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steddielations · 1 year

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It's just another boring day running the store, even more boring than normal since Robin’s out sick. There’s not any kids around either, the beanbags by the bookshelves have been empty all day.

Steve’s working his shift alone. It’s all very mundane, just waiting for the clock to run out. That is, until the door flies open.

It’s just a flash of black clothing and the clinking of metal accessories as the figure suddenly barrels right over the counter. Steve shouts and immediately reaches for the nail bat— yes the nail bat— he keeps behind the register. He brandishes it menacingly as the person stands upright.

It’s a man, with crazy wild hair and even crazier eyes, widening comically at the bat and holding his hands up. He squawks at Steve.

“Whoa, hey! What is that thing?! What the hell, man!?”

“Don’t ‘what the hell’ me, I’m the one what the helling you here!” Steve snaps back.

“What!”

“Just tell me what you think you’re doing here, punk!”

Something like disbelief comes over his face, and he lowers his hands to gesture over himself, “Dude, I’m clearly a metalhead.”

“I’m gonna put some metal in your head if you don’t start talking,” Steve snarls, gripping the bat tighter.

“Okay, okay!” His hands flail, shifty eyes bugging out the front windows before he suddenly crouches down behind the counter, “Just let me hide out here for a minute, there’s— people after me that I can’t deal with right now.”

“Oh yeah, what 'people’?” Steve narrows his eyes at the expensive looking chain dangling around his neck, some kind of red pendant on it, “Did you get caught stealing from the jewelry store next door?”

Again, he gives that look, not the typical guilty look when Steve chases down the usual petty thief, he just looks like he can’t believe he’s in this situation, as if he’s not the one that hopped over the counter.

“I didn’t steal anything, alright? I just need to wait here until it’s all clear.”

“Mr. Simon is chasing you, isn’t he?” Steve groans, lowering the bat to rub his hand over his face. He hates that old jeweler, always complaining about Steve taking his parking space when he doesn’t even have a car to use it. “Christ, okay. He might have a war flashback and actually kill you, and I already have enough shit on my conscience. You got two minutes.”

“Five?”

“One and a half.”

“Okay, Jesus. Two please and I’ll let you have a picture after, whatever you want.”

Steve thinks it’s a weird thing to offer at first, then it clicks.

“Yeah, I do want a picture ‘cause your ass is going on the banned wall,” Steve points the bat to the array of photos on the back wall, right up there with the little pricks that kept asking what shelf the skin mags were on, and the asshole that was rude to Robin once.

The guy looks over and he… chuckles, “Starting to think I picked the wrong counter to hide behind.”

Steve glares when he’s met with the stranger’s smile, “You think?”

“The rainbows in the window caught my eye, thought they were pretty cool,” he gives Steve a kind, but measured look, “I’m assuming the bat is for people who don’t?”

That rocks Steve a little. The subtle touches of rainbow decorating the storefront were Robin’s idea, just a welcoming sign for those who know what it means, who need it. Which, apparently, is this guy too, dark eyes watching as Steve makes the connection.

Plus, the kind of kids that get off the bus and hang out in the beanbag corner of the bookstore, also tend to be the type that bullies flock to, but not here, Steve makes sure of that. Not with the nail bat, that’s for things more serious than school bullies.

“Is that who’s after you?” Steve asks, shooting a look out the window. His gut starts to twist in some form of empathy for the guy, it would make sense why he hurtled inside so quickly.

“No, nothing like that, but I still need to lay low for a second.”

Steve squints, empathy gone.

“Okay well, the bat is for thieves too, then. You know, Mr. Simon might be a mean old shit, but he doesn’t deserve to be stolen from. He’s got a family, dude.”

“Well, isn’t that admirable. Look, I appreciate what you’re doing here, the whole local protector, vigilante bat-man thing, it’s pretty badass,” A pun. This would-be thief really just made a damn pun about Steve’s would-be murder weapon. “But I didn’t take anything from anyone, Stevie boy.”

Pun forgotten, Steve grips the bat tighter, demanding to know, “How do you know my name?”

Another annoying smile as the guy gestures to his chest, where Steve’s name tag is. Right.

“Tell me yours,” he counters, noticing how the guy’s smile falters, looking hesitant, crouching lower, hiding. Steve sighs, “I’m not gonna go to the cops, man. Your face is going on the wall and your name is going on the list.”

This guy is just smirking way too much for someone in his situation, “Wow, I must be real special then. It’s Eddie. Eddie Munson.”

“Okay then, Munson,” Steve narrows his eyes at the necklace again, “If you didn’t take anything, then where’d you get that chain, huh?”

This Eddie looks caught off guard, his mouth already formed into some excuse that Steve cuts off.

“Just hand it over,” he flourishes the bat this time, satisfied with how Eddie looks both impressed and intimidated. His eyes stay on Steve as he removes the necklace, dark and alive with something, like he’s enjoying this somehow.

“Okay fine, easy with that thing, big boy. You can keep it for now as collateral for letting me stay.”

He passes Steve the chain, and Steve doesn’t want to fuss with his jean pockets so he just slips it over his head, Eddie’s eyes tracking where it falls around his neck. He sees it’s not a pendant like he thought, it’s a red guitar pick resting against his chest. Not Simon’s usual merchandise, but the chain definitely is, it’s expensive, Steve can tell.

“But, as good as it looks on you, I’m gonna need it back when you realize it’s not stolen.”

Annoyance. That’s the flare of heat Steve feels, it has to be, this whole exchange is getting him hot under the collar. He obviously knows Eddie’s hitting on him, not the first time he caught someone up to no good, and they clocked the rainbows and tried to flirt their way out of it. And this guy isn’t bad looking, maybe under different circumstances in a nice bar somewhere, Steve would flirt right back, but he’s not falling for it now.

He’s glad the couple minutes are up, doesn’t know why he checks out the windows to make sure it’s all clear for Eddie.

Bat still in hand, he makes Eddie stand while he fishes out the polaroid camera behind the counter.

“Don’t you want to get in the photo?” Eddie asks.

Steve’s free hand snaps to his hip, “And why would I want that?”

“Right,” Eddie grins, sticking out his tongue when Steve holds up the camera, throwing up that same hand sign that Dustin keeps making nowadays when the flash goes off. “No fun kissin’ a picture of yourself. Or, maybe it is when you look like you do.”

Steve rolls his eyes, “Playing cute with me isn’t gonna get you off the hook,” and sits the newly printed polaroid on the counter, ignoring the way his cheeks feel hot. It’s just the adrenaline coming down.

He finally puts the bat away, still watching warily as Eddie comes closer, picking up a pen and scribbling what looks to be his phone number on the photo.

“Gotta say, this was nice, Steve. I’d love to do it again sometime,” he smirks, hopping back over the counter the same way he came, “I mean it though, give me a call about that necklace. What kinda rockstar would I be without my lucky guitar pick?”

“Yeah right,” Steve snorts, “I don’t wanna catch you around here again. I never forget a face, Munson, especially not yours.”

“I’m flattered,” he pats his hand over his heart, then throws Steve a wave as he pushes open the door, “Keep that up and you can call me anytime.”

One last wink that sort of makes Steve’s chest flutter and he’s gone. It’s nothing, just some crazy guy that annoyed him half to death, and he hopes he never sees again.

When his shift ends later that evening, he goes next door to try and return the necklace to Mr. Simon, but he insists that it wasn’t stolen from his shop.

Steve’s starting to think he may have accidentally robbed someone at nail-bat-point. But it’s not possible because that’s not possible. How do you accidentally rob someone? What crime would he even be charged with? A little oopsie burglary? Ridiculous.

No, the old man is just out of his mind and doesn’t recognize his own shit. It’s the only thing that would make sense in that whole bizarre situation. Who else would Eddie have been ‘hiding’ from? Why else was it so urgent that he handed over the necklace without much fuss?

It’s not until days later when Dustin hops onto the counter that Steve really realizes.

“Steve,” Dustin says slowly, “Why am I looking at a picture of Eddie freaking Munson on the banned wall?”

Steve looks around, “That guy? You know him? I caught him stealing from Mr. Simon the other day.”

“You— He— What!? He was here?” Dustin sputters, “Steve, I’m 1000% sure he wasn’t stealing shit! What did you do to him?”

“I did my job, Henderson. I banned him from the store and got back the necklace he took— What— Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Steve.”

It’s over the course of the next conversation, getting completely chewed up and spit out by Dustin that Steve learns he didn’t just accidentally rob someone.

“STEVE.”

He accidentally robbed a world famous rockstar.

Steve spends the next few days so deeply embarrassed that he can’t even dare to pick up the phone. He gave Eddie such a hard time when all he needed was a place to hide out so he didn’t get mobbed by fans and paparazzi.

Looking back on it, knowing what he knows now, Eddie handled it with such grace. Steve’s even more ashamed, not because of the whole rockstar thing, but because it's shitty to hurl accusations and a deadly nail bat at anyone, and take their stuff on top of that.

He finally bolsters up the courage to dial the number. As soon as he hears ‘what’s up, it’s Munson’ on the other line, he lets loose a string of apologies and a promise to give the necklace back as soon as he can.

It gets cut short with that same chuckle that still gives him a warm chill even down the phone line.

“Keep it. Looks better on you,” he can hear the smile in Eddie’s voice, “But that means you’re gonna have to come to my show tonight. Can’t play without my lucky guitar pick, can I?”

#and that’s steve’s meet cute gone wrong with his rockstar boyfriend #steddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #rockstar eddie munson #steddie fic #famous eddie munson #steddie ficlet #bookstore owner steve #eddie munson headcanon #my fics #steve harrington headcanon #rueswriting #steddie headcanon #steddie fanfic #stranger things #meet cute #maybe i’ll fluff this up into a full fic at some point who knows

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whoahoney · 2 years

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The Freak’s Secret Admirer

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Summary: Reader wants to express her feelings for Eddie, except they’ve never spoken.

Content Warnings: fem!Reader, adult language, Jason Carver being a prick, sticky sweet fluff, and so much PDA.

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It started in the middle of the first semester.

She stood at her locker, her chest tight in anticipation. She repeated her cycle of glancing nervously at his locker a few down from her own and back to the small slip of paper she held out of sight behind her door.

It was a simple piece of folded up notebook paper, ‘Eddie’ was written across the front in her prettiest script, followed by a pink heart sticker, hoping that would be enough to let him know it was from an actual person. She worried he would crumple it up immediately, given all of the cruelties he’d endured in his time at Hawkins High.

Y/n had been watching the Munson boy ever since she first saw him; his personality and theatrics captivating her immediately. Soon enough she found herself looking for his face in every hallway she turned down. She noticed the way her heart felt when she’d hear his bold laughter in the cafeteria, and she absolutely adored that his locker was three down from hers.

She loved seeing him when he was alone, his beauty really shining when he wasn’t doing anything at all.

In her mind, he had no idea she existed, but that was far from the truth.

She spent a good part of her time wishing he would spare a glance in her direction, but he never did. Y/n told herself it was because she wasn’t noticeable, and that she couldn’t blame him, but she didn’t know the panic he felt in his chest when he saw her figure in his peripherals.

‘Ignore it and it’ll go away.’ he’d think, the thought of another unrequited crush absolutely unbearable.

At the beginning of the second semester when they were at their lockers, pretending to not notice one another, it happened. They both shared the thought of sneaking a glance at the same time and when they made eye contact, she smiled at him. Eddie couldn’t help but return it, which made the pounding in her chest intensify.

‘Okay, okay, that’s enough, freak.’ The unfriendly voice echoed in his head. He snatched his attention back to the inside of his locker with a shy grimace and shut his door to hurry to Spanish class.

Her heart sank as she watched him withdrawal, wondering if it was her fault. That’s when she got her brilliant idea.

Which brings us back to this morning.

She hadn't seen any sign of Eddie yet and knew this would be her prime chance to deposit her note through the slot of his locker.

‘Every second that goes by is a second closer he gets to showing up.’ She reminded herself.

Y/n took a breath and looked over both shoulders before stepping over. She knew it was his immediately by the etched ‘FREAK’ below the number at the top, which made the corner of her mouth tug downward in a disappointed frown. She quickly slid the note through and jumped away, checking her surroundings again.

She sighed in relief at the sight of the still empty hallway, students still trickling in from the arriving buses.

“Absolutely not, Emerson, how could you possibly think that of me?!” Eddie’s voice echoed in feigned offense down the hall from a short distance. Y/n debated on fleeing or sticking around to see how he reacted to the note and prayed to the powers that be that he’d be alone when he read it.

Before she could make a run for it, Eddie rounded the corner with his friend Gareth, shooting the shit and laughing the whole trip down the hall, the sight made Y/n weak in the knees.

“Save me a seat?” Eddie asked Gareth as he departed from their route to their first class. Gareth shot him a thumbs up and disappeared through the door at the end of the hall.

Eddie spared Y/n a glance as he stepped up to his locker, admiring the way she chose to style her hair with accent braids. It made him think of Lord of the Rings and the elves he’s imagined from DnD, he thought of this as he dialed his combination in the lock and swung his locker open, his thoughts interrupted as he was greeted with a fluttering note landing with a thump down by his feet.

He didn’t think anything of it at first, receiving notes about meeting up for sales after school was a normal thing, but notes of business never had his name written with a heart beside it. The sight made his stomach plummet into his ass and his heart rise into his throat. This could either be good or bad.

Y/n watched on, Eddie too focused on her note to feel her stare. He unfolded it with a hard swallow and deep breath.

‘Before you throw this out, I wanted you to know that your antics are the highlight of my day. I kinda have a crush on you... I hope you have a good one ❤️‘

Eddie stood with his mouth ajar, absolutely dumbstruck at the three sentences in front of him.

‘Is this English? I’m reading this right, right??’ He wondered, bringing the note closer and then farther away, flipping it over in his hands a few times before folding it back up to view his name again.

No sender, of course. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. The note itself seemed genuine, the feeling it caused in his stomach was evident of the way it flattered him. But he so deeply feared that it was too good to be true.

It wouldn’t have been the first time he received a fake love note before, but it had been a while. Maybe he was due for another. Defeated, he sighed and shoved the note in his back pocket as he shut his locker and rushed to class. Y/n noticed the stiff expression he wore behind his blushing cheeks.

She felt a sense of accomplishment along with the nagging sensation that she was going to have to send a few more notes before he took her seriously.

The next morning, Eddie got to his locker before Y/n was able to, which made her job harder. Eddie would be lying if he said he wasn’t bummed that he wasn’t met by another note when he arrived, but he shrugged it off, knowing it was too good to be true.

Y/n kept her head down as she spun the green combination dial, not bothering to look up until she heard the sounds of Eddie’s friends at the other end of the hall. “Ed! Dude, you gotta come see this, the new freshman drew my tiefling!”

Eddie perked up at this, shutting his locker and running to catch up with the group that stepped just out of sight. Y/n rushed to open her notebook to a clean page and snatch up a pink pen from her cup in her door.

She jotted the short sentiment down, ripping out the page and folding it as she had the day before, printing his name and heart on the front.

The Hellfire Club’s antics were audible, some of the boys visible from around the corner. She kept her eyes on the doorway, preparing for the sight of his curly hair or white reeboks catching her in the act, or one of his faithful freshman pointing her out.

But what was the point of the notes if she didn’t want to be known? She couldn’t answer that question. She did want him to know it was her, but she feared rejection almost as badly as he did.

She shoved the note into the slot quickly and promptly turned on her heel to go the opposite direction, but not before Mike Wheeler caught a glimpse of dainty hands flying away from Eddie’s locker, and a head of hair whipping back around to disappear within the chaos of students.

The Wheeler boy chalked it up to another business transaction and dropped the matter immediately, though something felt off. “Wheeler, tell your boy Byers to come sit with Hellfire at lunch today, we’ve gotta greet our new member properly!” Eddie said pointedly as he clutched the paper depicting the horned creature of Gareth’s imagination. Mike lit up at this, taking the paper back from Eddie’s grasp as he went back to his locker.

Eddie wore a small content smile as he opened his locker again, but the note falling down in front of him wiped it from his face instantly. Again, he looked around him for any suspects that could be watching from a distances for shits and giggles.

To his delight, he didn’t spot anyone looking on in amusement, which allowed him to inspect the note closer. He flipped it over in his hands, spotting the similar style his name was scribbled in. He gave a quiet snort, the rushed handwriting tugged at his heart strings.

He dragged his index finger across the letters that made up his name, stopping at the pink heart beside it. Maybe it wasn’t too good to be true.

He unfolded it slowly, holding it inside of his locker to prevent any basketball douchebags from snatching it and using it against him.

‘Good morning, cutie! I hope Hawkins High is kind to you today. ❤️‘

This note had a bit more of an effect on him than the first one did, this one feeling more… real. He fought the urge to smile into his blush and press his lips to the heart she left him on the page, settling for keeping it in his pocket until he could slip it into his wallet unseen later.

The note kept grabbing his attention throughout the day, making concentrating on his work a smidge harder than usual. When he’d slip away to the bathroom now and then he’d find himself getting the note back out to read it again.

‘I hope Hawkins High is kind to you today.’ Made his heart do tricks he didn’t know it could do. He wanted to find the culprit, but he couldn’t say he was in a rush to do so.

He wanted this feeling to last as long as it could.

Y/n walked down the hall during a bathroom break when she noticed Eddie leaving the boys room, the note she wrote him curled in his hand as he stared down at it.

‘He likes it, he likes my note.’ She celebrated internally. Eddie’s gaze met hers, quickly shoving away the note in his pocket with a blank expression falling across his features and hurrying past.

Y/n smiled to herself as she entered the bathroom, excited to write him more.

The next day, Eddie planned to get to school as early as he could. Before bed he sat with the notes he’d received thus far, a soft smile plastered on his lips as he traced the creases in the paper from how many times he opened and refolded them.

He ran his finger over the indentions of the letters the pen left when the sender wrote his name. He folded them back up and stuck them under his pillow, hoping to find another note in the morning.

Sadly, Eddie’s plans to make it to school early were foiled from the moment he opened his eyes. Instead of his alarm going off, he was met with a stream of water hitting him in the face. He bolted upright in his bed, taking notice of the two other leaks in his room and the lack of power.

“Shit!” He realized the electricity cut off was today and he forgot to mail the check to the electric company last week. Eddie ran to the kitchen, seeking the seal tape for events such as these.

After temporarily fixing the problem, he only had 15 minutes to get ready and to the school. “Jesus H Fucking Christ.” He mumbled to himself.

He tried his best to not speed, praying he wouldn’t catch a fine for trying to get to school. Luckily, he made it unscathed, having time to catch the closing door of his first hour class.

Eddie was eager to get to his locker before the second period of the day, dialing his combination with his fingers quaking.

Y/n took the route to class that passed her locker and noticed Eddie in a rush to open his. She noticed the lack of his presence that morning and worried he may not show.

Eddie’s locker door flew open, and before Y/n was all the way past him, she swore she saw him grin at the note he caught with an expectant hand.

‘I’m persistent, what can I say? 🥰 I hope something good happens to you today.

P.S. I think you’re cute 🦋’

Eddie felt the fluttering in his chest and suddenly felt warmer. He quickly folded the note and placed it in his pocket, shutting his locker with a satisfied smile on his lips.

Y/n loved how she felt when she saw Eddie get happy from the notes she sent. She knew it wasn’t the same as if he knew who was sending them but knowing she made his day a little brighter made hers brighter too.

Y/n anxiously stood by her locker, looking around for any sign of the boy she admired. She sighed, relieved and opened her notebook to write him a new note.

‘Should I get more flirty? Can I be flirty?’ She wondered, shifting from one foot to the other and flipping the pen around her middle and index fingers.

‘Good morning ❤️ Did you know you make me laugh almost every day? Well you do. You also do a great job of making my heart beat faster every time I see you. Maybe sometime I’ll have that same effect on you.

I hope you have a good one ⭐️‘

She smiled as she placed the star sticker at the end of the sentence and ripped the page from the book. She folded it once before a familiar sleeved arm had shot over her shoulder to hit his hand against the locker beside her with a slam, “Bah!” He exclaimed, making her jump and turn around. While she was stunned, Jason took the opportunity to snatch the paper.

“Jason, please give it back,” Y/n quietly pleaded, her hand outstretched. Eddie stood at the edge of the scene, as a few other students gathered to look on, which made Y/n want to puke.

Eddie watched as her face began to turn red with panic and humiliation, knowing exactly how it felt to be in her shoes. Everything in him wanted to get involved except for the small part that still feared getting his ass beat by Jason and his friends yet again—but this time it would be in front of his crush.

“Aww, please give it back!” Andy shrilled mockingly. Y/n’s chest began to quiver with her shaking breaths. She tried to remember if she wrote his name in the note anywhere or if she wrote his name right on top.

“I-It’s my homework for—“

“That’s sweet but homework doesn’t have cute little stickers on it,” Jason began unfolding the paper and only glanced down at it before Chrissy’s enraged hand snatched it from him and handed it to back Y/n.

“Jason, what the hell is wrong with you? Like truly, how many times do you have to be reminded to not be an asshole? We’re done, for good.” She charged through the crowded hallway, putting distance between her and her now ex boyfriend before he could cry, “Chrissy wait, just hear me out, baby.” and take off after her.

Eddie’s eyes stayed on Y/n, who crumpled the paper in her hand and willed the tears in her eyes to go away. She slammed her locker closed and slung her bag over her shoulder, dropping the now ruined note into the trash can at the end of the hall on her way past, which Eddie was determined to retrieve.

‘Cute little stickers, huh?’ He wondered.

After a few moments, Eddie walked at an easy pace to seem nonchalant, when on the inside he wanted to sprint to the bin and dump it out to ravage through its contents.

When he reached the end of the hall, he looked over his shoulder to see how many people were about to watch the freak go through the trash, and luckily no one was paying him any mind.

The wadded paper sat on top unharmed, which made him want to pump his fist in celebration already. He reached in and snatched the note swiftly, walking towards his next class and flattening the note.

His heart about exploded when he saw the familiar roundness of her letters, but most of all, the stickers. He ducked into the bathroom to mull it all over privately.

‘Did you know you make me laugh almost every day? Well you do.’ He laughed softly and lovingly ran his fingers over the page, as if it were a physical extension of herself.

‘You also do a great job of making my heart beat faster every time I see you. Maybe sometime I’ll have that same effect on you.’ His breath caught in his throat, “Oh, sweetheart, you already do.” He mumbled.

‘I hope you have a good one ⭐️‘ He finished softly, sighing contently. Eddie cut his class; using the time to figure out how and when exactly he’d confess his love, and maybe smoke a joint, but he did know for one thing for certain; he wanted at least one more note.

Y/n did her best to forget about the incident with Jason, convincing herself that Chrissy intervened early enough before any real damage could be done.

She sat in the library for study hall with a few others in her class. Each person had a table to themselves, others—like Gareth, perused the aisles looking for something interesting to read.

After she finished her chemistry paper, she set about writing a new note. She took her sticker sheet out from her notebook pocket and found a clean page.

She began writing and unbeknownst to her, Gareth could see her sticker sheet through the gap in the books from the other side of the shelf. He gasped, recognizing the stars and hearts that graced the notes Eddie received for the last week or so. He knew of his friends crush on the girl, and knew how ecstatic Eddie would be if she ended up being his admirer, which lead him to try to get a look at her paper.

He tried his best to see what she wrote or at least what her handwriting looked like, though he couldn’t because she ended up leaning her head over on her hand, blocking his view entirely.

The boy sighed and ran a hand through his fluffy hair, deciding he needed to come up with a better strategy.

Was this idea better? No.

Was it effective? Yes, absolutely.

Was it also creepy? Completely.

Gareth decided to follow Y/n the best he could after she left study hall, hoping she’d choose to drop the note in Eddie’s locker soon so he could stop feeling so weird.

His prayers were answered when he saw her walk past her locker, which made him hang back around the corner for a second before she could look back at him. He peeked his head around and saw her reaching up to slide it in through the slot. He approached her hastily, wanting to catch her as discreetly as possible.

“What are you doing?” Gareth asked from behind her. Y/n jerked her hand away from the locker before she could deposit the paper and turned to face him. “Nothing, what are you doing?”

Gareth rolled his eyes and nodded at her hidden hands. “What’s that?” He asked.

“Oh, I just wanted to…buy drugs.”

“Liar.”

“Why’s that so hard to believe?”

“Because people who buy drugs don’t tell people they’re buying drugs.” Gareth shook his head in amusement.

‘Fuck.’

"You're the one sending the love notes, I already figured it out, you can stop trying to lie, really, it's sad." Gareth said with amused pity.

“Okay, you can’t say anything to him, not yet at least. I wanna send more before he figures out it’s me. I’m not sure how he’ll react.” She said.

“What? They’re the best part of his day, he’d be thrilled to find out who you are.”

“He barely even knows I exist, and I don’t even know what my end goal is with all of this, okay? I just—not right now, please.” She grabbed Gareth’s arm before he could walk away.

Gareth looked back at the girl, taking a deep breath and surveyed her eyes that pleaded for his cooperation. “Do you really like him?” He clarified, Y/n looked at her shoes and nodded reluctantly, “I really really do.”

“Alright, your secret’s safe with me,” Gareth whispered earnestly.

“Really?” She asked.

“But you’re gonna have to tell him someday. You can’t live in secrecy forever, it isn’t fair to either one of you.” Gareth said, shrugging his shoulders. He nodded at the locker, “You better put it in before the bell rings, I’ll keep watch.”

Y/n turned with a nod in agreement, ridding herself of the note quickly as if she were sending it in the mail. “Thank you, Gareth.” She said.

He smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders, “Thanks for making him feel special and shit. He won’t admit it but I know he’s kept them all.” He flashed another smile and left for good this time, leaving Y/n with a renewed sense of hope.

‘Maybe my chances with Eddie Munson aren’t so slim after all.’

Eddie huffed as he picked up the lock that hung from his the latch of his locker. He dialed the combination, ignoring some shoves on his back from passing assholes like Jason Carver. Eddie swung the door open, the note he’d been expecting this morning falling down. His heart leapt from his chest when he heard the familiar thump on the ground.

‘She wrote me a new note even after this morning.’ He beamed as he reached down quickly to snatch it from the floor.

‘🦋I love seeing how happy you get when you’re with your friends, your smile is my favorite💗’

He smiled at the compliment, bringing his fingers to his mouth to trace his lips. He read the note three more times. ‘your smile is my favorite’ lingered in his mind.

He sighed, pressing a kiss to the paper and shoving it into his back pocket to open his own notebook, and decided he would drop her a note himself, excited to play her at her own game.

The next day, during her third hour study hall, Y/n worked on her love notes in the library. She had her sticker sheet out and her colorful pens scattered across the table, hoping to make them all look like they weren’t written in one sitting.

‘Me again! I hope these don’t get annoying. Anyway, you know the drill. I think you’re the cutest boy in Hawkins ❤️ Have a good day!‘

‘I had a dream about you the other night, and if I’m being honest, I didn’t want to wake up. Maybe I could show you how it went sometime 💗’

She shook her head at herself for that one. She worried he’d think she’s some sort of deviant, but she was hoping it would excite him.

‘Have you figured me out yet? Or am I just that good?’

‘Thinking of you way more than I should be. ❤️‘

‘I hope you see something beautiful today🤍⭐️‘

She shoved the rest of the notes in her back pack pocket, using the last 15 minutes in the library to sneak out and deliver a note before the class change.

Little did Y/n know, Eddie had the same idea.

He held his slip of paper tight in his hand as he walked down the hallway a few minutes before the bell rang. He’d never spent this much time perfecting something he wrote, except maybe a song.

Before he could arrive at her locker, Eddie saw Y/n walking from the opposite direction, looking at her feet the whole trip. Eddie ducked into the bathroom, the zippers and contents of his bag jingling with every stride.

Y/n didn’t hesitate when dropping the new note into his locker. She loved the familiar warmth spreading through her chest at the prospect of making him smile.

The bell rang and she walked further down the hall, intending to look like she just showed up when she would eventually come around the other way while he needed to change his books.

Eddie walked out of the bathroom, noticing her absence and went ahead and opened his locker, his heart leapt at the sound of the note falling down for him. He didn’t even bother controlling his wide grin as he unfolded it hastily and read.

‘I hope you see something beautiful today🤍⭐️‘

Eddie’s heart melted yet further solidified his need to make her feel the same way she’s made him feel. As the hall emptied of students, he took his opportunity to open up the note he’d written for her to add something in at the bottom:

‘I hope you know you have been the most beautiful part of my day for a while now, the notes just made it better.’

He hurriedly folded the note back the way he had it and stuffed it in the slot before she could turn the corner. By the time she had made it back to her locker, Eddie was switching books out of his bag.

He saw Y/n begin to unlock her own from the corner of his eye. When he heard her door swing open, and the familiar sound of a folded note hitting the ground, he looked to her face to gauge her reaction.

Y/n’s heart lurched into her throat and her body felt rigid at the sight of the paper on the floor in front of her. Eddie bit his lip and shut his locker door, turning to confront his feelings.

She looked to him, her heart stopping at his full attention set on her for the first time.

“Go on, open it.” He uttered, anticipation in his eyes. Y/n nodded and cautiously picked up the note, turning it over in her hands to view her name with a heart drawn beside it. The sight made the corners of her mouth turn up, though she suppressed it out of habit.

Eddie took a hesitant step closer to her, unable to contain himself. She took a grounding breath and unfolded it.

‘There’s nothing I’ve wanted more than for you to notice me, let alone make a grand gesture of your affection like you have. No one has ever made me feel so special before. I’ve wanted to know you since I saw you on your first day wearing a Sabbath shirt and flowery skirt. Every day since then I’ve liked seeing what you wear and how you do your hair, especially with braids.’

Y/n tried to pace her breathing, the whole situation feeling too good to be true.

‘I’ve thought you were the cutest girl in Hawkins ever since’ Her heart dropped at the callback to one of her previous notes.

‘I hope you know you have been the most beautiful part of my day for a while now, the notes just made it better.’ Y/n couldn’t help her gaping and dumbstruck smile. Her eyes were locked on the paper in front of her, almost forgetting about the boy standing a short distance away.

He wore a smug smile at her wide eyes and heaving chest as he stepped closer in the empty hall, messing with his lips nervously.

“Hey, there.” He smiled, unable to look away from her. “Hi.” She whispered, unabashedly looking into his deep brown eyes. “You, uh, you got my note, huh?” He asked.

Y/n looked to the note in her hands and then back at him, “Mhm, I have.” She mumbled, a smile working its way onto her face.

Eddie nodded, his eyes glimmering for her. “Uh, nice handwriting by the way,” He held up her note in his fingers ,”And the stickers? They really are cute.” He said, pressing it to his heart as he looked her over.

“I-I thought you’d like them. I hoped you would, anyway.” She shrugged and quickly looked back to the ground as she felt her neck heating up. “Y’know you’ve really made me feel like the cutest boy in Hawkins?” He smiled, a light pink dusted his cheeks at the sentiment she’d written him.

The color drained from her face, suddenly embarrassed. “Oh, god,” she let out a nervous giggle as she hid her eyes behind her hands.

“No, no, no, come back!” Eddie teased quietly, reaching out and gently bringing her hands away from her face. “I mean it! Can I, uh, can I give—you know what, c’mere.” He said as he pulled her in for a tight hug, his head resting comfortably against hers. Y/n felt as if her heart could burst taking in his woodsy scent mixed with cigarettes and cologne.

“You’ve gotta know I’m pretty crazy about you, like, you being the sender only felt possible in my dreams—for a while it felt like a prank, but it’s really happening, you’re right here and it’s crazy… Thank you, sweetheart, truly.” He trailed off and kissed her on top of the head after a moment.

“I-I had no idea, I didn’t think you noticed me until last week, Eddie.” She said in a daze, her arms in loose embrace around him as she struggled to stay standing.

“You said my name, holy shit.“ He shook his head, an attempt at focusing on the current topic. “Sorry, sorry, you really thought I didn’t notice you? Seriously?! You’re gorgeous, babe, really, how could anyone go without noticing you?” He held her at arms length, gesturing to her entire being when he spoke of her.

Y/n’s eyes glossed as he gushed over her like it was second nature, and to Eddie it really was. Except now, he was allowed to spill his thoughts to the object of his desires instead of his friends. “Come with me, please?” Eddie pleaded as he shut her locker door and picked up her bag.

Y/n’s cheeks heated up at the prospect of ditching class. “C’mon, you’re always where you’re supposed to be, you won’t miss a lot today, I promise! Scout's honor.” Eddie held his hand up sacredly, knowing damn well his father never signed him up to be a scout of any variety.

“How could I say no to the cutest boy in Hawkins?” She smiled and followed after him to the parking lot. “That’s what I like to hear, sweet thing.” Eddie said lovingly, feeling as though she’d been his forever.

The nicknames and attention brought Y/n’s heartbeat up much higher than she ever thought possible, yet she’d never felt lighter. Eddie lead her to his van, quickly unlocking the back doors and guiding her inside. “Here you are, m’lady.” He said with an accent and a helping hand awaiting her.

Y/n shook her head as she stepped inside, Eddie quickly following after. “Make yourself at home.” he encouraged, getting comfy stretched out on his side. Y/n sat next to his upper half and held her focus on hands in her lap with her back against the wall.

There was silence, though Y/n couldn’t tell if it was uncomfortable or not. Before she could find anything to say, Eddie spoke first.

“I hope you know I meant it. When I said your notes have been the best part of my day since the first one, but, uh, seeing you in between classes… I‘ve looked forward to those moments every day for a long time… I can fit all of my books in my bag if I want to, you know? I just grab one or two at a time to up my chances of seeing you. Is that weird?” He asked as if he hadn’t already lured her into his van. Y/n shook her head vehemently, her eyes wide with need.

Eddie softened at her understanding and gently took her hand in his, “I just can’t believe you saw me.” He whispered, playing with her fingers as he spoke so vulnerably to the girl he’d spoken to for only the first time.

Y/n’s heart pounded in her ears as her internal monologue screamed at her to be daring, that she has the green light, that the boy she’s so down bad for has had feelings for her, so she should shoot her shot and make her move!

To test the waters she pressed his hand to her cheek, the warmth and plush of his palm was inviting and the perfect cradle for her face. He drew loving circles with his thumb on her cheekbone, hoping his next move wasn’t too forward.

Eddie leaned in slowly, giving her the opportunity to back away or say something, but instead she leaned into him, placing her other hand at the nape of his neck to pull him close.

The pair let out moans of relief as their lips crashed together. They moved against each other hungrily, not bothering to hold back any longer. Eddie found his way up to his knees, using both of his hands to hold her jaw.

When they’d pull away it was a mixture of moans, gasps, and short exchanges.

“You’re so soft,”

“I love your hands, want them everywhere,”

“Is this okay?”

Eddie had pulled Y/n over his lap and looked up at her before resuming. She caught her breath and pushed a couple loose strands away from his face before smiling down at him and nodding. “Things feel so easy with you, can’t believe I didn’t talk to you sooner.” She shook her head in disbelief before brushing her nose against his, which gave him butterflies.

“Can I take you out? I wanna do this right, I wanna take you everywhere, anywhere! Anywhere you wanna go, whatever you wanna do, I’ll make it happen. What do you say, sweetheart?” Eddie whispered, looking back down at her lips hungrily.

“Oh, I’ll go out with you, that’s not even up for discussion, Munson,” She teased, her smile tugging on his heart strings. “But as for location…” She leaned up, seemingly in thought while Eddie anxiously awaited her answer.

“You could take me to the nearest gas station and buy a bag of chips and a can of coke to split and I’d call it the best first date I’ve ever been on because you’re so special, Eddie.” She said softly. Eddie chuckled in disbelief.

“No, really. Out of all the guys in Hawkins I knew I’d feel the safest with you, yet, every time I thought about talking to you I felt like I was going to throw up. But now that I have it’s, like, the easiest thing ever.” Eddie felt a swell of emotions over take him. He couldn’t believe he was here in the arms of the girl he so deeply admired, listening to her call him special and safe.

Before he had the chance to say anything to try to match how wonderful she made him feel, she leaned down and engulfed his lips in a slow and passionate kiss. Her hands slid back into his hair, barely tugging at the roots of his unruly curls.

She could feel him smile into the kiss, his hands sliding from her back down to her thighs, stealing a quiet gasp from her when he paused to softly squeeze her ass on his way.

He stroked her thighs up and down, the denim separating him from the soft flesh he desperately wished to touch and squeeze. He adored the sounds their lips made together, and he craved to hear the other pretty sounds she made.

Eddie pulled away only enough to graze his lips down her jaw and neck, stopping where her neck meets her shoulder. He nipped at the skin softly, not hard enough to leave a mark but enough to send a burst of surprise to her tummy. “Oh…” she quietly reveled in the tingling sensation he sent through her with his teeth and tongue.

“Eddie… shit… w-we gotta stop.” She said dejectedly. Eddie ripped his lips from her with a wet smack, his eyes wide in panic. Had he done something wrong? Did she change her mind?

“Oh, no, honey, I don’t wanna stop, believe me,” She said when she noticed his worry. “But I can’t let myself go any further until we go get that bag of chips. We could continue this after, though, if—you know, the gas station run goes well.” She fiddled with his collar as she spoke, her last addition making him throw his head back and laugh, taking her hand in his and pressing a kiss to the back before looking back up at her lovingly.

“I’ll do anything for you, angel. But I won’t split a bag of chips with you, not on the first date at least, that’s something we’ll save for when we’re out of the honeymoon phase and broke. Today, my girl will be dining on the finest pizza in all of Hawkins, Indiana!” Eddie proclaimed as if he wasn’t referring to dominos.

But to Y/n it was the best pizzeria, and no other pepperoni pizza would be able to top the one he bought for her on that chilly spring day, huddled close under a blanket with the back doors open to face the lovely misty views of the quarry and wildflower fields.

Eddie couldn’t help but admire her as they ate in comfortable silence, the radio buzzing in the background as they chewed. A bit of sauce sat at the edge of his mouth, to which she reached out and wiped with her finger.

He turned his head to her instantly as she took her hand away and licked it from her thumb. “Sorry, I should’ve—,” she began to apologize, but before she could, he silenced her with a tender kiss to her lips. “Never apologize for touching me, ever.” He pulled back to whisper with a chuff smile on his lips.

Y/n nodded, the embarrassment melting from her body as he pressed kisses to her cheeks, forehead, nose, anywhere besides her lips. Giggles spilled from her mouth and Eddie discovered quickly it was his new favorite sound. While she was off guard, he pulled her into his lap.

“Y’know, being with a guy like me isn’t easy.” He said ominously, yet both joking and serious. “Oh is that so?” Y/n quipped as she settled between his legs, against his chest and picked up his hand to hold.

Eddie nodded, a permanent soft smile plastered to his face no matter how many times he tried to relax from his cheeks hurting. “Oh yeah, aside from the shit people will talk, I’m a needy guy, baby.” He shrugged his shoulders and looked back down at her adoring gaze waiting for him with her head tilted back against his shoulder.

“Try me, Munson.” She giggled as he kissed her head and picked up her slice to hand back to her.

“Let’s see… I like holding hands. And thighs, god, I love ‘em,” he paused to reach down and squeeze the underside of her leg and bury his face in the crook of her neck.

“Eddie!” She yelled through uncontrollable giggles. He took mercy on her and continued his list, counting off on his fingers. “I’m talking belly rubs, back rubs, head pats and scratches, and please feel free to play with my hair at your own discretion, you don’t ever have to ask. I like kisses, any and all are acceptable, really, please don’t be shy, sweet girl. I love— shit, I just love touch, but no one else needs to know that, capice?” Eddie emphasized his words by pressing his nose into the side of her cheek and leaving a chaste kiss there. Y/n nodded, “Your secrets safe with me, I swear!”

“And I’m just gonna go ahead and say now that if I’m...too much…you can tell me, I won’t get upset, I just know that not everyone wants that all the time, and I would never wanna—“

She tossed the pizza to the box with a flop, turning around to face him, sincerity written in her eyes. Eddies face lit up at the sight and was still taken off guard as she pushed her lips against his. She sat as she did earlier, straddling his waist. Eddie melted at her touch when she buried her fingers in his roots on one side and traced his chin and jaw with her other.

She pulled away to to look at him, though still kept him close with her embrace. “Thank you for saying that...I’m usually one of those people, and can’t take a lot of touch, but, I don’t know… you just..make me feel so comfortable.. I can’t, I've never wanted to touch someone so bad,” she averted her eyes sheepishly but Eddie only leaned into her touch to encourage her to continue. “But if I ever need space I promise to let you know as kindly as possible. My personal space issues aren’t your problem. You aren’t too much, Eddie. Ever.” She nodded and he returned it in confirmation.

“Tell me more about these standards,” she leaned back and grabbed him a drink, “Do you like being the big spoon or the little spoon?” She asked as she opened the cold can of coke and handed it to him.

Eddie blushed at the small action and took a sip, “I like both, I don’t discriminate! I love to hold and be held, you know?” He set the can down and circled his arms around her until they were flush against one another. Y/n only smiled and wrapped her arms around him in response.

Eddie took this opportunity to tilt his head down to be greeted with a face full of her cleavage, his nose and lips grazing the soft skin and breathing in her scent. He resisted the urge to shove his face in between them and revel, until Y/n set an encouraging hand against the back of his head easing him exactly where he wanted to be.

Eddie let out a sigh of relief only squeezing her tighter in his arms as slowly shook his head side to side and left a couple soft kisses across her chest, keeping the hot and heavy stuff for another time.

Right now he knew he had limited time. Eddie looked back up at her warm smile, flushed cheeks, and wide eyes.

“I wanna make you happy.” He whispered seriously, the smile finally fading from his face at the thought of his perfect day ending. Y/n scrunched her brow at the sudden shift in demeanor.

“Eddie...” She started, playing with his hair to soothe him. “You’ve brought me… joy ever since I saw you walking on the lunch table to yell at Andy Bauman in the cafeteria my first day of school. And then every day since just by being you. I’m not hard to please, I don’t need things from you, but I do need your respect, attention, and honesty, do you think I can have that?” She whispered tentatively.

Eddies heart melted further at her openness and nodded eagerly. “I want to do this right. I don’t want games. I want something real. With you.” She whispered, leaning her forehead against his to soak in the moment. Eddie slid his hand up to the back of her neck to tangle his fingers in her hair, using his other hand to move the rest away from her face on the other side.

He looked over every detail he possibly could, wanting to remember exactly how her skin felt, how the air smelled, the lovesick way she looked at him; the same way he looked at her.

“I can absolutely give you those things. And more. I can give you my trust, my admiration, my devotion, my...” His eyes searched for an answer in the air before a troublemaking smile crossed his lips, “body?” He smirked as she laughed at his answer.

“Those are all perfect, and you can expect the same from me, okay?” She asked sweetly. “Ooh, the same?” He joked, raising his eyebrows teasingly.

Y/n giggled and rolled her eyes even though her answer was “the same.” With a nod of finality.

Eddie took no hesitation and pressed the first of a million kisses to come to her lips.

Eddie and Y/n stayed out til the moon was high and full in the sky, the two feeling inseparable. When he eventually took her home, they lingered in the van parked by the curb.

“When I say this, I want you to know I really mean it,” Eddie said quietly with her hands in his. He focused on her bare nails as he ran his thumb over her knuckles. Y/n urged him to continue with a small nod, her eyes intently locked on his.

“Today was the best day of my life.” He smiled sheepishly.

“Mine too, Eddie.” She said. He smiled, letting go of one of her hands to reach for her cheek, bringing her in for what was supposed to be one more quick kiss.

One turned into two and then three more, smiles unmoving from their faces. “Walk with me?” She asked, her eyes flickering to the porch light. Eddie smiled and nodded, hurriedly getting out of his side to rush around the car in time to help her out, which made her chuckle.

“Y’know, you remind me of a puppy.” Y/n said as he swung their hands between them. Eddie sported an incredulous smile at the comparison. “A puppy, huh? How so?” He asked.

“Hmm,” she examined his face in thought, coming to a stop at her stoop. “I look at you and feel similar to how I feel when I see a cute puppy, you know? You’re playful, and sweet, you bite to show affection… You even said it yourself, you like belly rubs! Head pats? And those eyes?? C’mon, you’re the human embodiment of a puppy!” Y/n increasingly gets more excited as she comes up with more reasons to back up her claim.

“If this is your way of asking me to be your puppy, I’m so down.” he joked, giving her hand a squeeze.

Y/n couldn't help but smile before she checked her watch, 2 minutes to curfew. “I gotta get in there, but I’ll see you at school, yeah?” She said quietly. Eddie continued to beam at her as he nodded, bringing her in for one last tender kiss.

She stepped back to open the front door, turning to say, “Goodnight, puppy.” before she closed the door, leaving an awestruck Eddie stuck on her porch.

Y/n and Eddie tried to get to school as quickly as possible, but also took their time in getting ready to see one another.

Y/n added a couple of braids in her hair, letting the rest go in loose curls. She spent more time on her makeup than usual, used her favorite perfume, and wore a similar outfit to the one Eddie described in his note, though this skirt was shorter and tighter.

Eddie stayed in front of the mirror longer than he should’ve, trying to make his hair look effortlessly tousled without too much frizz, which he accomplished but not without losing an extra ten minutes he could’ve already used to be at school.

Eddie arrived first, a triumphant smile on his face when he fished out his note book from his bag and ripped out a new page. He grabbed his one blue ink pen and ripped the cap off with his teeth.

Eddie pressed the page against his locker, trying his best to make the writing legible.

He folded the note with haste, taking care to write her name and add both a heart and butterfly doodles around it before shoving it in her locker.

Eddie spun around and side stepped to his locker to do his usual routine of waiting around until she showed up.

In no time, there she was, a vision in a mini skirt and doc martens. His heart started pounding when he saw her grin appear as she made eye contact with him.

Eddies eyes grew wide in excitement, holding his arms outstretched for her to run into them. Y/n noticed his waiting embrace and sped up to an eager jog. When she met him, she reached up on her tip toes to throw her arms around his neck and pull him close as he did her.

“Good morning, gorgeous.” He mumbled into her hair, breathing in the sweet and alluring scent of her perfume that she sometimes wore. Eddie had smelled this on her before but only from a distance, today he got to bury his face into it and revel.

Y/n laughed as he nuzzled his nose into that spot he loved on her neck. She reached up to stroke the back of his head with her fingernails. “See? Total puppy.”

Eddie blushed and pulled back, taking one of her hands in his so he could get a good look at her outfit of the day. He let out an impressed whistle as he raised their hands for her to twirl under. “You look absolutely divine this morning. Really, sweetheart, are you trying to kill me?” He placed a hand over his heart as she looked to her shoes with a blush.

Eddie loved the effect he had on her, making her blush was always a win in his book. He wanted to flatter her until she was a cherry tomato. Y/n took off her back pack, moving to set it on the ground in front of her when Eddie picked it up to hold for her as she exchanged books. “Well aren’t you sweet?” She said quietly as she tried to remember her combination.

Eddies fingers anxiously drummed on the handle of her bag he held. When the door swung open, she almost missed the sound of the note hitting her foot. Y/n’s eyes snapped to his, observing the guilty and mischievous glint in his eye as he shrugged his shoulders. “Go, on open it.” He said, nodding to the note with a pleased smirk. Y/n tried to keep her breath steady as she unfolded the last note.

‘Can I call you my girlfriend?💙

Yes or No’

Y/n kept a good poker face as she stared at the note, wanting to make Eddie sweat a bit. “Hmm,” She asked, pressing the note to her chest as if it were private, fumbling with the pen cup on the locker door that separates them.

Eddie tried to keep his cool but when she looked so serious in front of him and took seconds longer than she should’ve needed to circle an answer, he started to fidget. Y/n sat back with an amused smile twitching at her lips.

Eddie took a subtle but deep breath, suddenly nervous as if the whole day together hadn’t been of any encouragement. He watched on as she scribbled something on the paper and circled an answer, folding it back up and promptly handing it back to him.

Eddie swallowed hard and unfolded the note as she waited patiently. He looked down at the answer section of the note, chuckling when he saw she wrote ‘Hell’ above ‘Yes’, a bold heart around the two.

Eddie’s eyes darted back up to her, his smile almost maniacal as he dropped her bag and shut her door to press wet kisses to her lips and face as she giggled the whole time and tried to keep up. “Eddie! That tickles!” She squeaked though the laughter Eddie delighted in so much.

“I’m so sorry,” He said before resuming his kisses sporadically, backing her up against the locker. “It’s just,” he placed another kiss on her cheek, pushing her hair away from her face and burying his fingers in it behind her neck to keep her close, her fingers stroked his wrists adoringly.

“when it comes to my girlfriend,” he pressed a kiss to her nose and then rubbed it with his own, back and forth, before continuing, “I can’t help myself, especially when she looks this pretty on a daily basis.” He gazed adoringly into her eyes.

“Wow, she sounds great.” She quipped, which made Eddie roll his eyes. “She is..She’s such a dream. Funny, smart, reads good books, cunning, and irresistible, like when she looks at me the way she is right now...” His voice dropped to an earnest whisper, watching as she looked from his eyes to his lips.

Y/n ran her tongue over her bottom lip before diving in and kissing him softly, smiling when he hummed contently into it, the whole world falling away.

“Holy shit!” A familiar voice halted their affection, the couple turned quickly in their embrace to see who was speaking. Mike Wheeler stood with his mouth hanging open.

Gareth rounded the corner and spotted Mike first, following his gaze to Eddie and Y/n with their arms around each other, the girl leaning into Eddie’s body as if he were a giant teddy bear.

“You did it!” Gareth said to Y/n, a bright smile lighting up his face as he gave her a congratulatory pat on the back. Eddie short circuited for a moment and shook his head between the two of them.

"Wait, you knew? How—" Eddie questioned, too happy in his current position to be actually angry.

"He caught me once, I swore him to secrecy."

"Relax man, she practically threatened to kill me if I told you." Gareth held his hands up in surrender as Mike was joined by Dustin and Lucas.

"Eddie, I didn't know you had a girlfriend!" Dustin said in surprise, Lucas wearing a matching expression.

"Breaking news, Hawkins! My girl's the prettiest in all the land!" Eddie announced, catching the attention of the entire hallway, tossing the note with a flick of his wrist in Dustin's direction, the boy scrambling to catch it.

Eddie turned to his girl and pulled her in close to plant one more kiss on her lips before the bell rang. "Get ready to tell me absolutely everything about yourself later, I'm thinking burgers and the stars, maybe?"

"That sounds fantastic. But only if you're prepared to do the same, I'm gonna need all your deepest darkest secrets." She shot him a foreboding look that had him suppressing a giggle.

Dustin handed the note to Eddie, who shoved it in his wallet with the others where bills would typically go. The sight made Y/n's heart flutter.

"They're all yours, sweetheart." He pressed a kiss to her forehead before walking down the hall with her towards his first class. "I'll see ya, later, girlfriend." He smirked, not quite ready to let go of her hand until she was too far.

"Lookin' forward to it, boyfriend." She rolled her eyes through a blushing smile and walked to class with more pep in her step than ever.

They never stopped writing each other notes, only getting more mushy and lovey as time went on.

When Y/n would eventually make Eddie lunches for work, she'd make sure to write him a special note to find at the bottom 'For the cutest boy in Hawkins' she'd tease, doodling hearts and stars all around the edges.

Eddie saved all of them. He decided he should keep track of how many notes he was behind on and needed to catch up, sending notes every day to his love in different ways.

Notes in her locker, her pockets, hand delivered (sometimes during class) by a member of Hellfire if it wasn't himself, under her pillow, in the seat of the car, sometimes he'd replace her bookmark with a note of his to greet her the next time she decided to read her book before bed.

Later they left notes for each other all over the house, until they decided to save on paper and get a marker board.

It was supposed to be for phone messages, important upcoming events, and to keep track of bills, but Eddie always wrote her a note before he left for work.

'I already cant wait to see you. Enjoy your morning'

'Eddie loves Y/n'

'Make today your bitch xoxo'

Y/n felt discouraged for a little bit because she wanted to figure out a new special way to wish him a good day, too. It wasn't until she walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth that evening that she realized she could write on the mirror for him the night before.

After writing cute sweet things like 'Good morning to the cutest boy in Hawkins' or 'the best boy deserves the best day' for a while, she decided she wanted to shake things up a little.

One evening, before he got home she left him a message on the mirror to see when he went to wash the day off from his job at the garage in town.

"Hey, baby!" He called when he entered the apartment he stayed at most of the time, tossing his keys on the counter and stripping off his jacket from over his blue work jumpsuit, stained with grease and dust.

"Where's my best girl at?" He asked as he scrubbed the majority of the oil from his hands at the sink, checking out the dinner simmering on the stove. He gave it a couple stirs until Y/n could take back over.

Y/n came out of the bathroom from putting a towel and clothes out for him to change into, noticing his messy ponytail and smiling at how cute he always looked doing things when no one was watching.

"Hi, pup." She said quietly approaching him, wrapping her arms around his middle, which he indulged in lightly and then pushed her hands back to her side as he turned around to lean close by her ear, knowing exactly how giggly she gets when he does this. "'m gross, sweetheart," he said sweet as honey, and pressing a kiss on her neck below her ear, "I gotta get out of these clothes before I love all over you, I would hate to leave greasy handprints on the front of that cute little shirt you have on." He mumbled in her ear followed by a wink as he walked to the bathroom.

Y/n blushed and stirred the pasta, then bent down to check the garlic bread in the oven, when she heard his laughter echo in the small apartment.

Eddie had flipped on the light and turned on the shower, when he brought his attention to the mirror as he undressed, noticing a new note waiting for him.

'Nice ass. (:'

He couldn't help but come apart at the seams. He was about to walk back out to the kitchen to ruin her white tshirt, when he then noticed the fresh towel and comfy clothes laid on the toilet for him.

He paused, staring for a moment. He'd never get used to his lunches being packed, not to mention his clothes laid out for him, this was a first. In this moment, every act of service Y/n had done for him in the last two years rushes through his head.

All the times she'd offer to wash his hair after a long day, the countless meals, the nights she insisted on being the big spoon, the times he'd come home to the trailer after hellfire and she'd have the dishes or laundry done, or his bed made with new sheets even if she wasn't spending the night.

Eddie tried to make it clear she didn't have to take care of him, that it wasn't her job or expected of her just because she was his girlfriend. Y/n only met his concern with a soft smile and a shake of the head, "I know Eddie, that's why I want to." she'd say.

But something about the neatly folded pajamas that sat on top of the towel with some fresh socks and briefs sent him over the edge.

He knew in his heart it was time to make things even more permanent.

Eddie took his girl on a drive for their 3 year anniversary in the spring. Y/n did her best to coax the destination out of him during the weeks prior to their weekend, but Eddie kept this secret locked up tight.

Eddie followed the familiar winding path through the back roads of Hawkins, spying the newly bloomed wildflowers in the fields surrounding the quarry.

They backed into their spot by the shore, one they hadn't visited since they'd graduated.

"Aw, puppy, it's been so long!" She said, her breath taken. "I know, that's why I thought it'd be great if we picnic'd here." He smiled at her as he got out of the van to pull the back doors open. Y/n kept her eyes on the scene before her, until Eddie cleared his throat to show her the extravagant pallet he'd prepared for them, much different to the set up they'd enjoyed the first time they came around here.

"Eddie! Baby, it's so pretty!" She gushed and climbed in, his satisfied smile never leaving her. "Yeah? You think so?" He said, hopping up next to her.

"Eddie, you never stop impressing me." She said as she made herself cozy. Eddie blushed and averted his gaze. "You flatter me, babe. You always have." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders to give a kiss to her forehead.

"You're just really special to me, what can I say?" She hummed and kisses the back of his hand that rested in her interlocked fingers.

"Baby, could you grab the picnic basket over there?" Eddie nodded to her side of the van, the basket sat in the corner on top of their picnic blanket.

Y/n nodded eagerly before retrieving the blanket and basket, and handing it to Eddie. He started setting out a couple dishes and forks, then sprinkled a couple handfuls of rose petals around the area.

"Is this sufficient, your grace?" Eddie said in an exaggerated and posh accent. Y/n followed with a sigh, "It'll do, I suppose." She giggled and gave him a kiss.

Eddie reached back in the basket, bringing out the cake he bought that morning, the both of them digging in immediately.

After they'd devoured half the cake, Eddie couldn't wait any longer. "I, um, I made you a present." Eddie laughed nervously, reaching to the bottom of the basket and pulling out a photo album. "Nancy helped me with a lot of it, since she's good with this stuff, but, uh, yeah."

Y/n sat with a mouth full of cake and no words to say. "I've added to it for a while, but I mostly put it all together the last week at lunch. You should take a look." He held it out to her. Y/n quickly swallowed and dusted off her hands before the hefty book was dropped in her lap.

Eddie scooted close next to her so they could look together. Y/n flipped to the first page and was met with their very first picture, captioned with the note he sent asking her to be his girlfriend.

"Ed—" she couldn't finish because of the tears welling up in her eyes, deciding to turn to the next page.

Eddie had displayed their notes along with their pictures and memorabilia from their years together, including lucky pennies, pressed flowers, concert tickets, song lyrics written on a paper napkin. Y/n sat silently as she turned each page looking at the times gone by.

They giggled at a picture of themselves in the front seat of the van, looking stoned as hell with heavy lidded eyes, smiling widely and sticking out their tongues to touch between them. "Have we ever known personal space?" She asked, Eddie only licking her ear in response.

Another they came across was one Steve took of them at Lovers Lake during their first summer together, they both stood by the shore, completely soaked. Eddie stood behind Y/n wrapping his towel around the both of them as they laughed.

Eddie was eager for her to see the photo strip they thought was long lost from New Years. They spent the night at some bar in Indianapolis with their friends, getting absolutely plastered and following the drinks up with a high. Eddie and Y/n found themselves in a photo booth with props and went ham.

At first they didn't use anything, too inebriated to notice their options. In the first picture, they're leaned against each other, smiling with almost closed eyes. In the next frame, they've realized they can dress up, Eddie's arm reaching out from behind Y/n, her eyes wide with excitement.

Eddie wrapped a feathery boa around them as Y/n placed a Happy New Year headband on his head, and then let him set giant glasses on her face.

After they posed with wide smiles and discarded their props, Eddie knew he wanted to use the last one to pull her in for a wet kiss right at midnight.

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you found this!” She said eagerly pointing to the strip and fawning over the nostalgia it provided.

She saw the Polaroid she took of Eddie when he spent the night at her apartment for the first time, a shot of him making a silly face as he chopped vegetables for their dinner.

She saw a few of herself she hadn’t seen before. There were some of her sleeping, getting ready for bed of an evening, or folding laundry and holding up a pair of his underwear to be funny, captioned with some of the stickers she used to always have on hand in school, pieces cut from poetry books, and the notes he wrote about her.

She didn't notice the tears spilling over, or the butterflies tingling in her chest when she turned to the last page that had only one note, one that looked newer compared to the crinkled and yellowed pages of the past. It only said:

'Can I call you my wife? 💙

Yes or No'

Y/n only sniffled and looked to Eddie, who had matching tear tracks running down his cheeks. He shot her a warm smile and pulled the ring box out of his pocket. "What do you say?" He whispered, grasping her left hand in his, the air heavy with anticipation.

"Eddie.." she whispered, looking down at the open box on his knee. It contained a thin silver band, perfect for her finger until he could afford something more grand and ornate, though he knew she'd be thrilled with anything he presented to her.

"Hell yes." Her voice broke as she sniffled and laughed, Eddie's smile doubled in size as he slid the ring onto her finger with quaking hands.

Time stood still as they looked at one another. "You realize what this means?" Eddie asked, taking her face in his hands. She gave him a skeptical look. "You're mine and I'm yours and there's no getting rid of me... unless you wanna pay a bunch of money in court, cause I'll fight that shit hard, honey." He smarted off as more stray tears escaped and she laughed at his antics.

"But really, you've made me the happiest guy ever. You make me feel like the most important person on the planet, from your first note. I never want to stop trying to make you feel the same way— I wanna keep doing life with you, I wanna experience the world with you. You make me want things I've never thought about wanting. I never thought love could be like this, Y/n. You're everything to me; the greatest person inside and out and I can't wait to see what we do." He grinned and kissed her lips before she could say anything else.

And they lived happily ever after

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