Chapter Text
Mate, mate, mate…
Steve couldn’t believe it. Here he was with a broken bottle pressed against his throat, pinned to a dirty boathouse wall, with Eddie Munson’s crazy scared eyes staring into his, and his wolf was chanting about a mate! Suddenly though, Steve could scent it, incense, musk, and an underlying sweetness coming from his mate. From Eddie. This was a revelation to be sure, but not the right fucking time. He distantly heard Dustin calling to Eddie, trying to calm him, letting him know Steve wasn’t going to hurt him. Of course he wouldn’t hurt him, could never hurt his mate. But he couldn’t say any of that. No one knew he was a werewolf, that werewolves even existed, let alone that Eddie was his human mate.
As Eddie backed away, Steve silently watched as the group spoke, trying to get the story from Eddie and convince him they believed him. Meanwhile, Steve was still reeling from his realization, and trying not to take big sniffs of Eddie’s scent like a creep. He did, however, gently scent the room with calming pheromones for everyone, especially Eddie, and it seemed to work. They made a plan for Eddie to stay hidden while the rest of the group figured out what to do about more Upside-Down shit they had to deal with and re-group with the rest of the Party. They left Eddie at Reefer Rick’s with a walkie talkie (after having him power off his phone so the cops couldn’t ping his location) and the promise of food.
Walking away from Eddie made Steve anxious, he already felt connected to the man even though they hadn’t really spoken, biology working to create a bond that Steve felt, but Eddie wouldn’t. He pushed the feeling down, trying focus on the shitstorm at hand. He shook his head as he started the car and the group set off to the trailer park to try and see if they could get any answers.
Steve Harrington… why couldn’t Eddie stop thinking about him. Sure, he had known who Steve was before today, who didn’t? He was the King of Hawkins High, Captain of the Basketball team, co-Captain of the Swim team, and party animal. Also, unfairly handsome, and rich. Although, if Eddie was being honest, he didn’t really hear much about Steve the past few years until he met Dustin and his friends Mike and Lucas when they joined his DnD group, the Hellfire Club. After that, it was all about how Steve was a badass, a great guy, super cool to hang out with. They seemed to worship Harrington, and Eddie was skeptical to say the least. The Steve he knew of in high school had surrounded himself with douchebags, and while he hadn’t personally meted out any bullying to Eddie and his friends, he also hadn’t stepped in to put it to a stop. And then, after he and Mike’s sister Nancy had broken up, and the late Billy Hargrove had taken over as Keg King, Steve seemed to melt into the background at school. Eddie had found himself a bit jealous over the hero worship Henderson and the guys seemed to have for Steve. He was used to being the one his little DnD nerd sheep looked up to.
But now, there was something about Steve he couldn’t put his finger on. The way he was so calm with a broken bottle held to his throat, how he simply accepted the story Eddie told, stepped in to help without a second thought. Also, if Eddie was honest, there was also a scent from Steve that he couldn’t stop thinking about. It reminded him of a mossy forest, earthy and grounding, with hints of musk. He had never smelled anything like it before and it was almost intoxicating. It was mostly that scent that had calmed him enough to be able to tell his story without having a complete breakdown. Eddie figured he was just exhausted and crashing from coming down off of the adrenaline that had been surging through him ever since whatever happened to Chrissy happened and he had fled the trailer. God, he hoped he could finally sleep without having to relive that again, but he was doubtful.
One week later and Steve was looking into his reflection in his bathroom mirror. He sighed and started rolling bandages around his unblemished torso in an attempt to pretend that the bites from the demobats weren’t already healed up. At least this time he didn’t have to fake bruises and cuts from getting punched in the face. He had gotten really good at special effects makeup over the past few years to avoid questions of why he was already healed so quickly. Thank God for YouTube! He usually kept to himself for a few days after the incidents to “rest”, but really it was so when he emerged, he could reasonably be a little less battered and not having to fake the swelling, just the cuts and bruises. This time he just needed to use a little makeup on his neck to mimic the ring of bruising from the demobat’s tail trying to choke him to death.
Fucking demobats. Even being a werewolf, they would have killed him if Nancy, Robin, and Eddie hadn’t jumped into the lake and come after him. And he couldn’t even think of what the fuckers had done to Eddie without crying. It had killed him to leave Eddie and Dustin as decoys when he and the girls had gone after Vecna. When he got back to the trailer and heard Dustin crying Eddie’s name he had sprinted to where he could tell they were huddled on the ground. One look at Eddie and he had almost lost it and shifted right then and there, the closest he had come to losing control of the shift since his first time. His mate was on the ground wounded, bleeding out, and he didn’t keep him safe! It was only when Nancy moved to try and stop the flow of blood that he moved his feet and scooped him up gently to get him back through the gate.
Once they were back in real Hawkins things moved quickly. They raced to get Eddie and Dustin to the hospital as Dustin had injured his leg jumping back through the gate to get to Eddie after he had cut the rope. And of course, Eddie needed medical help as soon as possible, so Steve drove like a Nascar driver to get them to the hospital. When they got there he grabbed Eddie and sprinted as if he weighed nothing while Nancy and Robin helped get Dustin into the Emergency Department. Steve used the force of his aura to ensure that Eddie and Dustin were seen immediately. They were both taken in back right away and Steve, Robin, and Nancy were left in the waiting room covered in blood and Upside-Down grime.
As they were sitting there, an ambulance pulled up and before they knew what was happening Max was being wheeled past them with Lucas and Erica by her side. “Sinclair! What happened!” Steve looked at them frantically, he had hoped everyone else was okay.
Lucas looked back at Steve and then rushed over crushing him with a hug as he sobbed while Nancy and Robin hugged Erica. “Jason Carver happened! He and his goons showed up. One almost broke Erica’s arm outside so she couldn’t warn me, and Jason came into the house and thought I was hurting Max. She was floating at that point, and I couldn’t get to her to put her Walkman on her. We started fighting, at one point he had a gun on me, and he stepped on the Walkman and broke it. I finally was able to knock him out, but I didn’t have the music, Max started to break. And then it stopped, and she fell. Her arms and legs were broken, but she’s still alive.” He broke off sobbing while Steve held him. He wanted to tell him everything would be okay, but he couldn’t get anything past the lump in his throat, the ache in his chest. He had failed! Three of the group were injured and it was all his fault. All because he didn’t reveal his true nature.
Now, looking at himself in the mirror, he couldn’t help but hate himself a little bit. People joked with him that while he could take on and kill interdimensional monsters, he regularly got his ass handed to him in fights with people. And they weren’t wrong, but they didn’t know the reason. The fact that with the monsters he didn’t have to hold back like he did with humans. With the monsters he could let out a bit of that primal strength he couldn’t let out with a human. Given the fact that even without shifting he could punch clear through a wall, he would easily kill a person if he wasn’t careful. It was better to just let them kick his ass and make sure he took the brunt of the beatings to ensure his friends were safe. After all, he healed within a day with no lasting damage, faster if he shifted. Steve was an Alpha, and it was in his DNA to protect his Pack, even if they didn’t know they were his Pack. The group liked to joke that he was the group mom, but he didn’t dispute it because he recognized it was the only way he could let out his Alpha tendencies.
He finished getting dressed and brushed his hair, taking care with his appearance. He had been at Eddie’s bedside almost non-stop since he was admitted to the hospital, but today was discharge day. Eddie had healed quicker than the doctors had expected and while he still need to take it easy, he no longer needed to be in the hospital. And, since Hopper, miraculously back from the dead having been sprung from a Soviet prison by Joyce Byers and their friend Murray, had gotten the shadowy government agency that knew about the Upside-Down to clear Eddie’s name he was free to go and not to jail. Hopper had also gotten each member of the Party a payout for all of the anguish and heartache of the past few years and all they had to do was sign an NDA, which was no issue. I mean, who would they tell that would believe them. The government was also in the process of getting Wayne and Eddie a new house since the trailer had been torn in two, but Wayne was staying in a hotel until everything was set. Which was perfect for Steve, because it gave him the excuse he needed to offer Eddie to stay with him. Only he knew that it was because Eddie was his mate.
As much as he wanted Eddie to stay in the Master Bedroom with him, he knew he needed to take things slowly, so he had gathered as many of Eddie’s things he could from the destroyed trailer, including his beloved guitar, and made one of the guest rooms as comfortable and welcoming as possible. The more comfortable he made it for Eddie, the longer he would want to stay, and if Steve had anything to do about it, it would be forever.
Being with Eddie throughout the Battle of Vecna and later sitting at his bedside in the hospital had just solidified for Steve that Eddie was his mate, not only his mate, but his Fated Mate which was extremely rare. This meant that he wasn’t a Chosen Mate the way most shifters were mates, but that Eddie was specifically meant for him. But the tricky part lay in Eddie being human. If he was a shifter, he’d also feel the pull, scent Steve’s intent. As a human, Steve would need to “woo” him, if he was even open to it seeing as Steve was a guy. With shifters it wasn’t an issue. Your mate was your mate, especially with Fated Mates. There was no stigma. Unfortunately, though, human society was still backwards in that respect. Steve had no qualms about his mate being a man, but it would be heartbreaking if that was a deal breaker for Eddie. It would mean Steve would be mateless for life. Once a shifter knows they have a Fated Mate, they could never mate another. Sex, maybe if they never slept with their Fated Mate, but mating, never.
Turning his thoughts away from that depressing prospect, Steve gave his appearance one last look and started to head out to go pick up Eddie.
Eddie was all packed up and waiting for Steve to get to the hospital and pick him up. Luckily he didn’t have much to pack and carry down to the lobby, but the nurses insisted on him being wheeled down, so now he was sitting in the wheelchair with a nurse sitting next to him on a waiting room chair and a couple of bags down by his feet. He was sitting quietly thinking about staying with Steve. He was a little nervous to be honest. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Steve, in fact it was the complete opposite. He liked him maybe too much. That was the problem. As far as he knew Steve was straight as can be, and well, Eddie wasn’t. The last thing he needed was for Steve to figure out he had a big fat crush on him. Talk about awkward! Just then he noticed movement outside and looked to see Steve’s BMW pull up outside the doors. He looked to the nurse, “There’s my ride.”
The nurse, who was only a bit older than Eddie looked outside and then looked back at Eddie incredulously, “Steve Harrington is your ride? Wow, lucky guy!” Eddie chuckled a little. Looks like the Harrington charm had a far reach. Once they got out to the car Eddie stood up while the nurse gave Steve the aftercare instruction sheet to Steve along with some bandages and other wound care items. Eddie went to bend to grab his things to put them in the car, but Steve must’ve teleported back to the trunk area of the car because he was there in an instant taking the bags from Eddie and placing them in the trunk for him. As Steve took Eddie’s elbow to steer him to the passenger seat and help him get settled and buckled in, Eddie caught more of the mossy scent that he now associated with Steve, but also another scent intertwined of warm bread. He thought maybe Steve had gone to bakery or something earlier in the day.
Meanwhile, Steve was reaching over to buckle Eddie in so he didn’t pull at his stitches and trying to cover the fact that he was breathing in Eddie’s incense laden and sweet scent. It would make him dizzy if he let it. He finally straightened and moved to go to the driver’s seat waving at the nurse still on the sidewalk, “Bye Melanie, see you around.” And if he chose to ignore the way her heart rate picked up, or the way her scent thickened suddenly, then that was no one’s business but his. “All set?” He asked as he slid into the driver’s seat.
“Yes, please. So sick of being in the hospital. I feel like I haven’t slept in weeks. They come and check on you every hour or two, even at night. Hard to sleep like that.” Eddie did look pretty tired with some major bags under his eyes.
“Okay, let’s get you home and situated and then I can order some pizza and you can eat then get some rest. Sound like a plan?”
“Sounds like heaven! Let’s rock!” Eddie’s smile lit up his face and Steve just knew he would do whatever he could to keep that smile in place.
Steve was walking down the hall upstairs in his house with Eddie’s bags. “Here’s your room, it has its own bathroom, and it should be pretty stocked. Just let me know if you need anything else.” He opened the door and let Eddie step through first.
“Oh. My. God! Steve, what did you do?” He was standing in the doorway with his hand on his forehead looking around in shock. Steve had not only brought in Eddie’s things, but he had set everything up the way he remembered from Eddie’s room, even putting his posters up for him and hanging the guitar on its hooks on the wall.
“I just wanted you to be comfortable here. Is it okay?” Now that Eddie was seeing the room, he was little nervous he may have overstepped and made Eddie uncomfortable.
Eddie turned to look at him with tears in his eyes, “Okay? It’s the nicest thing anyone’s done for me!” He threw his arms around Steve and gave him a big hug. When he did, Steve’s knees went slightly weak as he was able to finally fully scent his mate, up close, at the crook of his neck. “Oh, sorry! I just…thank you Steve.” Eddie withdrew from Steve a bit awkwardly, and Steve had to bite down a whine at the loss of the heat from his mate.
“It’s fine, I’m just glad you like it. Why don’t you get settled in and I’ll order the pizza. If you’re up to it, we can watch a movie while we eat.”
“Sounds perfect, and thanks again. For everything.” Eddie was still looking a little teary eyed.
“It’s my pleasure Eddie. I’ll be downstairs if you need anything.”
About an hour later Eddie heard the doorbell ring as he was getting dressed after his shower. He figured it was the pizza, so he hurried as much as his injuries let him because he was pretty hungry. The new bandages he put on after the shower were a little bulky because he had to put them on himself instead of a nurse doing it, but he thought he did a pretty good job all things considered. He didn’t think he’d need them much longer. The wounds seemed to be healing fairly quickly. As he walked down the stairs his mouth started to water at the scent of the pizza and he walked into the kitchen. Steve was busy getting out plates and napkins and didn’t notice Eddie in the doorway. He stopped and was just staring at Steve, the way the sunlight caressed him, made him almost glow like an angel. He was Eddie’s angel, taking care of him even though he didn’t need to. Eddie already knew he had a big crush on Steve, but now he knew it was more than that. He was falling in love with the man. With the straight man. He steeled himself to keep his emotions off of his face as entered the kitchen, “Hey Harrington! Need any help with anything?”
Steve, of course, had known Eddie was there the whole time. He couldn’t miss his mate’s scent. He would be able to find him in a crowded room by that scent alone. After all these years though, he was an expert at pretending he couldn’t tell someone was behind him or scent their intent. Right now though, there was another scent mixed in with Eddie’s usual scent, and it took him a moment to figure out what it was. It was the heady musky scent of arousal. He had scented it from Eddie a couple times before, during the battle, but had forced himself to ignore it as it wasn’t the time or place. Plus, they had always been around other people, so it could have been his reaction to someone else. This time though, it was just the two of them. Just the thought that Eddie might actually want him made his heart sing. He was still going to take things slowly; Eddie was still injured for one and there was the whole werewolf thing for two. “Hey Eddie, how are you feeling? Everything good?”
“Yeah, great, thanks! Your water pressure is awesome. It felt pretty damn good to finally get clean. Sponge baths can only do so much, you know?” Eddie tugged a strand of his hair to cover his mouth as a nervous habit, which Steve thought was adorable. Especially since Eddie was already dressed for bed in comfy flannel pajama bottoms and a well-worn, soft Metallica shirt.
“What about your bandages? Need a hand with those?”
“Nope, got them on already. Don’t think I’ll need them that much longer though.”
Steve tried to smile at that, “That’s good Eddie,” but he was a bit sad. He had been looking forward to helping with the bandages at least once so that he could get close to his mate. “Well, I got a Pepperoni Pizza, and one with Canadian Bacon and Black olives. Is that okay?”
“Hell yes! I like both of those, can I have one of each?” Eddie had a big smile on his face.
“Of course you can, do you want a Pepsi or water?”
“I’ll take a water that way I can take my meds and sleep after the movie.”
“Okay, I’ll bring everything to the living room, why don’t you go pick out a movie for us. I have a big DVD/ BluRay collection, or you can stream something.” Eddie turned to leave the room right as Steve’s cell phone started to ring. He looked at the name before picking it up, “Hey Robs! What’s up?”
“Hey Steve, just wanted to check in on Eddie. How’s he doing?”
“Seems to be doing okay, he settled in a bit and we are getting ready to eat and watch a movie before he goes up to rest. Want to talk to him?”
“No, that’s okay. Just tell him I wanted to say hi and I can call him tomorrow so he can get his rest. Talk to you later.”
“Okay Robin, talk to you later.” After he hung up the call, Steve gathered everything on a large serving tray and went into the living room. “Hey, Robin wanted me to tell you hi and that she called to check up on you. She said she’ll call you tomorrow after you have a chance to get some rest.”
“That Buckley is something else. Alright Harrington, pizza me. I’m starved!” Eddie made grabby hands at Steve which he found adorably cute. He laughed, “Here you go, here’s your drink too. There’s plenty more, so let me know if you want another slice or two.”
Eddie looked up with his cheeks comically already stuffed with pizza and nodded which made Steve laugh out loud at the sight. “Easy now, don’t choke. You won’t like it if I need to give you the Heimlich!”
Just then the movie started and Steve looked up to see what Eddie had picked. Looked like he had gone old school picking one of Steve’s favorites, the original John Carpenter Halloween. It was going to be a good night!
After pizza, ice cream, and the movie Steve cleaned up the living room and then walked Eddie upstairs to his room. At the door he held Eddie’s bicep, “I’m going to be right down there at the end of the hall. Let me know if you need anything, okay?” Eddie nodded, and with a little squeeze, Steve let him turn and go into the room shutting the door behind him. He inhaled deeply before moving off to his own bed for the night. He was too keyed up to sleep yet, but he figured he could waste some time watching some mindless YouTube videos. Anything to keep his mind off of the fact that his mate was sleeping just down the hall from him.
Steve had finally dozed off when he heard a knocking on his bedroom door. He looked at his phone on the bedside, it was after 1am. He got up and opened his door to see Eddie standing there with tears streaming down his face. “Eddie! Are you okay? What’s wrong? Come in.”
When Eddie looked up from the ground, his eyes went wide and round as he noticed Steve standing there shirtless in low slung grey sweatpants. He shook his head and stepped inside. Steve filed the reaction away for later and led him to sit on the edge of the bed. They sat side by side with Steve’s arm around him rubbing his shoulder and trying to offer comfort. He subconsciously started to send calming pheromones into the room and Eddie slowly relaxed into Steve’s side.
“What’s wrong? What happened?” Steve asked softly.
“It’s the first night without the heavy-duty meds that helped me sleep. Sleep without dreaming.” Eddie let out a little sob.
“Oh baby, it’s okay. You’re here with me. You’re safe.” Steve cooed and soothed as best he could, trying to make his mate feel better. He could feel Eddie start to relax even more. “Do you want to talk about it?” He could feel Eddie shake his head no. “Do you want to stay in here with me?” Eddie looked at him with his eyes glossy with tears, “Is that okay? You don’t mind?” “Of course it’s okay baby, I wouldn’t offer if it wasn’t.” This time Eddie heard the nickname, and it made his stomach flip with butterflies. He took a shaky breath, “I would like that if it’s okay with you.”
Steve moved them to the side of the bed and got Eddie settled in and covered up before climbing in next to him. He reached over and gathered Eddie close to him, “Is this okay?”
Eddie looked at him a little shyly, “Yes, thank you. I feel better already.” With Steve’s steady breathing and strong safe arms, Eddie swiftly drifted off to sleep. Steve followed shortly behind with a smile on his face feeling the best he had in years with his mate in his arms.
A ray of sunshine woke Eddie from a deep sleep. He felt more rested than he had since before the whole Spring Break situation with Vecna. He looked over and felt his breath catch in his throat. Steve was still sleeping peacefully, cuddling Eddie into his side. His face was so relaxed and beautiful Eddie wished he was an artist so he could paint him. He shifted a bit and couldn’t help himself from pushing a stray strand of hair from Steve’s face back behind his ear. As his hand dropped, he noticed Steve had woken up and was looking at him with a small smile. His heart began to race, while blood rushed down south at just how sexy Steve looked in the morning with his tousled hair and sleepy eyes.
Steve woke to Eddie’s scent surrounding him, and it was with a jolt of delight that he also scented Eddie’s arousal. He smiled as he felt Eddie’s light touch smoothing his hair, “Morning Princess. Sleep well?” He could hear Eddie’s heart rate pick up at the nickname. Ah, so he likes it.
Eddie gulped and steeled himself deciding to give as good as he was getting with the flirting, “Best ever Big Boy, thanks.” He purred, stretching his body down the length of Steve’s body, and then stopping shocked when he felt Steve’s erection against his hip. It didn’t feel just like morning wood, but he couldn’t be sure. But, oh how he wanted to be the cause.
In his pursuit of Eddie, Steve was willing to use all of his gifts shamelessly with the exception of pushing his aura. So, his heightened sense of smell and hearing helped him determine that Eddie wouldn’t necessarily be against being with him. He decided to start with small touches and see how receptive Eddie would be. He moved his hand up to Eddies face a caressed his cheek with the back of his knuckles while looking him in the eyes. Eddie’s breath hitched and his eyes closed while he leaned into the touch. “I’m glad you got some rest. Are you hungry? I can make us some breakfast.”
After a deep breath, Eddie opened his eyes, “That would be great, thanks. Do I have time for a quick shower first?”
“Of course, I’ll make us some bacon and pancakes. Take your time, I can keep it warm for you.” Steve got up to use the restroom before heading downstairs and he could feel the weight of Eddie’s eyes on his back, so he let out a little smirk he didn’t have to hide.
About ten minutes later he was cleaned up and heading back down the hall when he heard a voice coming from Eddie’s room. He stopped and used his wolf’s hearing to figure out if everything was okay or if maybe Eddie was calling for him from the bathroom. Steve had a vision of Eddie having fallen in the shower. Just as he was about to open the door to go check on him, he heard the unmistakable sound of Eddie touching himself at a furious pace. At first, he thought Eddie was on the phone, but unless he was having phone sex that wasn’t the case. As he was turning to leave and give him some privacy he heard, “Fuck, Steve. Yes, just like that! Fuck me! Harder! Ungggghhhh!” And he knew Eddie had just come thinking of him. It took everything in him to just turn and walk away, he hurried downstairs to put some distance between them because he didn’t know if he could stay away from his mate if he caught a whiff of the scent of Eddie’s orgasm. It took him a good five minutes of wresting his wolf’s instincts to calm down enough to start breakfast knowing Eddie needed the food to help him heal.
Eddie finally made his way downstairs, having to force himself when his stomach grumbled in hunger. He felt acutely embarrassed that he had touched himself thinking about Steve. It wasn’t like the man would ever know, but Eddie felt like it was rude or something to masturbate to a friend, especially if he was straight. But that was the confusing thing, was Steve entirely straight? It was not something he normally would presume, but with all of the pet names and cuddling he was starting to question it.
“Hey, there you are! Ready to eat?” Steve started grabbing plates out of the warming drawer of the oven. They were piled with crisp bacon and perfect golden pancakes. “There’s coffee over on the table in the thermos carafe if you want to make yourself a cup.”
“Thanks, it smells great.” Eddie made his way over to the table and started to fix his coffee with some creamer and sugar. His stomach growled again when Steve put his plate in front of him. The two of them settled in to eat, making small talk, while Eddie slowly relaxed again. As soon as he was done eating, he heard his phone ringing from his sweatpants pocket.
Steve got up to start clearing the table, “Why don’t you go ahead and get that while I clean up?”
Eddie nodded and pulled out his phone seeing it was Robin. He answered the call as he walked into the living room, “Hey Robin. What’s up?”
“Hey Eddie, is Steve taking good care of you over there? If he’s not, you let me know and I’ll throttle him for you!”
He chuckled a bit, “Oh Robin, he’s taking very good care of me. But thank you for offering to commit bodily harm on your best friend on my behalf. I could almost swoon!” Eddie kept walking upstairs to have a bit more privacy for the rest of the conversation he needed to have with Robin. Once he reached his room he laid back on the bed, “Oh my god Robin! I don’t know if staying here was such a good idea!”
“Why Eddie, what’s wrong?” Robin was sounding worried, “Are you sure Steve is taking good care of you, for real?”
“That’s just it Robin, he’s too good! The little Harrington crush I told you about when we were planning the Battle has ballooned into a MAJOR crush, maybe even more. He’s so protective, and sweet, and he let me sleep with him last night—”
“Wait, what! Eddie, he what?” She sounded breathless.
“Not like that Rob, I had a nightmare, and he took care of me and cuddled me all night. And then he’s been using pet names like baby and Princess. And I am about to combust! I don’t know what to do, if I stay here, I’m torturing myself. If I leave, I’ll hurt his feelings. Did you know he went to my trailer and got all my stuff and set it up here in the guest room for me just the way it was in my old room?”
“No, I didn’t. I know he told me he wanted to make sure you were comfortable, but he didn’t tell he did all that. Hmmmm.”
“Look, Rob, I know he has an overinflated protective streak, it’s undeniable. But is there any way that he’s maybe not completely one hundred percent straight? Any chance?” Eddie tried to keep the desperate note out of his voice, but she heard it any way.
“I don’t know Eddie, is there anything else that happened?”
“Well, I wasn’t going to say, but this morning when we woke up, I couldn’t help myself and I tucked some of his hair behind his ear before I knew he was awake. When I looked back at his face, his eyes were open, and he was smiling. That’s when he called me Princess. Then when I was stretching, I noticed he was very excited if you know what I mean.”
“Ewwww! Eddie! Lesbian here, don’t need to think about Steve’s dick, thanks.”
“Sorry, but there’s more. Non dick related. He reached over and caressed my cheek with the back of his knuckles.”
“He what???” She was practically yelling at this point.
“Yeah, it felt like it meant something. But I can’t assume, you know. I have only ever heard of him being with girls, so I don’t know.”
“Eddie, listen, the caress? It means something. It definitely means something. It’s one of his Harrington moves. He only does that when he is really into someone. The last person that I know of was Nancy.”
“Oh my god! Seriously?” Eddie could barely catch his breath, and in the back of his mind he realized that his wounds were no longer hurting him, but he ignored the thought as he was trying to wrap his head around the fact that Steve Harrington might actually like him back.