said. “Just you know always trying to get me to listen to that crap. It’s not gonna happen, Munson.” Steve begs his breathing to come back to normal. 

“Yeah, something like that. Um, here, I had an extra.” Eddie holds the toothbrush before him but keeps his feet planted by the doorway. Steve has to step towards him, and his fingers shakily reach for the plastic handle. 

“Thanks,” Steve licks his lips and swallows hard as he pulls the toothbrush from Eddie’s fingers. He passes by him through the doorway and squeezes his eyes shut for a moment in embarrassment as he walks into the bathroom. 

The two leave shortly after, slowly blinking away the bright sunlight as Eddie drives them down the road. 

“Van’s still running good.” Steve tries to fill the silence with something. 

“Yeah, my job definitely has its perks. Pulled a couple parts off a car that came in after an accident, completely totaled but still had some good shit. How’s the beemer?” 

“It’s ok. Parts for that thing are ridiculous, though. I didn’t realize it until I had to pay for everything myself. Cost $180 to replace my brakes last month, fucking hell.” 

“Dude, that’s insane. Just when you’re in town, let me check it out, and I’ll give you a deal.” Eddie glances over at Steve and gives him a friendly smile. 

“Thanks, yeah, that would be great. I need an oil change, but I risked it this weekend.” 

“After breakfast, let’s go to the shop. I can do that super quick. Take me like 20 minutes max.” 

“Oh, you don’t need to do that today. We gotta get ready for the kids’ graduation. Don’t worry about it, really.” Steve tries to brush him off. He doesn’t want Eddie to feel like he’s obligated. 

“Come on man, let me make up for all the oil changes I would’ve done for you over the last three years. My treat.” Eddie reaches over and gives Steve’s shoulder a playful punch. 

“Ok, ok, but seriously, if this hangover gets worse after we eat, don’t worry about it.”

“Deal.” 

Eddie pulls into a small parking lot a few minutes later, and the boys climb out of the van. Eddie quick steps a few feet in front of Steve and pulls the door open with a flourish, waving Steve in front of him. 

“Good afternoon, Eddie. The two of you today?” The middle-aged waitress smiles at Eddie, holding a couple of menus pressed to her chest. 

“Yes, my dear. My friend Steve is in from the big city. We need that hangover cure.” He winks at her playfully.

Steve enjoys watching him in his element. 

“Come this way. I’ll give you the best seats in the house.” She leads them to the back of the diner to a secluded booth away from the big windows and bright sunlight. 

Steve sighs with appreciation as they slide into seats opposite each other. Eddie pulls the menu towards him and begins scanning it. 

“What’ll I bring you two to drink?” The waitress stands at the end of the table, holding her notepad before her. 

“I’ll have a coffee and an orange juice, please.” Steve smiles at her.

“Just a coffee for me, Doris.” Eddie slides his hands across the tabletop and beams at her brightly. 

“Two coffees and an orange juice, you got it. I’ll be right back.” She taps her pad on the corner of the table and turns away. 

“How often do you come here?” Steve asks while scanning the menu. 

“A few times a week, mostly on my way to work, grab a coffee and a muffin, and go. I take the first shift at the shop, so I’m up early.” 

“I never imagined you’d want the early shift.” 

“I get off earlier, so I can head to band practice and have time for a nap if we have a show that night.” 

Steve looks up from the menu and watches Eddie with renewed curiosity. He would’ve never imagined that those deeply rooted feelings for the enthusiastic metalhead could possibly get stronger, and yet they were.

Doris returns to the table and places the beverages down sliding them across the Formica. 

“You ready to order, loves?” She holds her trusty notepad and looks back and forth between the young men. 

Eddie looks up at Steve and motions for him to start. 

“I’ll have the traditional with scrambled eggs and wheat toast, please.” 

“Do you want home fries or hashbrowns?” 

“Oh, um...” 

“Get the home fries. They’re amazing.” Eddie interrupts. 

“Sure, then yeah, I’ll have the home fries.” Steve gives Eddie a thankful smile. 

“And you, love?” Doris turns her attention to Eddie. 

“Same, but I want an English muffin.” 

“Sounds good. Let me know if you need anything else in the meantime.” She takes the menus from their hands and gives them a wave. 

“She’s kind of awesome,” Steve says quietly. 

“The fucking best. So, Stevie, how long are you staying in town?” Eddie grabs the ceramic dish filled with sugar packets and pulls out a couple white sleeves. 

“I was going to head home tomorrow morning.” Steve watches Eddie’s face for any reaction, hoping to see something. 

“Oh,” Eddie leans back in the booth and shakes the sugar packets between his fingers. 

Steve tries to read the man’s body language and tries to infer any kind of meaning. 

“Yeah, since I was just here for the graduation. Robin not being here anymore, and uh my parents being gone too. Didn’t really know...if anyone would want me around longer than that, so it was gonna be a quick trip.” Steve absentmindedly puts his spoon in his coffee and stirs it around. Eddie seems distracted and doesn’t mention that Steve hasn’t added anything to his coffee yet to stir. 

“Do you have to go? I mean do you have work on Monday or something?” Eddie tears the top of his sugar packets open and keeps his eyes down on his drink as he pours them into the dark hot beverage. 

“No, I don’t have work again until Wednesday night, closing shift. Since I knew I was coming over here over the weekend, I made sure I had a couple of days off.” Steve continues stirring nothing in his coffee. 

“Well, you know, you can crash at my place if you want to stay longer and spend more time with Dustin, or w-whoever.” Eddie balls up the tiny square pieces of paper in his fingers and rolls them around, still keeping his eyes lowered. 

Steve doesn’t know if it’s the hangover or the way Eddie won’t look at him that’s making his stomach churn. 

“That’d be great, man. But I don’t want to impose. You just told me you have to get up early for shifts.” 

Eddie finally looks up, and Steve’s breath hitches in his throat when he sees those chocolate pools of gorgeous staring back at him. 

“Actually, I am off Monday and Tuesday too, so not imposing at all.” 

Steve watches as Eddie’s tongue flicks quickly across his bottom lip. Is he nervous?

“That’s awesome, then yeah, that would be great. I can crash on the futon this time instead of your floor. My neck is still killing me.” Steve huffs a quiet laugh. 

“Great,” Steve sees a light flicker across Eddie’s eyes. “Um, you wanna go pick up your stuff from the hotel, save yourself some money, and just crash at my place tonight too?” 

Steve’s stomach is swirling now, and he’s sure it’s not the hangover. 

“You sure? I mean, that’s a lot of days to have me around? You not gonna get sick of me?” Steve asks earnestly. 

“Never,” Eddie’s eyes feel like they’re digging around in Steve’s head, making him dizzy. 

Thankfully Doris appeared moments later, holding their plates in her arms and setting them down on the table. 

“There ya go. How does it look? Need anything?” 

“Looks fantastic as usual. I’m good.” Eddie responds readily with no lingering anxiety. Steve’s jealous of how simple he makes it look. 

“I’m good too,” Steve smiles up at her and then grabs his fork, grateful for the distraction and opportunity for a change in conversation. 

Eddie moans a little when he takes his first bite, and Steve’s eyes flick upward at the sound. “What?” Eddie asks with a mouthful of potatoes.

“Nothing,” Steve swallows hard and looks back at his plate. 

Keep it together, idiot. Jesus Christ, you’re a mess. 

“It’s good, huh?” Eddie nods at Steve’s food. “Yep, definitely hitting the spot.” 

They continue their meal in casual conversation. Steve catches Eddie up on Robin’s life and mentions he thinks she’s seeing someone but doesn’t specify gender, just in case. Eddie tells Steve all about the band and the mini-tours they’ve been having across Indiana and Illinois. Steve promises he’ll be at the show the next time they’re in Chicago. Neither of them brings up their love lives, not because they’re nervous but because they both honestly forgot about the night before. 

They don’t remember the conversations, they don’t remember the words, they don’t remember almost finally giving in and they sit across from each other in blissful ignorance. 

------------------ 

Eddie pops Steve’s hood open after moving the car under the cover of one of the garage’s bay areas and inspects the hoses. Steve watches curiously but doesn’t know what he should look for. Eddie looks right at home, though. 

“Oh shit, what time is it?” Steve looks at his watch and notices it’s a little after 1. “Hey, um, this is gonna sound weird, but do you have a phone I can borrow? I gotta call Rob. We have a standing Saturday appointment, and I didn’t think I’d be busy today, so I was still supposed to call her. I don’t want her to think I stood her up.” 

“Oh, yeah, the phone’s in the office over there.” Eddie motions to a door next to a large glass window. 

“Cool, won’t be long.” Steve steps into the quiet cramped office space and notices clipboards and dirty pens scattered across the metal desk. 

It doesn’t look like it’s anyone’s office, specifically just a shared space for privacy. Steve eyes the black telephone on the desk seeing the fingerprint smudges and evident grease along the handle. 

He grabs a partially used crumpled paper towel tossed in the corner of the desk and wipes down the receiver as best he can before dialing Robin’s number. 

“Hello?”

“Rob.” 

“Steve! How’s Hawkins? How are the kids? What’s it look like? Is it the same? Does it smell the same? Oh my god, have you seen them in their gowns yet? How cute do they look?” 

“Smells the same, looks the same, no I haven’t, that’s tonight. Was at Mike’s last night, got to see everyone, and then been hanging out with Eddie.” Steve tries to sound casual. 

“Eddie? Really? That’s cool. Didn’t think he’d still be living there, after everything.” 

“Yeah, yep, he’s still here. He was at Mike’s last night. That’s how we hooked up, uh, got together, saw each other.” He’s trying so hard not to sound like a babbling idiot, but he can not control himself for some reason. Especially as he watches the man in question through the glass window pull his shirt up over his head and wipe sweat away from his brow. 

Jesus 

“Are you having a stroke?” 

“No, just hungover, and my brain doesn’t want to work.” Steve crosses his arms and turns away from the window, trying to catch his breath. 

“Hungover? Mrs. Wheeler let the kids drink?” 

“No, went to Eddie’s after, and we drank Jager. I fucking hate Jager. Rob, you can not let me drink that shit again.” 

“Jager? Yuck. You remember that party we went to, and that guy kept doing car bombs and then threw up all over that girl. Oh god, I can still hear it.” 

“Stop, please, for the love of god, stop.” Steve puts his hand over his mouth, remembering that he did, in fact, still have a hangover, and not all of his queasiness was due to Eddie. 

“Sorry, yeah what were you thinking?” 

I wasn’t. He was just so pretty. How could I say no? 

“Eddie picked it out, said he missed Drunk Harrington and wanted to get to it quickly.”

“Aww, how sweet.” She says in a sickly adorable joking manner. 

“Shut up, it was a good time. I think. I woke up passed out on his floor, though, so I can’t say either way.” 

“His floor? Damn dude yeah, it sounds like a great time. Were your pants still on?”

“Fuck off, Buckley. He’s actually changing my oil right now.”

“What?” She sputters laughing. 

“No, no, like literally that’s what he’s doing. He’s working on my car. Like is actually changing my oil not...shut up.” Steve risks it and glances through the glass at Eddie. His back is facing the window, and Steve takes in the sight. 

Steve can see the scars along his sides fading away, but they are still pronounced. He’s got a couple new tattoos, one on his bicep and one on his shoulder blade. Steve can’t tell what they are from this far away. 

“Sure, ok, whatever you say. Why is he changing your oil anyway? Aren’t the two of you hungover and supposed to be getting ready for graduation?” 

“We have time, he offered to help out.” Steve’s eyes watch Eddie sit down on one of the dirty creepers and lay back, pulling himself under Steve’s car. “Shit.” 

“What?” 

“Um, nothing, just touched something gross. This room is filthy.” Steve exhales slowly, trying to avoid blowing directly into the receiver. 

“Ok, so when are you leaving tomorrow? You have to call me when you get home safely.” 

“So, actually I’m gonna stay a couple of days.” Steve prays she doesn’t press him. 

“Why? I thought you had to work on Monday.” 

“I’m gonna get Georgia to cover for me.” Yes, he’d lied to Eddie, and his coworker was going to kill him, but now that he was in Hawkins, he didn’t want to leave. 

“Shit, you’re going to owe her big time.” 

“I know, but it’s fine, really. It was such a long drive, and when Eddie offered to let me crash at his place, it sounded better than immediately getting back into my car.” 

Robin doesn’t reply at first, and Steve thinks maybe they got disconnected. “Rob?”

“What’s going on between the two of you?”

“What are you talking about? Nothing.” Steve tries to act casual. 

“I don’t believe you.” 

“Well, maybe if you tell me about this girl you’re seeing, I’ll tell you what’s going on between Eddie and me.”

Sure he sounded snippy and a little childish, but he was trying to make a point. Also, he was hoping he’d get her to stop asking questions because Steve didn’t want to think about what was happening between him and Eddie. After all, the answer was so clearly ‘nothing’ that it stung a little. 

His pep talk from his drive the day before wasn’t holding up, and he was trying not to think about what that might look like in three days. 

“What? I’m not seeing anyone. You’re crazy.” Steve can hear her shuffling around in the background. 

“Whatever, anyway I’m gonna go, looks like he’s almost done. I didn’t want you to think I had forgotten about you. So then I’ll call you when I get home...on Wednesday.” 

“Wednesday?? You’re staying with Eddie until Wednesday? Jesus Christ, Steve.” 

“It’s not that big a deal. We’re gonna see the kids tonight and probably tomorrow. He probably has shit he needs to do anyway, so we’re not going to be spending the next three and a half days together or anything.” 

“Well, fine but you better call me and tell me every juicy detail because I’ve known something about Eddie for years that you’re probably going to find out about this weekend.” 

Steve pauses, trying to understand what she’s implying. How could she possibly know something about Eddie that he doesn’t, and how could she have known this tidbit of information for years? 

“What are you talking about? What do you know that I don’t know?” 

“I’m sure you’ll find out. Oh, why don’t you tell him about James? I’m sure he’d love to make fun of your ex-boyfriend with you.” 

At the mention of Steve’s ex, something tickles at the back of his brain, like a memory or a thought, but he can’t put his finger on it. 

“Why would I talk to Eddie about my ex-boyfriend? He doesn’t even know I like...shit.” Pieces of last night come to the forefront of Steve’s mind, not everything but flashes of some things. 

He remembers mentioning his ex-boyfriend. He didn’t even realize he had said ‘he.’ He also remembers Eddie getting upset but not making any sense, and then... oh no . 

“What? What happened?”

“Nothing, um, nothing just remembered James left me a voicemail before I left. Um I gotta go.”

“Wait, no, you can’t drop that bombshell on me and then just hang up.” 

“Um, oh no it was nothing. I think he was drunk or something.” Steve was lying but didn’t want her to realize it. “He sounded belligerent, not making any sense. Probably doesn’t remember calling me. It’s not a big deal.” 

“Ok, fine, but anyway, call me when you get home on freaking Wednesday, Jesus.” She huffs, and he can hear her roll her eyes. 

“Yep, sounds good, alright bye.”

“Give the kids a hug from me. Well, give Max and the girls a hug from me.”

Steve chuckles, “ok, yeah.” 

Steve hangs up and blows a long, slow breath while watching Eddie slide back out from under the BMW. He sits up and sees Steve watching him through the glass. He gives him a small wave, and Steve can cry at how beautiful Eddie looks at this moment. He has a streak of dirt across his forehead and sweat pooling at his collarbones. He’s wiping his hands with a dirty towel and smiling at Steve like he’s the only person in the world. Or at least that’s what Steve wishes it was. 

He pulls his eyes away when he remembers he told Eddie about James. A flush of embarrassment runs through him when Eddie’s voice from the night before ripples over his thoughts.

Did he really tell me to kiss him? 

“Hey,” Eddie peers into the cramped office, holding the door handle tight. 

“Hey.” 

“How’s Buckley?” 

“Good, yeah told her I was gonna stay a couple extra days, so I should get her off my back for a little bit.” Steve tries to smile through his nerves but isn’t successful. 

“You ok?” Eddie steps into the room and gets closer to Steve. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m wonderful. Just you know, hangover.” Steve leans back away from Eddie, trying to add space between them and Steve sees something flash across Eddie’s face. “Y-you ok?” 

“Yeah, um, I’m done with your car.” He thumbs back behind his back towards the BMW and presses his lips together. “You wanna grab your stuff and then go back to my place? Or um, do you just want to go back to the hotel and see each other later?” 

“I don’t want to impose on you or anything. I still need to shower and change and everything. I can just go back to the hotel if it’s easier.” 

“Naw, man. I’m sure that shower is shit, not that my apartment is probably any better, but it’s gotta be better than a shitty Hawkins hotel, right? Just grab your stuff and come back.” 

“You look like you need it first.” Steve pokes Eddie’s bare arm. 

“Uh yeah,” Eddie looks down at his chest, and Steve lets his eyes drift too. “I should probably leave a work shirt in my van. Or maybe you wanna give me my shirt back, Stevie?” Eddie pulls at the hem of the shirt Steve’s wearing and every nerve in Steve’s body perks up. 

“Naw, I’m getting used to it. I might sneak it into my bag when you’re not looking.” Steve plucks at the flirtatious undertone. 

“It does look good on you. Maybe I’ll let you sneak it. But you gotta give me my jeans back though.” Eddie flicks one of the belt loops, and Steve’s heart thuds louder. 

“You can have them back. They definitely are not me.”

“Well...” Eddie’s voice trails off.

“What?” 

Eddie’s eyes move like he’s suddenly lost in thought, and his tongue sticks out between his teeth. He suddenly looks up at Steve with a surprised look, like he just realized something. Or remembered something. 

“Just, uh, just remembered...something.” Eddie leans away from Steve a little and looks like he’s going to be sick. 

“What? You look like you’re going to puke.” Steve steps forward, but Eddie pulls back like he’s scared of him. 

“I’m ok, uh you should get your stuff. Let’s get out of here. I need to lock up.” Eddie walks with purpose out of the office and back into the bay, quickly busying himself and cleaning up his tools. 

Steve tries to understand the emotional whiplash he just experienced and watches Eddie tentatively.

“Ok, I guess I’ll see you back at your place in like 30 minutes?”

“Yeah, yep sounds good. Your keys are in your car.” Eddie doesn’t look up at Steve at all. 

“Ok, I’ll see you in a bit then. Thanks for doing this, man. I really appreciate it.” Steve tries to catch Eddie’s eyes, but he only nods and continues moving around the shop. 

Steve nods anyway and slides into his driver’s seat. He plucks the keys off the armrest and starts up his car. He glances in his rearview mirror as he pulls out and sees Eddie watching him drive away. 

------------------ 

Steve took a little longer before getting back to Eddie’s apartment. He couldn’t figure out what had happened, but something shifted between them, driving Steve nuts. Almost an hour later, Steve pulled into the small parking lot and yanked his duffel bag out of the car. He stood next to his car and looked up the stairs to Eddie’s door, trying to build up the courage. Just as he’s about to move forward, he sees Eddie’s door open and him looking out at the parking lot, fear or anxiety across his face. When his eyes meet Steve’s, he visibly relaxes and gives him a welcoming smile. 

Steve’s insides smooth at the sight of him, and he quickly climbs the stairs to Eddie. “You ok?” Steve pauses on the top step waiting for a reply. 

“You said 30 minutes, and it’s been almost an hour, so I thought something happened or like you were ditching me or something.” Eddie nervously pulls a strand of hair across his lips. 

“Sorry, no, I thought maybe you’d want a break from me or something, just giving you some space.” Steve awkwardly tosses his duffel bag over his shoulder and shifts his weight on his feet. 

Eddie grins and tries to bite back a larger smile. “I had a three-year break from you, Steve. That was long enough. Get in here.” He nods to his door, and the two men head back inside. 

“I see you showered.” 

“Yeah sorry, couldn’t wait for you any longer.” Eddie winks at Steve, and he tries to play it off. “It’s all yours if you still need it. I can grab you a clean towel.” 

“That would be great. When do we need to leave?” 

Eddie looks down at his wrist. “We have about an hour before we need to head out. Is that enough time for?” Eddie jokingly moves his hands around at Steve’s head. 

“Yes,” Steve rolls his eyes and walks back towards the bathroom.

“You want some more of my clothes?” Eddie calls out. “Your ass looks great in my pants.” 

“N-naw, I’m good.” Steve’s glad to be facing away from Eddie because the color of his face would give away everything on his mind. 

“But, like, are you sure?” 

Steve shuts the bathroom door behind him and bites his fist. He closes the toilet lid, sets his bag down, and starts pulling out his toiletries. He lines up the bottles around the tub’s edge and turns the faucet on. He pulls out his button-down navy blue shirt and shakes it a little. He’d carefully brought it from Chicago on a hanger and then completely threw caution to the wind the second Eddie asked him to come to his place. 

He tosses it carefully over the shower bar hoping the steam will help loosen up the small wrinkles from the sleeves. 

He steps out of the steamy bathroom 35 minutes later, his hair still wet but styled, and rolling his sleeves up his arms. He almost bumps into Eddie in the hallway. 

“Shit, sorry.” Steve finishes his sleeves and adjusts them on his forearms.

“Ok, maybe you also look good in your own clothes.” Eddie’s eyes roam across Steve’s chest. Steve awkwardly adjusts his collar and swallows back a sound trying to escape his throat. 

“Thanks, man.” 

“Did your ex-boyfriend get to see you dressed up like this?” 

Steve’s shoulders drop, and he feels his face fall in surprise. That’s what he remembered. 

“Sometimes,” Steve huffs. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Eddie keeps Steve in the quiet darkness of the hallway. 

“Because I didn’t know, well that’s not completely, it’s complicated, but um no one knows, except Robin.” 

Eddie laughs gently, “yeah, Robs the only one that knows about me too.” 

Steve creases his eyebrows together, not sure what Eddie is implying. 

Eddie doesn’t speak but opens his eyes wider and leans in, trying to get Steve to understand. 

Steve just shakes his head and shrugs. 

“I’m gay, man, I’m gay. Jesus, you really are oblivious.” 

“What? I didn’t know.” Steve tries to act normal, but his insides are churning like they’re trying to make butter. 

“Hurry up,” Eddie rolls his eyes and slaps the back of his hand against Steve’s chest.

“Where can I put my stuff?” Steve calls down the hall. 

Eddie pops his head around the corner. “Oh, you can leave it in my room if you want.” 

“Cool,” Steve lifts his bag up and nods to Eddie. 

“So, where did you two meet?” 

Steve sets his bag down near Eddie’s dresser and takes a deep breath before addressing the question. 

“Through a mutual friend,” Steve steps back into the living room and leans against the wall. “He invited me to this club. It ended up being a gay club, and that’s kind of it.” 

Eddie furrows his brows, trying to wrap his head around that information. 

“Was that the first time you’d been to a gay club?” Eddie’s eyes are locked on Steve from across the room. 

“Oh, uh, no. My first boyfriend actually was the one that took me to my first gay club.” 

“First? Oh, I’m sorry, your first? How many fucking boyfriends have you had, Harrington?” Steve tries to avoid taking the frustration in Eddie’s voice personally. 

“Only two. Charles was back about three months after I moved to Chicago. It was very short-lived. I barely made it two months. Then James, we just broke up four weeks ago. That was longer, just over seven months. He was a fucking dick.” Steve tacks on, hoping to convey how over him he is. 

“Three months after you moved?”

“Yeah.” 

“So, was...did you...was there anyone here? Like before that, you maybe?” Eddie pulls his eyes away and looks down at his hands 

“Not really, no I mean, yes yes there was, but no, um fuck.” Steve shakes his head and tries to collect his thoughts. He’s not ready to do this right now. That pep talk might be wearing off, but they’re about to head out to the kids’ graduation, and he really really doesn’t want to fuck that up. “Yes, there was someone, um but only kinda a little bit before I moved, but he never knew, and I’m sure I wasn’t his type anyway, so I never said anything, but there wasn’t anyone before that, at all. I’ve thought about it a lot over the years, and there had just not been anyone else until then, so um yeah, but it’s not a big deal, y’know?” 

“And you’re sure he didn’t like you either? Did you ask, or like find out for sure?”

“No, no I just knew we were really different. I didn’t need to ask.”

Eddie’s face falls, and he gives a slight nod.

“Well, we should probably get going. Dustin would murder us if we were late.”

“Yeah, seriously.” 

“I gotta grab my jacket.” Eddie pushes himself up from the futon and walks down the hallway to his bedroom. 

Steve runs his fingers through his hair, still damp to the touch, and tries to calm his nerves. Eddie comes out seconds later, pulling a black blazer over his shoulders. 

“Wow,” Steve’s mouth moves before he can think as he takes in the black blazer over a worn-out black Black Sabbath band shirt over his tight black jeans and unlaced combat boots. The man was dripping in the color black and it was mouthwateringly sexy. 

“Look good?” Eddie pops his collar and presses his tongue to his canine.

“Yeah, you clean up nicely, Munson.” Steve grins and just lets himself have the moment. 

“See, you coulda looked this good if you wore my pants. I could still get you in my pants, Steve if you wanted.” Eddie gives him an evil grin. 

“Shut up,” Steve rolls his eyes. “Maybe later.” Steve holds his breath and winks at Eddie. Really leaning into the fuck it mood. “I will need something to wear for the next couple of days since I only brought enough clothes for this weekend. Getting in your pants is as good as any.” 

Eddie opens his mouth and starts to nod slowly. “I see how it is, Stevie. Yep.” He raises his eyebrows at Steve and bites his bottom lip, tucking it into his mouth. 

“Are you flustered, Munson?” Steve leans forward, tapping into that natural charm he’d tucked away 24 hours ago. “Why are you so flustered? The thought of me getting in your pants, doing something to you?” 

“Let’s go, Harrington.” Eddie rolls his eyes and grabs his keys from the kitchen counter. “Fucker.”

------------------ 

There wasn’t a dry eye in their section. All the kids walked the stage and grabbed their diplomas. None of them followed in Eddie’s footsteps and flipped the principal off, but he was proud of them nonetheless. Steve was blubbering from the second they walked into the auditorium, and he saw them in their cap and gowns. He tried to hide it for a few seconds but let himself go after Eddie comfortingly put his arm around Steve’s shoulder. 

After the ceremony, everyone piled outside and began hugging each other. The moms were all dabbing their eyes and crying on each other’s shoulders while the dads gave hearty handshakes and acted like something was in their eyes. 

“Steve!” Dustin was the first to come to greet them and wrapped his arms tightly around Steve’s shoulders. 

“You just saw me yesterday, man.” Steve squeezed Dustin hard, trying to bite back more tears. 

“I know, but you’ll be leaving tomorrow, and I want to savor it.” Dustin pulls back and holds Steve’s shoulders. The two are almost the same height now, and Steve can’t wrap his head around it. 

“Oh, uh, actually, I’m gonna stay until Wednesday. Eddie’s letting me crash at his place.”

“WHAT!?” Dustin shook Steve’s shoulders, scaring Steve.

“Yeah man, ok can you stop shaking me, please? I have a brutal hangover still.”

“Oh, sorry, uh, wait, hangover?” 

“Yeah, Eddie and I hung out last night.” Steve feels embarrassed and like he’s hiding a secret but can’t explain it because nothing truly happened. 

“Steve!” Max swoops in and wraps her arms around Steve’s neck, spinning him around. 

“Shit, hey kid.” He pulls back and takes her in. Her hair is longer and curled slightly at the ends, and he likes it. 

“MIKE, Steve’s staying until Wednesday,” Dustin screams out through the crowd of parents and teens. 

“Jesus Christ, Henderson.” Steve huffs. “You look so good. I love your hair. Where’s El?” Steve looks behind Max, searching for the supergirl. 

Max looks back and waves to El, and Steve sees her. Her hair is about shoulder length now, and she looks so happy. She jogs over, and Steve wraps his arms around two of his favorites. 

“You both have gotten so big. I can’t believe you just graduated high school. That’s ridiculous.”

“We’re so glad you came.” El beams at him. 

“Wouldn’t have missed it for the world. I’m so proud of you.” Steve wipes the back of his hand across his eyes. 

“Who knew you were such a sap.” Max pokes Steve’s chest and leans in for another hug. 

He’s missed them something fierce over the last three years. They helped him figure out the direction to take his career and life, and that’s why he ultimately enrolled in college. 

He just finished his first of two years at community college for his Associate’s but then is hoping to transfer to a Chicago-based University to get his bachelors in Social Work. He’s missed helping and protecting children, and that ridiculous story he’d spilled to Nancy about wanting six “nuggets” was his heart aching to protect as many kids as he could and give them a safe space in their childhood. He wants to provide them with something he never had, and he would’ve never come to that conclusion if he hadn’t spent all those years carrying a nail bat and protecting those nerds. 

“Steven?” Karen Wheeler places her hand gently on Steve’s back to garner his attention. 

“Mrs. Wheeler, oh, hi.” Max and El pull away from Steve and run over to Joyce and Hopper for more hugs. 

“You look so good, honey. Chicago suits you. It’s so nice of you to come to see their graduation.” She gives him a gentle motherly hug and squeezes him tight. 

“Of course, they’re the best. I felt like I had to be here.” 

“Nancy’s here if you want to say hi. She’s just over there.” Karen raises her eyebrows at him and gives him a smile. 

“Oh,” Steve’s surprised by the connotation of her tone but takes it in stride. “Yeah, I’ll have to say hello before I go. Thank you.” 

Eddie slides up next to Steve just then, secretly poking his side. Steve turns and sees Eddie grinning at him, and he can’t stop the blush hitting his cheeks. He looks back at Karen, and she gives Eddie an equally kind smile, and Steve’s relieved there’s no tension there. 

“Eddie, don’t you look dashing? I love this jacket on you.” 

“Thanks, Mrs. W, just something Stevie helped me pick out.” He pushes his shoulder into Steve’s and knocks him off balance a little. 

“Oh well, you both did a great job then. I’m so happy you’re both here.” 

Mike comes pushing through to the boys and squeezes past his mom. 

“Thanks for coming, guys.” Mike awkwardly pulls them into a group hug, and Steve and Eddie’s faces get painfully close. Mike’s officially taller than them both now, still gangly and thin as hell. He continued letting his hair grow out, looking suspiciously like Eddie’s. 

Karen Wheeler stepped away and left the three of them alone. Eddie shoves Mike off and grabs his shoulder, shaking it a little. 

“Congrats, rugrat. I can’t believe you fucking passed Cork’s class. Was there another Suzie interference on that one?” Eddie raises his eyebrows at Mike. 

“Shut up, no. I actually passed the final, and it pushed my score up.” 

“Shit, good for you.” 

“Wait, you almost failed Cork’s class?” Steve looked at Mike, concerned. 

“Yeah, Wheeler here was dicking around all semester and forgot a couple of homework assignments.” Eddie crosses his arms and shifts his weight on his feet. 

Steve put his hands on his hips, and the pair were a sight to see. 

“Jesus, but I passed. Ok, give me a break. You two acting like my damn parents. I hear enough of that shit at home.” Mike rolls his eyes and slumps his shoulders a little. 

“Alright, alright. Congrats, dude, proud of you.” Eddie reaches his hand out, and Mike cautiously accepts it. 

Eddie squeezes it hard and pulls him tight against his chest, giving him a strong bear hug. 

“I can’t breathe, man. Ugh, let me go.” 

Eddie lets go in a huff and smiles at Mike. Steve watches the interaction and melts a little inside. 

“What’s the party up to tonight?” Eddie asks. 

“The parents are taking us to get pizza and then going back to Will and El’s place for a little party with everyone.” 

“Even the girls?” Eddie asks, and Steve’s still not sure what’s going on. “Yeah, the girls too.” Mike keeps his eyes down and won’t make eye contact. 

“Well, cool, have fun, kid. Stevie and I are going to get into our own debauchery tonight. Maybe start a cult, and sacrifice some virgins. You free later?” 

“Shut up,” Mike bites back quickly. Eddie laughs and shoves his shoulder. 

“Go hang out with your friends. Will looks lonely over there.” Eddie gives Mike a pointed wink, and Steve holds back a grin. 

Steve’s making a mental note of everything he needs to discuss with Eddie when they’re back at his apartment. 

“Jerk, ok, I’ll see you later. Thanks for coming, Steve.” Mike gives him a crooked smile.

“Of course, kid.”

Mike nods and runs back towards Will. Eddie leans in and speaks quietly.

“You wanna get out of here?” 

“I gotta say hi to Nance first. Give me five minutes?” 

“Five minutes on the clock, Harrington. Don’t go rekindling any old flames.” 

Steve laughs and sounds more nervous than he genuinely is. 

“Oh, we’re safe on avoiding that.” 

“Right, forgot, you’re into guys now.” Steve can feel his fingertips tingling. 

“And girls, I still like girls too, just not Nance. That’s very much done, snuffed out, water poured over the coals, and deeply buried.” 

“Jesus, quite the visual. Ok then, good luck, I guess.” Eddie slides his hands into his back pockets, and Steve can feel him watching him walk away. 

“Hey,” Steve slides up behind Nancy and quietly pats her on the shoulder. 

She turns and smiles at him fondly. She tilts her head in that familiar way and looks up at him. Steve can’t help it and wraps his arms around her shoulders. 

“You look good.” She says when they pull apart. 

“You do, too. I love this dress.” And he means it, not in a she looked good sexy way, but flattering and adorable. 

“I talked to Robin earlier. She said you were staying until Wednesday?” 

Steve furrows his brow confused. It’s only been a couple of hours since he spoke to Robin, and she’s already ratted him out to Nancy. 

“How often do you two talk?” 

Suddenly Nancy looks like she just got caught in something, and she adverts her eyes from Steve’s face. 

“Oh, um, not a lot.” 

“That’s not an answer, Nance. Do you talk to her more than I do? Do you call her more than once a week?” 

“Yeah, uh sometimes.” Steve watches as Nancy nervously bites her bottom lip. 

“What’s going on? What aren’t you two telling me?” Steve’s starting to get upset at the idea that his best friend and ex-girlfriend were hiding something from him. It was starting to sting. 

“Nothing, nothing, um, but she should probably tell you. Doesn’t feel like I can do that.” 

“What? Is something wrong? Oh my god, why wouldn’t she tell me? Nance, you have to tell me.” Steve’s starting to panic, and he can feel his chest constricting. 

“No, nothing’s wrong, ugh fine, she’s going to kill me. Um, Steve, Robin and I are...dating.” Nancy keeps her eyes down and waits. 

“What?” Steve feels his stomach drop to his knees as he tries to understand what she’s telling him.

“Yeah, we just didn’t know how to tell you for a while. Y’know, with everything.” 

“I knew it,” Steve throws his arms up and huffs in relief. “I fucking knew it. I even told Eddie I knew Robin had a girlfriend. She just wouldn’t tell me. Well, no, I told Eddie I knew Rob was seeing someone. I didn’t specify, but I knew it.” Steve suddenly realizes that someone happens to be Nancy. “Oh, wow. So you two?” 

“Yeah.” Nancy looks shy and nervous. 

“That’s why you moved to Indy. Hmm, man I am oblivious.” Steve remembers what Eddie mentioned earlier. He smiles at the thought and pulls Nancy into a tight hug. “I’m happy for you two, honestly. I will yell at her later for keeping me in the dark, but it’s ok.” 

“Thanks, Steve, uh....” 

Steve pulls back and looks down at Nancy. 

“What?” 

“Why does Eddie look like he is trying to explode my head with his mind?” Nancy can see Eddie off behind Steve’s back, watching them. 

“What?” Steve turns around and catches Eddie’s eyes; she is not exaggerating. That was a glare, for sure. Steve chuckles a little and turns back to Nancy. “He just wants to ensure you don’t break my heart again.” He assumes. 

“Oh, god yeah, no.” She laughs, and they pull apart.

“That’s what I told him, but he’s just making sure.”

“Wow, well I feel a million pounds lighter.” She kicks the toe of her shoe against the sidewalk. 

“I bet. Thanks for telling me. Even if I did pressure you into it, kinda.” Steve tries to alleviate any pressure she might be holding on to. 

“Thanks for taking this so well. I know she’s your best friend, and it has not been easy on her. She’s a mess about it all the time, so it’ll be nice to finally see her relax some. Kinda.” 

Steve laughs, “yeah, I don’t know that Robin knows what relax means.” 

“True.” Nancy pulls Steve into another hug, this one warm and comforting. “We’re gonna come see you soon, ok?” 

“I hope so. It gets lonely over there sometimes.” Steve doesn’t mean to say it, but he can’t help himself. 

She squeezes him tight, and they pull apart. 

“You better get back over to Eddie before he actually figures out how to hurt me with brain powers. He’ll be heading over to El and convincing her to do something, and I really like keeping all my parts in one piece.” 

Steve laughs and nods. “Will do. Alright, I’ll be here until Wednesday, so maybe I’ll see you around?” 

“Yeah, I’m sure.” 

------------------ 

“You and Nance were looking awfully chummy back there,” Eddie says once they’re in his van headed back to his apartment. 

The group had dispersed, sharing tearful hugs goodbye and Dustin vowing to see Steve at least one more time before he left Hawkins. Eddie and Steve then jumped into the van and comfortably headed back. Steve hadn’t really thought about how easy it had been to fall into a routine with Eddie in the last couple of days. It just felt natural, simple, and easy enough. They were slipping back into their usual repertoire of gentle flirting and playful prodding. Just another layer of their relationship that Steve knows no one else would ever bring to the table as naturally and comfortably as Eddie did.

Charles and James had been more like Steve, reserved and preppy. They weren’t jocks, but they also weren’t metalheads. Charles was in love with Madonna and would’ve never been caught dead listening to Metallica. James was more of a theater man. He opted for classical music playing in the background during dinner as if they weren’t 23 and 25-year-old college boys. Steve had gone along with it, trying to act like that’s what he wanted too, that’s the kind of person he wanted to spend his time with, but it wasn’t. 

James had been introduced to Steve through a mutual friend who knew they would be interested in each other. Because Steve didn’t often get the opportunity to date men, he wasn’t as comfortable flirting with them as the ladies, he jumped at the chance. James was a couple years older than Steve, had already graduated, and was climbing his career ladder. He was what Steve envisioned his father would’ve wanted in a son. He was ambitious and charming, and cultured, and a piece of Steve thought maybe, just maybe, James would’ve been acceptable enough to meet his parents and they not completely flip out. If Steve could flash this shiny perfect object in front of them, they’d forgive him and forget that he liked guys and was years behind in his career and working at a cafe. 

Steve never introduced James to his family. It never got to the point that he truly even considered it. It was almost like he knew it was doomed from the start, but he still went through the motions just for the experience and the human interaction. He liked waking up in the middle of the night, and someone was next to him. He liked having consistency and a schedule of knowing someone was looking for him and wanting to spend time with him. He used James to fill those holes of loneliness like mortar and spackling. But James himself took advantage of Steve and dug deep into his insecurities. 

James was charming, he was, but he was also cruel and hurtful. He’d poke at Steve’s insecurities, point out his flaws, and tell him that if he only tried a little harder or only did a little more, maybe his life could be different. James playfully drug his teeth across every wound and scar around Steve’s heart, and for a while, Steve let him. He craved validation. He desired that familiar disappointment that his parents had always provided. Even though it was toxic and hurtful, it was comfortable and easy. 

Steve had learned years before how to use those coping mechanisms, and sometimes it was much harder to try and make healthy ones. Robin would always call him out on it, but she was careful not to push too hard. James didn’t like their relationship, and Robin knew that if she made one false move, James would sever that cord completely, and Steve would be on his own. 

Steve would’ve stayed longer and endured more, but when he got Dustin’s graduation invite in the mail in late March, it changed something inside of him. That tether to Hawkins was tugged, and he remembered there had been someone before, someone that never treated him like that, someone that would never treat him like that, and if Eddie could show him that he was worthy when they were only friends, then there must be someone on the planet that would do it again. 

James was cold and relatively unresponsive when Steve told him he wanted to break up. It was almost like James didn’t care or have any emotional connection to the situation. He had shrugged and straightened his back, looking almost defiant to the notion that anyone would ever think he wasn’t good enough. It was a brief conversation. James walked out of the coffee shop eight minutes later, leaving Steve behind to finish his cappuccino alone. 

Steve had called Robin later that night but didn’t cry. He still hasn’t cried about it. He thinks he knew it was inevitable for a long time and had unknowingly shut off those emotions, making sure that he protected himself. He always knew, in the end, he was the only person he could count on to look out for himself, and so he’d shut it down. Taking every feeling and locking them away in tiny little boxes in his mind, never to see the light of day again. Those boxes helped him when he was a child, a teen, with Vecna and the Upside Down shit, and still in his 20s. His parents didn’t give him much, but they gave him a tool to avoid pain. 

Robin was kind and caring to him when he told her. She didn’t gloat or say I told you so. She just wanted him to be happy. The Scoops Troop pair have been friends for five years now, and if Robin thinks too hard about it, she’d realize she can’t remember a time when Steve had been happy. That’s a long time to wander on the planet cloaked in loneliness. But to Steve, that cloak was home. He’d worn it in, it was formed to his body, and he was scared to take it off. Being vulnerable and exposed to the elements was dangerous. James had been a part of the cloak. 

“Yeah, she said it looked like you were trying to explode her with your mind,” Steve smirks but keeps his eyes forward, looking out the windshield. 

“Maybe I was.” Eddie laughs. “Oh shit, I love this song. Have you heard it?” Eddie leans over, turns up the volume on the van, and then smacks the steering wheel to the drum beat. 

“Did you just ask me if I’ve heard this?” Steve gives Eddie a look of disgust. 

“Fuck, right. I forgot King Steve isn’t cultured in the fine arts of metal music. My apologies, dear sir.” Eddie jokingly pretends to lift a hat off his head in Steve’s direction. 

“How do you even understand what they’re saying?”

“Wanna know the truth?” Eddie leans over a little but keeps his eyes pointed forward. 

“Spill.” 

“I don’t. This is a pretty new song anyway, so I haven’t heard it enough times to know all the lyrics, and sometimes my brain doesn’t distinguish the vocals from the instruments. It’s another instrument, so I don’t always know what they’re saying. To me, music isn’t about words. It isn’t about the implied meaning behind purposefully calculated phrases but more about how it makes me feel. You’d be surprised to know, Stevie, that I do, in fact, listen to other music besides Metal because I am just a fan of music. Metal happens to be my favorite, but I can get down with a good jazz song or some New Wave shit. When it’s well put together and does something magical to my ears, I don’t care what genre it is.” 

“So you don’t hear the words at all?” 

“Well, I hear them, but I can’t focus on them. Does that make sense? They just become like any other part of the structure, like a guitar riff or the bass line. The vocals are just another instrument in my head. Have you ever listened to music so fucking good that you get goosebumps?” 

“I don’t think so. I don’t know.” 

“Shit, well, you would know. It happens all the time to me. I really want to get these headphones that just go all the way around your ears. They’re expensive, and usually only professional sound guys use them, but I bet it sounds incredible. Just completely surrounding your brain with music and closing everyone else out? That’s heaven right there. I just have some Radio Shack headphones that came with my tapedeck, they’re ok enough, but someday I’m gonna get those fucking headphones. Just gotta save up.” 

Steve watches him in awe. Eddie’s so mesmerizing to watch when he talks about something he’s passionate about. Steve thinks he could listen to him talk all day. The amount of emotion and enthusiasm he exudes is magnetic. Steve’s 100% sure he’s never felt this way about anything in his entire life, and Eddie is talking about headphones. Something Steve would never think twice about. Something that has never even factored into a choice or decision before in his life. 

“You make it sound so magical.” 

“It’s nothing like a live show, but it’s close. Man, I wish you were gonna be here this coming weekend. We have a show Saturday night. You gotta go when we’re in Chicago. Have you ever been to a live concert?” 

“Um, not really. My ex took me to the symphony several times, but that’s probably not what you mean.” 

“Oh Jesus, Harrington. What kind of dudes are you into? No, that’s not at all what I meant. I think if you went to a live concert, like a small one, where there aren’t any seats, and you’re crammed in with a bunch of strangers, then maybe you’d get those goosebumps. When every single person in the entire building is experiencing what you are and just jamming out to it too, it’s well yeah, it’s magical.” 

“You’re making me want to stay until next weekend, man.” Steve laughs and shifts his weight in his seat a bit. 

“I mean...you can if you want.” Eddie glances at Steve for a second, then looks forward again.

“Ooh, no,” but Steve pauses and thinks about it. “Well, I mean, maybe.” 

“I don’t care. You can just keep crashing at my place. It’s only four more nights. That’s no big deal.” 

But it was, though, wasn’t it? Four nights added onto the five he was already doing. The five that weren’t even initially scheduled in the first place. That’s nine nights of Steve spending the night at Eddie’s apartment. With one already down, that leaves eight more nights of being alone together. That’s eight more nights of Steve trying to repeat the pep talk and ignore every itching craving crawling over his skin since he saw those gorgeous lips and sparkling brown eyes. That’s eight more nights of pretending he doesn’t remember Eddie telling him to kiss him. 

“I’d have to find someone to cover my shifts, but maybe. But you have to work too, right? Plus, if you have a concert, you’ll have band practice. I don’t want to get in the way. And I don’t have any clothes.” 

“I told you before, you just gotta ask to get in my pants, and they’re all yours.” Eddie winks at Steve as he pulls into the parking lot of his apartment, tucking his van under one of the covered parking spots. 

“If that’s all it takes.” Steve flirts back. 

The two slide out of the van with grins on their faces and head inside. ------------------ 

“No more Jager, just no, it’s not happening, Munson. I still want to puke, and it’s almost 8 pm.” Steve waves his hands in front of his chest while Eddie suggests they hit the liquor store again. 

“Fine, what about some smokes? I missed out on stoned Harrington back in the day. Let me meet him now.” 

“Ok fine, but we have to go slow and stay near your place. A couple of times, I’ve gotten a little paranoid, and maybe once had to hide under a blanket on Robin’s couch after some brownies weren’t clearly labeled.” 

“Shit,” Eddie laughs loudly, letting his head fall back. “No edibles, man. That shit is dangerous. We’re sticking to joints. I rolled myself, and that’s that.” 

“Fine, should we order a pizza or something? My treat.” 

“Fuck yes your treat. I’m letting you smoke my weed for free. You can at least pay for a girl’s dinner.” Eddie leans towards Steve and bats his eyelashes. 

Forty-five minutes later, Steve’s paying the delivery boy for their pizza, and Eddie’s pushing Steve out the door. 

“What are you doing?” Steve holds the pizza box away from his chest, making sure not to drop it. 

“There’s a little playground around that building over there. We’re gonna get high and play on the swings, man. Bring the pizza.” 

“But you said we’d stay close to home.” 

“Heh, home. You just called my place home, Harrington. I knew you were sweet on me. It’s only around the corner. We’re still close enough that I can guide you back safely if you start hearing sounds.” 

Steve’s stomping down the stairs with Eddie close behind him. “Fine, fine, but you promise?” 

“Yes, my snookums.” Eddie poked Steve’s shoulder and bounced next to him as they walked towards the playground. 

Steve rolled his eyes and hoped with every fiber of his being that he was playing off as annoyed and not how he truly felt, which was warm and tingly. 

“Just as annoying as ever, Munson.” 

“Yeah, but you missed it.” Eddie winks and then jumps ahead, skipping a little through the small sandbox. 

He really had. 

Eddie flops into one of the swings and pulls a joint up to his mouth. He leans a little to pull his lighter out of his pocket while Steve sits in the second swing, still holding the pizza box. 

“So, Stevie, tell me about this guy, mister symphony man. I wanna know everything.” He smirks at Steve and then lights the joint’s tip, shielding the flame from the wind. 

“Not much to tell.” Steve sets the pizza box on the sand in front of him and carefully lifts the lid. He grabs a slice and then leans back in the swing. 

Eddie offers him the joint and grabs a slice himself. “C’mon, indulge me a little. I wanna know what kind of competition I’ve got.” 

“Oh shut up, he wasn’t even someone I’d normally be into. So doesn’t matter.” Steve takes a small hit and passes the joint back to Eddie. 

“Oh, then who would you normally be into?” Eddie holds the joint a little bit away from his mouth while carefully inspecting Steve. 

“I don’t know, good sense of humor....”

“Check.”

“Has dreams and ambitions....”

“Check.” 

“Enjoys hanging out and doing nothing sometimes, just wants to spend time with me....” 

“Uh, hello? Check.” Eddie takes a pull off the joint and makes a motion with his free hand between the two of them. 

“Wouldn’t need me to take care of him....” 

“Like has his own place? His own job? And knows how to do his own laundry? Check, check, check.” 

“You’re ridiculous.” Steve takes the joint from Eddie’s fingers and already feels its effect.

“Keep going.” Eddie grabs another slice of pizza and keeps his eyes focused on Steve.

“Gets along with my friends....”

“I am Dustin’s other dad. Check.” 

“What?” Steve chuckles.

“No, keep going. What else?” 

Steve’s head was getting lighter, and he wasn’t sure if it was because of the weed or because the only things he could think of described Eddie now. 

Metallica’s their favorite band. Has curly brown hair. Plays the guitar. Annoys the shit out of me but in a way that makes me want to kiss them to death. Makes my heart skip a beat. 

Cares about me. 

“Makes me want to be a better man.” 

“Well, I don’t know about that one.” Eddie finally pulls his eyes away and nervously kicks his foot in the sand. 

“Check.” Steve’s voice is quiet and lost in his thoughts. Eddie looks over to Steve while a soft smile spreads across his face. “Enough about me. Your turn.” Steve shakes his thoughts back to the present and grabs another slice of pizza. 

“Me? Well, you already know it will just be about you.” 

“Shut up, be real, come on. I’ve known you for almost four years, and I don’t think I’ve known you to have dated anyone before. I’m curious. What kinda guy gets Eddie Munson going?” 

Eddie scrunches his face at the phrase but sighs and acquiesces.

“Ok, so doesn’t get offended or upset when I tease him.” Eddie pauses a moment, Steve thinks maybe he is expecting him to continue the game, but he just wants to know the truth. “Ok, um, is comfortable in their own skin, confident. Really fucking brave faces the world without hesitation. He lets me be who I am and doesn’t try and change me. Might even like me because of it.” Eddie tries to bite back a smile. “Um, loves those fucking kids so much. Has the biggest heart and cares about everyone so much it almost hurts. Probably has amazing hair, too, can’t really avoid that one.” 

“Wow, those are some really high standards. I don’t know that you’re ever gonna find that kind of guy. Especially the hair thing.” 

“Yeah, I know, that’s how high the bar is.” 

Steve laughs, grabs the joint, takes a couple more puffs, and hands it back to Eddie. Then he grips the swing’s chains and leans back, letting his head fall behind him. 

“You gonna stay the rest of the week?” Eddie asks cautiously.

“Yeah,” Steve’s answer lifts up above him. “Yeah, I am.”

“So, he didn’t have any of those traits?”

“Who? What?” Steve tries to turn his head to look at Eddie but finds it difficult in this position.

“The ex? Was he not funny and didn’t just want to hang out with you at home sometimes?”

“No, no one would ever describe James as funny, that’s for sure.” 

“James? Oh he has a name. Alright, so uncheck for mister James.” 

“And when we did see each other, it was always for something, some event, or some bullshit. I think he sat on my couch for a total of 30 minutes for the entire 7 months we were together. You woulda thought I was asking him to donate a kidney. What’s wrong with sitting on the couch and watching a movie together?” Steve huffs and swings his body back into an upright position. 

“Sounds like a double uncheck to me. Couch cuddles are the best cuddles out of all the possible cuddles.” The weed swirls between them, the boundaries, walls, and hesitations evaporating. 

“They really are, aren’t they? Man, it’s been a while. Wait, have you had a boyfriend?” 

“Me?” Eddie starts twisting in his swing. 

“Yes, you.” Steve tries to kick Eddie’s feet but misses. 

“No, I’ve never been much of a relationship guy, Harrington. No one’s ever looked at me and thought, hey, there’s a dude I want to fall in love with.” 

I have. 

“But...you’re not a...right?” 

“Fuck off. No, I’m not a virgin. Jesus Christ. Maybe no one thought they wanted to hold my hand walking down the street, but plenty of people have looked at me and thought they wanted to suck my dick.” 

“Jesus Christ.” 

“Too much for your sensitive ears, Stevie?” Eddie laughs and lifts his feet off the ground, the swing twirling back around. 

“I’ve never been good at casual stuff. I’ve tried, but I always want more.” Steve twists his lips.

“I am stoned enough to suggest we try it if you want to see. Y’know, since I’m like relationship repellent, apparently.” Eddie twists a strand of hair around his finger. 

“Thanks, man,” Steve smiles and leans his face against one of the chains. “It’s quieter out here than I thought it would be. Being an apartment complex and all.” 

“Uh, yeah. Yeah.” Eddie’s voice was low, and Steve didn’t notice the change. 

“Hey, you wanna watch a movie?” Steve whips to face Eddie, his eyes glassy and a soft smile on his lips. 

“Couch cuddles?” Eddie’s voice perks up immediately. 

“If you’re lucky.” Steve stands up and puts his hand out to Eddie. “Come on, anti-boyfriend material, let’s go couch cuddle.” 

Eddie beams up at Steve, his dimples on display. He grabs Steve’s hand and dips to grab the pizza box. Steve tugs Eddie up to his feet but doesn’t release his grip. Steve slides his hand more comfortably into Eddie’s and laces their fingers together as he pulls him back to the apartment. Eddie eagerly follows behind. 

------------------ 

“Do you have anything to watch that isn’t a freaking horror movie?” Steve flicks his fingers across the VHS collection. 

“Uh yes, 2001: A Space Odyssey isn’t horror.” Eddie plucks the tape off the stack and pushes it into Steve’s chest. 

“But, like, isn’t it really boring? I heard it was boring.”

Eddie rolls his eyes and takes the tape back from Steve’s hands.

“Sit down.” Eddie points to the futon and turns to push the tape into the VCR. “Sure, it’s not a flashy action movie with nonstop bad guy punching, but you need to broaden your horizons, Stevie.” Eddie grabs the remote from the coffee table, and presses play. He then drops the remote and turns to jog down the hallway. 

“Where are you going?” Steve raises his arms. 

“I’m coming back.” Eddie returns quickly with his comforter swishing behind him down the hallway. “Couch cuddles require blankets, right?” 

“Yeah,” Steve smiles. “Yeah, they do.” 

Eddie flops on the futon next to Steve and tosses the blanket over their laps, getting it adjusted over their feet. 

“There, better.” Eddie pulls the edge of the comforter under his chin and wiggles a little in his seat. 

“You’re too much,” Steve sighs pleasantly. “Come here.” He lifts the blanket up and his arm out, offering his side to Eddie. 

Eddie grins goofily and slides his body up against Steve’s, pressing his head against his shoulder and sliding his arm around his back. Steve pulls Eddie in closer, and they adjust their bodies to get comfortable. 

“By the way, this is a long movie.” Eddie looks up at Steve and wiggles his eyebrows.

“I got nowhere else to be.” Steve avoids making eye contact with Eddie and just smirks.

Eddie pokes Steve’s side, and Steve squeezes his arm tighter around Eddie’s shoulder.

“Squeezing is not cuddling, Steve.” Eddie pushes his side deeper into Steve’s.

Steve relaxes his arm and gives Eddie’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Better?” 

“Check.” 

They spend most of the two hours and twenty minutes focused on the movie, but they both fall asleep a little after the two-hour mark. Eddie’s slumped into Steve’s chest while Steve rested his cheek on the top of Eddie’s head. Steve groans and pulls Eddie in closer, shifting his weight and tugging Eddie down on his body. Their legs are still dangling over the cushion until Eddie adjusts and pulls his legs up, curling on Steve. 

Steve runs his hands up Eddie’s back and sighs, his right hand moving up and into Eddie’s hair. His dream flashes with dimples and curls wrapped around his fingertips. 

Around 3 am, Steve’s bladder wakes him up, and he feels dead weight resting on his chest. He groans and tries to move but can’t. His eyes try to focus in the dark, and his hands run up...Eddie. Steve’s chest tightens for a second, but then he remembers the movie, the blanket, his smile, and a smooth calmness covering him. 

“Eds, hey, Eddie?” Steve whispers, trying to gently wake the man up. 

Eddie shifts a little in Steve’s arms and groans. “What?” 

“I kinda have to pee, and I didn’t think you’d want to sleep out here all night.” 

“Oh, shit. When did we fall asleep?” Eddie pushes himself up, realizing he’s completely curled up on Steve. “Shit, sorry, man. I guess I took that cuddling to the Nth degree.” 

“It’s ok. Can you help me pull this out?” He motions to the futon.

“What? Why?” Eddie rubs his eyes.

“So I can sleep on it. It’s not the most comfortable folded up like this.”

“Come on, man, we’ve slept this whole night together. Just come to my bed.” Eddie groans, takes the corner of his comforter and pulls it behind his body as he heads down the hall. “I’m taking my pants off, though.” He calls out behind him. 

“Fine, alright, I’ll be in in a second.” Steve flicks on the bathroom light and squints at the brightness. He goes to the bathroom, brushes his teeth, pulls his shirt over his head, then unbuttons his jeans, setting them aside before emerging back into the darkness of Eddie’s apartment. “Shit.” He bumps his elbow against the doorframe. 

“You ok?” Eddie calls out. 

“Yeah, just hit my stupid elbow. Ok, I can’t see now. Need my eyes to adjust again.” 

“Just follow my voice. Come this way, there ya go, almost yeah oh uh watch out....” 

“What the hell?” Steve trips on a pair of Doc Martens in the middle of the floor. 

“Sorry, just jump, and you’ll make it.” Eddie leaned away, ensuring Steve had enough room on the mattress in case he did leap onto the bed. 

“Ok, oh shit, dude, you need to pick up all your clothes.” Steve finally makes it to the edge of the bed, and he leans over, setting his hand on the mattress, feeling for the edge of the bedding. 

“Just get in. I’m holding it up.” Eddie watches Steve look like a complete idiot but grins the whole time. 

“Ok, ok, I didn’t know, fuck.” Steve lays his body down and shifts his weight to get comfortable. Eddie leans over and covers his body back up, his arm laced over Steve’s chest. 

“Is this ok?” Eddie’s voice sounded nervous. 

“Huh? Oh, uh yeah. Just bed cuddles now. It’s fine.” Steve tries to keep his breathing calm. He can feel Eddie’s bare chest pressed against his arm. 

“Good,” Eddie snuggles into Steve closer and lets his leg hook over Steve’s shin, and Steve thinks he’s going to explode. “Y-you ok?” Eddie must’ve felt Steve tense up. 

“Yep, yeah, just great.” Steve’s eyes stay focused on the ceiling.

“I’m glad you’re here.” Eddie’s voice brushed across Steve’s neck, reverberating in his chest. 

Steve bends his left arm and covers Eddie’s hand pressed onto his chest. “Me too.” He slowly rubs his thumb back and forth across Eddie’s knuckles gently. 

“Fuck James.” Eddie sighs. 

Steve leans his head against Eddie’s and smiles. “Good night, Eddie.” 

“Good night, Steve.” 

The two stir later in the day when the sun tries to reach past the curtain loosely hanging from Eddie’s window. 

“Steve?” Eddie croaks.

“Mmm, what?” Steve keeps his eyes closed and groans.

“Your dick is pressed against my hip.” Eddie shifts his hip and presses hard against Steve.

“Shit,” Steve pulls back and rolls over onto his back. 

“It’s ok. I have morning wood too.” Eddie stretches wide over his head, his arms slipping out from under the covers. Pulling his arms back down, he rolls over onto his side, his back facing Steve, and snuggles into the bed. 

“Sorry, man.” Steve runs his hand through his hair and tries to calm back down. 

“Oh, I was not complaining, just wanted to make sure you knew. You’re more than welcome to come back over here.” Eddie scoots his body a little bit, inviting Steve near him. 

“You sure?”

“Yes, it’s fine. I’m not getting out of this damn bed yet. Get over here.” 

Steve swallows hard and then rolls over, sliding his body against Eddie’s back. He keeps his hips awkwardly pulled away, but Eddie reaches back, placing his hand on Steve’s hip pulling him closer. 

Steve sighs as he presses against Eddie. He takes a few slow breaths to prevent his hips from grinding from instinct and enjoys the closeness. 

“You feel good,” Eddie’s voice is low and husky. “Oh, felt that.” 

“Shhh, go back to sleep.” 

“Are you telling me my voice is doing that?” Eddie pushes back a little, testing Steve’s limit. 

“No, it’s not, just shhh, too early.” 

“Ok, ok,” Eddie reaches back and searches for Steve’s arm, grabbing it and pulling it over his chest. “That’s better.” 

Steve moves in closer and presses his cheek against Eddie’s bare back. He knows all he has to do is turn his face, and he can press his lips against his skin. He inhales slowly and leans his forehead against Eddie’s back, his nose against him. His tongue flicks across his lips, and he lifts his chin slightly. The soft skin of his lips brushes against Eddie’s back, and suddenly a groan ripples through Eddie and up into Steve’s mouth. 

“You know I could turn over if you wanted to kiss me?”

Steve pulls back a little, “No, I was just, sorry.” 

The two fall back asleep shortly after that and tangle their bodies together. Eddie fills Steve’s dreams, and his body is relieved to feel what he’s imagining. 

------------------ 

“I gotta meet up with the band later. You wanna come with?” Eddie asks while spooning his cereal into his mouth. 

“Sure, they won’t mind?” Steve leans his hand against the wall across from Eddie. He tossed a shirt over his chest but was still in his boxers. 

“Fuck them if they do. You’re coming with.”

“What time?” 

“At two,” Eddie’s eyes flick over to the clock on the VCR to check the time. “Shit, in an hour. Fuck how long did we sleep? I haven’t slept that many hours since....” Eddie’s eyebrows relax as something hits him. “Since Chrissy.” 

Steve gulps and realizes it’s been longer for him. He used to try and convince himself that maybe James helped him sleep more, that having that warm body next to him would keep the nightmares at bay, but they didn’t. James would groan when Steve jolted awake and complained about waking him up. He always had early meetings or appointments, and Steve was disrupting him. Each day Steve gets further away from that relationship, the more he realizes how terrible it was. 

“Yeah, it’s been a while for me too.” Eddie looks up at Steve and studies him. 

“I guess you’re my good luck charm. Then that settles it, you’re sleeping in my bed the rest of the week, and I may kidnap you and keep you here.” Eddie clicks his tongue and goes back to eating his cereal. 

“Ok, man.” 

“You think I’m kidding.” 

“I’m gonna go shower.” Steve rolls his eyes and heads down the hallway. 

“You need any clothes?” 

“No, this is my last outfit, though.” Steve pops his head out into the living room. “Oh, uh, and I guess clean boxers. Will probably need to go to the store at some point today.” 

“You could go commando. Live a little.”

“In your pants? No thanks.”

Eddie grins wickedly and nods. “Whatever you want, Harrington.” 

Steve sighs and heads into the bathroom. He lets the water run until it is hot and peels his clothes off, groaning as he steps under the hot water. He hoped the shower would help clear his mind and remove the growing anxiety in his chest. 

Eddie’s being, well, Eddie, and Steve is tumbling pleasantly into the rapport, but it’s screwing with his head. He’s second-guessing comments and convincing himself that Eddie is just joking and giving Steve a hard time since he knows he’s bi now and it’s all just a game, but then he holds his hand while they’re laying in bed pressed against each other and it causes a blur of emotions. Steve knows it could never work between them. Eddie’s admitted he’s never been in a relationship and wouldn’t even know what to do, and Steve is only a relationship man. He’s tried, really tried to do casual, and it always backfires, and Steve gets hurt. He’s trying so hard to keep those perfectly lined up boxes in his mind closed, but Eddie keeps knocking into them, jiggling them. 

Steve leans forward and presses his palm to the tiled wall as he remembers being pressed firmly against Eddie’s back, remembers the push of his hips, the grind of his body, and he can’t help himself. The water runs smoothly down his back while he takes himself firmly in his hand. He closes his eyes and sees flashes of brown eyes, licked rosy lips, and perfect dimples. His ears fill with deep groans, pleasant laughter, and dreamy nicknames. It’s Eddie, and it always was. 

It doesn’t take long when Steve holds back a moan and gasps quietly as he hits the edge of his orgasm and tumbles over. 

He finishes his shower much more relaxed and emerges from the bathroom with an unknowing smile. He has his towel wrapped around his hips, his hair dripping lightly down his shoulders. 

“Shit,” Eddie bumps into him in his bedroom doorway. His eyes widen, and Steve thinks he sees pink sprinkle across his cheeks.

“Sorry.” 

Steve steps out of the way and thinks that it’s weird Eddie didn’t make a comment or a joke or anything. He looks behind him and sees Eddie running his hand over his face and muttering quietly to himself as he enters the bathroom after Steve. 

Steve gets dressed and is perfecting his hair in the dresser mirror when Eddie steps in wearing the same thing Steve had out of the shower. He’s holding his towel above his hips, and his hair hangs over his shoulders, dripping water over his chest. He avoids looking at Steve, but Steve can’t help but appreciate the view. 

Slow rolls of dripping water catch Steve’s eye as they glide over a couple of Eddie’s tattoos. Steve wants to catch one with his tongue. 

Shit 

Steve pulls his gaze away quickly and turns back to the mirror, trying to calm his breathing. Eddie either doesn’t notice or doesn’t say anything. Steve’s heart stutters when he feels Eddie move next to him. 

“I gotta get in this drawer.”

“Oh, yeah, sorry.” Steve moves over and watches Eddie reach for a fresh pair of boxers. “Um, I’ll be in the living room when you’re ready.” He sputters out and quickly leaves the bedroom. 

Fucking hell, keep it together. 

Steve sits on the futon and stares at the oblong-shaped stain on the carpet from the spilled Jager the other night. Eddie emerges a few minutes later, his hair pulled back into a messy, wet bun. 

“Ready to have your world rocked?” Eddie’s demeanor seems to be back to normal, and Steve feels he can refill his lungs full of air. 

“Let’s do it, man.” 

Eddie drives them through town to an area Steve recognizes but was never around that often. It was a business park, with all kinds of companies renting out spaces, a dentist’s office in the corner, and maybe an insurance agent. He can’t read the sign. Eddie pulls in front of a nondescript door and jumps out of the van. 

“Come on.” 

“Where are we?” Steve looks around, trying to find any sign of acknowledgment. 

“Studio.” Eddie nods to the door and pulls it open, inviting Steve to enter. 

Steve walks in and sees the door has put them into a hallway, not an entrance or foyer but a hallway with other doors. This must’ve been a back door entrance. 

“Uh?” Steve stands there, unsure where to go. 

“This way.” Eddie puts his hand on Steve’s lower back and pushes past him, directing him to follow. 

Steve follows and tries to look inside the rooms. Most were just doors with no windows, so nothing observable, but then they’d pass a door with a giant window next to it, and he’d look in, seeing all 

kinds of electrical equipment, maybe sound equipment. After a couple turns, Eddie pulls open a door with a sign that reads “Reserved” and guides Steve inside. 

Steve’s eyes take in the room. It’s smaller than he expected but filled with instruments. Others are milling around. Steve assumes the other band members. The walls are covered with padding, and a couple folding chairs are shoved in a corner. 

“Hey, man!” One of the guys in the room waves over to Eddie. 

“Sup, hey, this is my friend Steve. He’s in town for the Hawkins graduation, and I thought he could hang out today.” 

The guy puts his hand out, offering it to Steve. 

“Hey, nice to meet you, Steve. I’m Frank.” Steve grabs his hand and gives it a firm shake. 

“Frank’s our new bass player,” Eddie says. 

“Very cool, man. Can’t wait to hear you all play.” 

“Have you never been to a Corroded show?” Frank questions with a furrowed brow. 

“Oh no, Stevie boy moved to Chicago three years ago. He’s been missing out.” Eddie bumps his shoulder into Steve’s arm. 

“Oh, cool. Glad you could come today, then. Are you in town all week? We have a show on Saturday.” 

“Uh, yeah, I am.” Steve feels Eddie’s hand press firmly against his back, giving a slight swirl. 

“Gonna blow him...away.” Eddie winks at Steve, and Steve pretends to ignore the purposeful pause. 

“Fantastic, it’ll be a great time. Our shows are epic.” 

“I can’t wait.” Steve shoves his hands in his jeans pockets and moves a little on his feet. 

“Alright, let’s get fucking started,” Eddie says a little louder to get everyone else’s attention. “This is Steve, Steve this is everyone, everyone this is Steve. He’s gonna hang with us this afternoon. Oh shit, I left my guitar in the van. Everyone warm up. I’ll be right back.” Eddie jogs out of the room, leaving Steve behind. 

“Steve Harrington, right?” 

“Uh, yeah.” 

“Gareth, we uh went to school together.” Gareth reaches his hand out to Steve. 

“Oh yeah, right. Hey man.” Steve takes Gareth’s hand, searches through his brain for any semblance of recognition, and comes up blank. 

“We weren’t in the same grade or had any classes together, so I’m sure you don’t remember me, but yeah. I graduated two years ago.” 

“Oh, ok, yeah. So have you been playing in the band this whole time?” 

“Pretty much. Eddie had someone else playing drums at first when he was in middle school. I was only in the sixth grade when he started, but he and my brother were friends, so when he needed a new drummer, I jumped at it. I was in marching band, so easy choice.” 

“Very cool. That’s awesome you guys have been kinda touring around and stuff.” 

“Yeah, I mean, it’s all Eddie. He works so hard to get us booked and heard. We wouldn’t be where we are without him. Honestly, we probably wouldn’t even be playing anymore. He just really pushes us.” 

“Oh wow, so you don’t have someone that does that for you all? He does everything?” Steve thinks about how much time that must take. 

“Yeah, he’s basically manager, booking agent, lead singer, lead guitarist, scheduler. He keeps it all together. I don’t know when he finds time, really. He never takes any time off from the shop, so he’s always busy. I don’t remember when he had a vacation or anything.” 

“But, he has a couple days off this week, right?” 

“What? Naw told me last week that he was going to be really busy. That’s why he had us move rehearsal to today. Something about some classic cars coming through at the shop.” 

Steve’s stomach drops as Eddie returns to the room, holding his guitar case. 

“Alright, assholes, let’s do this.” 

Steve watched the couple of hours of band practice in a daze. He kept his eyes on Eddie the entire time. He was sitting in the opposite corner, so Eddie would’ve needed to turn to notice Steve. His brain was too occupied to register any of the music other than it being loud. Steve tried to focus on Eddie’s voice. He couldn’t hear it really well because that mic was pumping through to headsets the band was wearing, so the music covered most of him. 

Steve couldn’t stop thinking about what Gareth had said. Because Eddie had told Steve he had Monday and Tuesday off too, so he’d agreed to stay the first time. He wouldn’t have stayed if Eddie had told him he had to work because he wouldn’t have wanted him to move his life around. With that realization, though, Steve remembers he’d done the same thing. They both lied, they just wanted a little more time and they would deal with the consequences. 

Steve runs his hand through his hair and stands up. Eddie must sense the movement and turns. Steve just raises his hand and motions to the door. He needs to get some air. 

Steve pushes the exit door open and inhales deeply, letting his lungs fill with fresh oxygen. He steps away a little bit and leans his back against the cement wall. He startles when he hears the door open next to him. 

“Hey,” Eddie says softly. 

“Hey.” Steve meets his tone. 

“You ok?” Eddie joins him, leaning against the wall. 

“Oh yeah, just needed some fresh air.” Steve tries to smile and sound casual. 

“Oh yeah, it gets hot in there after a while.” 

“Hey, um, I just want to make sure you’re still good with hanging out tomorrow and Tuesday, right? I can keep myself busy if you have to go to work or something.” 

“What? Naw it’s fine. I’m all yours.” 

“It’s just Gareth mentioned something about, I don’t know, some classic cars or something that would be there. If you needed to be there, you could.” 

“Uh...no, I mean yeah, there is but no....” Eddie’s flustered and can’t find his thoughts.

“Eddie...?” Steve turns his head to look at Eddie’s profile. 

“Ok, fuck...yeah, so,” Eddie sighs and continues. “I didn’t have tomorrow and Tuesday off, but it’s not a big deal. I’ve already got it covered. I’m serious. It’s not a big deal.” 

“I wouldn’t have stayed if you needed to work. I could’ve gone home this morning.”

“I know.” Eddie crosses his arms and avoids looking at Steve.

“I can still go. Honestly, it’s not too late. I’ll just get home when it’s dark.” 

Eddie’s head snaps to Steve. “No, no, I don’t want you to go.”

“But, Eds, I don’t want to be an inconvenience.”

Eddie’s mouth twists as he comes up with a reply. 

“You’re never an inconvenience. You could never be an inconvenience. I want you to stay.” Steve notices Eddie’s eyes glinting and thinks tears might be forming. “I haven’t seen you...for three years.” He huffs and lowers his head. “Just please, stay.” 

Steve’s stomach twists in a million knots that he’s sure will never come undone. 

“Ok,” he replies just above a whisper. 

“Thank you.” 

The two stand silently, letting everything unsaid swirl around them. Eddie moves first, pushes himself off the wall, and heads back inside, not speaking to Steve. 

Steve waits a few more minutes before he heads inside. When he pulls the rehearsal room door open, he notices everyone is packing up. 

“Oh, are you done?”

“Yeah, cutting it early.” Eddie doesn’t lift his eyes. 

“Thanks for coming by, man. Was it cool to finally hear us play?” Frank asks with a smile on his face. 

“Yeah, yeah, just makes me more excited for Saturday,” Steve says, and genuinely means it. 

“Can’t wait to see you there.”

Steve presses his lips together in a friendly smile and nods to him.

“Um, I’ll meet you by the van, ok?” He says to Eddie.

Eddie only nods. 

Steve leans against the side of the van for a few minutes before the band members begin piling out of the building. They’re all patting each other on the back and saying their goodbyes. Eddie’s the last one to emerge and gives everyone curt responses. He first unlocks the van’s back door and tosses his guitar case inside. Then he comes to the passenger side and unlocks Steve’s door, not making eye contact. By the time he gets to the driver’s side, Steve’s already seated and buckling up. 

Eddie silently slides in and starts the van up. The roar of the engine cuts through the awkwardness. Steve wants to reach over and take Eddie’s hand. He wants to tell him it’s ok. He wants to reassure him, but he doesn’t want to shatter anything built between them. Eddie hasn’t moved the van into gear yet. He just stares at the steering wheel. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” He finally speaks. 

“It’s ok, um, I have something to tell you too. I...was also supposed to work tomorrow.” 

Eddie finally looks over at Steve, relief washing over his face. “Really?” 

“Yeah,” Steve replies shyly. “You know that phone call I made earlier? Begging my coworker to take my shifts...I owe her lunch for a month.” 

Eddie covers his mouth, stifling back a laugh. “I have to buy them this week’s six-packs.” Steve laughs a little and bites through his smile. “Totally worth it, by the way.” 

“Check.” Steve keeps his eyes averted but feels Eddie get comfortable in his seat next to him.

“Yep, big ‘ol check .” Eddie pauses a moment before speaking again. “You wanna grab food?”

“Sounds good to me.” 

Chapter 2

#check ✔️ #my fav fic #steddie #steddie fanfic #steve harrington #eddie munson #steve x eddie #steddiecameraroll posts #my writing

[shallyne]

Feysand Week Day Four

Feyre couldn't remember when she last felt so much happiness about feeling the sun on her face. It was Feyre, Nyx, and Rhys's first walk together as a family after Nyx's birth. They made small rounds through the garden for Feyre's sake because she couldn't sit still but this was their first real walk. Rhys pushed Nyx's stroller, Feyre walking, more like limping at this part of recovery, beside him and had one hand on the handle of the stroller. Nyx was sound asleep and tugged in. Even though Feyre had insisted she was ready for a walk, she got nervous when it was finally time. She fussed, made checklists to make sure Nyx had everything he needed and checked it three times while explaining to Rhys what was important and why it was important. He knew, of course he did after reading endless books throughout her pregnancy and asking the doctors a million question, but he still listened intently and nodded. He knew it would calm bet down and if he caught her at the wrong moment, she would bite his head off. Feyre had apologized countless of times after she snapped at him for changing his diaper wrong. It wasn't wrong but Feyre had to suffer from mood swings these days even more than during her pregnancy and her husband was so understanding. Sometimes she just wanted to kiss him breathless for it and sometimes she wished he would snap back when she was being especially moody but he wouldn't. He was with her through it all, drying her tears, giving her room when she was in a bad mood, laughing with her and standing at Nyx's crib for hours in the middle of the night, watching as their son slept. Feyre always watched him in wonder, barely believing that she had a son. That they had a son. They were parents. The second night after Nyx was born, Feyre cried silent tears as she caressed her son's chubby cheeks, promising him that she would never be like her mother. Nyx would always be loved, Nyx would always have a shoulder to cry on and a listening ear for his dreams and his fears. He would never be alone, Feyre promised.

She sighed, walking down the cobblestone streets with Rhys and then turning into a little street surrounded by trees. Her legs became tired already and she was still hurting. "Can we stop for a minute?" she asked, pointing to the wooden bench on the walkway.

"Of course," Rhys said softly, swiping with his sleeve over the bench before Feyre sat down, groaning. From there they could look at the Sidra, shimmering like a sapphire in the early spring sun. "Are you cold?" Rhys asked her.

Feyre shook her head, scooting a little forward to find a comfortable position. "This is nice," she said, turning her face towards the sun again.

Rhys agreed, checking if Nyx was alright in the stroller. He was still asleep. "Are you in pain?" he asked her, nodding to the hand Feyre rested on her stomach.

"No," she sighed. She did it subconsciously, resting her hand right above the scar on her stomach. It sometimes hurt but most of the time it was only an uncomfortable tug, an echo of the previous pain. She was on strict bedrest for the first few days after the birth, to heal. This was the reason she needed to go out today, she went mad inside the house for too long. Just a little walk with her family.

She extended her hand for Rhys to take it. He did, planting a kiss on all her fingers and the back of her hand. She wanted to rest her head on his shoulder but the strain of that movement would hurt so she kept back, watching their surroundings. Snow had already melted and the world seemed to come back to life after winter, just in time to greet her son into the world.

Yes, Feyre felt like a mess but she would do it all again to hold Nyx into her arms.

Feysand Taglist:

@captain-of-the-gwynriel-ship @edgyellie @starfall-spirit @rhysiedarling @corcracrow @sydney-fae25 @tothestarsandwhateverend @aayo-whatt @dreamlandreader @officialfeysandweek2023

#Okay so I always wanted to write Feyre post-partum to show you don't bounce back immediately and that it's okay #I didn't because it's intimidating and I never went through it myself #I didn't write a big thing but it's a glimpse #acotar #a court of thorns and roses #feysandweek2023 #feyre archeron #feyre #feyre cursebreaker #high lady of the night court #high lady feyre #feyre darling #rhysand #rhys #high lord rhysand #rhysand archeron #high lord of the night court #rhys acotar #feysand #feysand fanfiction #feysand fan fiction #Feysand fanfic #feysand fic #acotar fanfiction #acotar fan fiction #Acotar fanfic #acotar fic #post partum #After birth #Post partum feyre

[cordeliahrose]

Spring Equinox

The spring equinox takes place between March 19 and March 22. That may be the official date, but when does spring really start? When do you begin to notice that it's spring?

As we come into spring we start to notice things. Leaves growing back on the trees, birds coming back again, bugs starting to come out, maybe even flowers sprouting. But the weather is still quite cold, and we may think, Is it spring already?

I began to notice the incoming spring at the beginning of March. Birds were out rustling in the trees, butterflies, wasps, and bees came out, and my young blackberry bush began to sprout leaves. The weather also got about 10 degrees warmer. For me, this was the start of spring. But I still choose the celebrate the equinox on the official date. Why? Because I always have, and because it gives me to prepare.

And that's what the spring equinox is all about. Preparing to take action towards the goals you set during the winter. It's a time of sowing seeds, literally and metaphorically.

How Can You Celebrate The Spring Equinox?

Sow your seeds

Literally: plant the fruits, veggies, herbs, flowers, or whatever else it is you plan to grow this season. Get your hands in the dirt and connect with the earth and the new spring time.

Metaphorically: Set the intentions you have for this coming season. Quarterly goals are great for all areas of life. What goals do you want to accomplish in the next 3 months? Make a plan for what you're going to do to accomplish them. You might chose to keep your goals aligned with the spring season. In this case, here are some ideas:

~ New ideas and projects. That new art project you see in your mind, or that new business idea you've been dreaming up. Maybe someone asked you to collaborate on an idea, now is a time to say yes.

~ Growth. Personal, business, family, any goal you have that involves something growing and/or improving.

~ Gardening. Maybe you want to start a small garden, or add a new plant to an existing one.

~ Community. Litter clean up projects, community gardening projects, fundraisers for causes around your area. Spring is a good time to bring the community together.

Have a picnic or cookout with family and/or friends

Celebrate the spring time with your family and/or friends. Cook or bake some foods that are in season at this time and enjoy the weather together. You can find tons of lists with a quick search about what foods are in season. You can also visit a local farmers market if possible!

Spring cleaning

This is definitely one you hear all the time, but it's a good one! What better way to bring in the new season than getting rid of the dust and clutter from the previous? Here are some ideas:

~Physically clean your area. Your house, your yard, or even just your bedroom. Make a project of it if you'd rather. Pick a different area to clean each day, or whatever time block works best for you. Write them down on a checklist with the day you plan them, and check them off when you've done them. This will actually help you stay motivated for it too, every time you check one off the list.

~ Cleanse your area. Whether it be with smoke, sound, crystals, words, or whatever other method you choose to use.

~ Switch up or tidy up your altar if you have one.

~ Clean out your inbox. Emails, text messages, social media notifications, clean out everything you don't need. Unfollow those people who mess up your feed, block those negative messages, unsubscribe from unwanted emails.

Spend some time outside. Go on a hike, watch the sunrise or sunset, visit a local park. Stargaze after dark, look for constellations and planets. There's a couple of good apps that help with this, Skyview and Stellarium. I personally use Stellarium.

Do some magic. Spring is a great time to do manifestation, workings around friendship, love, and community, workings to bring in abundance and wealth, workings for health, and workings to aid in personal growth. I'll be posting one of my favorite spring time workings soon!

Give spring time offerings to the deities and spirits you work with. Flowers, leaves, acorns, honey, fresh fruits, baked goods, milk, spring inspired art.

These are just a few ideas that come from my view of spring. I encourage everyone to look at how they view the spring time and figure out what works for them!

#springtime #spring equinox #wheel of the year #witchblr #paganblr #witch tips #witches of tumblr #witchcraft #paganism #pagans of tumblr

[dearlyanqels]

The Boyfriend Series — Red Velvet

nearly four years, that's how long you two have been dating. he was the one to ask for the moment of a lifetime.

Seokjin

Dinner, Check.

Favorite Show, Check.

Favorite Snacks, Check.

Matching PJs, in the dryer but check.

he look please with the little mess of the living room you two created before his mental checklist happen. tonight was the night, the night that was going to past down to your grandkids, he was for sure topping this one on the cake of magical nights for sure. "my love, where have you--" he walk into the shared room and saw you on the phone screaming at someone on the other line.

your mother, whom hated seokjin, not because she hated men, it was because he 'dragged' you up to Seoul. "look I told you many times, this is our life." you said, he could partially feel the heat coming from your shoulders.

to be really honest, it was not his fault. you were twenty five at the time, and your mother loved to baby you so he can see where she is coming from; however you did this action on your own. two years later, she still got very angry at him, he hated your mother. "mom, seokjin is in-- obviously we live togther, no goodbye" you threw your phone and laid flat on the shared bed. he slowly got on top of you and kiss your nose. "honeybee, why get stress over her? this is our night, here get dress, movie is about to come on, and the food delivery is here. I'll get your pajamas" he kiss your nose once again before lifting off.

"when did you get so romantic, you use to hate these types of things" you said finally getting into the warm, and comfortable attire. "since we started to date, living room now" he demanded, you smiled and walk away. when you were out of his sight, he grab the small red box, the beautiful size, purple (ish) diamond was sat in it.

he huffed and was ready to do this.

about an hour into the show, the food was chowed down, the snacks were half gone, and the drinks were on the second round. he pause the show and grab your face. "babe, we been togther for nearly four-- going on five and I think this is amazing time" you sat up straight and look him dead in the eye.

every emotion ever set with you, you even let the overthinking get to you. "I know this is not how you imagine our night to be, but I hope it will be the night you'll always remember" he said, your heart was racing faster than your thoughts. "I know you you been planning our lives since we got to get and it's time to set that into motion, fuck why am I more nervous" you saw his shaking fingers land over his pajama pocket.

the small box made everything stop, your mouth was dry, your anxiety was at its peak at this point. ever since you were a child you've always dreamt of this moment, the one knee, the box, the question. "---- will please let me have the honor to marry you?" you felt your tears rush, but you couldn't move or even talk.

a minute passed, and seokjin begin to worry. "honey? a-are you going to say something?" you blink a few times to get brought back into reality. "I'm not dreaming?" you ask him. once you saw that beautiful, radiant smile on his face you knew this was not a dream. "holy shit" you said huffing out "oh my, yes seokjin I will marry you" you jump into his arms, causing a collision onto the floor.

he kiss your lips and then repeatedly kiss your face with the most joy and happiness feeling ever. "wait-- let me slip the ring on" he said, you felt the ring go perfectly on your left finger. "how-" before you could ask seokjin started to talk "remember when jimin and you took a little time, I ask him to make sure I knew your ring size" he smirk and check your smile.

"you sly son of a bitch" you said kissing him once more until your phone went off.

#bts x reader #bts fluff #bts fanfction #seokjin x reader #seokjin x yn #seokjin fanfiction #fanfic #bts seokjin x reader #seokjin drabble #jimin x reader #jungkook x reader #namjoon x reader #yoongi x reader #hoseok x yn #seokjin fluff

[blametheeditor]

Incident 8000-1

Content Warnings: Cursing. Mentions of death and murder. Mentions of weapons. Mentions of violence. Darker themes and tone.

SCP-8000's File

What can Cadence say? He's an enabler.

___________________________________

“Is today the day it does literally anything?” 

The sound of something falling into a chair along with papers flung carelessly onto the counter is heard through the intercom closely after a door slamming shut. 

Silence. 

“Nope,” Cadence murmurs as he sits back, kicking his feet up because there’s no reason to be ‘professional’ while watching the most boring SCP possible. 

Despite the act of uninterest, he still goes through the checklist he’s filled the same answers to since day one of being assigned SCP-8000. Or better known by everyone on staff, a jar of what most likely used to be an anomaly but the true one escaped months ago by replacing itself with ink. 

Did it visibly change while being unobserved? 

No. 

2. Did it react to a voice over the intercom? 

Another big n-o. 

Cadence glances at the motionless jar of black liquid sitting on a table in the small cell strictly for observation before lazily pulling the microphone toward him, knowing this is all a waste of time. But if he doesn’t do it, someone’s writing him up for not following protocol. 

“Please shake the jar if you want anything.” 

Just as he suspected, not a single ripple. 

“Please turn into a floating black void if you are going to do anything but stay inside the jar and be the most boring SCP imaginable.” 

Nothing. 

And who could have possibly guessed! But now that he got that over with, the white haired young man can take a nap for the six hours he’s scheduled to ‘observe’. Time in which not a single other person will come in to check and see what he’s doing because there’s no point. And after his shift is over no one else will come in to observe the anomaly, because for the same reason as before, there’s no point. 

On one hand, Cadence is certainly grateful to be assigned to a safe SCP. He’s seen how even euclids are dealt with, and that kind of stress is not what he wants nor needs. Not to mention that despite the fact that kind of class tends to mean ‘dangerous’, it’s idiots who are put in charge of research with even more idiots surrounding them. Because if he was being honest, he’s more scared of the team assigned to the SCP than he is the actual anomaly. 

On the other hand, at this point he’s fairly certain this one is meant to have people slowly wither away and die out of boredom. 

A single red eye slowly opens to spot the jar that still has not moved so much as an inch. 

What a life it is to be stuck in a jar 24/7. Apparently it’s fantastic considering the SCP has done nothing but sit there. Despite the fact this form is not its ‘true’ form. Despite the fact it can and had previously transformed into multiple different items. 

Despite the fact there is no lid to force it to stay that way. 

At this point, the dedicated display of a ten out of 10 rating that a Mason jar is the place to spend every second in almost makes him want to have a jar of his own. There has to be an anomaly that could make his dreams come true. Might as well considering Cadence is also just wasting away. There’s no telling when the higher ups will proclaim this SCP as a dud and either make the executive decision to neutralize it, or stick it in a closet before tossing its observer to the nearest anomaly that guarantees death. 

No, he’s not exaggerating. Going off of the notes, it consistently chose the jar out of every offered container. 

Cadence pauses as he glances over a section stating just how...passive SCP-8000 is. Because if he was it, anyone coming in and dumping him onto the table to see if he stays a liquid deserves getting tased. 

Although, that is assuming it can ‘utilize’ itself without someone’s assistance. He doesn’t know how far the qualities of its main form extend when it transforms. It might be impossible to hover while it’s a taser. And who’s to say it can’t flip a switch and therefore could possibly hover, but then there’s no electricity and making it more of an ordeal than desired. 

Don’t worry, he’s always thinking about violence. Be happy he’s imagining a taser for hypothetical retaliation. 

He glances over the notes one last time. Looks up at the motionless SCP. 

...he’s a complete idiot for actually contemplating going into the room with the sole purpose to try and annoy it. He’s worked at this site long enough to know that not everything is what it seems, and while this anomaly seems to be one neutral to humans, who’s to say it has an unknown trigger they just haven’t found yet. 

He should just stay in his chair. Take a nice nap before reporting the same thing as he had yesterday. And the day before. Which will be the same thing tomorrow. And the day after. 

Cadence stands up before meaning on his . Glances between the door into the room containing SCP-8000, and the anomaly itself. 

Opens it with a dramatic flourish, muscles tense in preparation for...something. Anything. 

He’s only stared at mockingly for being afraid of an anomaly that only rippled due to the disturbance caused by the man himself. 

That was certainly anti-climatic. 

Cadence takes the opportunity to leave the room without anything happening and promptly throws it out the window as he strides over to the table. He only remembers he left the door wide open for the SCP to possibly escape through once he’s within grabbing distance of the jar. But with there still being no reaction, he wishes he placed a bet on the side it had escaped and left normal ink behind. 

“Why don’t we just move you over here...” 

Nothing happens as he carefully drags the jar from the center of the table over toward the corner. All for the hope such an action will annoy it enough to do something. Because apparently someone walking into the room for the first time in over a month still doesn’t constitute something more than pretending to be liquid. 

But, the idiot known as Cadence not being careful despite interacting with an SCP they know essentially nothing about, him placing it too close to the edge and allowing it to fall and shatter upon impact? That earned a reaction. 

He barely had any time to process what happened. He could only appreciate the fact closed-toed shoes and pants are required to be worn under the lab coat and therefore didn’t earn any glass shards shredding his feet or ankles. Blink at the sight of the anomaly looking like any normal liquid spilt on the floor other than seemingly more held together. 

And then the puddle known as SCP-8000 lunges at him. 

Cadence feels what shouldn’t be a solid form latch onto his leg. His first instinct is to run. His second is to realize just how stupid an idea that is and instead takes off his coat in the hopes he can use it to dislodge the anomaly. 

It actually works. He manages to wrap the piece of cloth around the solid liquid, at least managing to trap it. Of course, that means trapping it on his leg, but at least there’s no possible way for it to make contact with his skin. At the very least he’s only been minimally exposed. Not- 

Who’s the disembodied voice now, bitch!

Cadence screams as he attempts to scramble away from the anomaly. Throws the lab coat as far away from him as possible. Freezes when he realizes it was no longer on his leg. 

Where- where did it go. 

Right here!

The young man feels a mental push to look to his right. To stare at the living liquid currently creating a black band around his arm. 

Cadence, is it? Your name’s as cute as you look.

“You’re certainly a flirt,” he barely manages to say. But the longer he stares at the SCP, the more it becomes clear it has no intention of doing anything more than talking to him. “And what’s your name, darling?” 

Anything you’d like to call me, baby.

It’s actually flirting with him. “Does this mean you won’t kill me?” 

As much as it seems you want to be killed, that’s not really my style.

“Ah.” Cadence pokes at the band. Stares as it flows across his fingers like water uncontrolled by gravity. “And here I thought you would want to take revenge over breaking your favorite jar.” 

I really did like it. But who needs it when I can make one of my own!

Just like that, SCP-8000 seems to disappear from his hands, and in its place sits a Mason jar just like the shattered one only a few feet away. 

Cadence lifts it up. Flicks the glass to test it’s an exact replica. Just like the reports state and yet he never saw the entire time he was assigned to watch the SCP. Up until now, hearing an excitable voice that had never been mentioned as well. 

Oh, and I can become this, too! 

Red eyes blink. Stare at the taser sitting in his hand. One he essentially had to catch considering the jar he previously held had been a much larger object. And before he can say anything, it bursts to life as the sound of buzzing fills the air. 

Cadence waits for the demonstration to end before flicking the switch himself to turn it on and off. “Well aren’t you full of surprises.” 

And I've got so much more up my sleeve.

“Says the anomaly who doesn’t wear clothing,” he mutters, tossing the taser before catching it once again. He doesn’t get a single comment on the action. If anything, the SCP seems happy to just be interacted with. Even if that is being treated like an inanimate object. 

Right. He’s currently holding an anomaly. 

“You wouldn’t tell on me to my superiors I completely neglected protocol, would you?” 

Of course not, my evening star.

“And for being such a darling, maybe I can take you out of this room for a couple hours a day.” 

The taser turns into water falling through his fingers as the SCP radiates smugness. 

You read my mind!

“More like you read mine,” Cadence huffs. He looks back at the jar that managed to be the key to what seems like an interesting partnership. Realizes he has no where to put the liquid void enjoying itself creating another puddle impossible to store with no other container in sight. “You wouldn’t be a good anomaly and turn into a jar to wait patiently hear, would you?” 

Nope!

It sounds so smug knowing he’s backed into a corner. 

“Anyway you can disguise yourself as I inform the containment specialist for this sector?” 

There’s no response other than SCP-8000 racing up his arms as it seems to think. He takes the opportunity to put his coat back on, needing to make it seem as if he only reacted to a situation and hadn’t caused it. 

He hesitates when there’s movement close to his collar, glancing down to spot his name staring back at him on a standard name-tag each scientist wears on site. Except he tends to leave his inside his office. 

How does this work?

Honestly, it’s a bit genius. 

Cadence quickly walks out of the room, closing the door behind him. He straightens his coat before grabbing the paperwork that will need to be updated. With that he walks out of the observation room, purposeful steps making him look hurried but not panicked as he makes his way to the office of his supervisor. 

“You okay, John?” 

He nearly brushes right past the concerned woman, mentally sputtering when it becomes clear she was calling him 'John'. Despite never having introduced himself to anyone on site as such, and she’s an unfamiliar stranger to him. 

Damn, I should’ve gone with Wallace. John seems to be a bit overused.

How Cadence forgot his name-tag was an anomaly that can change its shape into anything on its own whim, he will never know. 

And why the thought of it changing his name just because it can also never crossed his mind will be a mystery never to be solved. 

Yet he doesn’t force the SCP to pick something else to shift into after assuring her that he’s okay, simply in a hurry. Not even when someone else calls him ‘Wallace’. And his supervisor looks at him in confusion knowing his name isn’t ‘SCP-8000’. 

#Eggs is now officially done! #I really like Vincent as well as the plan for his and Scott's interactions #but Eggs will just be pure fun #so I'm excited! #FNAF bois #SCP AU #BTE writing #cw #content warning

[serendipitouswasteland]

Sweater Weather

ship: buddie pov: third person written: April 10 - 12, 2023 first published: April 12, 2023 word count: 2,569 - summary: Buck wears a sweater almost too often. Eddie notices. - A/N: Pretty much, I have become obsessed with the sweater Buck is wearing at the end of 6x13 and have decided that it's his favorite sweater and he washes it as often as he can so he can wear it as often as he can because it's a comfort for him, because I have a sweater that I do that with so therefore...you get it. Enjoy. <3

Buck has a list. A checklist. After getting struck by lightning– after his coma dream– he felt like he needed to make sure he was still there– still alive. So, every morning when he wakes up the first thing he does is grab his phone and text Bobby. He doesn’t leave his messages until he receives a response. Then, if he has work, he waits until he gets there to ask Eddie and Chim about Christopher, Maddie, and Jee-Yun, respectively. On his off days, however, Buck’s mind scrambles for a bit. Texting Bobby every morning is fine. He texts him all the time anyways just to update him on his life, so him now asking for Bobby to do the same wasn’t too much different. Calling Maddie and Chimney and Eddie, though, is hard to do without someone becoming suspicious. This morning, Buck is lucky.

As Buck blinks open his eyes and stretches in his bed, a small smile appears on his face knowing that some of his checklist he doesn’t have to do. He crawls out of bed, sliding his feet into a pair of slippers as he yawns and stretches some more. He gets up from his bed, grabbing his phone and sending a text to Bobby as he trudges down the stairs. Buck puts his phone into the pocker of his sweats once he reaches the bottom step, looking over to his kitchen where Christopher is sitting at the table with a bowl of cereal already half eaten. Buck smiles, taking a seat next to him and making his own bowl.

“Goodmorning,” Buck says, his voice filled with slip.

“Goodmorning,” Chris says back, taking a bite of his food.

“How long have you been up?”

“Not very long.”

“That’s good,” Buck hums, nodding as he takes his first bite of his own cereal.

“Buck,” Christopher prods, and Buck hums while turning to face him, “isn’t that the same sweater you wore yesterday?”

“Uh…” Buck looks down at his chest, and, yes, it is the same sweater, but—

“How come you didn’t have to change but I did?” Chris asks, and Buck lets out a short laugh.

“Well, buddy, I did change. I changed my pants.”

“But you didn’t change your sweater.

“Yes, I didn’t change my sweater,” Buck says, sighing as he takes another bite. “You are right about that. Now, your dad will be here soon to pick you and your cookies up, so why don’t you go ahead and get ready, alright?”

“Yes, Buck,” Chris sighs, leaving the table and going to where his second bag is in the living room before going to the bathroom with his clothes after.

Buck gets up from the table shortly after, cleaning up both of their bowls then starting the coffee maker. There’s a knock at his door right as he gets it going, so he quickly shouts that he’ll be right there before finishing up. Buck skids over to the door, opening it up instantly to find Eddie standing on the other side, and Buck lets out a breathless smile, and—

(Look, it’s not like Eddie was keeping track. Well, he was, but it was easier to pretend that he wasn’t. So, no, Eddie wasn’t keeping track. He’s not. He just, maybe, kind of, sort of, is. It’s Buck’s fault. Or, if you were to ask Eddie, those would likely be the words out of his mouth and, well, he’s not wrong, but it also wasn’t Eddie’s job to notice…or is it? Buck is the one who came over to Eddie’s house when he wanted to escape his own loft. Buck is the one who went to Eddie as a place of comfort where he knew he would be looked after. So, maybe it is Eddie’s job—)

Eddie is staring at Buck. It’s been seventeen hours since he’d dropped Christopher off with him, and now Buck is wearing the same sweater as when he’d dropped Chris off the evening before. Eddie tilts his head at Buck as the door is opened for him further, stepping inside. He glances back at Buck who has his brows furrowed as his hands fall to rest on his hips. Eddie looks away, letting out a sigh as he steps towards the kitchen, hearing a door open a moment later and turning around to find Christopher dressed and ready coming out of the bathroom.

“Dad!” Christopher shouts, giving his dad a hug.

Buck shuts the door, going to the living room and grabbing both of Christopher’s bags, handing his school bag to Eddie before going to the bathroom. He picks up Chris’s pajamas and stuffs them in the bag before going back to the kitchen, handing that to Eddie, too. Buck then grabs the container of cookies sitting on his kitchen counter, handing them to Chris.

“Alright. Are you ready to go?” Eddie asks, Buck standing against the fridge.

“Ready!” Chris says, giving Buck a hug. “Will you come over later?”

“Of course, bud. I’ll see you later,” Buck says as Chris and Eddie begin to make their way toward the door.

“I love you, Buck! I’ll see you soon!” Chris shouts from the doorway, waving.

“Love you too, kid!” Buck calls after him and returns his wave, giving a big smile.

Buck glances at Eddie who’s staring right back at him, the same grin on his face that Buck has. Eddie gives Buck a nod, and then the door to Buck’s loft shuts and he’s left standing alone in his kitchen. The coffee maker goes off, so he goes and grabs a mug out of the cabinet before filling it. In truth, he’s exhausted. He’s always exhausted now. He’s been sleeping more on shift, but he’s pushing through. Eddie checks on him sometimes, but for the most part he leaves him alone unless necessary. Bobby does the same. If anyone is hovering, it’s Hen and Chim– something Buck will have to call Maddie about later.

After finishing his coffee, Buck goes upstairs to change before deciding to shower. He grabs a pair of jeans and goes to his bathroom, thoroughly ridding himself of any germs garnered from the day before. He spends a considerable amount of time on his hair, lately having taken a liking to his natural curl pattern and wanting to take care of it properly. Once finished, he slips into the jeans then pulls on his sweater, only he doesn’t think anything of it. It’s his sweater. His favorite sweater. A new sweater, sure, but still his favorite.

Buck moseys around his loft for a while, cleaning up random things that he finds. For the first time all week, he makes his bed, smiling at the neatly made comforter and sheets. Then he bounds downstairs, falling onto his couch as he turns on the TV to watch the Dodgers versus Giants game. After a while, though, his eyes start to flutter, and he yawns. He turns the TV down low, hoping that will allow him to fall asleep, but then his body focuses on the feeling of the couch beneath him instead of the game and it’s far from comfortable. Buck groans, rolling off the couch and dragging himself upstairs, falling flat onto his bed. He’s out within seconds.

It’s not until several hours later that Buck wakes up, his loft having become dim with the only light being emitted from his TV downstairs. Buck rubs his eyes, climbing out of bed and going downstairs, sighing once he’s realized he missed the rest of the game. He picks up his phone off the coffee table to check the score when he finds a message and two missed calls from Eddie, along with one voicemail. Buck furrows his brows, the voicemail being the first thing he checks.

“Hey, so I just got Chris from school and we’re on our way home. I figured I’d let you know so you could start making your way over, but…anyway, I’ll see you in a bit. Bye.”

It’s short, sweet, and to the point and– and it fills Buck’s heart. He smiles, pulling the phone away from his ear when a sudden rush of guilt hits him. It’s dark out, which means that he’s late and Chris is likely in bed already. Cursing at himself, Buck quickly slips on a pair of shoes, rushing out of his apartment. He gets in the car and dials Eddie’s phone immediately, but he doesn’t receive an answer. Halfway through his drive over, his phone starts ringing, and he tries grabbing it to answer but it falls to the floor. Buck hits his fist on the wheel, tapping nervously the rest of his way over.

The second Buck gets to Eddie’s house he doesn’t waste a second in getting out of his Jeep and jogging to the front door. He twists the knob and the door opens with ease, and Buck lets out a deep sigh. Eddie pops his head out from the hall, smiling when he sees who it is.

“Hey,” Eddie says, grinning and nodding to the kitchen. “Are you hungry?”

“Uh, no,” Buck says, shaking his head and sitting on the couch. “I take it you just made sure Chris is in bed?”

“Yup,” Eddie says, falling to sit next to Buck. “Sorry I missed your call. I tried calling you back, but you didn’t answer.”

“I was in the car. My phone fell, and I figured the risk of an accident wasn’t worth it.”

“That’s fair,” Eddie says, grabbing a beer off the coffee table and taking a swig. “Do you want one?”

“No, I’m good. I’m sorry for not coming over sooner.”

“It’s fine. After the second call, I figured you were asleep. I take it I was right?”

“I was watching the Dodgers game.”

“You turned your phone off for baseball?”

“What? No, I– I was watching the Dodgers game and I started falling asleep. I went upstairs, fell on my bed, and it was lights out instantly.”

“So I was right.”

“How’d you guess that in the first place?” Buck asks with a tilt of his head.

“You’re still wearing the same sweater as before,” Eddie says, pointing at Buck, and Buck, of course, looks down, sighing when he finds Eddie is right.

“Right,” Buck says, holding his hand out and a second later Eddie’s beer is in his hand.

“So, what’s going on?” Eddie asks, eyes never leaving Buck. He has a soft look on his face, and if this wasn’t such a serious conversation Buck just might smile in return.

“Nothing,” Buck says with a shrug, and Eddie’s eyes narrow on him. “The sweater is comforting for me.”

“Can you explain that?” Eddie asks, and it’s not mean or cruel, but effortlessly kind. It’s easy to see where Chris gets it from.

“Uh, well, it feels– it’s like a hug. Like one big, giant hug, constantly, and if I need a tighter hug I can just tug on it and I’ll feel better. It’s nice. It makes me feel safe.”

“Mmm,” Eddie hums, eyes finally trailing away from Buck and to his TV instead.

“What?” Buck asks, leaning over just a bit, and he can see a smile pull at the corner of Eddie’s mouth.

“Just thinking,” Eddie responds, smile growing more.

“About?” Buck asks, and now the front of Buck’s shoulder is pressing into the side of Eddie’s, the two impossibly close.

“How to make you feel safe no matter what you’re wearing,” Eddie admits as he finally looks at Buck again, and Buck can tell that it’s honest and true.

“Just being here helps,” Buck says, giving Eddie the sweetest smile he can muster.

“You know,” Eddie says, pulling at Buck’s sweater, “it doesn’t look bad on you. In fact, I think you should wear sweaters more often.”

“You think so?” Buck asks, and oh, are their faces close.

“Dad?” They hear from the hall, slowly breaking apart.

“Yeah, bud?” Eddie asks, getting up from the couch.

“You forgot my glass of water,” Chris says, and Buck smiles at the comfort it brings him.

“Want me to get it?” Buck asks, and Eddie turns to look at him, about to protest when Chris lights up with joy.

“Buck!”

“Buck—” Eddie cuts himself off, running a hand over his face.

“Sorry,” Buck says, giving Christopher a hug. “I’m getting you your water and then it’s off to bed, alright? Dad and I were having a very important conversation.”

“Yes, sir!” Chris says with a big grin, and Buck smiles and laughs, going right to the kitchen. He grabs a cup with a straw and a lid and fills it up with ice water, bringing it back to Chris in under a minute.

“There. I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner, but I’ll see you in the morning, alright?”

“Goodnight, Buck,” Chris yawns, giving Buck another hug before going back down the hall.

“Goodnight, Christopher,” Buck whispers once he’s already halfway down the hall, lingering in the doorway a moment before falling back onto the couch, his head falling into Eddie’s lap.

Both of Eddie’s hands immediately come to comb through Buck’s hair, detangling any mess that there is. Yeah, Buck thinks, I feel safe here. It’s not a question at all, but a mere fact. Being at Eddie’s house, on Eddie’s couch, in Eddie’s arms– all of it feels safe. He feels like nothing can hurt him as long as he’s confined within the walls of Eddie’s home, and that’s something that he could really use as of late.

“So,” Eddie starts, one of his hands trailing away from Buck’s hair, resting on his chest instead, “you’re planning on staying the night?”

“If that’s alright,” Buck responds, his own hand coming to hold Eddie’s in its place.

That was new. Since getting struck by lightning– since dying– Eddie has constantly reached out for Buck, keeping him close, and when they’re alone placing his hand on his heart just to make sure that it’s still there and still beating. It’s when Eddie’s hand trails away, though, that things are weird, because it’s never the same. Tonight is no different, Eddie looking at Buck as he moves his hand away from Buck’s chest and rather to caress his cheek.

“You’re still here,” Eddie whispers, his voice barely audible.

“I’m still here,” Buck assures, hand still wrapped around Eddie’s. “We’re still here.”

“Yeah,” Eddie says, properly interlocking his and Buck’s hands, “we are.”

“You should get to bed,” Buck says, sitting up, but Eddie only pulls him closer, Buck’s back falling flush against Eddie’s chest.

“So should you,” Eddie says, wrapping his arms around Buck’s middle.

“Eddie…” Buck sighs, turning his head away, as if that would change their current positions.

“You said that just being here is a comfort,” Eddie whispers into Buck’s ear, clocking the reaction Buck has, “so why not see if I can comfort you more?”

“How?” Buck asks, and he already knows the answer, but– god, Eddie doesn’t know what he’s doing.

“Just let me hold you. You were tense until my fingers landed in your hair before, so I have to assume that means that me touching you helps, right? So let me hold you,” Eddie pleas, and Buck melts against him immediately, rolling around in his place to hug Eddie’s torso.

“Thank you,” Buck whispers, and Eddie doesn’t give a verbal response, simply holding Buck tighter. I love you so much.

#buddie #evan buckley/eddie diaz #evan buckley #evan buck buckely #eddie diaz #edmundo eddie diaz #edmundo diaz #domestic buddie #buckley diaz family #christopher diaz #pre relationship #ficlet #9 1 1 fanfiction #9 1 1 on fox #9 1 1 #9 1 1 fic #9 1 1 buddie #9 1 1 show #sweater

[fanfic-enthusiast]

Holiday Party Fervor

His friends were due to arrive any moment. Ratau stretched his back and went over his mental checklist of everything he had for the party one more time.

Decorations, check. Cookies, check. Candy canes, check. Eggnog, check. Knucklebones, of course.

He breathed a sigh of relief, tugging at the knit scarf around his neck. Everything should go fine. This would be great! This was the first holiday party the four of them have had in years. The tradition fell out of fashion for the four of them to get together when the weather got chilly. Stopping right around the time when Ratau had lost his crown all those years ago.

It felt nice setting up decorations around the shack to make it feel festive. It gave the small space a kind of warm and cozy feeling. All that the now cheerful shack needed were some guests to really make the space come to life.

As this thought entered the rat’s mind he heard a knock on the door.

“Hurry up Ratau, we are freezing out here!!”

“Oh! Coming!!” He's quick to reach the door and open it wide, all three of his friends stand there wrapped in winter coats and scarves to stave off the winter chill. “My friends welcome!”

“Oh cut the formalitiesss Ratau, we are just glad to sssee you again.”

“Yes! We couldn’t wait to party again like we used to, Bop was going on about it the whole trip here.” The worm on top of Klunko’s head nodded slightly as Klunko crossed the threshold and started removing his coat. Moving to help Flinky out of his winter ware as well.

“Hmf. It actually looks nice here for a change.” One of the best compliments to come from Shrumy in all honesty, warmed the old rat’s heart.

“Glad to have you all here my friends. What do you say we start off the night with a few rounds of Knucklebones?” Varied expressions of approval filled the space as the friends settled around their favorite pastime. Interrupted only briefly when Klunko got up from the table to fetch everyone in the group a tall glass of eggnog, dusted with cinnamon.

The space was soon filled with festive laughter and cheer as the group of friends rolled dice and drank together. The fire in the stove may have kept the shack warm from the elements outside but the comradery between these four brought a kind of warmth to the space that had been missing for far too long. That Ratau missed for far too long.

Having his friends over so often for game nights was different than this, this festive cheer that only came about when all of them were together for the holidays. Each of them brought something to the group that made gatherings feel incomplete if they weren’t present. Even Shrumy with his sourpuss attitude.

Speaking of Shrumy, he even surprised everyone with holiday sweaters for this get together! One for each of them! Along with some excuse of them being ‘no good for betting against if they were half frozen.’

They were very nicely made as well, the turtle put a good deal of time into making each custom sweater special. The pattern on Klunko’s even had an image of his severed hand sewn on the front which brought quite the hearty laugh from the crow when he spotted it.

“I still intend to win that back!”

“Ha! In your dreams, bird brain.” Shrumy shifted his shell to show off the hand strapped to the side of it before turning away yet again.

Donning their new festive sweaters they set about eating and drinking more eggnog together around the knucklebones table.

“Hey Ratau?” Klunko swirled his drink a little. “Did you make the eggnog differently this year? Tastes stronger than usual?”

“Hm? Oh yes! Just a little bit… I think? I wanted to make sure this would be a fun night for everybody so I got out the good stuff. Might have gone a little overboard.” “Oh! That's nice! You didn’t have to do that! It's great just spending time with you all for the holidays.” “Yesss it’sss been agesss after all.” Flinky smiled and took another long sip of the egg nog. “That being sssaid I’m not complaining about the ssspecial treatment. Hehehee.” Shrumy nodded in agreement and tossed his dice onto the table. And Ratau smiled, he was feeling quite touched by all his friends wanting to be around him like this. Meant they would be doing this again next year, and longer still after that if their luck held. Only time will tell. All that was left for him for tonight was to enjoy the company and celebration of friendship around him.

~

While the moon hangs high in the sky and the forest outside is blanketed in white snow and silence, the inside of the shack was full of more than just warmth and light. It was full of the best kind of warm lively chaos that happened when good friends got together.

Candycanes were shared along with the eggnog and other treats Ratau had prepared for the evening. He even got out some mistletoe for a few pranks, something he hadn’t done since their last holiday party. Dangling it above his friends heads without one’s knowledge sent him into laughter fairly easily. Though it usually came with ‘revenge’ of some kind later in the evening.

He would have to worry about that later however. Because as of right now, the only thing on his mind was song.

“I WON'T ASK FOR MUCH THIS CHRISTMAS!!! THIS IS ALL IM ASKIN FOOORRRRR!!!”

Ratau was on top of the knucklebones table, face flushed with his scarf wrapped around his forehead, holding his staff to his mouth like a microphone. While the rest of the friends swayed with the music and laughed nearly as loud as his singing. “I JUST WANNA SEE MY BABY STANDIN RIGHT OUTSIDE MY DOOORRR!!!”

“I jusst want you for my own!!” Flinky climbed up on the table and coiled around Ratau, squeezing a bit. “More than you could ever know!!” Klunko joined them on top, wrappin his arm around the two of them while Bop struggled to stay on his feathery head as they swayed. “Make my wish come truuuuuueeee!!!” Shrumy clambered up to them, on the table for his piece. The furniture squeaked under his feet. “ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAAAAAAAS IS YOOOOOOUUUUUU!!!” All four of them shrieked to the ceiling before falling to the floor from the table top in fits of giggles and ramblings of the lyrics. Flinky still coiled up around Ratau who laughed between hiccups. Shrumy slammed his fist on the floor as he was overcome with giggles. And Klunko struggled to get his feet under him, holding onto the table as he too was made weak in the knees with laughter.

Yeah… perhaps Ratau did go a bit too overboard with the eggnog.

~

Lamb tucked the gifts into their fleece as he stepped up to the door of the lonely shack. “Ratau? Happy Holidays! I have some things for you and the others.” No reply came from the door, which was odd. “Hello?” Lamb took it upon themselves to open up the door to the shack and was stopped in their tracks by the sight before them. Ratau was laying on top of the knucklebones table, fast asleep with some mistletoe tied to his tail, covered in red lipstick. Klunko was just coming to, in the corner of the room, where he had a candy cane tied to the stump where his hand used to be. Which he waved at Lamb lazily with a slurred “Hi there wee Laaaammmmbb.”

Shrumy was on the floor still out cold, wearing red lipstick and surrounded by a couple mostly empty punch bowls. Which… explained why Ratau was covered in makeup. And… Lamb looked around a bit more, then up and yep. There was Flinky, coiled around the rafters with a santa hat and snow white beard. “...Ill come back later tonight then.” And Lamb closed the door behind him with a chuckle. Leaving the old men to sort themselves out.

Klunko looked over his shoulder to Bop, who was curled up in the corner next to him munching on a cookie. “We… are absolutely doing this again next year Bop. Yeeaaaahhh.”

~~~

This was a secret Santa request for @teeteekaa

#cult of the lamb #cotl #cotl ratau #ratau #knucklebones #knuckleboners #klunko #klunko and bop #cotl klunko #cotl klunko and bop #cotl bop #bop #flinky #cotl flinky #shrumy #cotl shrumy #have a nice holiday #Happy Holidays #ratau x shrumy #kinda

[what-if-rpg]

Welcome to the family, SUMMER! Your application to BLAINE ANDERSON was accepted. We’re really happy to have you around! Make sure to read the beginners checklist, and remember, have fun! We can’t wait to roleplay with you! Have fun!

IN CHARACTER

CHARACTER NAME: Blaine Devon Anderson CHARACTER AGE & DATE OF BIRTH: 27, April 18th. OCCUPATION: Broadway Actor, Songwriter FACE CLAIM: Darren Criss HOMETOWN & CITY WHERE LIVES NOW: Westerville, Ohio. Currently lives in New York City. SEXUAL ORIENTATION & GENDER: Gay, Male. RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Married to Kurt Hummel POSITIVE TRAITS: Charismatic, Modest, Supportive NEGATIVE TRAITS: Insecure, Impulsive, Dramatic CHARACTER QUOTE/LYRIC: “Prejudice is just ignorance.”

HEADCANONS

When your older brother is perfect at everything he does, it’s not always easy to keep up. Cooper was ten years older than Blaine, and although their age gap and individual differences did play a role in impacting their relationship, however it was Cooper’s overly critical and nitpicking attitude that bothered Blaine the most. As a kid, Blaine had always felt so small in front of his older brother. Cooper was talented, charming, and everyone adored him. It wasn’t easy growing up with someone like that, but Blaine still looked up to Cooper. The more Cooper criticized and picked on him, the harder he worked to live up to his expectations.

Blaine can be very charming and confident when he wants to be, but he also likes to use those traits as some sort of mask to cover up his insecurities. His feelings of inadequacy started with Cooper, but it got worse after he came out to his parents and was rejected by his own father. Then, things sort of escalated from there, what with the bullying that he faced and later on Sadie Hawkins. Needless to say, feelings of shame and guilt still followed him around like a shadow since that day.

Transferring to Mckinley to be with Kurt was a turning point for Blaine. Dalton was a safe space and he truly enjoyed being a Warbler, but he didn't feel like he was being his true self at Dalton. Students were expected to conform at Dalton; it felt more like he was playing the role of Blaine Warbler rather than allowing himself to be - well, himself. Mckinley was chaotic, unpredictable, and absolutely nothing like Dalton, but he made friends who treat each other like family by joining Glee, and they taught him how to be his authentic self and learn to have fun again.

Kurt calling off their engagement and breaking up with him nearly broke him as a person, causing him to run away from his dreams, from New York, and back to the safety of his home and Dalton, much like he did after Sadie Hawkins. And even though he’s happily married to Kurt now and they have a daughter together, but a part of him is still affected by it and will always feel insecure about that.

CONNECTIONS

PAMELA & TODD ANDERSON (Parents): Blaine grew up being closer to his mother than his father. His father’s rejection of his sexuality further strained their relationship, to the point where they barely spoke to one another unless it was absolutely necessary. The fake shooting incident at Mckinley brought them to their senses, however, and even though his parents are now separated, Blaine still keeps in touch with them, with him calling his mother more often than he does with his father. COOPER ANDERSON (Brother): Blaine still doesn’t know how to interact with Cooper most of the time, and their relationship is still awkward, but deep down Blaine knows that Cooper cares about him, and is trying his best to support Blaine in his own way. KURT HUMMEL (Husband): Kurt is the love of Blaine’s life. Despite their ups and downs and also differences, Blaine never stopped loving Kurt, and as if being drawn and pulled by some invisible, universal force, they always seemed to go back to one another. And although they’re happily married now, but Blaine still sees their relationship as a work in progress, and is constantly learning how to communicate better with his husband. SERENA ANDERSON-HUMMEL (Daughter): If Kurt is the love of Blaine’s life, then Serena is the culmination and proof of that undying love. While Kurt is the strict parent, Blaine couldn’t help but to spoil her instead. He would buy her sweet treats and new toys, always giving in to her requests and pleas (much to Kurt's dismay) SAM EVANS & TINA COHEN-CHANG (Best Friends): They were the trio who were there for each other at Mckinley. Sam was there for Blaine when he cheated on Kurt by stopping him from running away to Dalton. Blaine is forever grateful towards Sam for being in his corner, even when he was at his lowest. They bonded over superheroes and games and Star Wars since, and Blaine truly admires Sam for the genuine and supportive person that he is. As for Tina, she developed a crush on Blaine while Blaine was crushing on Sam during their senior years, but things were never awkward between them. If anything, they became closer over the years and their friendship is still as strong as ever. SEBASTIAN SMYTHE (Close Friend): While it’s true that Sebastian almost blinded Blaine back in high school, but Sebastian has since turned over a new leaf and Blaine is all for giving someone the redemption they deserve and second chances. Besides, once a Warbler, always a Warbler. RACHEL BERRY (Friend): Blaine and Rachel became good friends when he went back to Ohio that year, where they both supported each other even though they were also rivals at the same time. Blaine has always admired and worshipped Rachel’s grit and talent, and their relationship only became stronger when Rachel became the surrogate for Serena. DAVID KAROFSKY (Ex-Boyfriend): Blaine and David had an amicable breakup, hence they’re still on good terms. While their relationship only lasted for a short period of time, but Blaine will always look back at it with great fondness.

#Blaine Anderson #Darren Criss #Glee RP #Glee RPG #RP #RPG #Glee #Accepted

[countrymusiclover]

19 - This Castle's a Home

Part 20

She's Human or Weapon

@tyrionsprincess30 @groovy-lady @bigbendyhorns @logolepsic-insomniac @the-big-bad-klaus

Walking through the hallways of the school small children not teenagers yet passed me playing tag. Carrying a notebook in my hands it was a checklist of all the things we needed to finish before the day was over. My hair is in a braid that goes down my back. When Charles spoke about making a school it sounded like a wonderful dream. Yet now it is a reality for the three of us. "Hope, there's a guy checking you out." I heard the voice of my daughters friend Charlie who stands behind a pillar in the hallway by the stairs. Stopping in my tracks I teased the two kids who try to hide like I didn't see them. The boy that walked by was named Nik he was two years older than my daughter. "Shouldn't you be in class. I'd hate to make your teachers dock points." Charlie ran off but Hope tried to leave until I raised my hand pulling her to a stop with my power. She groaned throwing her hair over her shoulder. She wasn't even a teenager yet, only a year away and was already checking out boys. Charles wouldn't be pleased with that.

"Now what makes you think you can skip class young lady." She crossed her arms over her chest pouting like she was still five years old. "It's just dad's class that I'm already passing. Besides I can control my power like he can unlike everyone younger than me here." Dropping on a knee I rest a hand on her shoulder knowing what she was getting at here. She was gifted with the same power as me the ability to move things with your mind in a golden energy. But she also has her father's power to control minds. "That may be true but your father and I think you need more practice before going out into the world...and growing up on us too quickly." She tugs my arm being able to hear what I mumbled under my breath accidentally. "Come on, mom. I can't keep living in this castle for my whole life."

Taking her hand in my freehand I pull her down the hallway back to her father's class hearing his voice fill the hall. Standing in the doorway a smile graced my face seeing him surrounded by students. I truly believe that he was always meant to be called Professor because it makes him truly happy. Just like Hope and I do even if he can't use his legs anymore. "Alright everyone that is your assignment for tomorrow. Class dismissed. Well, well, where did you run off to this time little miss?" Charles teased her closing the book he was reading from in his lap. He moves the joystick of the new wheelchair Hank had finally created perfectly for him so he could move around much easier. Hope bends her head whispering under her breath embarrassed. "By the main staircase with Charlie..." I nudged her with my arm making her finish her sentence. "Checking out a boy...the one named Nik with you know, the one who can do spells."

"Ah I see. Well go up to your room and go practice your powers alright." Hope nods slowly walking away never ignoring her father's wishes. Once she's out of the room he runs his fingers through his hair knotting it up a little where I reached up fixing it for him. "Huh I thought we wouldn't have to deal with boys for a few more years darling. I'm not ready to have the wait till marriage conversation." Climbing into his lap I shake my head chuckling at my husband's silliness. "You should feel sad for me because that means I have to have the your becoming a woman story." Charles flushed red covering my mouth with his right hand so I'd stop talking. "No let's change the subject, Rora." I grinned down to my husband leaning down and kissing him softly. He moves one arm around my waist kissing back. While his other cradles my face until we got too heated with the kiss.

Laying my head in the crook of his neck I closed my eyes enjoying the peaceful silence that he breaks. "Would it be wrong of me if I just told every boy interested in our to stop." I whined burying my face against the fabric of his shirt. "Charles...what happened to enjoying the moment?" He chuckled where I lift my head uo seeing a serious look still written on his face. "No lisen to me love. It would be really simple with my powers-" Covering his mouth with my hand I shake my head playfully rolling my eyes at him. "Charles baby, I thought we agreed on enjoying the little moments when we can. Meaning no talking about how you don't like her checking out boys for that time being." He removes my hand intertwining it with his giving it a kiss staring into my eyes. "You're right, Aurora. I suppose I'm just not ready for her to try and leave us." I boop noses with my husband getting him to smile until I felt someone behind us trying to sneak up the stairs. "Charlie, I thought I said to go to class..." The boy stopped in his tracks running off since he got caught trying to go play with Hope.

"Changing the subject then to you. How about we go practice by the tree hmm?" He suggested putting his right hand on the joystick moving it forward causing me to squeal wrapping my arms around his neck. "Charles let me get down first. I don't want to hurt you." He chuckled entering my mind with a smile rolling us outside. "You can't hurt me love. Remember I can't feel anything unless I take the serum." I blush lightly sometimes forgetting what his pain is like since he can't feel anything below his waist. "Sorry I forgot darling. Now why are we out here exactly?" I asked back through my head enjoying to be able to communicate between our minds like this. Typically when he wanted to train me we would do it our bedroom away from the noise of the dozen of students running through our house. Once we reached the tree I climbed off his lap where he holds both of his hands in mine. He looked up into my eyes pure hope returned to those bright baby blues. "Let your mind go free Aurora. You're powers will respond to your mind." Charles softly spoke so I closed my eyes where he saw his hands turn golden glow from you. The wind blew softly around us before I felt some leaves fall into my hair. "I must look ridiculous with leaves in my hair Professor." Charles chuckled knocking some leaves out of his hair resting his left hand to my cheek lovingly. "Never Mrs. Xavier. I love you still." Smiling down at my husband even if the house was gone I would be home so long as I could be in Charles arms for the rest of my life.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

#she's human or weapon #charles xavier x oc #erik lehnsherr x oc #jenny boyd #charles xavier or erik lensherr #charles xavier #charles xavier x reader #x men charles xavier x reader #james mcavoy #x men erik lensherr x reader #erik lensherr #erik lenhsherr x reader #michael fassbender #hope xavier #danielle rose russell #x men raven #mystique #jennifer lawrence #professor x #magneto #x men first class #x men days of future past #x men apocalypse #x men x reader #x men #x men fanfiction #wattpad fanfiction #ask box is open for feedback #comments really appreciated #erik lensherr x reader

[exclusivenyc]

We just spotted EVAN ALEXANDER SLATER ( HARRY STYLES ) hopping off a plane in the City that Never Sleeps! Make sure to send in your account within 24 hours and read our NEW MEMBER CHECKLIST before getting settled. Can you make it in the Big Apple?

Not everyone can say they’ve been to the Big Apple, but  [ EVAN ALEXANDER SLATER ], a [ 28 ] year-old [ CIS MALE ] has lived in [ MANHATTAN ] for [ HIS WHOLE LIFE, ON AND OFF ]. This is the city of dreams and [ HE ] knows it, because they came to NYC to be an [ WRITER / COMPOSER ]. Well, that and as a/n [ COUCH CRASHER ] to [ IREUN ‘RAIN’ PAE ]. Living in the city means they meet all kinds of people, but everyone always seems to think they look like [ HARRY STYLES ]. They even got away with free cab fare once because of it!

HEADCANONS: (must list at least 3)

Born to an American realtor mother and English academic father, Evan jokes that he’s been ‘tossed around’ the UK and US all his life. Somewhat of an identity crisis there, with an accent too transatlantic to be British, but too Manchester-bred to ever pass for a true New Yorker.

Majored in Literature at Cambridge University (one of the few universities his father teaches at), and Music at Julliard. He’s a shy man with a talent for telling stories, be them through the paced out words of a poem or the right beat of a melody. It all started to click, upon the realization one doesn’t negate the other: but rather, it’s the perfect overlap of two distinct forms of art.

His life and personality are nothing but erratic. Periods of absolute bliss end with sudden crashes of chaos, the world which seemed to be floating peacefully above his head suddenly crashing on his shoulders. In a true example of this, Evan goes through phases of being on his parents’ good side, to striking a fight so immense that he finds himself crashing at a friend’s couch... for longer than intended.

Not quite the ever talked about Nepo Baby, but even through his struggles, Evan does have a safety-net to fall upon, should all fail. At 28, he’s finished a couple of poetry collections (published, but without much buzz outside of a niche), and contributed musical compositions to unknown artists, One Night Only concerts, and small upcoming off off ooooff Broadway shows.

Countless unfinished notebooks, guitars named after different literary heroines, poetry written on the back of cereal boxes. Messily rolled blunts, messy hair, ink littering his skin with little to no meaning.

Think young Richard Siken, and Richard Siken’s Crush. Think Kill Your Darlings. Think Tick Tick Boom’s Jon, La La Land’s Sebastian, Titanic’s Jack, Whiplash’s Andrew.

Think, a young man with feelings he can't always translate into speech, so he resorts to unorthodox ways instead.

(s, 28, est, she/her, no triggers)

#oc rp #city rp #active rp #plotless rp #appless rp #skeleton rp #lsrp #lsrpg #enyc.accepted

[idahofallshq]

buckle in lads this is one is locked and loaded - joey.

welcome to idaho falls, suri farook! please make sure to complete the accepted checklist so we can invite you to our servers. we can’t wait to start writing with you!    

OOC.

name: joey age: 25 pronouns: he/him timezone: gmt/bst previous roleplay blog: redacted triggers: redacted wanted connection?: none

IC.

name: suri farook. gender & pronouns: cis woman, she/her. faceclaim: sophia taylor ali. age & birthdate: 26, 1st april 2018. occupation: soldier. immunity: not immune.

SKILLS.

melee weapon proficiency: her training first started with FEDRA, having an affinity for quick movements. in her time beyond the walls, she hones her skill with knives. it's with the grizzlies where she's given access to a small arsenal where she would frequently be seen practising.

explosives knowledge: science had always been a keen interest of her's, starting at the FEDRA run school she grew up in and the books she's found in her travels to and around wyoming. with the grizzlies she's given the opportunity to tinker and create. now she can be found helping to clean weapons and put together molotov's when she's not on patrol.

firearm proficiency: she's come a long way with her skill with a gun. the first few years of FEDRA training were spent sat out of shooting drills because the rifle's kickback was too powerful for her skinny and short frame. so when she finally got her hands on a gun again, she threw in everything she had. now one of her favourite pastimes is shooting targets from a moving vehicle.

POSITIVE TRAITS.

creative: not in the artistic sense, but suri is known for thinking outside the box. before she left for idaho falls, she had been working on how to recreate a grenade from scrap and chemicals, her schematics don't quite work yet however.

relentless: once she sets her mind to something, there's not an awful lot that can deter her. her extremism has been encouraged by yen over the past eight years and has made suri an almost unstoppable force.

spirited: always looking for the bright side of her circumstances, suri can be a wonderful addition to teams with her unshakable optimism. for some, it can be grating, but she won't take it to heart unless she's feeling particularly prickly.

NEGATIVE TRAITS.

vindictive: suri is not know for forgiving or forgetting. it's partly down to her ability to remember everything and anything with crystal clear detail, it makes all slights against her feel as fresh as the day they were committed. she has a tendency to write people off as hated a little too quickly.

thrill-seeking: most of the time, her dopamine seeking behaviour isn't an issue, especially not in the grizzlies where her leader thrived on the same stuff. but in idaho, she's had a few close calls with her patrols when taking the dangerous but 'fun' route.

temperamental: very hot and cold. suri is very easy to irritate, but it's always luck of draw to see to what degree she reacts. sometimes, the smallest inconvenience can set off in a fit on rage. sometimes, having a near death experience because of someone else's actions gets nothing but a middle finger.

BIOGRAPHY.

tw: death, explosions.

denver, colorado was your first home. even as two lonely children, you and your little sister were given a bed to sleep in and a roof over your head and three meals a day. FEDRA was your lifeline, the ones who taught you how to fire a gun that was over half your height. they taught you the best places to aim your knife to kill because one day, you will meet the dead who don't rest. but despite the miserable outlook on the world that FEDRA feeds you, you remain hopeful, that one day all your lives will be easier. you dreamed about the dead coming back to life just as much as you were plagued with nightmares of their teeth sinking into your skin.

but the real lifeline was not FEDRA themselves, but who they allowed you to interact with. farah, the comparatively mute sister next to your deafening need to be heard, takes an early interest in fixing people up. after lingering around the office of a nurse with the kindest eyes, young farah is allowed to watch the nurse work on some wounds. her name was grace kidd.

grace with the kindest eyes. you will never forget those eyes, nor her smile.

it's because of farah that grace decides to invite you both into her home, as her own. it's a tiny, cramped space in the centre of the zone, and it's perfect. dropped off to school every weekday, walking to the hospital hand in hand with farah to meet grace after her shift, returning home together, making dinner together. you look back on these memories and sometimes, you wonder if they're just dreams.

you return to the hands of FEDRA soon enough, because one day when you approach the hospital after school, there are soldiers stopping you and farah from getting in. an outbreak, you hear people shout, and even then you knew they weren't lying because FEDRA sealed off the building altogether. grace never emerged from that hospital. just one of the unlucky nurses who were treating the unknowingly infected man. FEDRA doesn't tell you two exactly what happened, and so you hope that she wasn't scared for long as you hug your little sister tight, sobs wracking your chest.

you're fifteen when you decide the zone is no longer for you, and of course farah follows you like a shadow, like she always has. she expresses fear of the world beyond the walls, but you tell her that there is nothing left for you both in denver. their home was destroyed the moment they reached the hospital, and kindness like grace's was a rarity.

farah was right to be scared. outside the walls is no place for two young girls, but as the pair of you travel north, tiptoeing around abandoned streets, you learn to scavenge. it's in the next three years that you find an old chemistry book. it's full of questions, little tasks, and pictures. you cling to this book for dear life, hauling it everywhere you and farah go, despite its heftiness. whenever there's a peaceful moment, you are reading. even once you've finished it, you read it again, even though you can remember every word perfectly.

the years of scavenging to survive come to a close when you find yourselves at the edge of fremont lake. it's not long before the two of you are surrounded by people wearing gas masks. you bare your teeth, shouting threats, aiming your rifle even though you'd long run out of bullets. then one of the masked strangers shows their face.

yennefer welcomes you both, sweeping you and farah under their wings. yen is not as kind as grace once was, but the two of you quickly learn to call the lake home, the grizzlies your family. your brutality skyrockets in this place, finding hits of dopamine in your duties of catching the infected. it's a dangerous game, but there aren't many others you can see yourself playing. it's almost as if this life is designed for you, stimulating you both physically and mentally. after all, you've always been able to find the fun in everything. it's also with the grizzlies that your chemistry knowledge shines. with their resources, you learn how to create explosives. if you're not out catching infected for the pits you love so much, you're hunched over a worktop, putting scrap together and playing mad scientist. meanwhile, farah has her uses in patching up the wounded, grizzly and prisoner alike.

perhaps your greatest achievement is taking down a considerable chunk of the idaho falls QZ wall. you remember how blood roared in your ears as the concrete cracked and crumbled because of you, how your skin felt electric, how you felt unstoppable. there's pride in the way yen claps your shoulder in praise. you can recall that thrill crystal clear, but with that remarkable memory of yours, comes the vivid sight of loss. perhaps this is why you keep yourself so busy, too occupied to bring up anything painful. how else are you supposed to survive this life, after all?

prisoners come and go, that's a reality of this life you learned to accept, to tolerate, in exchange for a home. you are not cruel to those thrown into the pits like some of your fellow grizzlies are, you don't spill their food onto the floor, you don't kick them taking them back and forth from the medical tent to the cages. but you never get close either, your heart's too big for that. so when you can, you forget they're even there. it was farah that was kind, even holding a needle and thread between her fingers, pushing it through raw skin, she was kind.

until one of them makes himself unforgettable. santiago. he decides to make a break for it, but in doing so, causes an explosion as cover. it does its job, it distracts long enough for him to have slipped away into the cold january night. but when you search the faces of those around you, farah's is nowhere to be seen.

the next time you see her body, she is burned beyond recognition. it's only her missing, it can only be her. laying in the remains of the food storage cabin, no longer at your side.

you grieve with rage, demanding yen allow you to storm off into the treacherous snow to hunt down the runaway like a fucking dog. bring him back with a broken leg and see how long it takes for the runners to tear him to shreds. but he does not allow you to go, insists that santiago will die in that snow, and so will you if you followed. so when yen offers you something different to sink your teeth into, of course you snatch it right up. "go to idaho falls, get us something useful, a way in."

you arrive in idaho falls in mid march. it's no easy task not being shot down, but you always find a way. you sneak into their ranks, make it a few days before someone grabs you by the collar and catches you out, brings you in to interrogate. two months in and your gruelling routine of proving yourself has only just started to let up. you suppose it's down to your handiness, your ability to whip up a molotov in the dark when infected are closing in. or the way you use whatever weapon is in front of you like it's an extension of yourself. but this place is not your home, you have no loyalties here. you are itching to see it all burn to the ground.

ARCS.

maybe the world should burn. rage and grief are an ugly combination, and with the path she's currently going down, i think she would be likely to meet an ugly end. if she continues to shut herself off from new relationships, sticking too rigidly to her orders from yen, her life could fall into a constant state of battle, and i don't think she's likely to be able to handle potentially massacring the people of idaho falls, not when she knows how they live, how alexei wasn't someone they chose or truly support.

listen to your heart. if she finds the courage to open up her heart here, make friends and connections that begin to fill the void left behind in farah's absence, maybe her goals will change. maybe she'll catch wind of a rebellion and fight with everything she has to give these people what they're owed: freedom. it's what farah would have wanted, and maybe suri will learn that this is the best way to honour her.

EXTRAS.

playlist.

character tag.

pinterest.

#accepted.

[ledenews]

#belmontcounty #BrookeCounty #downtownwheeling #FriendlyCity #MarshallCounty #ohiocounty #RyssingStar #Starbucks #Taqueria304 #UpperOhioValley