Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

This was not the way that Steve had envisioned spending the summer after graduating high school. He hadn't planned on having to wear a truly awful bright blue sailor suit to work everyday. He also hadn't planned on having to deal with such demanding people all day. It was ice cream, not nuclear launch codes. Though, he wasn't sure what was worse: the uniform or dealing with customers.

Part of him wished he had sucked it up and just applied to be a lifeguard again, like the last three summers. Though he absolutely did not want to spend his summer working with Billy Hargrove. He'd rather gouge his eyes out with his ice cream scooper than willingly spend any time around that asshole.

At least at Scoops Ahoy he had Robin, who was a little mean but she was funny. She kept things interesting. And she didn't try to punch him in the face which was always a plus in Steve's book. They were almost always scheduled together so he was rarely bored.

Though, as he struck out trying to flirt with some girls over the melting ice cream in their hands, he kind of wished Robin wasn't around. He didn't know when he'd lost his sense of charm. It was probably still sitting in Tina's bathroom with the rest of his dignity for the last seven months. 

This was the worst.

He used to be cool. He used to be suave. Girls used to throw themselves at his feet. He was King Steve. He sighed softly as the girls turned away from the counter to leave the store giggling to themselves. Obviously laughing at him.

He wasn't king Steve anymore.

He hadn't been for a while.

The girls turned away from the food court when they exited, probably heading out to do more shopping, and Steve could see two guys sitting on the bench directly opposite of the store, one guy was walking away from them towards Orange Julius. He'd seen them there a few times over the last few weeks but hadn't thought much of it. 

They were familiar. Obviously they'd gone to school together, though Steve was having a hard time placing their names in his head. One of them, a guy with long wavy hair and a denim vest, had slid so far down the bench that Steve was sure his back had to be hurting from the angle. But he didn't have time to worry about that.

From behind him, Steve heard the shutters open loudly which could only mean one thing.

"Another one bites the dust!" Robin laughed.

A long, suffering sigh fell from his lips as he turned around to face her. She had repurposed the board they were supposed to use for cutesy messages about the flavor of the day into a way to bully him for his failed attempts at flirting.

She'd created a T chart with You Rule and You Suck written on either side. Steve could see the pure look of joy on her face as she added another tally mark on the side denoting his failure.

"Is this really necessary?" Steve asked as he crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter.

Robin leaned against the white board with a wide grin on her face, "It's not not necessary."

"Whatever. I'm going to get something to eat," he said, rolling his eyes, "Do you want anything from Burger King?"

He watched as Robin leaned forward to look at the options in the food court. She hummed softly before she shrugged her shoulders. "A chicken sandwich and some onion rings?" She asked, batting her eyelashes in a way Steve was sure was meant to flatter him. He rolled his eyes but nodded his head as he pushed himself away from the counter. 

"Yeah, sure. I'll be back in a minute."

Steve walked around the counter to cross through the seating area of the store. He reached up to snatch the stupid little hat off of his head. He hated that hat, probably more than was reasonable. But when you're told repeatedly that your hair is your best quality it kind of sucks to have to cover it up all day.

As he passed by the bench across from Scoops, he attempted to push the hat into the pocket of his shorts. He could feel the eyes of the two guys sitting there on him. It was a little unnerving. Though, Steve wasn't entirely sure if that was the correct word.

He made his way to the center of the food court and paused with his hands on his hips.

There were people everywhere. He was sure most of Hawkins was at the mall. Most of the teenagers were there for sure. He sighed softly to himself as he glanced over to Burger King. At least the line there wasn't very long. He felt stupid enough wearing his uniform; he didn't particularly want to stand out around other people in it.

In the store it wasn't that bad.

He had Robin. 

They could look stupid together.

"I think you dropped this," a voice said from behind him.

Steve spun around, his hair flopping against his forehead at the movement. It was the guy from the bench. Their eyes met and for just the briefest of moments Steve was struck by how big and expressive they were. Not to mention they were a really interesting deep shade of brown.

That was a weird thought.

Why did he care what color this random guy's eyes were?

Steve glanced down, desperate to look anywhere else, at his extended hand to see that he was holding out his hat. He smiled in relief at the sight. He hadn't realized that he had dropped it.

"Oh, thanks, man. They already made me buy two sets of uniforms. If I had to buy another hat I'd lose my damn mind," Steve laughed.

He reached out to take the hat back; he felt their fingers just barely brushing in the process. The skin on his hand felt strangely warm at the contact. Well. All of his skin did, for some reason. Steve pulled his hand away with the hat before he tucked it into the waistband of his shorts.

At least it wouldn't fall without him realizing like this.

"Y-yeah. No problem, man."

Steve looked back up, his brow furrowed slightly. It suddenly clicked in his head just who this guy was. "You're… Munson, right? Eddie?" He asked, using his right hand to gesture at the boy. He had obviously seen him around school. He was hard to miss. Not that Steve spent time looking at him.

He remembered Tommy saying that he bought all of his weed from Eddie.

"Yeah, Eddie. That's me," he said with a soft sigh and a nod. 

"Thank you, Eddie, I owe you one."

Without a pause, Eddie immediately responded, "A free scoop should cover it."

Steve couldn't help the abrupt laugh that escaped him. He felt his eyes crinkle as he smiled broadly back at Eddie. He nodded his head, folding his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, alright. Stop by sometime, I'll hook you up," he chuckled.

"I'll hold you to that, pretty boy."

Pretty boy?

Pretty boy.

Pretty. Boy.

Those two words looped incessantly inside his brain. He hardly noticed the way Eddie shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans or heard him mumbling something about seeing Steve later. He just watched as Eddie spun around to hurry away from him, back towards the bench where it looked like his friends were waiting for him.

Pretty boy.

Steve shook his head to try and gather himself again. He slowly turned around to look back around the food court. Right. Lunch. Steve walked off towards the Burger King, at least by now the small line that had been there was now gone entirely.

He quickly ordered Robin her sandwich and onion rings as well as a whopper and onion rings for himself. He also got them both a coke. He softly thanked the cashier as he picked up the bag of food and drink carrier.

Absently, he chewed at the inside of his cheek as he made his way back to Scoops Ahoy. When he got closer he saw Eddie and his friends were still there. Eddie looked pretty distressed with his head thrown back as he dragged his hands down his face. Hands full of big, chunky metal rings.

Before he could catch himself and look away, Eddie lifted his head so that they locked eyes once again. Steve nodded his head once in his direction with what he hoped was a warm smile on his face. It looked like the hint of a smile twitched at the corner of his lips but Steve turned away to walk back into the store.

Pretty boy.

There were no customers in the shop. Steve spotted Robin leaning against the counter picking absently at her nail polish. Steve cleared his throat to get her attention. When she looked up, he held the food and drinks up.

"Lunch," he said before heading towards the door leading to the back.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted her grabbing a sign and setting it next to the bell on the counter before she followed behind him. He set the food on the table, and dropped down into one of the chairs with a heavy sigh.

Robin lifted an eyebrow at him while she looked through the bag. "Was it that exhausting of a trip across the food court, dingus?" She asked with a laugh, pulling out her lunch.

Steve chose to ignore the jibe as he pulled the bag towards himself to take out his own food. For some reason, his thoughts kept circling back to Eddie. He had no idea why. It was truly bizarre. He popped a few onion rings into his mouth as he looked up at Robin who had settled into the chair opposite him.

"Do you know Eddie Munson?" He asked around his mouthful.

Robin's nose scrunched up in obvious distaste, "Swallow your food before you talk to me."

Rolling his eyes, Steve finished chewing the onion ring. He took a sip of his coke and looked back at Robin, sticking out his tongue annoyingly to show that he had swallowed his bite. 

"Lovely," she deadpanned with a roll of her eyes.

Steve scoffed softly, "So, do you?"

"Do I, what?" She asked before biting into her chicken sandwich.

Steve had never met a more irritating girl in his life. He sighed dramatically, leaned back in his chair, and pushed a hand through his hair. "Do you know Eddie Munson?" He asked again.

Robin took her sweet time chewing. She stared at him the whole time too which just added to Steve's aggravation. Finally, after making a big show of swallowing and taking a drink, Robin sat back in her chair. 

"Yeah, I know Eddie. He was in my drama class this year. He was supposed to graduate this year. And last year," she said with a shrug before she narrowed her eyes, "Why?"

Steve only shrugged, "I dropped my hat and he brought it back to me. I recognized him but couldn't place him at first."

"You two run in very different circles," Robin said with an almost condescending laugh.

"I don't really run in any circles anymore," Steve grumbled under his breath.

An almost awkward silence fell over the both of them as they ate their lunches. The quiet gave Steve's brain a chance to wander again. Though he wasn't sure if that was such a good thing. He tried to picture Eddie at school. He vaguely remembered seeing him in the hallways during passing periods. He remembered him essentially holding court in the cafeteria.

He always seemed to be at ease with himself, with his wild hair and leather jacket. 

It was true, he supposed, that they were very different. They had very different groups of friends. Well, at least they did. Steve didn't have many friends left other than the troop of young teenagers he toted around town between fighting monsters.

Still, there was something about Eddie that kept Steve's attention now.

He wasn't sure what it was.

Because it definitely wasn't the slight curl to his hair, or the dimples in his cheeks, or his eyes.

It also definitely wasn't the way he had called Steve pretty boy.

Pretty boy.

Oh, fuck.

Chapter Text

"C'mon, Eddie. You cannot be serious."

Eddie glanced up from where he had been absently strumming on his acoustic guitar to see both Jeff and Gareth staring back at him with disbelieving looks on their faces. Practice had wrapped already; Kevin had to go help his brother down at the body shop. Eddie sighed softly to himself as he laid an arm over the curved top of the instrument in his lap.

"Why are you giving me such a hard time? All I said was that I was thinking of heading over to the mall."

Gareth groaned loudly as he spun around on the stool behind his drum kit. Jeff rolled his eyes, turning to pack up his own guitar. Eddie huffed out an annoyed breath, tapping his fingers against the guitar.

"Can I not go enjoy the mall like any other teenager in this fucking town?" He asked, giving both of his friends a wide eyed stare.

Gareth stopped spinning and cocked his head to the side, "Were you or were you not the one who complained loudly and often about how the mall was going to be a monstrosity that throttles the small businesses in town while forcing its corporate greed down all of our throats?"

While he didn't remember that particular rant, it definitely sounded like something he would say.

So, he decided to pivot.

Change tactics.

"Look, it's summer and the AC in the trailer kicked the bucket last night. I woke up in a pool of my own fucking sweat so I'm gonna go hang out in the free cool air at the mall," Eddie said as he got to his feet.

He watched as Jeff and Gareth exchanged skeptical looks. He then saw a nearly wicked smile pull across Gareth's face that had Eddie feeling on edge. He was sure that this is how they all felt when they played Dungeons and Dragons and he had a nasty npc up his sleeve.

"So you won't mind if we tag along, right?" Gareth asked, standing as well.

Jeff turned back around with a wide grin, "Yeah, if you're going to just loiter, why don't we join you?"

Eddie paused, holding the neck of his guitar in his hand. Of course they knew the real reason he was going to go to Starcourt. He wanted to see Steve. He wanted to see Steve in that little sailor suit. He wasn't a particularly subtle man but he still hated how quick his friends were to call him out on his shit.

"You guys are assholes," Eddie grumbled.

Jeff laughed loudly at him, "Hey, if you manned up and actually did something we wouldn't have to be."

"This is Steve Harrington we're talking about. King Steve. He's not… I can't just flirt with him or ask him out. I could, quite literally, die."

His two friends seemed to pull back just a little as if they just realized that while teasing Eddie about his little crush was all well and good there could be serious consequences if the wrong person found out. And they had no idea if Steve was the wrong person or not.

He probably was.

"To be fair," Gareth broached, walking around his drum kit, "We all know that Steve isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed so maybe he wouldn't even notice if you flirted with him. And, I mean, he didn't kick your ass when you stupidly called him pretty boy last week."

Eddie visibly cringed at the memory.

He had absolutely no idea what had come over him at that moment; other than that Steve was actually a very pretty boy, with his swooping hair and big brown eyes and plush pink lips. Eddie shook his head to bring himself back to the present. Maybe Gareth was right. Maybe it would be fine.

Gareth was already walking out of his garage towards Eddie's van. Jeff gave him a knowing smile as he started to leave as well.

"Besides, don't you want your free ice cream?"

At the mall, Eddie tried his damnedest to avoid the food court and Scoops Ahoy. He dragged the guys along to WaldenBooks and Sam Goody. He didn't want to think about how somewhere in the mall was Steve Harrington in those little shorts. It did nothing good to his brain or his blood pressure. 

Jeff and Gareth, however, had other plans.

Eddie very pointedly walked past the escalator only to suddenly feel both of his arms being grabbed. "Hey! Stop it, fuckers," he spat through gritted teeth. His friends only laughed as they manhandled him onto the escalator heading down to the food court. He let out a very aggregated breath and pulled his arms free from their hold. 

He could see Scoops from the escalator. He briefly considered hopping over to the other side and running up. Gareth was quick, though; he'd for sure catch him before he even rail.

At the bottom, Jeff gave his back a firm shove in the direction of the ice cream shop.

"Go on," he chuckled.

Gareth grinned from beside him, "We're going to be right here so you're not leaving without talking to him."

Eddie tossed his hair back with an annoyed sound from the back of his throat. This was the worst idea they had ever had. "I'm getting an ice cream and we are leaving," he said as firmly as he could manage, pointing at both of them.

Jeff smirked, rolling his eyes, "Hurry up, lover boy."

While Eddie didn't stomp his foot, he came very close. This was ridiculous. Why couldn't he just sit outside and stare at Steve like he wanted to? That was easy. It didn't run the risk of a former jock clocking him and possibly ruining his life.

He took a deep breath before he turned on his heel to make his way into the store.

Steve was behind the counter with a hand on his hips while he rubbed at the back of his neck with the other. He looked adorably flustered. Though, Eddie wasn't sure who exactly he was talking to as it seemed like Steve was the only one in the shop. Huh. Maybe Steve was just as weird as he was?

He must have spotted Eddie approaching from the corner of his eye because Steve was quick to face the counter with a plastered customer service smile on his face. "Ahoy! Welcome to Scoops Ahoy, what can I get you?" Steve asked. His voice was a strange mix of practiced monotone and forced politeness.

It made Eddie grin to himself.

"Well, ahoy there, Captain Steve."

As he got closer, Eddie was sure he spotted just the barest hint of color filling Steve's cheeks. He watched as the younger boy's eyes flitted over him, taking him in. Eddie had to admit, it filled him with a sense of confidence that he wasn't expecting. Once he made it to the counter, Eddie laid his hands on the edge with a smile. 

Steve's eyes were fixated on his hands. He heard him clear his throat before he lifted his gaze to look Eddie in the eye. 

"Hi. Hi, Eddie," Steve greeted. The words were rushed and a bit clunky. Was Steve nervous? Was he making Steve nervous?

Eddie leaned the top half of his body just a bit closer as a wide grin spread over his face. "I'm here to collect on my free cone," he said, his voice dropping just a bit. It was teasing. Maybe a bit flirty.

Maybe.

It seemed to have the desired effect because Steve's cheeks flooded with more color. He nodded a bit shakily as he took a small step back away from the counter. There was a gentle nagging feeling in the back of Eddie's head that was telling him that this was just a bit too much; Steve was uncomfortable and the pink in his cheeks was from standing in front of freezers all day.

"What flavor do you want?" Steve asked. He glanced around him for a moment looking just a bit lost. Eddie spotted a cone being handed up to him from below the counter. He cut his eyes down to see a girl sitting on the floor, seemingly building a castle out of supplies. She looked familiar. Eddie was sure they'd had a class together.

But now wasn't the time to try to figure that out.

He quickly looked back up before Steve turned his attention back to him. He looked a bit frazzled for a moment, like he was going to drop the cone.

"What flavor do you recommend?" Eddie asked, feeling a smirk twitching at the corner of his lips.

Steve let out an uneven breath, "I really like the U.S.S. Butterscotch. It's to die for."

Eddie couldn't help but hum as he pretended to contemplate the option. He would no doubt eat whatever flavor Steve suggested for him. How could he ever think to say no to the boy, especially dressed like that?

"Well, if that's what Captain Steve enjoys I guess I'll have to try it," he said simply. 

Steve turned towards the freezer case with a nod of his head. Eddie watched with rapt attention as Steve leaned into the case to pull a scoop of the ice cream. The tendons and muscles in his arm flexed in a way that made Eddie want to sink his teeth into his bicep. He had to take a deep steadying breath to will away that thought.

When Steve turned back to him with a double scoop of ice cream, Eddie couldn't help the smile on his lips.

"One cone of U.S.S. Butterscotch," Steve said brightly.

Eddie reached out to take the cone from Steve. Their fingers brushed together and Eddie felt like his skin was on fire. He caught the way Steve nearly ripped his hand away with wide eyes once Eddie had a secure hold on the cone. What was that about?

"Thanks, Stevie," he said simply. He raised the ice cream to his mouth and allowed his tongue to slip past his lips in order to lick around the larger scoop on the cone. He locked eyes with Steve as he pulled away from the sweet treat, letting out a soft hum. It was actually very good.

"This is very good; you're right. Maybe ill have to come back," Eddie said, taking a step back from the counter, "See ya around, Captain."

He raised a hand to his head to salute Steve. He couldn't help the soft chuckle at the slightly awkward wave that Steve returned. Eddie quickly swiveled around to walk out of the store, actually feeling okay about the whole interaction. He hadn't thoroughly embarrassed himself and it even seemed like maybe Steve was kind of into it.

Free ice cream and flirting with a hot boy.

Eddie would for sure call that a win win scenario.

Although he didn't have long to bask in his hard earned confidence. Jeff and Gareth were waiting for him outside of the store. Their expressions were a little hard to read. At least in Eddie's ice cream euphoria they were hard to read.

He turned to walk back towards the escalators, both of his friends falling unto step beside him. He could hear they two of them whispering amongst each other as they stepped onto the escalator but he couldn't fully make out it was they were saying.

He turned around to face them, just to see positively shit eating grins on their faces.

"Oh, Eddie!" Gareth called out in an overly dramatic voice as he all but threw himself at Jeff.

Jeff caught him, his face pulled into one of those a model on a romance novel would make. Very Fabio. "Oh, Captain Steve," he replied, making a show of tossing back imaginary long hair.

Eddie glared at the two of them as they dissolved into giggles. They had to continue holding onto one another for support.

"You can both take the bus back," he said, stepping off the escalator. 

He staunchly ignored their less than happy shouts after him. Though he didn't move fast enough to evade them. Before he knew it, Jeff had his arm tossed around his neck while Gareth shoved playfully at his arm.

"C'mon, Ed, we're only fucking with you," Gareth laughed. 

Jeff hummed as he pulled Eddie a bit closer against his side, "Yeah. Let's go back to my place. Michelle is at camp all day so we can watch whatever we want in the basement."

Eddie sighed. He looked down at the ice cream cone in his hand before licking along it to keep it from melting down the sides of the cone. 

"Fine, but no one is allowed to mention you-know-who."

Gareth and Jeff made a show of pretending to zip their lips.

Chapter Text

Steve cradled the cordless phone between his ear and shoulder so that his hands were free to open the refrigerator. He kept one hand on the door and braced the other on the freezer door as he leaned down to look at the contents inside. His parents had just fucked off to who knows where for who know how long so he didn't have a lot to eat at the moment.

He'd have to go to the store in the next few days with the money his mom left.

"I don't know, Robin," he sighed into the phone. He grabbed a few packs of lunch meat, some condiments and some cheese. "How do you even figure this stuff out?"

He could hear some rustling from Robin's end of the phone. She grunted softly then let out a long sigh. "Well, how did you figure out you like girls?" She asked, sounding like she was rolling her eyes.

Steve closed the refrigerator door with his hip before walking to the counter. "I don't know. I just… I mean, have you seen girls? They're all soft curves and smooth skin," he mumbled. He grabbed a plate from a cabinet but paused. "That sounds creepy. But, like, girls are just so pretty and cute and I don't know. I never had to think about it."

Steve set the plate on the countertop and went to grab some bread from the pantry. Robin let out a low hum into his ear.

"And you've never had a thought about a guy before Eddie? Even just a rogue one off thing?"

He slowed down as he made his way back to where he was gathering ingredients. His eyes unfocused just a little, staring at the kitchen floor. He had. He knew he had. But there was a lot that happened that made him not want to deal with that. He flinched just a little at the briefest memory flash of his father confronting him after a basketball game.

Steve cleared his throat, "I mean… yeah, I guess. There were guys we played in basketball who I may have… looked at. And, I mean, before he opened his stupid fucking mouth Billy Hargrove was, like, objectively attractive."

Robin chuckled. Though, it didn't sound mean or like she was laughing at him. It sounded almost fond or affectionate, which was very strange. Steve shook his head before starting to assemble a sandwich; he needed to do something to keep his hands busy.

"But… okay, fine. I am also attracted to guys." The ease with which he said that sentence was a little jarring. "Who says Eddie also likes guys?"

Now, Robin was definitely laughing at him.

"Steve. The guy molested an ice cream cone with his tongue while staring you in the face."

Steve's entire face burned hot and he dropped a slice of cheese onto the floor. Yeah, Eddie had definitely done that. And Steve's body had definitely had some kind of reaction to the sight. But before Steve was able to come up with any kind of response there was a beep down the phone line.

He sighed softly, "Hey, I have a call on the other line."

"No problem. I have to go anyway. I'll see you at work tomorrow, dingus."

Steve rolled his eyes but murmured a goodbye before he pulled the phone away to switch over to the incoming call. "Harrington residence, this is Steve," he answered on autopilot. He ducked down to pick the slice of cheese up off of the floor.

He tossed it into the trash just as he heard Max's voice in his ear, "Hey, Steve. It's Max."

"Hey, kid. I hope you're not calling for a ride somewhere. I'm eating and going to bed," he mumbled, turning back to his sandwich.

Max huffed softly on the other end, "No, um, well not for tonight. But I was wondering if you could take me to Lucas' house tomorrow."

"I have to work tomorrow, Max," he said, turning to grab a butter knife from a drawer.

"Before work then. Please. My bike needs a new tire and Billy 'accidentally' ran over my skateboard when he got home from the pool today."

Steve paused where he was cutting his sandwich in half. She sounded upset. Or, at least as upset as Max would allow herself to sound. He hummed softly before he lifted the knife to lick at the side and tossed it into the sink.

"Fine. But I need to be at the mall by noon so I'm going to be at your place at eleven. I'm not gonna wait around all morning either," he said as sternly as he could.

Max made a happy sound in response, "Yeah, for sure. Thanks, Steve!"

She hung up immediately after. Steve pulled the phone away with an eye roll. He turned around to return the phone to its cradle. At least now he could enjoy his sad excuse of a dinner in peace.

If he were asked, Steve would say he had no idea why he was spending so much time on his hair while he got ready for work. Especially since he was just going to have to wear a hat the entire time. And while he couldn't place a finger on the exact reason why, he would fervently deny it had anything to do with a certain long haired metal head.

Why would he waste his time trying to look good for him? He didn't even know if Eddie would be at the mall today. He hadn't been for almost a week. Or, if he had he didn't go anywhere near Scoops Ahoy.

Once Steve was mostly satisfied with how he looked, he made his way back into his bedroom. He grabbed his uniform hat, folded it, and shoved it into his pocket. He picked up his keys and wallet next before he turned to head downstairs. At the front door, Steve slipped on his shoes and walked out of the house.

The ride over to Max's house was quick enough. He wasn't really paying much attention. His thoughts were elsewhere.

Thankfully, Max didn't keep him waiting for too long. She came barreling out of the house. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail that swished behind her as she ran down the driveway to the car. She threw open the passenger door and quickly dropped into the seat. 

"Thanks, again, Steve," she said a bit breathlessly. She pulled the door shut, buckled her seatbelt, and immediately opened the glove compartment to look at the cassettes inside.

Steve rolled his eyes, maybe a bit fondly, "Yeah, no problem."

He pulled away from the house just as Max seemed to find whatever tape she was looking for. Almost immediately the car was filled with the sound of a synth and Cyndi Lauper's voice. Max grinned at him as she turned up the volume. Steve rolled his eyes again.

"I regret buying you this tape," he said.

Max laughed, "Sorry, I can't hear you over the girls having fun!"

Steve snorted back a laugh as she shook his head. He'd let Max have this. She rarely, from what he saw, got to just let loose and have silly fun. So, if she wanted to blast Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and dance like an idiot in his car, he'd allow it.

When the song came to an end, Max lowered the volume again and slumped back against her seat. Steve cut his eyes in her direction for a second. "What're you and Lucas going to do today?" He asked, taking a turn.

Max shrugged, "Will spent the night over there last night. So I'm sure we'll figure something out."

"No Mike?" Steve asked.

An almost annoyed huff escaped Max at the question. "No. He's going to be at El's sucking face all day," she scoffed. Steve's nose scrunched up as he turned down Lucas' street.

"I'm sure Hop loves that."

Max laughed loudly. Steve smiled in her direction. He pulled up in front of the Sinclair house, putting the car in park. "You have a ride home, right? I have to close tonight so I'm gonna be at work late," he asked, hands dropping from the wheel to rest in his lap.

"Yeah. Mrs. Sinclair said she'd take me and Will home later today," she said as she undid her seatbelt, "Thanks for the ride!"

She quickly climbed out of the car, slamming the door shut behind her. Steve stayed there, watching to make sure that she got up to the house safely. When the door opened to reveal Lucas, the both waved at Steve before heading inside. Steve let out a breath and pulled away from the house.

At the mall, Steve parked his car a good distance from the entrance seeing as there weren't many available spots. The cassette tape, that he hadn't bothered to change, was playing through the song I'll Kiss You. Steve couldn't help softly singing along as he turned the car off. 

"My mother used to tell me not to kiss on this first date. This time when I see you, you know I ain't gonna wait," he sang under his breath, pocketing his keys.

He let out an annoyed sigh as he stepped out into the warm summer air. It wasn't the hottest part of the day yet, at least. And while Steve wasn't a big fan of working at Scoops the air conditioning was a bug step up from sweltering in the sun all day on a lifeguard chair.

While he walked towards the doors, Steve spotted a familiar figure dressed in a black shirt with no sleeves, black pants, and a red flannel around his waist. Steve knew immediately who it was. If the fashion sense wasn't a tip off, the long wavy hair was a dead giveaway.

"Eddie! Hey," Steve found himself calling out after him. He sped up to almost a light jog in order to catch up with Eddie.

Eddie seems to slow down his pace so that they could fall into step with one another. He nodded at Steve, "Captain. You ready to set sail, then?"

Steve let out a huff of a laugh, a smile spreading across his lips. He noticed Eddie looking at him before quickly averting his eyes. Strange.

"At least I'm here for a reason. Are you just going to loiter?" Steve teased, giving Eddie a playful sort of look.

He watched as Eddie shook his head and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans, "If you must know, Harrington, I am being a good nephew and getting my uncle a birthday present."

They reached the entrance doors together. Stevw quickly stepped forward to open the door. He held it open, flourishing with a hand to motion for Eddie to walk in. 

"Cute," Steve commented with his nose scrunched up. It was cute, Eddie buying his uncle a birthday present. It was also very cute the way that Eddie wrapped a strand of hair around his finger and pulled it across his face like he was nervous or something.

The two of them walked side by side into the food court until Steve came to a stop right outside of Scoops Ahoy. He glanced inside quickly to see that Robin was already standing at the counter. She spotted him, and her eyes darted between him and Eddie as a smirk spread over her lips.

He promptly looked back at Eddie.

"Well, duty calls," Steve said with a soft laugh. He reached into his pocket to pull out his hat before placing it on his head.

Eddie was looking at him strangely. He blinked and stepped closer, then with no warning he reached out to adjust Steve's hat. He could feel a swoop of hair fall against his forehead at the movement. He also felt his heart turning into a battering ram against his ribs. Eddie lowered his eyes until they were staring back at one another. 

And then he quickly pulled away as if he'd burned his hand. He cleared his throat a bit forcefully and crossed his arms over his chest.

Steve took a deep, shaky breath in. "Thanks," he said lowly, nodding his head, "Why don't you stop by before you leave? Have a scoop on me."

Why was he asking Eddie to come by? Why was he offering more free ice cream?

What was wrong with him?

Eddie nodded his head jerkily a few too many times, "Yeah. Yeah, for sure. I'll see you later, Harrington."

Then he walked away without waiting for a response. Steve watched as he made his way to the escalators. He let out a heavy sigh and turned to head into the store. Robin looked up expectantly as he approached but he just hung his head.

"Don't. I just… we're not gonna talk about that."

Steve was half a second from ramming the pointy end of an ice cream cone into his eye. And it would all be Erica Sinclair's fault. Not that she would care. She'd probably just demand that Robin move his dead body and continue to let her sample the flavors.

"Erica. For the love of anything good and bright and shiny in the world, can you please just stop?" Steve practically pleaded. He was exhausted. The customer service facade was quickly slipping. He didn't want to yell at a little girl.

But he would if he had to.

With a haughty sigh, Erica rolled her eyes at him, "Fine. I was ready to go anyway."

She and her little gaggle of girls turned to leave the store. Steve let out a sigh of relief as he ducked his head down between his shoulders, his chin pressed to his chest. He took a few deep breaths to try and regain whatever composure he had left.

"Rough seas today sailor?" Eddie's voice floated into his ears.

Steve snapped his head up so quickly he was surprised that his hat didn't fly off. He let out a breath, feeling his shoulders relax slightly. "Sometimes I don't think I'm cut out for customer service," he said with a soft laugh as he straightened up.

Eddie grinned as he approached the counter, "If only you had someone to pamper and take care of you, Stevie."

"You offering?" Steve asked with a single raised brow.

Where did that come from?

Eddie looked taken aback by the question. Almost as if his brain had shut down for just a second before it came back online.

Steve only smiled at him, "What'd you get your uncle?" 

"A book called Blood Meridian. It's like a western, horror, historical fiction thing," Eddie shrugged, raising the WaldenBooks bag up slightly, "Seemed like something Wayne would like."

"Very cool," Steve smiled brightly at him. Steve wasn't much of a reader. It felt like the letters were jumbling themselves up just to confuse him whenever he tried to read long form things. So he didn't really try. He liked that Eddie seemed to like books, though. "So, do you want another butterscotch scoop or are you feeling something different?"

Steve picked up his scooper, spun it in his hand, and looked expectantly at Eddie. 

"Peanut butter chocolate swirl sounds good," the older boy decided after looking at the flavors.

Steve only nodded before he grabbed a cone to scoop Eddie's chosen flavor. He made short work out of pulling the perfect scoop. He wasn't sure why he tried so hard. He dropped his scooper into a cup of water under the counter before he shut the freezer and walked back to hand over Eddie's cone.

"What time is your shift over?" Eddie asked, taking the ice cream.

Steve could feel the way that his eyebrows nearly shot up into his hairline. He tried to relax his expression as he put his hands on his hips. "Uh we're closing at 8 tonight, why?" He asked, unsure.

Eddie licked at the side of his ice cream. Steve had to look away momentarily.

"My friends and I were going to go see The Goonies but they're busy tonight. Do you want to go? With me? Do you want to go to the movies with me?" Eddie asked, sounding more than a little nervous.

Eddie was asking him to go see a movie. Eddie was asking him to see a movie after work. Eddie was asking him to go out. Eddie was asking him out.

Steve smiled broadly. He briefly chewed on the corner of his lower lip as he cast a quick glance towards the window behind him. He knew that Robin was sitting in the back, probably listening to this whole exchange. He didn't care. Eddie had just asked him out. His eyes returned to Eddie's face as he nodded slowly, not wanting to seem too over eager.

"Yeah, definitely. I can meet you outside the cinema after I close here."

Eddie's face was a little pink. He pressed his lips together over a smile. It was very cute. "Alright, yeah. I'll see you later tonight."

"I'll see you later tonight," Steve parroted back, knowing he was probably smiling like a fool.

Not that he cared.

He didn't care.

Because Eddie had just asked him out.

Chapter Text

Eddie had a hard time sitting still on a good day. His general inability to stay in his seat or keep his limbs still had been a major talking point from every teacher since he started school. So, it was no real surprise to him when he found himself pacing the length of the trailer. He'd occasionally stop to adjust the mail on the table, or the containers on the counter.

He needed something to keep his mind and hands busy.

On his fourth full lap around the trailer, Wayne let out a disgruntled noise from where he was sitting in the living room. Eddie could hear him lowering his paper. He could practically feel his eyes on his back as he shifted around the mugs on the wall.

"Is there a reason you're walking around here like you've got ants in your pants?"

Eddie sighed loudly, "I… I'm just trying to keep busy, Wayne."

"So go play your guitar or go for a walk. Stop touching my stuff," he said with a soft huff of a laugh. Eddie rolled his eyes and turned around to see Wayne looking at him with a playfully annoyed sort of smile. "What's got you so jittery, son?"

Eddie felt his shoulders slump slightly at the question. He shuffled over to the living area and all but threw himself down onto the sofa, tossing an arm over his eyes. Wayne was more than used to his dramatics by now.

"I have a date tonight."

Wayne snorted back a laugh, "So instead of putting on real clothes, and looking presentable, you're messing with my mugs?"

A truly affronted sound escaped Eddie as he pushed himself up onto an elbow; he twisted his torso to face his uncle. "Rude, Wayne. I look great," Eddie huffed, pushing some of his hair back over his shoulder.

"I can see your armpits," Wayne said in a deadpanned voice, picking his newspaper up again.

Eddie clamped a hand under his arm, fixing the older man with a glare, "Don't look at my pits."

Even though he couldn't see Wayne's face he knew for a fact that he was rolling his eyes. Eddie sighed again and flopped back onto the couch. "I take it this isn't one of your normal dates, then," Wayne said after a moment or two of silence.

Eddie grimaced. He wasn't sure how he felt about his uncle being so in tune with his regular habits. Eddie didn't date, so to speak. There weren't a whole lot of options for a young gay man in Hawkins, Indiana. There were a few guys from school who he'd meet from time to time for a good time but it was never anything serious.

Because they definitely weren't queer.

When Eddie turned eighteen he started to make the occasional trip up to Indianapolis. There was a gay club up that way and he'd met a few guys that way. But it was nothing more than a hookup. For someone who had had his fair share of sex, Eddie wasn't exactly experienced when it came to going on a date.

He cleared his throat harshly, "N-no. We're gonna go to the movies."

"And this boy… you're safe with him?" Wayne asked cautiously. Eddie looked over to see him peering over the corner of his paper at him.

Eddie knew what Wayne was asking him. This wasn't a safe sex kind of question. He sighed as he absently spun a ring around his finger. "Yeah, Wayne. He's… well, I don't think he's fully, like, gay. But he's into me," he said, only stumbling a little over his words.

Wayne hummed thoughtfully, "Well, of course he is. You're very handsome." Eddie raised his brows at his uncle, a little taken aback by the plain compliment. "You'd be more handsome if you wore clothes without holes in them, though."

There it was.

Eddie arrived at the mall about a quarter to eight. He figured that would give him enough time to buy the tickets to the movie before Steve finished his shift at Scoops Ahoy. He stayed in his van for a few minutes, tapping his hands on his steering wheel along with Eat Your Heart Out playing through his speakers.

He just needed to hype himself up.

He could do this.

Maybe he should have changed. Would that have been weird, though? Steve was going to be wearing his work uniform so if he showed up to see Eddie in a completely different outfit, that would be weird, right? Or maybe Steve would think that Eddie just wasn't trying.

"Fuck, come on," Eddie chastised himself, killing the engine and pulling his keys from the ignition. 

He took a steadying breath as he climbed out of the van, closing the door heavily behind him. It was just a movie. It wasn't that big of a deal. Eddie shook his head and headed towards the entrance to the mall, trailing behind a group of younger teen girls.

The walk to the cinema was quick, and he found himself behind the same group of girls in line to purchase tickets.

There was a nervous sort of fluttering in his gut as the line inched forward. He hadn't planned any of this. Asking Steve had just sort of happened, the words just fell out of his mouth. So now that he was facing the clock ticking down to going on an actual date with Steve Harrington, he was losing it just a little bit.

Steve had a reputation around school when it came to girls. He'd heard his fair share of stories about movie dates, school dances, house parties, and more. It was kind of daunting to think about, so he tried not to.

Finally, Eddie reached the ticket counter. 

"Hi, can I get two for the 8:35 showing of Goonies?" Eddie asked as he fished his wallet out of his pocket.

He paid for the two tickets and thanked the girl behind the counter before he turned away. He checked his watch. It was a bit after eight so Steve and Robin had to be wrapping up at Scoops. He just had to wait for Steve to be done. So he decided to go wait by the entrance of the cinema.

Eddie leaned against the wall between the large posters advertising the movies currently showing. People were coming and going in large groups. No one was paying him much attention, thankfully. He kept his eyes down, watching all of the shoes pass him by as he twirled a bit of his hair around his finger.

"Eddie, hey," Steve's voice broke him out of his trance.

He lifted his gaze to look up at Steve who was smiling brightly as he approached. His hair was floppy and his eyes were bright. Eddie could feel himself swooning on the inside. Which was truly bizarre. He felt himself grinning as he stood up right.

"Hey," he greeted back with a soft exhale of breath, "Oh, I already got the tickets."

Eddie held up the tickets in his hand to show Steve, even if he felt a little silly doing so. Steve smiled at him before he turned his head to the side to look into the lobby. Eddie took the opportunity to shamelessly take in the line of his neck, bespeckled with so many cute little moles it made Eddie's head spin.

"C'mon, we need snacks," Steve said simply as he motioned towards the lobby with his head. Eddie let out a soft chuckle but walked in with Steve. They stopped in line at the concession counter, standing shoulder to shoulder.

When he shifted, Eddie could feel the warm skin on Steve's arm brush up against him and Eddie briefly considered throwing himself off the second floor of the mall. But that may be a bit too dramatic even for him.

Eddie spotted Steve reaching into his pocket. "What do you want to eat and drink?" He asked as he pulled out his wallet. Eddie opened his mouth to argue. He had asked Steve to the movie, and he should pay for the snacks. Steve, however, laid a hand on his forearm for just a second.

For just a second, Eddie was sure he was going to combust.

"You paid for the tickets, I got the snacks," Steve said with a smile as he pulled his hand away.

Relenting, Eddie nodded his head as he looked over the menu display behind the counter. He perused the options quickly. What does one ask for when someone else was paying? They moved up with the line and Eddie shrugged his shoulders.

"Popcorn and a coke? Can't really go wrong with that."

"Good choice," Steve said with a nod as he stepped up to the counter to order, "Hi. I'd like a large popcorn, two cokes, and a box of sour patch kids please."

Eddie felt a smirk tugging at his lips as Steve handed money over to pay for their order. Steve glanced over, catching his eye and looking just a little bashful. He was so cute. "I like sour patch kids, sue me," Steve defended with a weak sort of laugh.

They stepped aside to wait for their order. Eddie propped his elbow up on the counter, leaning heavily against it right beside Steve. "I didn't say anything. It just makes sense, Stevie," Eddie laughed. 

Steve raised a brow at him, "What makes sense?"

"Sour on the outside, sweet on the inside? It's cute," Eddie teased, his nose scrunched up just a bit.

Eddie was sure that he saw just a hint of pink spread across Steve's cheeks. Fuck, he was so pretty. Eddie wanted to bash his own head against the counter. Thankfully, their drinks and snacks were quickly placed in front of them before he could act on his impulse.

Steve turned away from him before he handed over a drink as well as the tub of popcorn. Eddie happily took them both as they made their way over to the ticket taker, who was a very bored looking teenage girl. She looked as though her eyes may roll right out of her head.

Opting to be polite, Eddie kept his thoughts to himself as he handed over their tickets. She let out a truly impressive sigh as she tore them and handed the stubs back to Eddie.

"Second theater on your right. Enjoy your show," she said in a tone that sounded as if she didn't care whether they enjoyed their show or not.

As they walked away towards their theater, Steve pulled a face in reaction to the girl that tickled Eddie enough to make him laugh much too loudly. Though, Steve smiled back at him so it couldn't have been that bad. They continued walking together into the theater until Eddie paused.

The theater itself was mostly empty, so they had their pick of seats. Only Eddie wasn't sure where exactly to sit. He felt like it said something of his intentions for the evening based on where he moved to sit down. Though that could very well just be in his head. Steve, however, seemed to know what to do.

Eddie felt Steve's fingers wrap around his elbow before he began to gently pull him towards the back of the theater where the last few rows were completely vacant. Steve let go of his arm but led the way towards the middle of the row. Eddie was quick to follow suit.

They settled in their seats and Eddie could feel the pressure of their legs pressing together. He took a deep breath before setting his drink in his cup holder. He could do this. He could sit next to a very hot boy and watch a movie. It wasn't that big of a deal.

He glanced over to see Steve clawing his way into the box of sour patch kids. Once he ripped it open, he tossed one of the candies into his mouth. Steve caught his eye and gave him a small smile. 

He held the box out towards Eddie, "Do you want one?"

Now, Eddie was no stranger to junk food. If it weren't for Wayne forcing him to eat actual meals from time to time, he would exist on a diet that would make any small child jealous. However, he absolutely hated sour candy. Candy shouldn't hurt.

But as the lights were lowering, he could see the bright almost hopeful look in Steve's eyes, and he couldn't say no.

So, he held his hand out, palm up. Steve smiled and gently shook the box until a few pieces fell into his hand. Eddie gave Steve a wink as he murmured a soft 'thank you'. Then, reluctantly, Eddie put the candies into his mouth. He tried very hard to keep his face as neutral as possible while he chewed.

At least the lights were off and hopefully Steve couldn't tell.

Thankfully, the movie was enough of a distraction. He kept his eyes on the screen for the most part between taking a few handfuls of popcorn or sips of his drink. He was aware of Steve steadily making his way through his box of candy.

However, at one point when he reached toward the tub of popcorn on his knee with his left hand, he felt his fingers brush against Steve's who was also going for the popcorn. He couldn't help the teasing smirk that slid over his lips as he looked back over at Steve.

"If you wanted to hold hands you just had to ask," Eddie whispered, a teasing lilt to his tone.

Now that his eyes had adjusted to the low light, Eddie could see the way Steve's eyes flitted between his face and where their hands were still hovering over the tub between them. Then, Steve easily slipped his hand into Eddie's, laced their fingers together and tugged them both over to his side of the arm rest.

Eddie was sure his grin was a bit too self satisfied, but he could help it.

Steve fucking Harrington was holding his hand.

Surprisingly, they kept their hands together like that for the rest of the movie. Eddie only worried a little but about the sweat levels of his palms but it didn't seem to be an issue for Steve so he ignored it. Nothing else could ever matter. Not while Steve's fingers were intertwined with his own.

When the lights came back up, they slowly pulled their hands apart. Eddie licked his lips as he gathered their trash up in the now empty popcorn tub. He started to head towards the exit, Steve following close behind. After dumping their trash they exited to the lobby which was surprisingly empty.

Now, there was a lot to be said about Eddie's ability to just talk. Some people enjoyed it, some people hated it, and some people, like Wayne, had just learned to tune him out most of the time. But Eddie could go on and on if he wasn't stopped whether it was about Dungeons and Dragons, books, music, comics, or even movies.

Which is how he found himself recounting the movie to Steve, as if he hadn't also just seen it, as they walked towards the exit of the mall. However, when Eddie managed to stop himself he noticed the way Steve was watching him. His eyes were wide and he had a soft smile on his face. He looked amused.

At the doors, Eddie held one open and motioned through it with his hand, "After you."

He definitely spotted the soft blush in the apples of Steve's cheeks when he walked by. Eddie grinned to himself as he fell into step with Steve. There weren't that many people in this particular section of the parking lot, Eddie noticed as they walked past his van.

They made it to Steve's car and he turned around to face Eddie, leaning back against it.

"Um… thanks for the movie. I had fun," Steve said softly.

Eddie nodded as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He suddenly had no idea what to say or do. He raised his shoulders up to his ears as a smile fell over his lips. 

"Yeah, me too. We should do it again sometime."

Steve nodded slowly, "Yeah, definitely."

A blanket of silence fell over the two of them as they stared at each other. Eddie found himself wondering if he should kiss Steve. That was what you did at the end of a date, right? He felt a little lost. He saw Steve's eyes trailing over his face and all of a sudden his heart was beating quickly.

What was he supposed to do?

Eddie did what Eddie did best.

Run away.

"Right, um, goodnight, Steve," Eddie said abruptly. He turned quickly on his heel to head back to his van. He made it a few parking spots down before he heard the sound of Steve opening his car door. He stopped fully in the middle of the aisle.

What was he doing?

He took a deep breath in. "Don't be a coward," he whispered harshly to himself, "Don't fuck this up." Eddie turned around and all but jogged back towards Steve. He was getting into the car but stopped at hearing him approach.

Eddie got closer and came to a stop as Steve turned back around to face him.

It was now or never.

"Steve, I… um," he took another breath to try and compose himself. "I'm going to kiss you now, is that alright?"

He half expected Steve to laugh at him. But he nodded. "Yeah. Yes," he said on an exhale.

Eddie didn't even think about it. He stepped closer, his hands fell to Steve's hips, and his head tilted just enough to press their lips together. They fit together like puzzle pieces. The soft press of Steve's lips sent a shiver down his spine as he felt Steve's fingers slip into his hair.

His lips were perfect.

Slowly, he pulled away from the kiss. He gave Steve's hips a soft squeeze and he was sure his face was bright pink. But he couldn't bring himself to care. He took a few small steps back, both his and Steve's hands falling away from one another.

"Goodnight, Stevie. Get home safe, I'd hate for this to be a one night only event," Eddie chuckled, continuing to walk backwards.

He watched as Steve bit at his lower lip. He let out a happy sounding laugh. "Goodnight, Eddie," he said as he climbed into the car. Eddie stood there and watched as Steve started the engine, giving him a small wave as he pulled away.

It was quiet in the parking lot. Eddie allowed himself a few seconds of peaceful reflection before he punched the air excitedly. He'd just kissed Steve Harrington. Honestly, he could die happy. He had peaked. Though, he was a little glad that no one was around as he made his way back to his van because he was damn near skipping the whole way.

"How was your date?"

Eddie practically jumped out of his skin, "Jesus Christ, Wayne!"

He hadn't seen his uncle sitting up in his armchair when he'd come in. He forgot it was his night off so he wasn't expecting him to be home at all. Wayne, however, was grinning at him from across the room looking way too pleased with himself.

Laying a hand against his chest, Eddie heaved a breath to try and steady himself. 

"It was… it was good," he mumbled, an unintentional smile spreading over his face.

Wayne nodded slowly. His expression shifted from amused as Eddie's dismay of being scared to something more akin to relief. 

"I'm gonna head to bed," Eddie said, tugging at his hair, "I've got band practice in the morning."

"Goodnight, Ed."

Eddie smiled and nodded, "Yeah. Night, Wayne."

Chapter Text

Steve was extremely proud of himself. He drove all the way home, made it up to his bedroom, and flopped down onto his bed before he had any sort of freak out about what happened. He stared at his ceiling for a solid fifteen seconds, and then he suddenly remembered what Eddie's lips had felt like against his own.

He covered his face with both of his hands as he let out a soft groan.

If he had any tiny little questioning thought as to if he actually liked guys, it was all but smothered to death the second Eddie's lips touched his own. They were so soft and fit so nicely against his. He didn't mind the slight scratch of stubble against his chin either. He definitely didn't mind the feeling of big hands grabbing at his hips.

Steve dragged his hands down his face before he all but bounced himself off of the mattress. He pressed play on his stereo as he passed by on his way to his dresser, wanting to get out of his work uniform.

The sound of Freddie Mercury singing filled his bedroom. It was the last tape he had been listening to, The Game. He'd stopped it in the middle of Need Your Loving Tonight, a fact that now made his face flush just a little. But he pushed the feeling away as he pulled on some shorts and a plain t-shirt.

Without much thought, Steve grabbed the phone from the top of his dresser and quickly dialed Robin's number. It rang a few times, and Steve almost wondered if she was asleep. Or maybe she wasn't allowed on the phone after a certain time? Steve had no idea what rules actual parents gave their kids.

He vaguely recalled Nancy not being allowed to talk on the phone past a certain time on a school night but he quickly tried to push that thought aside.

Just about the time that Steve was considering hanging up the phone, after all he'd see Robin in the morning for work, the line picked up.

"Hello?" Robin's voice came through sounding a bit annoyed.

Steve grimaced to himself, "Hey, Robin. It's Steve."

"Steve? Why are yo- Oh my god. Did you just get home from your date? What happened?"

He had to let out a laugh at the quick change in her tone. It was kind of nice, though, to have someone to talk to about these kinds of things. When he had started dating Nancy there was no way he could talk to Tommy or Carol about anything real.

And then his only real friends were middle schoolers.

So to have someone his age who understood the strange situation he found himself in was a bit of a relief, honestly. 

"Well when I got there he'd already bought the tickets." Steve closed the drawer to his dresser with a nudge from his hip. He walked over to sit at the foot of his bed. "So then I bought us some popcorn and sodas."

Robin hummed, amused, "Going Dutch, I like it."

"Sure," Steve said, rolling his eyes, "We just watched the movie though."

"Just watched the movie? I find that hard to believe. My freshman year, in gym class, I overheard Erin Cuthbert talking about how you took her to a movie and sat in the back row and when the lights went down you pu-"

Oh, dear god. Steve didn't need the impromptu walk down memory lane so he promptly cut her off.

"Ah! Stop! I don't need to hear second hand about things I may or may not have done," Steve groaned loudly, falling back on the mattress. "We didn't do anything like that, okay? We just… held hands."

Robin was quiet for long enough that Steve almost worried that she had hung up on him. But he listened closely and could hear her breathing.

"That's actually kind of sweet," she said softly.

Steve rolled his eyes again, "Thanks, I guess."

"So, you didn't even kiss?" She asked after a beat of silence.

"Not in the theater," Steve admitted in a soft mumble as he tossed an arm over his eyes.

The song on the stereo changed to Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Steve lowered his arm and turned his head to the side to glare at the system with narrowed eyes. Truly uncalled for. Robin was quiet again but it was different this time. It felt weighted. Like, if they were face to face Steve was sure she would be leering at him with a smirk on her face looking almost like a cat waiting to pounce.

She let out a low chuckle, "But you did kiss?"

"Well… yeah," Steve admitted softly. He couldn't have kept the smile from spreading across his face if he tried. He felt stupidly giddy for some reason, just thinking about it.

"Did you kiss him or did he kiss you?" Robin asked. He could hear her shuffling around on the other end of the phone, like she was trying to get comfortable. Like she needed to be physically prepared to hear whatever Steve was about to tell her.

Steve sighed softly. He let his arm splay out across the mattress as he refocused his gaze to the ceiling.

"He walked me to my car." He ignored the murmur of 'how cute' from Robin and pressed on. "I thought about kissing him, and thought maybe he was gonna kiss me but then he just… suddenly said goodnight and turned around to walk away."

Robin groaned softly, "Boys are idiots."

"Hold your horses," Steve laughed softly, "I was very confused and decided to just get in my car but then he ran back and asked if it was alright if he kissed me."

"You're both still idiots," Robin said with a fond sounding chuckle.

Steve rolled his eyes, "Okay, you had a crush on Tammy Thompson. You have no room to talk here."

"Gee, Steve, would you look at the time! I've gotta go to bed now!"

Steve laughed loudly, and he could hear a soft laugh from Robin's end as well. "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow," he murmured.

She hummed in agreement, "See you at work."

The line clicked as she hung up. Leaving Steve alone with his thoughts, and Queen playing softly through his speakers.

The jaunty nautical tune that filled the front of Scoops Ahoy was steadily grating on Steve's nerves. He had opened the store that morning so it had been burrowing its way into his brain for hours. He kind of wanted to scoop his brain out through his ears. He was certain that nothing could make his slowly growing headache worse.

Until he spotted Erica Sinclair walking in, flanked by two of her little friends.

"Oh, god no," he mumbled to himself.

Glancing to the side, he spotted Robin walking back up front with a fresh sleeve of spoons for sundaes. He whipped around and grabbed her by the shoulders; he knew he had to look a little manic.

"You have to deal with her, Robin, please," Steve pleaded softly, "I can't. I can't do it two days in a row."

Robin looked between him and the girls approaching the counter. She rolled her eyes but nodded her head. "Fine, dingus, go sit in the back for a while while I deal with the little girls," she said, patronizing. It wasn't Steve's fault if she wasn't prepared for what was about to happen to her.

He didn't need to be told again. Steve bolted to the back of the store, as far away from Erica as he could get. He could still hear Erica from back there and judging by her tone, Robin had one hell of a time ahead of her. But, Steve was free. So I grabbed a magazine from the table and sat down to relax for a little while.

His right leg stretched out underneath the table so that his foot could rest in the chair on the opposite side while his left leg was propped up on a box next to the table. After a while he gave up on tbe magazine, tossing it back to the table. His mind then had room to wander.

And wander it did.

He found himself thinking about the way Eddie's hands had felt on his hips. He'd felt the hard press of metal rings through the material of his uniform and that did something very strange to his brain. He pictured how Eddie looked at him before he leaned in to kiss him. God, had he kissed him.

There were precious few things Steve loved more than well and truly making out with someone. He loved the pressure of lips and the slip of tongues. He craved the sound of soft sighs and the feeling of panting breaths. And now that he had kissed Eddie, he couldn't help but imagine that with him.

He wasn't sure how long he stayed back there, leaning back in his chair and protecting his peace, but he heard Robin greet someone else so she must have gotten rid of Erica. 

"Hello, sailor."

Steve had been so caught up in his imagining that the sound of Eddie's voice caught him so off guard that he nearly toppled out of his chair. He managed to push himself forward and slap his hands down onto the top of the table. "Eddie!" He gasped in surprise. It was very jarring to have the person he was just thinking about show up.  He managed to get to his feet. "What're you doing back here?"

The smirk that slid across Eddie's lips as he walked closer made Steve's heart flutter inside his chest; he was sure his face was flushing too. "Robin told me you were back here and then walked away," he answered simply.

Steve rolled his eyes just a little as Eddie came to a stop in front of him, and then hopped up to sit on the table. "Hi," Eddie said with a grin as he reached out to take hold of Steve's hand.

"Hi," Steve replied softly.

He clocked the way that Eddie's eyes moved from his own eyes down to his lips. And, honestly, with the way his thoughts had been since last night he couldn't really help himself. Steve tipped his head forward to seal their lips together. He could hear Eddie's sharp intake of breath before he felt a hand firmly cup his jaw.

Steve allowed his free hand to grasp at the side of Eddie's neck. He could feel the strands of his hair tickling at the back of his hand.

He felt and heard the soft hum that rumbled from within Eddie, and he couldn't help the pleased sigh that all but leaked out of him as his lips parted. Then he felt the gentle slip of Eddie's tongue against his own. He was sure he was going to disintegrate.

"What are you doing tonight?" Eddie breathlessly whispered as he pulled back just a bit. 

Eddie returned to kissing him so quickly that Steve wasn't even sure he processed what he asked; he was just too focused on the pleasurable tingle that was thrumming through his body as Eddie seemingly tried to kiss the life out of him. Finally, some of the fog cleared in his brain as he realized what Eddie had asked.

A soft chuckle came from within hum, "Nothing."

"Do you want to go to the drive-in with me?" Eddie murmured between kisses. He slipped his hand out of Steve's in order to grab at his waist and pull him closer. God, Steve wanted to be so much closer. "We could watch a movie? Or not watch a movie."

The question caught Steve off guard but he didn't want to pull away from kissing Eddie to even think or try to answer. He wanted to stay there as long as possible. However, Robin's voice carried in from the front of the store.

"Dingus, your children are here!"

Steve let out a less than pleased groan as he reluctantly pulled away from Eddie. He was sure he looked like an absolute mess and tried to smooth out his clothes with nervous hands. He was going to kill these little gremlins. "Hold on," he mumbled to Eddie before heading to the door.

He wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand and took a deep breath. He opened the door to see Will, Lucas, and Mike standing at the counter. They looked much too pleased with themselves for his liking.

"Hurry up," he grumbled, motioning them to the back.

The three of them rounded the counter and walked past Steve at the door. He quickly followed behind them. When he noticed the dumb look on Mike's face when he spotted Eddie, Steve ushered them to the back door faster. He threw it open and gestured out into the service hallway. They swiftly slipped out of the room.

Steve twisted around to watch them walking off. "Don't get caught," he called after them, setting his hands on his hips. He wasn't doing much to dispel the whole mom accusation. At least the chorus of "Okay, dad" was a little better.

Rolling his eyes, Steve returned to the back room. He let the door close heavily behind him. "Sorry about that," Steve apologized as he looked back at Eddie. He walked closer, trying to come up with a reasonable explanation as to why three kids were showing up at his workplace.

"I… I babysit those kids. They've learned how to sneak into the movies from here and they have no shame," he explained with a small shrug.

Eddie smirked at him and Steve could feel himself flush at the sight. "A sailor and a babysitter? What good luck I have," he said, all but leering filthily at him.

Oh yeah, Steve was positive that his face was bright red.

Eddie closed the distance between them and his hand was right back where it had been, cupping Steve's face. He tried very hard not to lean heavily into the touch. Eddie's eyebrows raised slightly as he looked so deeply into Steve's eyes he felt likely to shake apart.

"So, the drive in?" He whispered.

Steve had to swallow harshly, his throat felt suddenly parched, as he nodded his head, "Sounds great."

Eddie hummed softly as he leaned closer into Steve's space. He gently pressed his lips to Steve's, and Steve was positive that he was trying to steal his breath away. It felt like he was succeeding.

"Perfect. I'll see you tonight, pretty boy."

There it was again. Pretty boy. Steve felt just the smallest bit dizzy. He nodded dumbly but gave Eddie a tiny smile. "Yeah. I'll see you tonight," he said softly.

Eddie flashed him a bright grin that left him feeling just the slightest but weak in the knees before he turned to leave. The door swung behind him and Steve was alone with his thoughts for roughly thirty seconds before Robin flung open the shutter. Steve nearly jumped out of his skin as his head whipped to the side to see her glaring at him.

"You owe me. You owe me huge. First, I dealt with that little hellion for you and then you got to sit back here and do god knows what with… you owe me," she seethed, pointing at him through the window.

Steve raised both of his hands in front of him, "How about a cookie from Great Cookie Co.?"

Robin considered him and his offer in quiet anger. Then she let out a slow sigh, her body language relaxing just a hair.

"Make it two."

Chapter Text

Eddie was riding a Steve Harrington induced high. There was no other way to describe it. How else had he found the courage within himself to not only make out with the former king of Hawkins High in the back room of Scoops Ahoy, but to ask him to the drive-in while heavily implying that they didn't have to watch the movie? There was no other explanation. There was just something about Steve that made Eddie's brain short circuit. 

He was, once again, struggling to keep himself busy as he waited around the trailer. Though, he managed to keep his hands off of Wayne's stuff. 

With his acoustic guitar in his lap, Eddie sat on the couch just absently plucking around. He had a far off idea for a song but it was a bit too fuzzy for him to work it out. So he was using his anxious energy to hopefully draw the melody out of hiding.

"What's on your agenda for the night?" Wayne asked as he entered the living room.

He was dressed for work. He sat down in the arm chair and began to pull on his work boots. Eddie glanced up to look at his uncle, silently weighing the choices of actually telling him what his plans were. 

"I have another date tonight," Eddie said, strumming softly, "I'm just waiting around until I go pick him up."

Wayne hummed softly as he nodded his head, "This the same boy as yesterday?"

"Yeah," Eddie grunted, feeling his face flush for some reason. 

"Two dates in a row. You must like this boy," Wayne said simply, standing up from his chair.

Eddie's left hand slipped from the frets as his other clunkily strummed at the strings; his body unintentionally jolting at Wayne's statement. He felt heat filling his cheeks before immediately spreading down to his neck. He tried to clear his throat as a way to regain some of his composure but he could see the smirk that Wayne was leveling him with.

He rested his arm along the curve of the body of his guitar, allowing his fingers to tug at his hair. As if he could just hide from Wayne.

When he didn't answer right away, Wayne just laughed gruffly at him while shooting him a knowing look.

"Well, be safe. And be a gentleman, okay? I raised you to be one even if your wardrobe says otherwise."

Eddie nodded jerkily, tossing an awkward wave in Wayne's direction, "Right, of course. G'night, Wayne."

"Good night, son," Wayne called over his shoulder as he exited the trailer.

As an entrepreneur of the illegal variety, Eddie had at some point been to Steve Harrington's house. He'd been to a party or two to sell a thing or two before scurrying off into the night. So, he didn't have to think all that much on the drive over to pick up Steve. He could just let his mind wander a bit while Black Sabbath played loudly through his speakers.

If someone had told him at the beginning of summer that he would have gone on two dates with, and kissed, Steve Harrington he would have thought they'd lost their mind. There was no way that someone like Steve even liked guys, and if he did, he certainly didn't like guys like Eddie. 

Though, apparently, even Eddie can be wrong.

Sometimes.

He pulled into Steve's driveway, and took the time to turn down his stereo. He more often than not just kept it at the almost oppressive volume but he figured he shouldn't scare Steve so soon into their… whatever this was. Eddie turned the keys and extracted them from the ignition before taking a moment to check his hair in the rear view mirror.

He could take a moment or two of vanity if he so pleased.

Once he was satisfied, Eddie hopped out of the van and made his way up to the front door. He took one last steadying breath before he rang the doorbell. He could hear it ringing loudly from within the house. He, thankfully, didn't have to stand there for long before the door opened to reveal Steve.

Now, the fact of the matter was that they had gone to school together. Eddie wasn't sure how often Steve had seen him but Eddie had definitely seen Steve. He'd seen Steve in his casual everyday clothes. He'd seen Steve in his basketball uniform. He had even seen Steve wearing his gym clothes.

All of which he really appreciated.

Though, not as much as getting to see him in that delicious little sailor suit.

But, looking at him now, Eddie was a little blown away. The tight little white t-shirt, tucked into even tighter jeans, underneath an open colorblocked button up with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows had Eddie's brain shutting down for half a second. How was it fair for one boy to be so hot?

Steve let out an almost nervous sounding chuckle, "Hey."

"Hey yourself. You ready to go?" Eddie asked with a grin, barely containing the urge to rock on the balls of his feet.

Steve nodded his head, and Eddie stepped backward as he walked out of the house. After Steve locked the front door and pocketed his keys, Eddie walked with him over to his van. Once close enough, he stepped just in front of Steve so that he could open the passenger door for him.

Wayne had told him to be a gentleman, after all.

Eddie watched as Steve's cheeks flushed a pretty shade of pink even as he rolled his eyes. "Thanks," he said softly, slipping into the van.

Once Steve was inside, Eddie closed the door and hurried over to the other door where he climbed up inside. He turned the key in the ignition to start the engine and carefully backed out of the driveway.

"What are they showing at the drive-in?" Steve asked.

Eddie tossed him a crooked little grin as he started to drive, "They're doing a double feature of Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street."

Steve was quiet for just a moment too long. Eddie chanced a quick glance in his direction to see him visibly swallowing, and his eyes widened. He looked a little stressed, maybe a tad frightened. Eddie couldn't help but think that it was kind of cute as he looked back to the road.

"Why are they showing horror movies in the summertime?" Steve's voice was low and a bit wavery. 

The slight anxious edge to his tone was immediately picked up by Eddie's ears. He reached out with his right hand to gently grab into one of Steve's hands. They were just as big and warm as he remembered; his hand felt nice, right, clasped in Eddie's hand.

In an attempt to ease whatever nerves Steve may have been feeling, Eddie smiled over at him. "Are you scared, Stevie? Don't worry, I'll protect you," he teased playfully.

Steve didn't say anything in response. He did, however, scoff which just made Eddie chuckle softly to himself. He then felt Steve's hand shifting in his grip and was momentarily worried that he was going to pull away. Until Steve turned his hand and threaded his fingers through Eddie's, which had Eddie biting at his lower lip in an embarrassing bout of giddiness.

He managed to give Steve's hand a firm squeeze once they were settled together between them.

It didn't take too long for them to arrive at the drive in. They pulled up to the gate and Eddie, very reluctantly, pulled his hand out of Steve's grasp. He reached into the pocket of his battle vest to take out the money he had gotten from his early morning deal with Billy Hargrove. There was a strange sense of smugness at using Billy's money to pay for a date with Steve Harrington, especially after turning down Billy's offer to get weed without formal payment.

Eddie shook that thought from his head as he accepted his change, less than gracefully shoving it back into his pocket. He then drove into the grounds, choosing a parking spot towards the back. He didn't want to be presumptions with what was going to happen; they could very well just watch the movies. However, he also didn't want to worry about people seeing them together and wondering what golden boy Steve Harrington was doing sitting in Eddie the Freak's van.

He parked the van and turned the keys to kill the engine before turning to face Steve. He stretched a hand out to gently pat him on the knee.

"I'm going to go get some snacks."

Steve looked as though he was ready to protest; his mouth opened slightly as his brows furrowed just so. It was cute. Unnecessary, but cute. Eddie shook his head as he lifted his hand to gently grab Steve's chin between his fingers. He wasn't sure where that move came from but it definitely stopped Steve from trying to argue.

"I'm going to get snacks. You sit here and look pretty," he smirked, winking at Steve, "You can actually get the radio tuned to the right station if you want."

Eddie quickly exited the van, closing the door firmly behind him. As he walked away, he had to take a few steadying breaths. He wasn't sure what was going on in his brain. One minute Steve had him feeling silly and bashful, literally hiding behind his hair, and the next Eddie just wanted to pin the boy down and kiss the life out of him - among other things.

He never really felt or dealt with the former of those feelings. Not in any real sense beyond stupid little crushes growing up. There was just something about Steve that made it feel like all his wires were crossed and like he was running on full cylinders every time he looked at the younger boy. He had to shake those thoughts and feelings out of his head. At least for the moment. 

At the concession stand, Eddie got in line behind some couple who looked like they were in their late twenties. They were holding hands and whispering to one another, pressed against each others side. It made Eddie's stomach sink just a little. He had to park far away from anyone else because he was here with another boy, but these two got to be disgustingly cute in front of god and everybody.

Eddie averted his gaze to the ground.

He shuffled forward with the line until he was at the counter. He glanced up at the guy standing there who did not look at all pleased with where he was. Eddie tried to be polite. "Hey, can I get two cokes, a box of Resse's Pieces, and a box of Sour Patch Kids?" He asked with a small.

The concession worker didn't seem like it mattered whether Eddie was being nice or not, he was just annoyed to be there. Which was fair, Eddie reasoned. He paid for the snacks, taking the time to neatly put whatever change he got away into his wallet and not into a mass in his pocket.

He murmured his thanks as he collected his snacks and turned away. Someone at the end of the line caught Eddie's eye as he started to walk away. A certain freckle faced little weasel smiled knowingly at him, which made Eddie's skin crawl. 

Shaking his head, Eddie quickly made his way back to the van. He hauled open the door and climbed inside, slamming it shut behind him. He faced Steve and promptly held out the box of Sour Patch Kids towards Steve as if he had done something truly amazing, and not remembered a simple comment he had made the night before.

Though he couldn't held the shy sort of smile that spread across his face.

The way Steve's eyes lit up as he practically beamed back at him was definitely worth it. "Thank you," he said as he took the box.

Eddie nodded as he set two cans of soda into the cup holders, ans dropped his Resse's Pieces on the dash, before locking eyes with Steve. "So do you wanna watch from up here or in the back? It's completely up to you," he asked as he twisted in his seat to face Steve better, "No pressure."

It was true. He was willing to do whatever Steve felt most comfortable with and move at whatever pace he wanted.

He watched as Steve pulled his lower lip between his teeth as it seemed like he mulled his options over. Fuck, he was so pretty. Suddenly, Steve released his lip as a smirk that made Eddie's head spin spread across his face. Steve set his box of candy down with the sodas before he climbed through the seats to slip into the back of the van.

Eddie was a weak man and took the opportunity to shamelessly look at Steve's ass in those jeans before he settled against some pillows. When he turned to look back at him, Eddie was positive that he was leering indecently at Steve, but that couldn't be helped.

He followed suit in climbing to the back so that he could sit next to Steve. Steve raised a hand up to brush back some of Eddie's hair behind his ear; the gentle brush of Steve's fingertips against the shell of his ear had his skin burning.

"Hi," Steve whispered into the space between them.

Eddie barely registered the sound that came from deep inside of him. His eyes were glued on the way that Steve tilted his chin up until their lips were just a breath apart. Eddie felt something clawing at the back of his brain to touch and grab and kiss. It was loud enough that he completely blocked out the first movie starting in favor of pressing closer to seal his lips over Steve's. 

He pressed his body closer to Steve's, sighing softly as their lips moved effortlessly together. He felt Steve's hands sinking into his hair followed by an electric shiver down his spine. He was vaguely aware of hearing all those girls at school talking about kissing Steve but they absolutely did not do the experience justice.

His hands slid under where Steve's open button up shirt had fluttered back so that he could grab at the dip in his waist. He felt so perfect under his hands. Eddie's teeth nipped at Steve's lower lip which had Steve groaning beautifully as his back arched enough to press his chest against Eddie's. 

"You make the prettiest noises," Eddie very nearly purred, pulling away from the kiss. He quickly moved his mouth to the side of Steve's neck, kissing up to the hinge in his jaw. He sucked and nipped at the skin there, just to feel the way Steve trembled under him.

Steve's hands gripped tighter into his hair, "O-oh fuck."

He was so responsive. Eddie couldn't help but smirk happily against his skin. He worked over Steve's neck with his lips, tongue, and teeth all while relishing the way that Steve moved underneath him. He was pressing his body closer to Eddie's all while using the grip in Eddie's hair to pull him in.

Eddie shifted their positions enough to encourage Steve to lie back until his head was resting on a pillow. He kept most of his body weight hovered over Steve, though his hands were still pressing hotly at his waist. As he settled, and kissed lower down Steve's neck, one of his hands slipped down enough to gently pull Steve's t-shirt from where it was tucked into his jeans.

His fingers quickly found the expanse of warm skin just above his waistband. The touch elicited a gasp from Steve that had Eddie pulling away slightly. The look of Steve had Eddie biting back a groan. His face was flushed and his lips were bitten red while his eyes were dark and hooded.

He could feel a slight shake to Steve's fingers as his hands fell from where they were tangled in Eddie's hair down to his shoulders. He watched as Steve's tongue slipped out of his mouth to swiftly wet his lips, leaving them glistening in the low light. 

"You can tell me to stop," Eddie whispered. He tipped his head forward to press a quick kiss to Steve's lips.

It was true. If Steve said stop, Eddie would. He'd pull away and do whatever Steve asked of him. Sure, he'd be in a bit of physical discomfort but that wasn't anywhere near as important as Steve feeling comfortable and at ease.

Steve's fingers dug into his shoulders as he shook his head. "Don't," Steve whispered, his voice low and rough, "I don't want you to stop."

That one sentence seemingly flipped a switch in Eddie's brain. 

He all but crashed his lips against Steve's again, the force of which nearly knocked their teeth together. What had previously been more intimate and exploratory was suddenly an overflow of passion. Eddie used his tongue to urge Steve to part his lips for him, a damn near filthy moan fell out of him when their tongues met. But he couldn't bring himself to care. 

Not when Steve had given him to go ahead to touch him.

Actually touch him.

Eddie swallowed Steve's whines as he made quick work of undoing the belt that was wrapped snugly around Steve's hips. He pulled the belt open before his right hand slid up Steve's body and grabbed at the back of his head. He used the hold to tilt Steve's head in a way that he was able to kiss him deeper.

While he kissed Steve, his left hand undid the button and zipper of Steve's jeans in record time.

His hands moved to press against the pillow, bracketing Steve's head as he pulled away from the kiss. Eddie searched Steve's face for any sign of being unsure. Though watching how Steve's chest rose and fell heavily as he panted up at him was definitely more than a little distracting. The hint of a smile twitched at his lips he used his left hand to brush some hair back off of Steve's forehead before it moved to the back of Steve's head.

With a practiced ease, Eddie shifted to lay on his side beside Steve while his right hand trailed down Steve's body. He pushed Steve's shirt up a bit more, taking a moment to toy with the trail of hair that disappeared under the waistband of his boxers. Steve's skin was radiating heat in a way that was making Eddie feel dizzy.

"Kiss me," Steve's soft whimpered pleas drew him back in.

Eddie felt his eyes roll back into his skull at the sound before he leaned in to crush his lips to Steve's in a hungry kiss.

As they kissed Eddie laid his hand flat against Steve's lower stomach, and pushed it slowly under the band of his boxers. He kept his hand moving until he could wrap his fingers around the smoothness of Steve's cock. Steve hissed against his lips at the touch, "Holy shit." When Eddie moved his hand, feeling Steve twitch in his grasp, he found the tip to be a leaking mess which just spurred him on.

Steve's hips pressed upwards as Eddie found his rhythm, listening to the soft gasps and whines that escaped Steve's lips to figure out what he really liked. Through it all, Steve was beginning to lose concentration on their kiss to mostly just pant against Eddie's mouth which he didn't really mind.

He was just focused on making Steve feel good.

"That's it, pretty boy," Eddie muttered as he nipped and tugged at Steve's lip, "You're doing so good. Fuck, so good for me."

Steve all but ripped away from their kiss as he tossed his head back against the pillow underneath him. Seeing the way that Steve's face screwed up with pleasure as he gasped and moaned with every stroke of his hand sent Eddie reeling. He could watch this all day everyday and never tire of the sight of Steve pulling apart at the seams.

It sounded like Steve tried to say his name but the noise was cut off by a gorgeous groan as his body went taut. Eddie could feel Steve's dick pulsing in his hand as he came; the sight, sound, and feeling was almost enough to send him over the edge too.

As Steve's body relaxed, Eddie slowed the movement of his hand. He watched as Steve's eyes fluttered open again and a dopey little smile spread over his face. It was dark in the back of the van, but Eddie could just imagine the pretty pink color filling his cheeks.

He carefully pulled his hand away, and as he opened his mouth to speak a sudden knocking at the driver's side window interrupted. Steve's face immediately fell into a look of panic that had Eddie's heart clenching at the sight. "Stay," he whispered as Steve sat upright.

Eddie turned around and grabbed a rag he usually used while playing shows to wipe off sweat to clean off his hand. He climbed up between the seats, settled into the driver's seat and let out a soft annoyed sigh. Slowly, he cranked the window down to see none other than Tommy Hagan standing there.

He narrowed his eyes at the boy, "Can I help you, Hagan? I'm trying to watch the movie."

"Relax, Munson. I was just looking for a little something to make the night a little more fun," Tommy replied simply, laying a hand on the door.

He wanted to get rid of Tommy as quickly as possible. He knew that he and Steve used to be best friends, though he wasn't sure what had caused their falling out, so he didn't want to risk him seeing Steve in the back. With a groan, Eddie looked over his shoulder. He saw that Steve had mostly put himself together. His jeans were closed though his belt was still undone and his shirt was untucked.

He made eye contact with Steve and mouthed an apology to him before he dug out a lunch box from behind the passenger seat. He threw Tommy a less than pleased look as he pulled out two joints. They were on the small side and mostly made of whatever was leftover from everything else. Shake weed. Not the best but it was all he wanted to offer Tommy.

"Twenty bucks," Eddie said, blinking back an annoyed look.

Tommy scoffed loudly, sounding ready to protest but Eddie held up a hand to silence him. "You came to bother me while I'm trying to enjoy this movie. Off hour requests get off hour prices," he said firmly.

Tommy's face twisted into an irritated grimace but he sighed as he reached into his pocket to pull out the money. He reached a hand in through the open window and Eddie quickly exchanged it for the baggie with the small joints in it. Tommy pulled his hand back and gave his door a slap.

"Your windshield is a little too fogged up to be able to see the movie. Whoever you got back there seems to be enjoying herself more than this shit," Tommy teased, slapping the door again, "Have a good night, Munson."

As he walked away, Eddie quickly cranked the window back up. He turned around and slipped back between the seats so that he could make his way to settle next to Steve. "Everything okay, pretty boy?" Eddie asked, pushing a hand into Steve's hair.

Steve swallowed hard as he nodded his head, "Yeah… yeah I'm great."

A slow smirk slid over Eddie's lips as he leaned in to press a kiss just below Steve's ear. "Yes you are," he mumbled, nipping at the skin there. He pulled away to look back at Steve's face. He could see the way Steve was watching him with a wrinkle between his brows and his lips pressed together.

It was like he was thinking way too hard.

Maybe worrying about something.

Eddie couldn't help but think Steve was trying to work up some kind of nerve to reciprocate what he'd just done for him. The thought made Eddie feel almost a little bit sad. He had rushed into fooling around with guys who didn't care about anything other than getting off. They certainly didn't care about how Eddie felt about the whole thing.

He didn't want that for Steve.

If he really was the only guy Steve had ever done anything with, he didn't want to set that precedent. Steve should do things when he is comfortable with it, not just because someone else did something for him.

Sex and relationships weren't transactional.

"Why don't we actually watch the movie for a bit?" He suggested softly. He crawled up front to grab the candy and drinks he'd bought before settling comfortably back against the cushions.

He heard Steve let out a small sigh as he sat next to Eddie. He wrapped his arm around Steve's shoulders to pull him close to his chest. "If you do get scared, feel free to grab onto me," he said with a laugh.

"Shut up and give me my sour patch."

Eddie rolled his eyes but handed over the box, "So bossy."

"You like it," Steve said simply as he opened the candy.

Eddie laughed, abruptly and loudly. Steve looked over at him with a wide grin that just made him laugh more. "Yeah. Yeah, I do," Eddie chuckled, leaning in to press a kiss against Steve's lips.

"You know, for someone who seemed so worried about the scary movies you did just fine," Eddie grinned as he walked with Steve up to his front door.

Again, Wayne had told him to be a gentleman.

Steve paused slightly on the welcome mat, key in hand. "I think I've realized that there are scarier things in the real world than some people can come up with for a movie," he said, unlocking the door. His tone sounded loaded, like he was speaking from some kind of experience that Eddie wasn't privy to.

He didn't have long to dwell on that thought as Steve opened the door just a little before he turned to face Eddie again.

"I had fun tonight," he said in a rush, a slight blush filling his cheeks.

Eddie smiled fondly, "Yeah, me too."

Steve reached out to grab Eddie's hand, and pulled him closer. He tipped his head forward and Eddie let out a soft sigh as their lips touched. Steve really was such a good kisser. It gave him a head rush.

"Goodnight, Eddie," he said softly as he pulled away.

Eddie watched as Steve stepped into the house. He nodded a little dumbly. "G'night, Steve," he nearly whispered. A pleased looking grin spread across Steve's lips before he closed the door. Eddie slowly turned away to make his way back to the van.

"Holy shit," he whispered to himself once inside.

Chapter Text

"So I shouldn't expect you to show up today and harass me?"

Eddie's laugh coming from down the phone line had Steve grinning to himself as he sat down at the foot of his bed to pull on his shoes. He was really growing to enjoy the sound. Once Eddie had stopped laughing he let out a soft sigh into Steve's ear. 

"No. My uncle needs some help working on stuff around here today so that's where I'll be. So, when you're bored at work and wishing I was there to bother you, just imagine me toiling away here doing manual labor."

Steve could hear the teasing smirk in Eddie's voice.

He could play along.

Humming softly under his breath, Steve tied his shoes quickly, "Are you gonna be shirtless while you do this manual labor?"

"Could be," Eddie said with a dismissive sort of air to his voice. Steve rolled his eyes fondly to himself. Eddie made a sound as if he sucked at his teeth. "Do you want me to be shirtless?"

It was Steve's turn to laugh, "I'm not doing this with you before I go to work."

"You're no fun," Eddie said with a pout in his voice.

Steve rolled his eyes again, "I'll see you later, Eddie."

"Have fun at work."

With one last soft goodbye, Steve ended the call. He stood up and tossed the phone down onto his perfectly made bed. He paused, for just a second, as he looked at the plaid bedspread. He had made the bed a few days ago and other than occasionally sitting on it or laying on top of the covers, it was undisturbed.

Steve hadn't been sleeping much as of late.

As of late meaning the last year and a half.

In an attempt to avoid his recurring nightmares, Steve more often than not fell asleep on the couch in the living room. Not that it ever really worked. He was always jolted awake within a few short hours of falling asleep and spent the rest of the night watching television.

Shaking his head, Steve grabbed his keys and wallet as well as his uniform hat. 

He had to get to work.

To her credit, Robin managed to keep any and all probing questions to herself while the two of them opened the store together. Though, Steve could feel her glances as he took chairs off of tables and refilled napkin dispensers. He caught her blatantly staring at him while he wiped down the tables.

"You can just ask, you know. Instead of being a weirdo," he said with a loud sigh.

Robin scoffed and pretended to be offended by Steve's words for roughly half a second before she leaned on the counter. She rested on her elbows, propping her chin up in her hands. She looked a little manic as she smiled across the shop at him.

"How was the drive-in?"

Steve huffed out a laugh and rolled his eyes. He picked up the cloth he'd been using to clean the tables before he turned to head back towards the counter. The mall as a whole was still pretty empty. Stores were just opening up, and Steve was sure the first bus hadn't started running yet.

He and Robin would be alone in Scoops Ahoy for probably another twenty minutes, at least.

"It was," Steve's voice trailed off as he thought back to the night before. He could feel his face heating up; Robin raised her brows in his direction while his face grew hotter and hotter. Steve cleared his throat as he tossed this cloth under the counter.

"It was a lot of fun."

Robin pursed her lips while she appraised him with her eyes, "Fun as in you enjoyed the movie or fun as in you did something gross?"

"It's not gross," Steve said, immediately jumping on the defensive.

Tossing her head back, Robin let out a cackle of a laugh. She laughed so hard her hat fell off of her head. Steve could feel the blush in his face rapidly descending into his neck. He huffed out an annoyed breath of air while Robin attempted to get control of herself.

Steve crossed his arms over his chest and stared over at Robin with wide eyes. Her face was tinged pink from her giggles. "Are you done?" He asked impatiently. 

She snorted.

She, honest to god, snorted.

"Oh man. You were so quick!" She said between soft chuckles.

With an eye roll, Steve leaned back against the counter. If Robin wanted to laugh at him, he'd at least give her something to think about.

"So, you don't want to hear about how he put his hand down my pants in the back of his van?"

That certainly sobered Robin up quickly. Her nose wrinkled and her lips curled up. It was Steve's turn to laugh, now.

"I don't know what's more upsetting," Robin said, crossing her arms over her chest. Her eyes quickly scanned the food court.  They were essentially alone in their ice cream shop. "Hearing about you fooling around with Eddie, or that you've just figured all your shit out and you've already got a boyfriend. Meanwhile, here I am! Alone!"

Steve wasn't sure what exactly to comment on but he couldn't stop his mouth from moving.

"He's not my boyfriend."

Robin groaned, tossing her hands in the air, "Not the point, Harrington!"

Steve took a detour on the way home.

He slowed down, and eventually parked his car on the street when he spotted Max sitting on the front steps of her house. Her head shot up at the sound. She looked more than a little confused as Steve got out of the car and began to make his way up the steps.

As he got closer, Steve heard raised voices inside.

He tried to keep his wince to himself.

"What're you doing here?" Max asked.

Steve was sure that the snap to her tone was a mix of trying to seem like whatever was happening inside her house wasn't happening, and being a little embarrassed that someone else was witnessing it. Steve had been there a lot growing up; whenever someone got a little too close or saw a bruise on his arm or face and asked questions.

He had always been quick to shove people away, sometimes literally, and tell them to shut the fuck up. It was always from basketball, or baseball. Or he had hit his arm on the edge of the pool doing laps. Or he and Tommy were rough housing and there was a slip of an elbow. Tommy always went along with it.

Tommy knew without being told.

Just like Steve knew, now, that Max's family was probably a lot more similar to his than they thought.

He smiled softly at her, putting his hands in the pockets of his shorts. "I remembered you saying that your bike needed a new tire. Did you get one yet?" He asked, rocking slightly on the balls of his feet.

From inside a door slammed and Max flinched slightly.

"No. My mom hasn't had time to take me to get a new one," she said, looking away from Steve.

He nodded to himself, "Well you're in luck. I was cleaning out the garage the other day and found my old bike. Tires were brand new. I'm sure they'd hold you over."

Max quickly snapped her eyes back up to Steve with a disbelieving look on her face. Steve shrugged.

"I don't ride anymore. So, I figured you could use them. They're in the trunk. You want me to help you change them out?"

It was silent between the two of them for a couple of seconds. Steve briefly wondered if maybe he had crossed some sort of line; he'd just wanted to help, and avoid going home to that big empty house. Finally, a smile stretched across Max's face. She got to her feet, brushing at the back of her pants with her hands.

"Y-yeah. I'll go get my bike."

She took off around the back of the house. Steve smiled to himself before he turned around to head back to his car. He popped the trunk and pulled out two wheels, setting them down so that they were leaning against the bumper. He grabbed the wrench he'd set inside and turned around to see Max struggling to pull her bike along to the sidewalk beside the car.

"What did you do, Mayfield?" He asked with a disbelieving laugh.

The front wheel was bent all out of shape. And the back didn't look like it had much life in it either.

Max paused, pushing some hair from her face, "Lucas, Will, and I were biking in the woods behind Will's house and I hit a root and went smashing to the ground."

"Well, flip it and let's get started."

With only a minimal amount of grunting, Max managed to turn the bike over to rest on its handlebars and seat. Steve knelt down beside the bike and quickly began to loosen the nut at the center of the wheel. Max sat on the curb, between the bike and the car, and watched. He was able to get the busted wheel off pretty quickly.

Max hurriedly rolled over the replacement before he even asked.

Steve smiled at her before setting it into place.

"How'd you learn to do this?" Max asked while Steve attached the wheel nut.

He shrugged, "My, uh, my dad isn't really a… helpful kind of guy. He'd buy a tire or whatever but that was it. It was pretty much learn to do it myself or be bikeless."

Max nodded in silent understanding. 

Steve shifted to the back tire, working at removing the chain from the gears. A fair bit of grime rubbed off on his hands in the process. Ignoring it for now, Steve repeated the process of pulling off the tire just for Max to roll over the second one from beside her. He tightened the wheel nut and replaced the chain, giving the pedal a spine to make sure that it all worked.

"Do you know if there's any WD-40 around here?" He asked, looking back up at Max.

Her brow furrowed, "Um. I think there's some in the garage. Why?"

"Your chain," Steve said, pointing to the bike, "It's a bit dirty and it's making a noise when it spins. The WD should clean it up some and help it run smoother."

Max blinked at him a time or two before she got to her feet. She grabbed both of her broken wheels and ran off towards the small garage. She was gone for just a few seconds, but came back carrying a blue and yellow can in hand.

She promptly handed it over to Steve.

He took it and slowly worked at spraying the bike chain with it. Some gunk fell off to the ground and soon there wasn't a grating sound no matter how fast Steve spun the pedals. He set the can down in the grass behind him and got to his feet. He flipped the bike, motioning to it with a flourish.

"Your chariot."

Max laughed, rolling her eyes. She stepped up and threw a leg over the bike. Steve watched as she took a quick ride up the street and back. She returned, stopping right in front of Steve, before sliding off to stand beside the bike.

"Thank you, Steve."

From somewhere further down the road, Steve heard a loud car engine. He immediately knew it was Billy's stupid camaro. Though, he just shook his head and smiled at Max.

"No problem, kid. Maybe stay out of the woods with it from now on."

When Steve arrived to work the next day there were several large boxes sitting beside the counter. The girl who worked the shift before him, Terri he thought her name was though he had no clue since she'd already removed her name tag, smiled a bit meanly when he asked about it.

"We're doing a new promotion on weekends. Bana-Rama Sundays. That's all the displays and stuff you guys have to make sure is put up before you close tonight," she explained, pulling a denim jacket over her uniform, "There's a map on top of where everything goes. Have fun."

And then she was gone.

Steve sighed loudly before he walked to the back to punch in. Robin would be in soon, then they could deal with all of that.

Rock, paper, scissors was complete horse shit.

Somehow Robin always won. So now Steve was stuck trying to unpack all the stupid boxes full of stupid flyers and stupid posters. He crouched down over the cardboard, digging through the contents with a near scowl on his face.

The only plus was that he didn't have to deal with any customers.

At least he thought.

"Dingus, this one is all you. I'll take over unpacking," Robin called loudly.

Steve's head shot up. He looked over his shoulder, confused as to why Robin was making him take over the counter. He just hoped it wasn't Erica. His eyes quickly stopped searching as he spotted Eddie standing in front of the freezer. He couldn't help the stupid smile that spread over his face at seeing him.

He stood up quickly to make his way over, although as he walked over he saw three guys standing beside Eddie. They were dressed in a similar fashion to Eddie, so he figured that they were friends. They looked familiar; he'd definitely seen them around at school.

"Ahoy," Steve greeted a but unsure. Eddie let out a soft chuckle and he felt his heart pick up pace in his chest at the sound.

In perfect unison Eddie's friends all replied with their own, "Ahoy!"

Eddie groaned and covered his face with his hand. Steve couldn't help but smile. It was funny, to see the way that Eddie's friends embarrassed him.

"Can we get four cones of U.S.S. Butterscotch?" One of the guys asked, holding out a few dollar bills.

Steve rang up the four cones, and took the money from the boy with reddish wavy hair. "You can put the change in the tip jar," he said with a shrug as Steve started to pull the change from the till. Steve hummed softly and nodded his head. "Thanks," he said with a small smile. 

He stepped away from the register to start making the ice cream cones. He could hear Eddie harshly whispering something but couldn't make out whatever it was. After he successfully scooped all four cones, he returned to the counter to hand them out.

Eddie's friends all took them with smiles and polite Thank you's before walking off to a table.

Finally, it was just Eddie standing there. Steve handed over the ice cream with a smile. 

"I'm sorry about them," Eddie apologized softly.

Steve shrugged, "Don't worry about it."

"What's going on with all that?" Eddie asked, looking over at where Robin was working.

Steve looked at Robin as well and sighed. "Tomorrow starts our Banana-Rama Sundays," he said with a fully put on customer service voice. It was worth it to hear Eddie laugh. "Robin and I have to get all the signs and shit up before we leave tonight so it's ready for tomorrow."

"Maybe I'll have to come by and try a banana-rama," Eddie said with a grin plastered to his face.

Steve hummed as he set his scooper down into a cup of water. It was easier to clean the ice cream off the scooper after it sat in some warm water for a bit.

"I actually have the day off tomorrow so I won't be here to help you get your ice cream fix," he teased, a smirk twitching at the corner of his lips, "But if you really want to try it I'm sure Robin would be happy to help you."

Eddie stared straight at him. He wanted to laugh at the deer in headlights look. Eddie's tongue flicked out to wet his lips as he raised his brows. "What're you gonna do with a whole day off, Stevie?" Suggestion was heavy in Eddie's tone.

It sent a shiver down Steve's spine. 

Steve shrugged, "I was planning on hanging out at home. I got the pool cleaned and ready last weekend."

That was true. There were very few places in his house that Steve felt comfortable in. But the pool? Steve always felt at home in the water. When the weather warmed up, and he had the time, he was quick to open it up.

"Pool?" Eddie asked, sounding a little shell shocked.

A small chuckle escaped Steve as he removed his scooper from the water and began to clean it with a cloth. While it wasn't his intent, he really was just trying to clean off his scooper, it was a little empowering to see the way that Eddie stared at his hands before fully ripping his eyes away with pink tinted cheeks.

"Mhmm, I figured I'd spend the day hanging out by the pool," Steve said simply as he tossed the rag into a basket under the counter.

Was he teasing Eddie? Definitely.

He couldn't help it, though. The dumbfounded look on his face was just so good. The dazed expression as he tried to clear his throat and regain some semblance of control was kind of addictive in an amusing way.

"You're dripping," Steve said as he nodded at the ice cream in Eddie's hand.

A few drops of sweating ice cream had fallen over Eddie's fingers. He jumped slightly like he'd just felt an electric shock. Steve watched his face and was almost fully convinced that Eddie was going to lick the ice cream from his fingers.

Steve didn't need that visual at work.

He grabbed a napkin to hold out for Eddie to take. He did so with a soft murmur of thanks before he began to wipe up the mess on his hand. Steve smiled back at him.

"Are you busy tomorrow?" Steve asked. He tilted his head to the side and blinked a couple times. It was a look he had been on the receiving end of a time or two from various girls. He wondered if it had the same effect on Eddie. 

Judging by his face, it did.

Eddie jerkily shook his head, "No! Nope. No, I am free tomorrow. All day."

Steve laughed, his head dipping slightly forward and his shoulders shaking before he looked back up.

"Do you want to come over?"

"Yes. Yeah. That would be… yeah," Eddie said with a tiny grimace. He let out a soft sigh as he stepped away from the counter. "I'll see you tomorrow, then," he said in a rush before turning around.

Steve watched the way he nearly ran to his friends and all but slammed his hand down on their table. He couldn't hear what Eddie said but his friends just laughed at him as they got to their feet. As they exited the shop, the shorter boy with red hair wiggled his fingers at Steve.

Eddie shoved him in the back, making him stumble and the other guys laugh.

"That wasn't nice of you," Robin said, suddenly standing beside him.

Steve rolled his eyes with a grin, "I don't know what you're talking about."

The next day Steve found himself a little frazzled. He wasn't exactly what to expect from Eddie coming over. Sure, he'd told the older boy that he wanted to swim but Steve wasn't too sure how much of that they would actually do. Not that he had invited Eddie over solely looking for something physical to happen.

But, well, Steve was a teenage boy after all.

And Eddie had given him a spectacular orgasm the last time they were alone together.

Steve groaned out loud to himself. He didn't need to get distracted by those kinds of thoughts. So, he decided to dig out his bathing suit from the back of his dresser. It took a bit but he finally found it.

Although, as he pulled the yellow and orange shorts free from the drawer he had a realization. These shorts were definitely more than a season old. He couldn't remember the last time he wore them. 

"Shit," he whispered under his breath.

He held the shorts up in front of him while standing in front of his mirror. They were definitely going to be small on him. He was about to give up on them, and try to find his shorts from when he lifeguarded last summer, but he stopped. His head tilted slightly to the side as he considered his reflection in the mirror.

Maybe the shorts being a bit small wouldn't be all that bad.

Deciding to find out, Steve stripped down to pull the swim suit up his legs. They hugged his thighs a little tighter than they had on previous wears. They also sat a bit lower on his hips. He turned just enough to see what the back looked like.

Steve averted his gaze. 

Had it not been his own reflection he would say that it was all a little bit indecent.

Though, he figured that Eddie might appreciate it.

Steve scurried off out of his room down to a linen closet. He grabbed some old, but still too expensive, towels before he headed downstairs. He set them down beside one of the sun loungers and made his way back inside the house. 

For some reason, he was feeling nervous. As if Eddie hadn't had his hand wrapped around his dick like two nights ago. Steve shook his head as he poured himself a glass of lemonade. He needed something to keep his hands busy while he waited for Eddie to show up.

Just as Steve finished his drink and set the glass in the sink, he heard the doorbell. It startled him at first, the sound echoing loudly through the empty house. Steve paused for a moment and took a few deep breaths both to calm himself down and also to waste just a bit of time.

He didn't want to seem too eager, or desperate.

Even if he probably was.

Finally, Steve made his way to the front door. When he pulled it open, he saw that Eddie was focused on the door mat. Though he quickly looked up. It seemed as if he was going to say something but stopped abruptly as he shamelessly stared at Steve. Well, Steve's body. He watched the way Eddie's eyes trailed up his legs and torso with a small amused grin on his face.

He cleared his throat to get Eddie's attention, "Hi, Eddie."

"Hi," Eddie greeted with a strained nod.

Shaking his head fondly, Steve stepped aside to motion for Eddie to walk over the threshold, "Come on in."

He waited for Eddie to step into the house so that he could close the door behind him. They were very close like this, and Steve briefly considered just kissing him. But, his mother raised him to be a good host, if nothing else.

"Do you want something to drink?" Steve asked, walking off towards the kitchen.

Eddie followed behind him but didn't respond for a few seconds. Steve had to bite back a grin. He wasn't used to being looked at so unapologetically. Eddie finally answered with a soft, "Sure."

Steve went to a cabinet to pull out a glass. He could practically feel Eddie's eyes trailing down his back, and lower. He pointedly ignored it in favor of pouring him a glass of lemonade. He turned around to hold the drink out for Eddie, who took it with a soft murmur of thanks.

"The pool is out this way," Steve said before walking off towards a sliding glass door that lead out back.

Once outside, Steve padded across the concrete over to the deep end of the pool. He seamlessly dove into the water. He savored the moment under water. The weightless feeling was always a reprieve from the ever present undercurrent of anxiety that lived in his body. When he finally surfaced, Steve pushed his hair back out of his face. 

He blinked the water away from his eyes to see that Eddie had sat down on the edge of the pool with his feet in the water. God, he looked so good with his long hair tickling his bare shoulders - exposed from the black singlet top he wore. Steve smiled softly as he swam closer to where Eddie was sitting.

"I have a question," Eddie said when Steve stopped next to him. Steve folded his arms on the concrete around the pool, allowing his cheek to rest on them as he blinked up at Eddie. His feet gently kicked under the water. He hummed lowly at Eddie's words, silently encouraging him to ask his question. 

"When you were on the swim team did you wear swim shorts like that or did you wear a speedo?"

A truly unexpected laugh forced its way out if Steve. It was loud and sudden. He felt it punch through him. He sae Eddie smiling broadly down at him as he ducked his head into the fold of his arms.

What an absolutely ridiculous question to ask.

When his laughter finally subsided, Steve looked back up at Eddie. He had to squint slightly as the sun hit his face. "Are you thinking about me in a speedo, Eddie?" He asked with a crooked grin.

Eddie shrugged as he took another sip of his drink, "I'm not not thinking about you in a speedo."

Steve pushed back away from the wall to swim slowly out to the middle of the pool. The way Eddie was looking at him was making his heart race. He watched as Eddie finished his lemonade, setting the glass behind him, and pulled his tank top off over his head before slipping into the pool as well. He lifted his arms up, pulled a single black hair tie from his wrist, and pulled his hair back into a loose bun at the top of his head.

Steve couldn't take his eyes off of Eddie.

That really shouldn't have been as attractive as it was. How was Eddie just walking around looking like that all the time? It wasn't fair.

"You didn't answer my question," Eddie said.

Eddie stopped where the water was just deep enough to hit low on his chest. Steve licked his lips and swam over to him. When he was close enough Eddie slowly snaked his arms around Steve's waist to pull him flush against his body.

Steve slid his hands over Eddie's arms. He took the time to gently trace the tattoos he found. That wasn't something that he expected to find so hot, either. But the dark ink against Eddie's fair skin was definitely doing something for Steve. His hands slid further up until he could loop his arms around Eddie's neck.

"Yes," he finally said with an overly dramatic eye roll, "I had to wear a speedo when I was on the swim team."

A filthy grin spread over Eddie’s face.

"Shut up and kiss me," Steve grumbled with a huff.

Eddie let out a low chuckle as he tilted his head to the side and dipped forward to press their lips together. A breathy exhale made its way out out Steve's nose at the contact. God, he could easily become addicted to kissing Eddie. Especially the way that his tongue licked at the seam of his lips until his mouth fell open slightly. 

It was all too much. The groan the rumbled from Eddie's chest. The feeling of his hands sliding down Steve's body. It made Steve feel like his nerves were frayed. Eddie's hands slid under his thighs to pick him up. He easily urged Steve's legs around his waist. 

Fuck that did something strange to Steve's brain.

Eddie sucked at Steve's tongue, essentially sucking a pathetic little moan from him. Eddie slowly began to walk further into the shallow end until the water was just at his hips and Steve felt his back press against the wall of the pool.

"Eddie, I… I want," Steve all but whimpered against his lips.

He wanted so much. Too much. He didn't even know if he could find the words in his brain to express them.

Eddie pulled away from Steve's lips, and he was nearly ready to let out a petulant whine at the loss of contact, but he quickly attached his lips to Steve's collarbone. He felt a pleasurable tingle spread through his body at the touch of Eddie's teeth and tongue on his skin.

"What do you want, Stevie?" He asked in a low voice that had Steve's eyes rolling back into his skull while a moan fell out of his mouth. 

"I want to see you. Want to touch you," Steve whined softly. As if on their own volition, his hips began to rut forward against Eddies.

Eddie let out a gorgeous groan against Steve’s collar. His hands slid up to Steve's hips and he gripped them tightly, making Steve moan lowly again. He loved the feeling of Eddie grabbing at him. He wasn't sure he would ever get over the feeling of big hands gripping at his skin, or heavy rings pressing against him.

Eddie lifted his head and visibly swallowed while he made eye contact with Steve, "You're sure?"

Steve let out a breath of a moan; his hips were still minutely rocking forward into Eddie. He nodded his head fervently before he surged forward to kiss Eddie again, a drawn out moan fell out of him at the touch.

With some urging from Eddie, Steve's legs unwound from Eddie's waist until he was able to stand sure-footed on the pool floor. He reluctantly pulled away from the kiss, his teeth nipping and tugging at Eddie's lower lip as he did so. 

His heart was hammering against his ribs and his head was dizzy but Steve knew what he wanted to do. He'd never been so sure of anything in his life. He twisted around to place his hands flat on the concrete outside of the pool and pushed himself up out of the water. By the time he was up right and turned around, Eddie was also out of the pool standing in front of him.

Steve wasted no time in kissing him again. He needed the feel of Eddie's lips on his own. He raised his hands and grasped at Eddie's face as he began to walk forward, making Eddie take a few unsure steps backwards. They continued the awkward dance of kissing and blindly walking until Eddie came to a sudden stop.

They must have made it to the chairs.

Steve's hands lowered from Eddie's face to his shoulders, then pushed down on them until Eddie pulled away from the kiss to sit in the chair. Eddie stared up at him with wide eyes as he seemed to lose his breath for just a moment. "You're gorgeous," he said bluntly.

Suddenly Steve's face was burning hot. Which was silly but there was no helping it. He smiled warmly down at Eddie before he lifted a leg to straddle himself over Eddie's lap, his knees bracketing Eddie's thighs. He quickly leaned in to kiss Eddie again. Slower this time. He felt a slow but intense electric shiver ebb and flow through his entire body. 

While they kissed Steve's hands smoothed easily down Eddie's front until they came to the tie at the waist of his swim trunks. Eddie nipped at Steve's lip before softly murmuring, "It's okay, if you want to."

Steve moved his head just enough to begin to pepper kisses across Eddie's jaw and down his neck while his fingers plucked at the strings before tentatively dipping just below the waistband. Eddie sighed softly as he lifted his hips just barely off of the chair below him so that Steve could work the shorts down just enough.

He stopped kissing at Eddie's neck and laid his forehead on his collar. He looked down the length of Eddie's body until he saw his flushed cock laying hard and heavy against his stomach. There was a prominent thob from inside his own swim shirts at the sight.

How had he ever thought that he was straight?

There was a brief moment of panic as he thought about what he was about to do. The only dick he'd ever touched was his own. Well, he figured that was a place to start. He knew what he liked, what felt good. So who was to say Eddie wouldn't also like it? There was only one way to find out.

Steve lowered a hand down to tentatively wrap around Eddie's shaft. He heard a soft gasp escape Eddie at the contact. The tip of Eddie's dick was leaking pre which made it easier for Steve when he slowly started to move. Eddie shifted around while Steve adjusted his grip and twisted his fist just under the head.

Hands wrapped around Steve's biceps, clutching tightly.

He could hear Eddie panting as he found a rhythm that definitely seemed to be working. Steve turned his head to the side to start kissing Eddie's neck again. He nipped at the skin and sucked happily at his pulse point.

"Fuck, pretty boy," Eddie groaned, his fingers digging harshly into Steve's arms, "So good, you're so good."

Steve's whole body thrummed at the praise leaving Eddie's lips. He inhaled sharply, squeezing his eyes shut against the hormones flooding his body. He just tried to focus on Eddie and making him feel good. The slips and moans falling out of him certainly made Steve feel much more confident.

Eddie groaned lowly and Steve could feel him rolling his hips to fuck himself in the circle of Steve's fist. "I'm gonna… fuck, baby, I'm gonna come," he whined into the open air.

Fuck, Eddie was going to be the death of him.

Steve lifted his head and ducked forward to all but crush his lips to Eddie's; their teeth nearly knocked into one another at the force. Steve's fingers squeezed just so as he gave his hand a twist. It was a move that always made his own toes curl. It seemed that Eddie liked it too as he gasped loudly into Steve's mouth.

Steve felt Eddie's cock pulse in his grip before he felt the warmth of his come spill across his fingers. Eddie was making the most beautiful sounds as Steve worked him through his orgasm. Slowly, Steve stopped stroking until he sat back on his heels and pulled his hand away. As Eddie opened his eyes, Steve realized that they were both breathing heavily. 

"That was the first time I've ever touched another guy," Steve whispered shyly. 

He didn't know why he said that.

His face flushed in embarrassment. 

"Well, you did a great job," Eddie whispered as he grabbed hold of his face and kissed him softly.

Steve couldn't help the laugh that escaped him. He shifted slightly to grab one of the towels he had brought down earlier. He cleaned off his own hand and gingerly wiped off Eddie's lower stomach. When he was done he realized that Eddie was just staring at him with hooded eyes.

It made him feel like prey in the sights of a predator.

He really liked it.

"Can I blow you?" Eddie asked softly as he licked his lips, his eyes blatantly dropping to stare at the front of Steve's shorts. 

Steve couldn't help the way that he shifted in Eddie's lap before he whispered, "Yeah… yes."

Somehow, Eddie managed to easily switch their positions as well as pull up his own shorts. Steve had no clue how, but his brain wasn't really firing on all cylinders. How could it when Eddie was sat between the spread of his legs? Eddie kissed over the waistband of Steve's shorts, sucking harshly at his hip bone which made Steve shift and hiss.

He tucked his fingers into the band and pulled the shorts down Steve's thighs.

Eddie licked his lips so lewdly that steve couldn't help but blush at the sight. He wrapped a hand around the base of Steve’s cock and circled his lips around the head; his tongue swirling lazily around the tip.

Steve's hand automatically found purchase in Eddie's hair, grabbing at the loose bun and threading his fingers into it.

Eddie let out a low moan that Steve felt deeply in his pelvis. His lips tightened around Steve’s cock as he slowly started to bob his head up and down, taking more in with each down stroke. Fuck, Steve was going to die. He was going to die with his cock buried in Eddie Munson's mouth.

There were worse ways to go, he supposed.

Eddie hummed around Steve and let his tongue trace patterns along the underside of Steve’s dick, making Steve tighten his hand in Eddie’s hair, loosening his bun even more, as he started to breathe harshly.

“Oh, god. Oh fuck. You’re so – ahh – fucking good, Eddie,” Steve babbled. He gasped loudly, feeling Eddie’s tongue press into that spot just under the head of his cock before sinking back down.

This definitely wasn't Steve's first blow job, but fuck if it wasn't already top 5 ever.

Somehow, Eddie sunk himself even lower. Steve could feel his nose pressing against his pelvis. Holy shit. Steve made a gurgling noise in the back of his throat; Eddie hummed before hollowing his cheeks and giving a hard suck as he pulled his mouth back up Steve’s length. “Oh fuck, Eddie,” Steve moaned, gripped at Eddie’s hair harder.

Steve’s hips started to thrust up slightly as Eddie bobbed his head a little faster. He couldn't help it. His body had a mind of his own.

Eddie grunted around Steve and brought his hands up to gently yet firmly hold his hips in place. Eddie let his eyes fall shut as he started up again. His right hand let go of Steve’s hip and found its way between his legs to cup his balls. “Fuck, Eddie,” Steve whined, tossing his head back against the chair.

Eddie’s long fingers rolled and caressed Steve’s balls gently while he worked his mouth faster; he could feel the solid metal of his rings on his sensitive skin. It was maddening. The slurping noises he was making as he worked him over were going to haunt Steve's dreams forever.

Steve could feel his body tensing up as a roiling heat in his gut began to spread. He tried to warn Eddie, to say anything at all. But all he could do was whine and moan brokenly while pulling at his hair. He couldn't hold back any longer as his body shuddered and he began to come. Eddie groaned and stayed where he was working Steve through his orgasm, swallowing whatever he had to give.

Eddie pulled off with a truly disgusting wet sound. He sat up and reached out to push some hair off Steve's forehead, tucking a bit behind his ear.

"You still with me, pretty boy?" He asked with a smug smirk on his face.

Steve wanted to say something to make him take that dumb smirk off but, honestly, he earned it. He took a deep breath and blinked back at Eddie as a slow smile spread over his lips,  "Yeah, I'm… yeah."

Eddie laughed fondly as he leaned in to kiss him softly. Steve hummed, a content and happy sound, against Eddie's lips. Eddie pulled away again to look at Steve with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"So, do you still have that speedo upstairs or…?"

"Oh, my god, shut up," Steve let out a huff of a laugh as he lifted his hips to pull up his shorts.

Steve slowly blinked his eyes open. Strange. He didn't remember closing them. He remembered coming inside and sitting on the couch with Eddie to watch a movie. He took a deep breath in as he slowly sat up, squinting around the living room.

Beside him, Eddie was sort of laying down. He was in what had to be an uncomfortable position. Steve suddenly felt really bad, realizing he had to lay like that because Steve had fallen asleep on him.

Wait. Steve fell asleep.

And he woke up on his own. No racing heart. No sweating. No monsters hiding in the dark corners of the room.

Eddie sat up slowly. He must have woken up when Steve got up. Steve looked over at him to see that Eddie was smiling downright goofily back at him.

"What's that look for?" Steve asked.

Eddie reached out to push a hand through Steve's hair. It felt…. Off. "Your hair is so big," he said with a chuckle, "It's cute. You're cute."

Steve's face flushed as he looked away. The clock on the wall said it was nearly seven. They'd slept for a while. Steve looked back up with a soft sort of smile. "You wanna stay longer and actually watch the movie? I can order a pizza," he suggested hopefully.

Eddie reached out to cup his face in his hand, "That sounds great, pretty boy. "

Chapter Text

Eddie had a foot out the front door of the trailer when he heard the phone ringing from inside. He let his head fall forward slightly with a small sigh before he straightened up and headed back. The annoying ringing continued as Eddie grumbled to himself while crossing into the kitchen. He snatched the phone off the wall with probably too much force.

It was a good thing Wayne wasn't home.

"This is Eddie."

There was a beat of silence on the other end, which left Eddie grating his teeth. He could be in the van on the way to Starcourt to bother Steve but someone decided to be a dickbag and prank call him.

"Eddie," Gareth's voice came softly down the line just before Eddie hung up.

Weird.

Eddie leaned against the counter with a sigh, "Gareth? What's up, man?"

Again, it was silent on the other side of the call. It really set Eddie's nerves on edge. It wasn't like Gareth to just sit on the phone and not say anything. Sure, he wasn't as boisterous or out there as Eddie but he wasn't exactly a wallflower either. And he certainly never had any reason to worry around Eddie.

"Do you think later tonight you can come pick me up?"

Eddie brows furrowed, "Sure, man. Are you okay?"

"I'm at my dad's house," Gareth said in a small voice.

Eddie felt himself deflate a bit just as his hackles raised slightly. "Oh, shit. Is everything alright? Do you want me to come get you now?" He asked, already straightening up. He'd definitely rush over there if Gareth needed him to.

"No, I'm okay," Gareth sighed, "I'm just… I don't wanna stay here tonight, y'know? I don't really fit in with this picket fence family."

"I get it. I'll come by tonight to get you."

"Thanks, Ed."

It had been a few days since Eddie had gone over to Steve's house to swim; though very little swimming was actually done. They hadn't been able to spend much time together outside of the times that Eddie would stop in Scoops Ahoy to pester Steve while he worked. Even those moments were few and far between because while his friends had accepted whatever was going on between him and Steve they didn't particularly want to witness it.

Which Eddie totally understood.

But seeing as Jeff was working, Kevin was on a trip with his family, and Gareth was at his dad's house, Eddie was free to head over to Starcourt and bother Steve.

The parking lot was full, as it always was, when Eddie pulled in. He found a spot fairly quickly, though. Once he had stepped out of his van he spotted Steve's BMW a few aisles over. Good, he was working. Eddie turned towards the doors and hurried in that direction in desperate search for Steve's face.

And air conditioning.

While his battle vest over his leather jacket was undoubtedly a good look for him, it was not exactly appropriate summer attire. But it didn't matter inside the mall where they often blasted the A/C to the point where Eddie was sure they were no longer in Indiana but Alaska.

He was thankful for his layers inside.

Even more so as he strolled into the Scoops Ahoy ice cream shop.

Steve and Robin were both behind the counter when he walked in. Steve was leaning back against the wall with his head tipped backwards, which just filled Eddie's brain with the overwhelming urge to bite him. He had to physically shake his head to get rid of that thought.

The store was surprisingly empty. As he walked closer Robin must have spotted him because she said something to Steve that caught him to snap his head in his direction; it looked like the movement hurt judging by the way that Steve grimaced and rubbed at the back of his neck.

God, he was so cute.

A broad smile spread over Eddie's lips as he looked at Steve, he couldn't help it. Though, when he was just a couple feet from the counter he watched as Steve's expression quickly grew panicked.

"I'm going on break!" He all but shouted before he turned to rush through the door to the back.

Eddie stopped abruptly, staring wide eyed and confused.

Robin gaped at his retreating form, "St-Steve!"

Steve just kept going. It was quiet enough in the store that Eddie was about to hear the service door leading to the back hallways open and close. White hot embarrassment, shame, washed over Eddie as he watched the swinging door slowly come to a stop to still on its hinges. He could feel his shoulders slump, his body trying to curve in on itself; he wanted to disappear. His stomach was in knots and his eyes were suddenly stinging painfully.

What the hell was that?

"Eddie," Robin murmured softly, pulling his focus from the door.

Slowly, Eddie shifted his gaze over to the girl in front of him. Her eyes were wide, sympathetic, and her mouth downturned slightly. Her expression wasn't at all helping the nausea roiling in his gut or the building of tears behind his eyes. He didn't understand that part. Why was he going to cry? That was stupid.

He was stupid.

So fucking stupid.

Eddie shook his head and cleared his throat, "Don't worry about it, Robin."

He didn't leave much room for a response. He turned around and headed towards the exit without another word. His throat felt tight all of a sudden. What the hell was wrong with him? His hands shoved into his pockets as he walked; he felt like he was shrinking in on himself.

Like he wanted to disappear. 

The sunlight was harsh and blinding when Eddie pushed open the doors leading to the parking lot. He mumbled some nonsensical apology to an older woman that he nearly barreled over in his disorientation.

Somehow, thankfully, he made it back to his van. He shakily got into the driver's seat, slamming the door behind him. He tried to think of where to go but he was drawing a blank. All of his friends were busy. Which is why he came here in the first place. With a low groan, Eddie tipped his head backwards and let his eyes fall shut.

The panic on Steve's face at seeing him was burned into his brain.

Eddie swallowed thickly. There was a deep, horrible sinking feeling inside of him. Why did Steve run away from him? Who was he kidding? Obviously this was all some kind of long con on King Steve's part. Why would Steve Harrington ever spend time with Eddie if it wasn't part of some elaborate game?

Flirt with the freak. Let him jerk you off and give you a blow job. Make him laugh and feel comfortable. Fall asleep on him, let him think that you're the most beautiful boy in the world. Make the freak think that you could ever have feelings for him. Make him think he's not alone, or wrong for once.

Get the town faggot to fall in love with you, it'll be hilarious.

The sadness and shame inside of Eddie quickly gave way to anger. He let out an annoyed growl and slammed his fist down onto his steering wheel. The blaring sound of his horn shocked not only him but the young mother trying to put her baby into the car next to him. She glared meanly through the glass at him as the kid started to cry.

Eddie could only wince as he mouthed an apology.

In an instant, Eddie started the engine and pulled out of the parking spot. He wasn't thinking, he was just going. His hands gripped the wheel so tightly that his knuckles were turning white while his jaw clenched until his muscles were spasming. He didn't care. It was as if he wasn't in control of his body any more. 

He was just an angry spirit watching his body speeding through town.

He came back to himself when he parked the van outside of the Hawkins Community Pool. It was late in the afternoon, a lot of the patrons with small children had already rounded them up and left. It was mostly teenagers and older people sitting out on the pool deck or splashing in the water.

By the entrance was Billy Hargrove's camaro. 

Eddie's eyes scanned the fenced in pool, trying to see if he could find the other boy. He wasn't sure why he was here or what he was hoping to accomplish. He was just so angry and… something. He didn't want to say heartbroken because that didn't feel right. Steve hadn't broken his heart. He was disappointed. In himself, he should have known better than to try to pursue Steve Harrington of all people.

He stayed in the parking lot just watching as the people in the pool slowly trickled out to their cars. The lifeguards got to work stacking chairs and cleaning the water. Eddie finally spotted Billy as he was putting equipment away. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach. And then Billy looked up, seemingly spotting Eddie sitting there in the van. A smirk stretched across his face, his eyebrows lifted in a silent question.

"Shit," Eddie whispered to himself.

He shouldn't be there. He didn't want to be there. He didn't want to see Billy or talk to Billy or, god forbid, fool around with Billy.

He wanted to see Steve.

If only to understand what happened and, maybe, put a formal end to whatever they were doing.

It looked like Billy was making his way to the entrance. Shaking his head, Eddie turned the key in his ignition again and all but flew out of the parking lot, away from the pool and definitely away from Billy Hargrove.

One would think that with all the time that Eddie had just sitting around in parking lots he would have had time to think of a way to approach Steve. Instead it was as if he completely zoned out. He arrived back at Starcourt, parked a little ways away from where Steve's car sat, and then he just lost time. It was like he blinked and suddenly it was dark and there was Steve walking out of the mall with Robin.

Eddie peered at them through his windshield. They were talking and Robin said something that made Steve laugh. God, even in his long stewed anger that smile still made Eddie's heart stutter in his chest. Which just made him even angrier.

Steve stayed on the curb as Robin pedaled away on her bike. Finally, he turned to make his way into the lines of cars. Eddie watched for a moment or two as he silently weighed the options of getting out and confronting Steve or not.

On one hand, it would get this whole thing over faster.

But, on the other hand, if this was some kind of ploy Eddie wasn't sure he was strong enough to have Steve laugh in his face.

"Fuck it," he grumbled as he got out of the car.

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his battle vest as he stalked towards where Steve was at his car, pulling his keys out of the pockets of his shorts.

"Harrington!"

Steve visibly tensed for a just a second at the call of his name. He looked around and then turned until he was facing Eddie. Walking closer still, Eddie was sure that his face was twisted and possibly angry. Wayne always said that he had a terrible poker face. Apparently Steve had a much better one because Eddie couldn't read his expression.

Steve shifted on his feet as Eddie stopped in front of him, "Look, Eddie, I'm sor-"

Eddie held a hand up to cut Steve off. He didn't want to hear it. There was just so much going on inside his brain, especially now being face to face with Steve, that he didn't need to add any more bullshit to it.

"This wasn't… this wasn't a game or something, was it?"

Internally, Eddie was kicking himself at the vulnerable tone to his voice. He wanted to be mad. He wanted to be tough. But the prospect that all of this was a big joke at his expense weighed too heavily on his heart.

Steve's brows furrowed as he breathed out a soft, confused, "What?"

"You got a blowjob from the freak and suddenly you're distant and you fucking ran away from me, Steve. What the fuck was that about? What do you want me to think?" He questioned, demanded. He kept his voice low to avoid drawing the attention of anyone walking by in the parking lot. At least he seemed to find some of the festering anger from inside of him.

There was a long off look in Steve's eyes for just a moment. Even though he was staring right at Eddie, it felt like he mentally slipped somewhere else for a second. Then, his arms wrapped around his middle. Like he was protecting himself, or bracing for some sort of attack.

"It's not like that, Eddie," he said in a near whisper.

Eddie scoffed incredulously, "Enlighten me, then, Harrington."

Good. Using his last name put a mental block up. He wasn't Steve. He wasn't Stevie. He wasn't Baby. And he certainly wasn't Pretty boy. He was Harrington, the asshole joke from school.

Steve visibly winced, "I… Jesus, Eddie. You scare the shit outta me."

That fully caught Eddie off guard. His mouth slackened and his eyebrows raised in surprise. He watched the way that Steve's eyes fell from his face to stare intently at the ground between them.

"I'm really fucking bad at this. The last time I felt anything for someone I ended up with my heart smashed on the bathroom floor of Tina's stupid Halloween Bash," Steve rolled his eyes, seemingly to himself. He sighed softly. "I didn't know how to tell you that I really like you and talk about this so I bolted. I'm sorry."

Eddie felt a little light headed. The air between them felt much warmer suddenly, warmer than a summer night had any right to be. Steve liked him. Steve Harrington liked him. Really liked him.

He could scream.

"Hey," Eddie said softly to get Steve's attention. He waited until Steve's eyes lifted from the ground to meet his own again. "I like you too."

It was too dark to tell but Eddie was sure that Steve's cheeks darkened slightly. His smile stretched across his face and Eddie couldn't help but smile just as widely back at him. Steve looked so dorky. Cute, but dorky. Eddie was sure he also looked like a complete doofus. But he couldn't care, not when Steve Harrington just admitted to liking him.

Without much of a thought, Eddie rolled his shoulder back and gave his arms a small shake. His denim battle vest slipped down until he was able to grab it in his hand and hold it out in front of him for Steve to take. Steve cocked a single eyebrow as he reached a hand out to gently take the garment from him.

"What is this?" He asked slowly.

Steve came from the world of preps and varsity sports, he had to know the significance of giving someone your jacket. Sure, a patch and pin covered denim vest looked a little different than one of those green monstrosities people called Letterman jackets but the concept still applied.

Eddie let out a soft chuckle, "Means your mine."

Very carefully, Steve lifted the vest up to slide his arms into the holes until it settled around him. He looked so fucking cute with that damn vest over his Scoops Ahoy uniform.

"I'm not sure how cool it looks over my Scoops uniform," Steve joked a little breathlessly.

Eddie tilted his head just a hair and practically beamed back at Steve, "No, you look very metal."

A comfortable silence settled between them as they both just looked at the other. This was a much better outcome than anything Eddie could have possibly imagined. He couldn't stop smiling back at Steve, he was sure that his face was going to start hurting soon if he kept it up. 

"I wish I could kiss you right now," Steve whispered all of a sudden.

Oh. Eddie felt his face all just a little at Steve's soft confession, though he kept a small smile. He nodded slowly as he looked around them. People were heading into the movies and others were walking back to their cars. Sure, no one was currently paying them any mind but he knew that they would definitely garner the wrong kind of attention if they kissed right now.

Then, Eddie had an idea.

He raised his right hand up to his face and pressed the pad of his thumb against his lips. He then held his hand out in front of him, as if silently asking Steve to thumb wrestle him. Steve rolled his eyes but mirrored him; he kissed his thumb and grabbed Eddie's hand so that their fingers were hooked and their thumbs were pressed against each other.

Eddie's eyes closed, "I'm kissing you in my head right now."

And he was.

He thought about how Steve's lips felt against his own and how, if they were alone, he'd take the younger boy in his arms and kiss the life out of him.

"Is it any good?" Steve asked. 

It was.

Eddie laughed and tugged on Steve's arm from where their hands were still joined together. "Shh, kiss me back," he whispered.

It was quiet for just a moment. Eddie felt Steve's thumb pressing just a bit more firmly against his own.

"I'm kissing you back."

Eddie slowly fluttered his eyes open. Steve still had his eyes closed and looked so sweet. With a grin, Eddie tugged on Steve's hand until he also opened his eyes. He couldn't help the soft, happy sigh that slipped past his lips.

"I should get going. Gareth is waiting on me to pick him up," he said with a reluctant shrug.

Steve nodded his head, pressed his thumb a little firmer to Eddie's, and pulled his hand away. "I'll see you later," he said.

Eddie smirked and winked at him, "Wild horses couldn't keep me away, babe."

It didn't take long for Eddie to arrive at Gareth's dad's house. He instantly felt bad when he spotted his friend sitting on the front porch with his bag next to him. How long had he been sitting there waiting for him? Gareth was on his feet almost immediately when he spotted Eddie. He snatched his bag up off the ground and all but ran down the driveway to the van.

"Thank god," Gareth breathed as he climbed inside. 

Eddie winced slightly, "Were you waiting long?"

He pulled away from the house and cast a glance in Gareth's direction to see him shake his head. "No. Just a few minutes. I had to get out of there," he groaned, tossing his head back against the seat. 

Eddie nodded slightly, "You wanna talk about it?"

Gareth was quiet for a few seconds. Eddie didn't know too much about the situation with Gareth's parents. He knew that they split about a couple years back and Gareth mostly stayed with his mom. He only saw his dad a few weeks out of the year.

"She's pregnant again," Gareth said softly.

Eddie hummed, "Your step-mom?"

"Bonnie," Gareth scoffed.

Eddie snorted back a laugh. Which apparently Gareth could appreciate because he let out a small chuckle. 

"She's having a boy and like… my dad is so fucking excited. His chance to have a real son," he said sadly.

Eddie's heart hurt hearing the pain in Gareth's voice. He sighed softly as he tried to figure out what to say, what to do. "You wanna come back to my place? Wayne's working. We can order pizza and watch some movies," Eddie offered, hopefully. He didn't wait for an answer, he just started heading that way.

"We gonna braid our hair and talk about boys?" Gareth laughed softly. 

Eddie rolled his eyes fondly as he took a right turn into Forest Hills. "Just because we're both queer doesn't mean we're a couple of preteen girls. Besides, you don't have a boy to talk about," he teased.

"Oh, and you do?"

Eddie very pointedly did not answer Gareth's question as he parked the van out front. He got out and started to head up towards the front door. He could hear Gareth following behind him.

"Hey," he called as they walked inside, "Where is your battle vest?"

A pleased sort of smile slipped across Eddie's face as he remembered how Steve looked in the vest in question. Gareth was pretty quick on the draw. He looked at Eddie for a total of five seconds before he let out a groan in disbelief.

"You did not! You did not give your vest to Steve Harrington!"

Eddie flopped down on the couch as he absently twisted a bit of hair around his finger. He gave his vest to Steve. Steve has his vest. Because Steve was his. Steve was his boyfriend. He could feel his cheeks heat up just a bit as he tugged his hair over his mouth to try to hide the grin he knew was there.

"So, before we talk about whatever happened tonight do you want to order the watch a movie or braid our hair first?" Gareth asked with a resigned sigh, sitting beside Eddie on the couch.

Eddie laughed, shaking his head, "How about we order the pizza and skip the braiding?"

Chapter Text

"Come on, dingus!"

Steve stared blankly through his windshield at Robin who was standing in front of his car, slapping her hands against the hood. Part of him wondered why he had thought this was a good idea. Sure, he and Robin were friends now. And she knew way too much about his personal life. But they'd never hung out with each other outside of work.

But with so few actual friends nowadays, Steve wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

With a sigh, Steve climbed out of his car, "Alright, calm down, I'm coming."

Robin hardly waited for him to close his car door before she grabbed his wrist and tugged him harshly behind her towards Family Video. As they approached the door, Steve managed to pull his arm free so that he could step in front of her to open the door. Somewhere inside of him was the gentleman his mother wanted him to be. Robin scoffed and playfully shoved at the side of his face with an open palm as she walked past.

Rolling his eyes, Steve followed her inside with a chuckle.

"Your movie knowledge is abysmal, so I'm going to pick," Robin said, already heading off into the shelves.

Steve stared after her for a moment before reluctantly following behind.

He followed her from aisle to aisle, not unlike a puppy. Steve was sure she would find the comparison very funny. He watched as she would pick up cases to compare two movies. She'd hem and haw to herself and then return both to their spots before moving on. He had no idea how much went into just picking a movie to watch.

Although, to be fair, most of his 'movie watching' since hitting puberty had been under false pretense and lead to making out.

And more.

But seeing as Robin was still vehemently defending her asinine crush on Tammy Thompson, and Steve had a boyfriend - boyfriend - there would be no more to speak of. Which Steve was more than okay with. As much as Robin annoyed him from time to time, he really loved having her as a friend.

"If you're going to stand there looking like a doofus, dingus, you should go pick out snacks."

Steve scoffed, "Anybody ever tell you you're a jerk?"

"You. Every shift," she replied, smiling sweetly over her shoulder at it.

Deciding to not respond, Steve turned around to head over to the snack displays near the counter. He very quickly grabbed a box of sour patch kids for himself and then proceeded to stare at the brightly colored candies with a furrowed brow. He remembered Robin saying what her favorite candy was. She had either said runts or nerds because Steve had laughed at her and told her he was going to call her that from now on.

And then she punched him in the arm so he stopped.

He grabbed a box of both, just to hedge his bets.

With the candy secured, he had popcorn at the house, Steve began to weave through the aisles to find Robin. He eventually spotted her crouched down at the end of one of the aisles with a tape under her arm as she examined another.

"Are you done yet?" He asked, walking closer.

Robin rolled her eyes at him but stood up, putting the tape that was under her arm on top of the one she was looking at.

"Yes, I'm done. Let's go," she said, heading towards the counter. As she passed by, she grabbed Steve by the hand to drag him along behind her.

Like a child.

Apparently Robin wasn't paying much attention to her surroundings, because someone else was rounding the corner as she approached but she wasn't diverting her course. Steve tightened his hold on her hand and tugged her backwards out of the way until she bumped into his chest and dropped their tapes.

Robin groaned, oblivious to her near collision, "Steve."

Ignoring her, Steve glanced up to see Nancy standing in front of them with a movie of her own in her hand. He stared at her with wide eyes as she looked over both him and Robin, her against his chest and their clasped hands, until Jonathan popped up holding the tapes that Robin had dropped to the floor.

"Thank you," Robin said absently.

Steve cleared his throat, "Uh, hi, Nancy. Jonathan."

He felt very awkward all of a sudden. He'd essentially avoided the two of them like the plague over the last few months. The last time they'd really talked had been when all that nasty hive mind/mind flayer business went down in the fall. He didn't particularly want to see them happy and in love after squashing his heart.

"Hi Steve, and uh…" Nancy glanced back at Robin then to Steve with wide eyes like she expected something. Expected him to do something.

Oh.

Steve shook his head quickly, "This is Robin. We work at Scoops together."

"Nice to meet you," Nancy said, eyes still flitting strangely between them.

Robin hummed softly, "You too. But if you'll excuse us, we've got plans."

Then she was walking off, still pulling Steve behind her. He sighed loudly, rolling his eyes. He muttered a soft goodbye to both Jonathan and Nancy as he passed them by. They both gave him a small wave.

Steve wanted to dig himself a hole and crawl in it.

He didn't particularly care what Nancy or Jonathan thought at this point but he would have preferred the first time they spoke outside of end of the world nonsense to have been less awkward. Though, he supposed, most things with Robin were a little awkward.

And he honestly loved how little she cared.

At the counter Steve set the candy down while Robin put down the two movies she had picked. Steve glanced over and raised an eyebrow in her direction as the kid behind the counter scanned everything. 

"Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Grease 2? Really?"

Robin rolled her eyes as she grabbed the box of runts, "Shut up and pay the man."

"I can't believe you didn't see Grease 2 when it came out," Robin said, tossing a red oblong shaped runt across the couch at Steve.

Steve opened his mouth and tilted his head to the side to catch the candy. He chewed it, humming slightly at Robin's disbelief. "I went to the theater. I didn't see the movie," he said once he had swallowed. Robin scrunched up her nose at him before tossing an orange runt with a bit too much force. 

The round sweet clacked loudly when it hit Steve's front teeth, making him groan as he reluctantly chewed. He looked back at the screen with raised brows. He had gone to see this movie with Rachel Powell but the back seats of the cinema were calling their names. If he had actually watched the movie, maybe he would have realized just how into guys he actually was because Michael Carrington was on screen and…

"He is so fine," Steve practically gushed without even meaning to.

Robin let out an absolutely disgusting snort of a laugh as she doubled over, spilling some of the popcorn from the bowl in her lap. Steve felt his face immediately heat up. He sunk down further into the sofa as if to hide from Robin. She looked back at him once she had mostly reined in her little fit.

"This makes so much sense," she said, letting out a small giggle, "Wait until the end when he's in his leather jacket."

That certainly piqued his interest.

The next day at work was kind of stressful. Two impromptu birthday parties just sprung up not long after Steve and Robin had clocked in for their shift. There were kids running everywhere. Sprinkles were crunching under Steve's shoes no matter where he stepped. Everything felt vaguely sticky.

He was so ready to go home and collapse for the night by the time all of the children and their families vacated the store front.

It took ages for him and Robin to clean everything up. So many chocolate and strawberry stained rags were tossed into the laundry basket under the counter, though Steve wasn't sure they'd ever be clean again. He also had to replace several tubs in the freezer, something he absolutely hated to do.

The tubs were cumbersome and awkward to hold; when he leaned over to put them in place, his shirt often rode up and his bare skin touched the freezer.

It was all together an unpleasant experience.

Just when he was sure that he and Robin would have a moment or two of peace there was an annoying trilling noise coming from the back room. It was the bell by the service door. Steve looked over at Robin, confused, they weren't expecting any new shipments or deliveries.

With a sigh, Steve stomped into the back because the noise just wouldn't stop and it was grating his nerves. He got to the door and gave it a hard shove. The person in the back hallway shuffled backward to avoid being smacked with the heavy door. He was more than a little flummoxed at seeing Eddie there.

Eddie let out a small chuckle as he leaned against the doorframe.

"Hiya Stevie," he grinned.

Steve felt all of his irritation and confusion melt away from his face as he looked back at Eddie. "Wha- What are you doing back here?" He questioned, sticking his head out into the hall to look around.

How the hell had he gotten back there?

Eddie shrugged as he reached out to grab hold of the red knot at the front of Steve's uniform, wrapping the ends around his fingers. Steve felt his stomach flip flop at just how easily Eddie was moving in his space. He gave a small tug which caused Steve to stumble just a step closer before Eddie grasped at the back of his neck with his other hand.

"What? Not happy to see me, baby?" He asked with a teasing smirk on his lips.

A brilliant heat immediately filled Steve's face as his eyes flicked from Eddie's eyes, down to his lips, and back again. His brain had gone completely blank. How was he expected to function when Eddie was here and being so devastatingly sexy in the middle of his work shift?

Steve cleared his throat before shaking his head once from side to side as if he had to manually reset whatever was going on inside of his brain. 

"Get in here," he mumbled as he took a step backwards back into the backroom; he didn't need anyone to stroll by and see them curled up in each other.

Eddie released his hold on Steve, much to Steve's chagrin, so that they could both walk into the backroom. When the door clicked shut behind him, Eddie almost instantaneously had Steve's head cradled in his hands. His thumbs rested just in front of Steve's ears while his fingers gently sunk into the hair at the back of his head.

A thrill ran up Steve's spine when he felt Eddie's lips lay a lingering kiss against his own. "Hi," Eddie whispered before kissing him again, and again.

Steve hummed softly, his own hands bunching in the fabric of Eddie's shirt near his hips. Steve tried to talk, he had so many thoughts and questions, but Eddie continued to interrupt him every few words with another kiss.

"Not that I'm." Kiss. "Complaining or anything." Kiss. "Why did you." Kiss. "Sneak back here." Kiss. "Instead of just." Kiss. "Walking in the front?"

"What can't a guy clandestinely meet his boyfriend for a few kisses in the middle of the afternoon?" Eddie asked, his tone playfully offended. 

Steve didn't hear the second half of Eddie's sentence. He was much too caught up on the word boyfriend. Sure, in his own head he had referred to Eddie as his boyfriend. And Robin had teased him relentlessly about it since the first time they hung out. But there was something so viscerally disarming about hearing Eddie so casually calling himself Steve's boyfriend.

Steve's boyfriend.

Eddie was Steve's boyfriend.

He was sure that he was grinning like an absolute idiot but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Because Eddie was his boyfriend. 

"What?" Eddie asked with a small laugh, his dimples poking into his cheeks.

Steve used his hold on Eddie's shirt to pull him closer. He always wanted to be closer. "You said boyfriend," he murmured, kissing Eddie firmly.

"Well if you're gonna be weird about it I won't say it again," Eddie said with a teasing lilt to his tone.

Steve narrowed his eyes, ready to lob some snarky reply back at Eddie but he heard a bell from the front of the store. He looked over his shoulder as he let out a sigh. "Hold on," he said softly as he let go of his hold on Eddie and took a tentative step back, "Let me go check on Robin really fast."

Eddie released him, and Steve walked off back to the front of the store. There was a mother and a young girl standing at the counter. Robin was leant over a freezer scooping ice cream. Steve shuffled over, sideling up beside her.

"Don't hate me but Eddie is in the back," he whispered, turning his back to the front of the store. 

Robin glared up at him from behind her hair, "You have like five minutes before I murder you."

"You're the best," Steve said excitedly before taking off towards the door again.

In the backroom, Eddie was sitting at the small table. He had propped a foot up on the table as he leaned back in the chair; his left hand was splayed out on the top of the table. Steve smiled brightly as he slipped into the chair opposite Eddie at the table. He laid a hand over top of Eddie's and his fingers began to idly spin the rings that he wore.

He found himself doing that sometimes. He liked how smooth it felt as the spun around.

"You're cute," Eddie said with no warning. 

Steve scoffed and rolled his eyes, feeling suddenly shy, "Shut up."

Eddie was quick to lift  his right hand from his lap to lay it flat over his chest as he threw his head backwards. "You wound me, Steve Harrington. You cut me so deep. My affection rejected and cast aside like yesterday's paper," he bemoaned, tossing his head from side to side and causing his hair to fall everywhere.

Steve laughed loudly, "Are you done?"

Eddie picked his head back up to smile at Steve. The smile was so wide and genuine that Steve felt his heart stutter in his chest. He couldn't remember anyone ever looking at him like that. However before he or Eddie could say anything else the swinging door was pushed open. Steve quickly snatched his hand back away from Eddie's, feeling a bit sad over the loss of warmth. 

Max and Lucas entered the room casually, as if they worked there and were just waiting for their shift to start. Though, that was mostly Max. Lucas looked a tiny bit nervous as he looked from Eddie to Steve.

"Robin!" Steve shouted as he leaned back in his chair, "Stop just sending people back here."

The shuttered window opened to reveal Robin who glared playfully at Steve. "Sorry, what was that, dingus? I couldn't hear you, I'm working!" She said dramatically before pulling the shutters closed again.

Steve sighed and turned to face the two younger teenagers. "What are you doing here, Sinclair?" Steve asked with an exasperated sigh. He knew that they wanted something. He probably dragged Max along because he figured that Steve would be more amenable if she were around.

"Hi, Steve," Max greeted with a wide smile.

A fond sort of smile spread across Steve's face, "Hi, Max."

Lucas very obviously rolled his eyes and failed his hands, which immediately drew Steve's attention back to him. Lucas grimaced slightly as Steve raised expectant eyebrows in his direction.

"Can you take us to the arcade when you get off of work?" Max, asked in an almost too sweet tone as if to draw the attention back to her, "Lucas was supposed to ask his parents but he didn't and they've got some dinner thing tonight."

Steve leaned back in his chair with a sigh, "You just need a ride there?"

The kids exchanged a glance. 

"Well," Lucas, began dragging the word out, "Will also needs a ride. And Max will need a ride home."

Steve let out a slow, obviously annoyed breath. Of course. It was never easy with the twerps.

"Billy was supposed to pick me up but he was in a mood this morning and told me to find my own way," Max explained with a shrug.

Fucking Billy. Steve deflated just a little. He hated how mean Billy could be to Max. With an understanding nod, he looked back over to Lucas. He silently ran through their request in his head. It sounded less than ideal, especially after the morning he'd had.

"You want me, after having been at work all day, to drive all the way out to Sherwood-"

"Mirkwood," Lucas rudely interrupted.

Steve dismissively waved a hand, "I don't care. You want me to drive all the way out to get Will, which by the way, is passed the arcade, and then drive back towards the arcade? Does his mom know about this plan?"

The kids both froze as if they weren't expecting Steve to put that much thought into questioning them. Lucas' mouth opened and closed a few times like he was trying to formulate some kind of response that would get Steve to agree to their plan.

"If I called Melvald's right now and asked Mrs. Byers she would say it's fine and she knows all about this plan?" Steve questioned, voice full of disbelief but also looking ready to call whatever bluff the kids tried. After everything that happened to Will, Steve knew that his mom was less than thrilled to just let the kid go and do whatever he pleased.

"I'll tell you what. Go call who you need to call and figure out what your plan is and come back. Because I'm sure Jonathan could take Will if he's allowed to go."

Max nodded and grabbed at Lucas' sleeve, "Alright, thanks Steve. We'll be back."

As the two of them retreated back to the front of the store, Steve found himself rubbing at his temples. He heard Eddie let out a low chuckle, and shot him an unamused glare.

"Every interaction with those children takes a year off my life," Steve grumbled.

Eddie smirked over at Steve, "At least you'll still be young and hot when you go."

Steve huffed at him and dropped his hand back into Eddie's, his fingers instantly returning to fiddling with his rings. 

"To think I was going to ask if you wanted to come over tonight to watch a movie but if you're just gonna be a jerk I don't think I will," Steve teased with a smile tugging at his lips.

"How does being a chauffeur play into those movie plans, big boy?"

Big boy?

Steve glared at Eddie again, "Max has a curfew so I'll have to drop her off by like 9:30 but then I'll be free."

Eddie smirked as he raised his brows, "Inviting a boy over so late? How scandalous. What will the elder Harringtons have to say?"

At the mention of his parent's, Steve immediately froze. It was like his brain slammed on the brakes and his body hit a wall at one hundred miles an hour. He didn't want to think about his parents right now. They left again the other week, going different places this time. His mom said she wouldn't be back for at least three weeks, but probably more.

His dad said he was going abroad for work and would be traveling for a few weeks between offices.

They'd left cash on the counter for groceries and disappeared in the dead of the night.

The feeling of Eddie sliding his fingers into Steve's and squeezing gently brought him back. Thankfully.

"They won't be home," Steve said finally, softly, "They're… not really home a lot."

Eddie nodded slightly. He glanced at the clock on the wall behind Steve and let out a sigh. "I have to be somewhere soon. But I will definitely be at your place by ten," Eddie said as he let go of Steve's hand. He rounded the table to stand next to Steve, placed a finger under Steve's chin and tipped his head up just enough so that he could kiss him again.

"I'll see you tonight."

Steve nodded slowly, "See you tonight."

He sat there and watched as Eddie headed right back out the service door, disappearing into the corridor. Steve stayed there for just a moment or two, collecting his thoughts, before he got to his feet to rejoin Robin out front.

Steve had been back up front for less than five minutes when Max came jogging back into the store. She hurried up to the counter and slapped her hands down onto the top of it.

"Jonathan can drive Will both ways. So, can you take me and Lucas there and then drive me home?" She said, a bit out of breath.

With a slight eye roll, Steve nodded his head, "Alright. I get off in like two hours. Meet me here or I'm leaving you and going home."

Steve pulled in front of the arcade and looked over at Max who was sitting in his front seat.

"I have plans tonight so I need you out here at nine sharp or I'm coming in and dragging you out," he said sternly, narrowing his eyes at her.

Max grinned and saluted, "Sir, yes sir!"

In a blink, both she and Lucas bolted from the car and towards the doors to the arcade. Steve rolled his eyes and shook his head before pulling out of the parking lot to head home. He was in desperate need of a shower.

Steve genuinely loved caramel. He loved the flavor and the smell. But he was sure that by the end of summer he would detest it if only because of how often caramel sauce somehow ended up in his hair. It was the bane of his existence.

Thankfully, he was always able to wash it out.

He stepped out of the shower and slung a towel around his hips. He had just enough time to get dressed and do his hair before he had to go to the arcade to pick up Max. He gently towel dried his hair before heading into his bedroom to look for something to wear. He didn't want to look like he tried too hard. They were just going to watch a movie.

But he also didn't want to just throw on sweats and look like a slob.

With a loud sigh, Steve decided on a pair of jeans that he knew looked good on him and a simple yellow polo shirt. Once that was all done, he went back to the bathroom to tackle his hair. His routine was simple and down pat at this point. He could do it in his sleep.

"Come on," he groaned, pushing his fingers through his hair. The product wasn't sitting right. His hair wasn't falling the way he wanted it to. It felt off. 

Unfortunately, he didn't have much time to worry about it though. He had things to do. Reluctantly, Steve left the bathroom to make his way downstairs. He still had snacks from his movie night with Robin, as well as the actual movies. He carefully set the leftover candies in bowls before setting up the television and VCR.

Once that was all set, Steve went to the door to slip on his shoes. He paused for just a moment, seeing Eddie's battle vest hanging off the knob of the entry closet. He'd taken to wearing it around the house. He liked the heavy warmth and how it still smelled deeply of Eddie.

It made his whole body tingle when he wrapped it around himself.

Without a second thought, Steve slipped the vest on and grabbed his keys. He walked out of the house to his car and paused when he spotted his reflection in the window. Eddie's vest was very obviously not Steve's style. He didn't even know half of the bands that Eddie had painstakingly sewed patches on it for. 

It would be easy to clock as belonging to Eddie if anyone knew better.

With a sad sort of sigh, Steve shrugged out of the vest. He climbed into the driver's seat of his car and tossed the vest into the backseat. This was something Steve never had to deal with when he was dating girls. It didn't matter who knew or saw. There was no fear or paranoia.

Though, when Steve thought about the way Eddie had smiled at him that afternoon it kind of felt worth it.

Chapter Text

"Eddie, are you listening?"

The question, followed by a pillow smacking into the side of his head definitely drew Eddie out of his thoughts. He had been staring blankly at the notebook in his lap, but his thoughts were miles away. With an annoyed huff, he glanced over to see Kevin staring right back at him with raised eyebrows.

"You're not listening, are you?" Kevin asked with a sigh.

Eddie rolled his eyes, leaning back on the couch, "No, I wasn't. What're we talking about?"

Gareth chuckled to himself from the floor on the other side of the coffee table. They were all at Kevin's house, sitting in his basement. Before Eddie mentally checked out they had been discussing starting a new Dungeons and Dragons campaign, or at least a short module, before school started again.

"Jeff asked you like twice if we could do character creation tonight," Gareth said, grabbing his can of coke from the table.

Eddie winced, looking at his watch, "Tonight?" It was getting close to time for him to head on over to Steve's place for their movie date.

"Do you have plans with King Steve?" Kevin asked with a chuckle.

"Don't call him that," Eddie said, voice a bit too sharp in comparison, "He's… he's not like that anymore. And yes, I do."

A sort of awkward tension fell between the four of them. Jeff took a deep breath, hands slapping against his knees. "Okay, so you have plans tonight. How about tomorrow? We can have practice for a few hours and then do creation," he offered, trying to ease any hurt feelings.

"That works for me," Eddie said with a shrug.

Kevin and Gareth both nodded their heads and murmured their agreement. Eddie licked his lips slowly  before letting out a long sigh. He turned his head to the side to look back at Kevin.

"I'm sorry for snapping."

Kevin shrugged, "Don't worry, man. If you like him, obviously he's not the same ass he used to be."

Eddie nodded absently. He didn't know what exactly happened that made Steve change. But he was happy that it did. While he was never directly awful to his little group of freaks, he didn't exactly stop his cohorts from doing so.

Letting out a sigh, Eddie got to his feet, "I've gotta go. But I'll be at Gare's around noon tomorrow for practice."

Eddie was more than a little surprised that he arrived at Steve's house before Steve was back from taking Max home. He was so rarely on time for things, let alone early. He left his van parked along the street before he got out to head up to the door. There was a slight nervous energy to his steps that he couldn't really explain.

He and Steve had fooled around enough that the prospect of watching a movie together should be all that nerve-wracking. Though he didn't have much time to dwell on those thoughts as his ears picked up the sound of an approaching car. He turned around to see Steve pulling into the driveway. The music he was listening to was loud enough for Eddie to make out that it was definitely Joan Jett.

When Steve got closer and parked the car Eddie clocked the song as Do You Wanna Touch Me, which was funny. Because yes, obviously.

The engine of Steve's car shut off and Steve promptly slid out of the driver's seat. He wasn't in his Scoops uniform any more, a sad fact that Eddie silently mourned, but in a cute little yellow polo. What a ray of fucking sunshine. He watched as Steve grabbed what appeared to be his battle vest from the backseat before he headed up to the door.

"Did my ears deceive me or were you listening to Joan Jett and The Blackhearts?" Eddie teased once Steve was close enough.

Steve huffed and unlocked the door, "Why do you sound so shocked?"

Eddie closed the door behind him as they got inside and he immediately wrapped his arms around Steve's middle to pull him flush against him. If he could surgically attach Steve to him like this he would in a heartbeat.

"You seem more of a Tears for Fears and Wham kinda guy to me, Stevie," Eddie chuckled softly as he tipped his head forward to kiss Steve.

Steve's arms went easily around Eddie's neck, and Eddie could feel the weight of the denim vest against his back where Steve was still holding onto it. Steve made a soft, annoyed sound in his throat before he pulled away from their kiss.

"There's nothing wrong with Wham or Tears for Fears," Steve defended, a slight pout on his lips, "They're popular for a reason."

Eddie shook his head, causing some hair to fall into his face, "Shh, stop talking. Don't ruin the image of a hot perfect boyfriend by being a total music dork."

Steve grinned as he leaned in to nip gently at Eddie's jaw.  The feeling of Steve's teeth against his skin had Eddie struggling to breathe for a moment. "I'm going to ignore the dork comment," Steve mumbled as he began to kiss his way to Eddie's ear, "And focus on the fact that you called me your boyfriend, again."

Eddie's body trembled just a bit at the treatment Steve was giving him. Suddenly, the feeling of Steve's teeth sharply nipping at his earlobe had Eddie inhaling sharply, his brain shorting out briefly. Instinctively, Eddie's arms pulled Steve even closer to seal their bodies together. If he could, he would fuse his skin to Steve's if it meant he could be even closer.

"Who knew that Steve Harrington got so gaga over being called someone's boyfriend?" Eddie laughed a little breathlessly. 

It felt as though Steve was trying to pull back from their embrace, so Eddie's arms tightened around him to attempt to keep him in place. Steve just laughed as he used his free hand to gently tuck some hair behind Eddie's ear. The gentle touch had his heart kicking into overdrive.

"As lovely as this is I don't particularly want to make out in the foyer all night," Steve laughed again, sliding a hand down Eddie's arm, "There's a movie and snacks and a couch in the living room."

Well that certainly piqued his interest.

Eddie's eyebrows raised as a smirk spread over his lips, "A couch, you say?"

Rather reluctantly, Eddie loosened his hold on Steve so that he could take a step back. He watched as Steve slipped off his shoes, leaving them neatly by the door. Then Steve grabbed ahold of his hand to tow him along towards the living room. Eddie certainly wasn't going to complain about the view of walking behind Steve. He noticed Steve draping the battle vest over the banister as they passed the stairs but didn't say anything about it.

He liked that Steve carried it around with him.

Once in the living room, Eddie kicked off his own shoes. Though, they settled much less neatly than Steve's had. He turned to flop back on the couch, his feet pressing against the arm as he laid across the length of the sofa. 

"So he does have manners," Steve grinned, motioning at his sock covered feet.

Eddie rolled his eyes over exaggeratedly and held a hand out towards Steve, "I'm a perfect gentleman, Stevie. I ask you on dates, I buy the candy you like, I get you off, I swallow. The list goes on, really."

Steve's face immediately erupted in a deep shade of red. He was so damn cute when he was flustered.

"Shut up," he mumbled under his breath as he hit play. He set the remote back down and walked closer to Eddie. Once he was close enough, Eddie used his outstretched hand to grab hold of Steve's wrist and tugged him closer until he landed on top of him.

"I also don't tell my boyfriend to shut up all the time," Eddie said, cocking an eyebrow at Steve.

Steve smirked as he sunk one of his hands into Eddie's hair, "Shut up and kiss me."

Well, he couldn't say no to that.

Eddie craned his neck, lifting his chin, just enough to press his lips firmly against Steve's. He heard a sigh slip past Steve's lips as they easily parted. Eddie needed to get his hands on Steve. One of his hands pushed into Steve's hair while the other sat in the slight dip at his waist. His tongue slipped inside Steve's mouth, gentle but demanding. He wanted to lose himself in his taste as he swallowed the low groan that Steve let out into the kiss. 

Eddie's fingers dug into Steve's hair to pull him closer, to maneuver his head just where he wanted it. He was quickly learning just how much Steve loved kissing. And, fuck, if he wasn't good at it. Eddie felt as if his body was thrumming with every press of their lips or tug at his hair. He was going down a deep Steve spiral, but he certainly wasn't complaining.

A soft, barely there whimper flowed out of Steve's mouth into the space between them. It felt as if the sound sent echoes of pleasure through his bones. Eddie wanted to meld his body with Steves. His hand at Steve's waist slid up and down his side, moving to the flat planes of his back. Eddie just wanted to touch every inch of him.

"Do you want to go upstairs?" Steve murmured against Eddie's lips. Eddie's fingers tugged at his hair unconsciously, which elicited the most delicious sounding moan from Steve.

Eddie's heart was hammering and he was having a bit of trouble finding his voice as he was breathing heavily. He stared up at Steve with a dirty little smirk spreading across his lips. He was panting slightly but who would blame him, honestly.

"Was the movie a ruse to get me in your bedroom? I feel used, chea-"

"Do you want to go make out in my bed?" Steve interrupted, shifting to press his hips down against Eddie's.

He could feel the hard press of Steve's dick against his own and he was sure he blacked out for just a second.

"Yes, absolutely. Let's go."

Steve let out a breathless laugh, pressed a quick but sloppy kiss to Eddie's mouth, and pushed himself up off of the couch. He grabbed Eddie's hand to haul him to his feet, barely waiting for him to be steady before he began pulling him along to the stairs. Eddie was so entranced with the way Steve looked, so free and bubbling with excitement, that he was having trouble paying attention to much else. Which is how, when Steve yanked his hand to turn up the stairs, Eddie's feet got tangled under him and he very nearly hit the deck.

Steve turned back to see him struggling, but instead of laughing he cooed softly and pulled Eddie back upright before he kissed him softly. Eddie couldn't help but smile against his lips. It was a brief kiss, unfortunately. Steve quickly pulled away and began to lead him back up the stairs.

Sure, Eddie had made appearances at Steve's house over the years at different parties. But he never ventured upstairs. He had heard whispers, and sometimes loud bragging, from a whole host of girls at school about what went on in Steve's bedroom. Like it was some sort of right of passage for teenage girls. And while he didn't particularly want to think about what those girls did with Steve in his bedroom, his mind was awash with scenarios of what awaited him 

"I feel like I should really take in this moment," Eddie said, following behind Steve, "Do you know how many girls I had to hear talking about making it to Steve 'The Hair' Harrington’s bedroom? Like it was a crowning achievement."

Steve pointedly ignored Eddie's rambling as they got to his door.

Eddie let out an excited, put upon gasp, "Are there t-shirts? Do I get a t-shirt?"

Without a word, Steve yanked Eddie into the room. It was a little rough but, damn, if it didnt send a thrill up his spine. Steve crowded into Eddie's space and backed him up against the wall as he reattached their lips with a low moan. His hands slipped underneath Eddie's shirt, making Eddie shiver at the contact.

"Off," Steve muttered, pushing the shirt further up Eddie's torso.

Eddie couldn't help the slight giggle as he pulled away to help rip the shirt up over his head, "Is this so I can get my commemorative I Slept With Steve Harrington and All I Got Was This Lousy T-shirt shirt?"

Instead of answering Steve quickly removed his own shirt and ducked his head to kiss at Eddie's collarbone. The sharp graze of his teeth against Eddie's skin had him letting his head fall back while soft, shaky moans escaped his lips. Steve's hands roamed over Eddie's sides before pulling his hips off the wall to press them close. Eddie's head was swimming in the absolute beat way.

Steve pulled away to grin crookedly back at Eddie, "Bed?"

"Don't have to ask me twice," Eddie laughed.

Steve moved backward enough to give Eddie the space to walk across the room. He strolled easily over the plush carpet to perch himself on the edge of Steve's bed. He took a brief moment to look around the room. It was so generic and boring, so unlike the Steve was getting to know. It was a bizarre juxtaposition to the boy striding across the room towards him.

When he closed the distance, Eddie's hands came up to rest on Steve's hips. He used the position to pull Steve closer, making him plant his knees on either side of Eddie's hips as he climbed into his lap.

One of Steve's hands came up to rest just under Eddie's jaw to nudge his head up. Eddie couldn't get over how fucking pretty Steve really was. Especially like this. They shared a soft smile before Steve dipped his head forward to touch their lips together again. Steve's kiss was intoxicating in the best way possible. Eddie felt like he was being kissed within an inch of his life.

What a way to go.

As they kissed, lips moving easily together and tongues pressed against one another and flicking between parted lips, Eddie's hands moved to the front of Steve's jeans. He made short work of both the button and the zipper before Steve languidly pulled away from his lips. His cheeks were flushed pink and his eyes were heavy. Eddie had surely died and gone to heaven. 

Steve very carefully slipped out of his lap, much to Eddie's dismay. He desperately wanted to keep him planted there for as long as humanly possible. But his tune quickly changed when Steve started to wiggle out of his jeans, pushing them to the floor. Steve placed a hand on Eddie's shoulder to brace himself so that he could step out of the discarded jeans.

"Lay back," Steve said softly, motioning to his pillows with his head.

Eddie quickly obliged. He was going to argue with a mostly naked Steve Harrington. He scooted himself backwards so that he was laying down but stayed up on his elbows in order to watch what Steve was doing. He looked so good. Tanned skin, smattering of moles and freckles, dark chest hair. Eddie felt dizzy just looking at him. Steve knelt beside Eddie, leaning down to kiss him again as his hands touched the button of his jeans.

"Can I?" Steve whispered against Eddie's lips.

Eddie hummed happily as he tried to nod his head, "Fuck yes."

A grin worked its way across Steve's face as he quickly undid the button and zipper of Eddie's jeans. He only pulled away from the kiss to help pull them from Eddie's body, tossing them off to the side. With both of them down to just their boxers, Steve crawled up beside Eddie on the bed and laid down half on top of him. The touch of skin on skin ignited a fire inside of Eddie.

Their hands moved toward each other's exposed skin almost like moths to a flame. Eddie could only think of touching Steve, that's all he wanted. All he needed. He didn't need air, or food, or water. He just needed to keep his hands and his lips firmly planted on Steve's skin. That was the only thing that would keep him going.

Their lips were on each other in an instant. Teeth and tongues worked roughly with and against each other, as if they were trying to devour the other. Steve shifted on top of Eddie, and it felt as if a searing hot light ignited behind his eyes as their hips pressed tightly together.

Pointed tips of fingernails clawed at Eddie's exposed shoulders and arms as Steve's hips started to rut firmly against his own. Eddie hissed into the kiss at the feeling. Too rough, too much, but also nowhere near enough.

"Fuck, Eddie," Steve grunted as he ground his hips down harder.

Eddie seemed to take advantage of Steve's muttering to attach his lips to the moles at the dip in Steve's collarbone. He always caught himself staring at them, so he just couldn't resist the urge to kiss and bite.

Steve turned his head just enough to press his cheek against the side of Eddie's head as more breathy whines and moans found their way past his lips. The sound was like music to Eddie's ears.

The hand that was in Steve's hair gripped tighter and pulled back. Steve gasped loudly as his neck elongated, giving Eddie more space to work with. Steve's hips rocked down harder against Eddie's eliciting a strangled moan from both of them. Eddie was smirking against Steve's sweaty skin.

"Eddie, oh fuck," Steve panted loudly, his chest heaving, "Fuck, feels so good."

Eddie slid a hand down the length of Steve's spine until it slipped into the back of his boxers to grab a handful of one of Steve's cheeks. He was a weak man. He spent so much time looking at Steve's ass that now, presented with the opportunity, he was going to grab and grope as long as Steve would let him.

Steve's hips stuttered against his. Eddie could hear him moan softly. He kept the grip in Steve's hair while the hand in the back of his boxers flexed and intermittently squeezed the firm muscle there. Steve shuddered and let out a low, filthy moan that had Eddie's body trembling. 

He sounded so fucking gorgeous. 

Eddie switched to the other side of Steve's neck, "That's it, fuck. Mmm, feels so good baby. You're so good."

Steve let out a pretty little whimper that made the roiling heat low in Eddie's gut burn hotter. His blunt nails raked down Eddie's arms and Eddie could feel it. He could feel his orgasm quickly approaching. His whole body felt like it was going to shake apart.

"Pretty boy," Eddie panted against Steve's neck, "Fuck, you're so good. So good for me."

Eddie sank his teeth into the tender skin of Steve's neck as his hips jerked then stilled. He was coming. His body drew up tensely as he clutched at Steve, letting out a low groan of pleasure. Slightly above him, Steve let out a broken whine of a moan as his muscles seized up against him.

He felt the way that Steve's hips slowed to a stop. Eddie lifted his head from Steve's neck to smile at him, his hands slowly petting over Steve's back. They both leaned in to press their lips together, almost sweetly, before Steve rolled off of Eddie and onto his side. Eddie shifted to look back at Steve with wide open warm eyes that made his stomach flutter.

"So," Eddie chuckled as he pushed some of Steve's sweaty hair back, "Where's my t-shirt?"

Steve only groaned loudly as he picked up a pillow from under his head to smack Eddie with it.

Eddie couldn't help the giddy peal of laughter that escaped him as he grabbed hold of the pillow. Steve kept his grip on it so it took some struggling back and forth before Eddie was able to pull it away from his boyfriend. He let out a happy breath as he tossed the pillow to the floor and fully relaxed on the bed.

Looking back over, Eddie groaned when Steve climbed out of the bed.

"Where are you going?" Eddie asked petulantly.

His response was only the sound of Steve's laughter, which reverberated when he stepped into the ensuite bathroom. Of course Steve had an ensuite bathroom. With a sigh, Eddie pushed himself up to a sitting position. His nose crinkled at the wet feeling from inside his boxers. 

As good as getting off with Steve felt, he wished he'd thought through the whole coming in his underwear thing.

Steve returned from the bathroom completely naked, a fact that did not escape Eddie's Keen Eye. He shamelessly stared at the thickness of Steve's thighs, how the muscles shifted when he walked, and the way the hair on his chest tapered down his torso to where his dick was nestled in a trimmed thatch of hair.

Fuck.

How did he ever get so lucky that someone as fucking gorgeous as Steve Harrington was just as into him as he was?

Eddie's ogling was cut short by Steve tossing a warm, wet rag at him, which landed heavily on his leg. He picked it up with a gracious smile before sliding out of bed. "Thanks," he murmured before shimmying out of his underwear.

He took the time to carefully clean himself up with the washcloth, not wanting to have to deal with anything later when it was dry and stuck in places it shouldn't be. Once he was satisfied, Eddie looked up just in time to see Steve tossing something else at him. In his scramble to catch it, Eddie not only dropped the cloth he was holding but completely missed what Steve threw.

Steve snorted back a laugh, "You have the hand eye coordination of a drunk toddler."

Eddie groaned as he bent down to pick up what seemed to be a pair of boxers. Dark blue with a yellow and light blue plaid on top.

"We can't all be Mr. Sportsball," he grumbled, pulling the boxers up his legs.

He looked back up once the boxers were settled on his hips to see Steve was also in a new, clean pair of boxers. A rich emerald green pair that somehow made Steve look even more tempting than he had when he was stark naked. He had to shake his head to try and reel his thoughts back in.

"Y'know, this isn't quite what I had in mind when I asked for a commemorative shirt," Eddie teased, snapping the elastic waist of the boxers, "But it feels more exclusive. Or do you give out boxers to everyone? Is this a trade? Are you keeping my cum soaked boxers as a trophy? Because that's really wei-"

Eddie's rant was cut short by Steve striding across the room, taking his face in his hands, and firmly pressing their lips together. He couldn't help the way his eyelids fluttered shut or how his hands grabbed at the slight dip of Steve's waist. A low groan escaped him when he felt Steve's teeth nip at his upper lip, and his tongue flick up to soothe the slight sting.

When Steve slowly pulled away from the kiss, Eddie couldn't help but blink a little dazed at him, "Is this your way of telling me to shut up and get out?"

"No," Steve said simply, pushing back some of his hair, "Not telling you to get out."

Eddie's eyes widened laggardly as Steve's words settled around him. A cautious smile spread over his lips, his fingers unconsciously gripping just a bit tighter at Steve's waist.

"So, if you're not telling me to get out…"

Steve rolled his eyes as a fond little smile spread across his lips, "Stay the night?"

"Of course," Eddie breathed, leaning in to kiss Steve again, "Of course, baby."

Chapter Text

Waking up in his own bed, in his bedroom, was a rarity for Steve.

It was rarer still to slowly blink sleep from his eyes in lieu of having his unconsciousness ripped forcefully from him by some horrible monster in his dreams.

So, Steve found himself more than a little flummoxed as he was roused from his sleep. His body was warm and his muscles were relaxed in a way he hadn't experienced in who knows how long. He shifted slightly, to stretch out his limbs, when he suddenly became aware of the weight of an arm lying across his waist and the solid pressure of a chest at his back.

Eddie.

Right.

Eddie had stayed the night. 

They were both still shirtless, so Steve could feel the gentle warmth of Eddie's skin pressed against his own. He inhaled deeply before letting out a slow stream of breath; his body relaxed further, sagging into the mattress and Eddie's loose embrace. Steve wanted to close his eyes again. He wanted to go back to sleep.

Which was a bizarre thought for him to have.

He'd been actively avoiding and limiting sleep for the last two years.

His eyes drifted heavily, taking in the pale illumination from the sun beyond his blind, until they landed on the alarm clock sitting on the table next to his bed. Bright red numbers stared back at him. It was just after ten in the morning which was honestly a feat.

Steve couldn't remember the last time he slept for that long. At least, slept continuously without any heart gripping middle of the night wake ups. However, he did have to get up to start getting ready for work. Even as his body all but screamed at him to stay, Steve carefully slid out of Eddie's hold to climb out of bed.

He tiptoed around the room, not wanting to disturb Eddie; he looked so cute and peaceful tangled up in Steve's blankets. As quietly as possible, Steve grabbed a new pair of boxers and the shorts of his Scoops Ahoy uniform before he slipped into his adjoining bathroom and closed the door softly behind him.

He set the clothes down on the counter and turned to grab a towel out of the linen closet. When he turned back, he caught his reflection in the mirror which gave him pause.

Purple bruises sat on either side of his neck. On the left side it sat low on his collarbone, spreading between the twin moles that were there. The mark on the other side was a bit higher up, and Steve was sure that he could make out the faint indents of Eddie's teeth around the edges. He leaned closer to the mirror, turning his head to the side to get a closer look.

Reaching up, Steve gently pressed his fingertips to the hickey at the right side of his neck. It gave a barely there throb of pain that had him gasping softly as he pulled his hand away. 

Steve had given his fair share of hickeys. But he wasn't sure he had ever gotten one himself. Or, maybe not a bite that was so prominent and bold. He vaguely worried about whether it would be covered by his work uniform. He really didn't need Robin seeing and making fun of him.

She didn't need any more ammunition.

With a slight shake of his head, Steve turned away from the mirror to step towards the shower. He turned the water on, and stripped out of his boxers. He grabbed them from the floor to toss them towards the hamper in the corner. He would have to do laundry soon based on how full the basket was looking.

He returned his attention to the shower, sticking his hand under the spray to test the temperature. Finding it to be acceptable, Steve stepped into the shower stall and pulled the curtain closed behind him.

Normally, Steve's shower routine was a quick affair. The water stayed on just a smidge cold in an attempt to wake him up and keep him alert after being awake for most of the night. And he'd rush through cleaning his body and hair. Something about being in an enclosed space with an obscured view did terrible things to his anxiety.

This morning, however?

Steve took his time standing under the warm downpour of water. He let his eyes drift shut as he scrubbed his body clean with his washcloth. Hell, he even hummed a Queen song softly under his breath as he washed the shampoo suds out of his hair. For the life of him, Steve had no idea why he felt so calm and at peace while doing something that was typically so nerve-wracking for him.

Then, as he shut off the water, he remembered the boy asleep in his bed.

His heart skipped a beat just picturing it.

This was twice now that Steve and Eddie had fallen asleep together. And, it was twice now that Steve had woken up on his own with no trace of monsters or catastrophic failures in his dreams. 

Once out of the shower, Steve toweled off his body before wrapping it snuggly around his waist. He plugged in his hairdryer and grabbed his can of hairspray. He knew that this was probably going to be too loud and wake Eddie up, but he definitely had to get ready for work. So, rather reluctantly, Steve turned on the hairdryer and got to work.

He tried his best to move quickly and efficiently. To try to limit the noise he was making to try and keep Eddie from waking up to such a grating sound.

It didn't take long to get his hair done. It was a well practiced routine at this point. When it was perfect, Steve dropped his towel so that he could slide on his underwear and shorts. He then turned to exit the bathroom so that he could finish getting ready in his bedroom.

Immediately, Steve noticed Eddie actively snuggling up with his blanket tucked up to his chin. He had a gentle smile on his face that had Steve also smiling to himself at the sight.

"You look pleased," Steve said with a low chuckle before striding across the room to his dresser.

He opened the top drawer to look for the tube socks that went with his uniform. From behind him, he could barely hear Eddie shifting around but didn't pay much mind to him. He grabbed the rolled up pair of socks that he was looking for, slid the drawer shut, and sat down on the foot of the bed.

With no warning, Eddie was very suddenly pressed against his back. One of his arms slid underneath Steve's while the other hooked over his shoulder to hug him back against his chest. Steve couldn't help the affectionate laugh that escaped him.

"You're cuddly in the morning."

Eddie's cheek pressed against Steve's back, and he could feel the slight prick of stubble against his skin. "You're warm. And you smell good," Eddie murmured in a sleep weary voice.

Who would have thought that scary Eddie Munson was such a cuddler?

Steve grinned to himself as he unrolled his socks and began the process of pulling them on. It was a bit difficult to bend and move with Eddie practically sealed to his back but he definitely wasn't going to complain. Especially not when Eddie was humming so contently while he practically nuzzled his face against Steve's back.

As Steve finished putting his socks on he could feel soft, barely there kisses being pressed against his back. Part of him wanted to forget about work all together and crawl back into bed with Eddie. That wasn't really an option, though. So, Steve laid a gentle hand over where Eddie's was pressing low on his chest.

"As much as I'd love to do this all day, I do have to finish getting dressed for work," Steve said, giving Eddie's hand a gentle squeeze.

Eddie let out a small huff of air as well as a soft whine, but he unwound his arms from around Steve, who stood up with a low chuckle. Steve turned to look back at Eddie once he was on his feet, and ducked down in order to press a kiss against his lips with a gentle hum.

"How long are you working today?" Eddie asked when Steve pulled away, standing upright.

Steve ambled across the room towards his closet. He opened the door and quickly found his uniform shirt inside. He turned around to face Eddie, who was carefully climbing out of bed. "I'm closing tonight, unfortunately," Steve murmured with a low sigh. He very carefully slid the shirt over his head, trying to not mess his hair up in the process.

He watched the way his own boxers sat low on Eddie's hips as he picked his jeans up off the floor to pull up his legs. It was a little alarming just how much he enjoyed the sight.

"I don't know if I'll have time to come bother you today," Eddie laughed, zipping and buttoning his jeans, "I've got to make the rounds, Gareth wants to have a practice today, and we're supposed to do character building for our next campaign."

Steve blinked slowly back at Eddie. He understood the first part of what he was saying but was a little lost about the end of it. He could feel his eyebrows pulling together in confusion.

"You know, like Dungeons and Dragons?" Eddie asked, his hands moving in circles in front of him, like the movement would somehow jog some latent nerd gene inside of Steve.

"I've never played. Henderson, one of the kids I watch, has been trying to get me to for like a year? Him, Will, Mike, and Lucas all play in the Wheeler's basement," Steve explained with a shrug.

Why were all the people in his life such fucking nerds?

Eddie narrowed his eyes at Steve, "I don't know if I can continue this relationship."

"Oh, shut up," Steve laughed loudly. He shook his head  as he walked over to kiss Eddie quickly, "If you hurry up and get dressed I'll feed you before I have to leave."

Without another word, or apparently a single thought in his head, Steve dropped a hand down to lay a firm smack against Eddie's ass before he headed towards the door. He had made it all the way to the bottom of the stairs before he stopped and realized what he had just done. That wasn't a cute little tap against his boyfriend's butt. No. That kind of slap definitely belonged in a locker room.

Steve stared down at his hand in horror.

"What the fuck?" He whispered under his breath.

Shaking his head, Steve shuffled off towards the kitchen. There wasn't a whole lot food-wise left around. He had been kind of living on mall food court food and delivery pizza for the last few weeks. He knew he should actually go to the grocery store but after a long day of slinging ice cream he absolutely did not want to go to another establishment full of bright lights and lots of people.

So, his options for feeding Eddie weren't plentiful.

He was, however, able to find some bagels in the pantry. Which was better than nothing. By the time he had the first bagel properly toasted and had begun to spread on some cream cheese, he could hear Eddie's footsteps coming down the stairs. He glanced up as he entered the kitchen, and couldn't help the playfully annoyed look that fell over his features.

In place of the Motörhead tank top that he'd been wearing the day before, Eddie was now sporting one of Steve's old Hawkins High Swim Team shirts.

"What are you wearing?" He laughed, grabbing another bagel to turn back to the toaster. 

Steve very carefully pulled apart the halves of the bagel and slid them into the slots of the toaster. He heard Eddie chuckle softly from behind him.

"My 'I Bedded Steve Harrington' commemorative shirt, duh."

Steve rolled his eyes and grinned as he turned back around. He slid the plate with the first bagel across the kitchen island towards eddie. With a pleased sort of hum, Eddie padded across the kitchen floor to grab the bagel. "Thanks, babe," he mumbled as he took a big bite. Steve flashed him a warm smile as he turned to retrieve his own plate and bagel.

"How late do you think your dungeons and dorks thing is going to go?" He asked, a teasing lilt to his tone.

When Eddie lifted his eyes to look back at him, Steve couldn't help the cheeky grin that spread across his face. Eddie huffed out a haughty breath, tossing his hair to the side. He narrowed his eyes in what was probably meant to be a hard or mean look but he just looked kind of like an irritated kitten.

All hiss and no claws.

"You know, you're lucky you're so hot because you are mean to me," Eddie said with a pout.

Steve let out a small sympathetic sound as he rounded the island. His hands came to rest on Eddie's hips and he dipped his head to press a kiss gentle against his neck. "I'm just teasing," Steve murmured, pressing his body close.

Eddie chuckled softly and set his bagel back down on his plate. His arms went up to wrap easily around Steve's neck.

"To answer your extremely rude question," Eddie laughed, "I don't really know. It all depends on how long practice runs and how big of dicks the guys want to be."

Steve lifted his head away from Eddie's neck and smiled at him. "Well, after I close I was gonna come home and order a pizza or something if you wanted to come back over. Maybe we could actually watch that movie," he suggested, raising his eyebrows hopefully. 

Eddie smirked as he tugged gently at a strand of hair at the back of Steve's head, "Yeah, I think I can swing that."

A broad smile spread across Steve's lips before he dipped his head forward to drop a fleeting kiss to Eddie's waiting mouth. He grinned and pulled away, to round the counter so that he could finish making his own breakfast. "Tell me about this campaign you're gonna run," he said, spreading cream cheese on his bagel.

Eddie looked more than a little shocked but also like he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Steve had no idea what Eddie was talking about but his whole face lit up as he prattled on and on about all these grand plans. His excitement was contagious. Steve soon found himself smiling and laughing along with him as they each worked their way through their food.

When they were both done, Steve took the two plates and turned to set them into the sink. He would wash them later. He made his way out of the kitchen with Eddie, who stopped in the living room to grab his shoes from where he'd kicked them off the night before. Steve continued on to the front door where the shoes he usually wore to work were tucked inside the entrance closet.

By the time he had them on his feet, Eddie had joined him by the door. With one last check to make sure that he had everything he needed, Steve opened the door to user Eddie outside. He closed the door, took the time to lock it, and turned back to see Eddie watching him closely. 

It was a little jarring.

Steve knew they he lived in a relatively secluded part of town but you could never be too sure as to who was out and about, so as much as he wanted to pull Eddie in for a kiss he wasn't brave enough to risk it. He smiled sadly at Eddie, as if they were reading each other's minds.

Steve brought his hand to his lips, pressed a kiss to his thumb, and held his hand out in front of him. Eddie laughed a little weakly but did the same, wrapping his fingers around Steve's and pressing their thumbs together.

Steve gave him a wink, "I'll see you tonight?"

"Definitely," Eddie said, pressing his thumb a little harder before pulling away.

Eddie gave Steve one last nod and headed off across his lawn to where his van was parked on the street. Steve stayed where he was, just watching Eddie. He heard some sort of loud music come blaring from the van when it was started, and he couldn't help but roll his eyes fondly. 

He walked over to his car, catching Eddie's eye for just a moment, and gave him a small wave as he got inside. He could see through his mirrors that Eddie pulled away to drive off to start his day. Steve let out a soft breath as he slumped in his seat, already not looking forward to his day at work.

He just hoped that it would pass quickly and without incident. 

"Steve! Hey, Steve!"

For just a moment, Steve considered ignoring the sound of little gremlins calling his name. He had just made it to the entrance of the mall. He could just keep walking and head inside to work. He could keep his head down, walk into the mall, and just keep to himself until he was able to go back home.

And see Eddie.

But no. He knew if he ignored them, the children would just get louder and more obnoxious. So, with a reluctant sigh, Steve paused just short of the doors.

He turned to see Will, Mike, Lucas, and Max all chaining up their bikes by the entrance. He had to bite back a snort of laughter when Mike very nearly tripped getting off of his bike.

"What do you little shits want? I have to get to work," Steve huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

Will and Max were the first ones to step closer, as if they realized that Steve would be less likely to say no to them if they asked for something. They were probably right.

"Can you let us in the back so we can go to the movies?" Max asked hopefully. 

Will nodded his head quickly, "We want to see Daryl but Max and I don't really have the cash for tickets."

Steve let out a long sigh. He looked between them and then over to Mike and Lucas who were looking a little anxious behind them. Finally, Steve rolled his eyes with an annoyed huff of air.

"Fine. Follow me, but keep your heads down and your mouths shut."

Max smiled brightly, "Thanks, Steve!"

Chapter Text

"Why does the back of your shirt say Harrington on it? Where is your shirt?"

Eddie spun around on the stool he had been sitting on to see both Kevin and Jeff walking up Gareth's driveway. They were both holding their guitar cases, and their faces were equally confused by Eddie's chosen outfit for the day.

"Did you stay the night over there?" Kevin asked, looking almost as if he didn't really want the answer. 

Eddie let out a huff of air, rolling his eyes, "I don't kiss and tell."

"Since fucking when ?" Gareth asked, laughing as he closed the door to the house behind him. "All we hear about is how great a kisser Steve is. Which, by the way, is gross. So, obviously, you did something grosser."

Jeff was snickering to himself as he took his guitar from his case. Eddie felt his face fill with heat. He absently grabbed a strand of hair and attempted to hide behind it, tugging it over his cheek and mouth. Sure, he normally had no problem regaling his friends with tales of his exploits –usually without names to protect the innocent, and because sometimes he also didn't know– but it was different with Steve.

Eddie was the first guy that Steve had ever been with, a fact that Eddie did not take lightly. He didn't need Eddie running around telling his friends all of the nitty gritty details of what they did together. Especially considering if they were going to be together for a while– and, god, Eddie really hoped they would be– his stupid friends didn't need any ammunition to tease Steve with in the future.

"Okay, okay. Enough, " Eddie mumbled, waving his hands as he got to his feet. He didn't need to relive the previous night in his head or there would be any even more awkward situation to deal with. He grabbed his guitar from where it was resting against an amp. "Let's just practice, okay?"

He could see his three friends exchanging looks, which was never a good thing. He had no idea how the three of them seemed to develop telepathy when it came to bothering or making fun of him. But he certainly didn't appreciate it. Eddie slipped his guitar strap over his head while Jeff and Kevin did the same and Gareth moved to sit behind his drum kit.

"Before we start, I do have one question though," Jeff said suddenly, his tone cloying at teasing. 

Eddie sighed loudly and hung his head, his hair falling around his face like a dark privacy curtain. He could hear both Gareth and Kevin trying– and failing – to stifle their giggles. Finally, Eddie lifted his head to look back over at Jeff with a truly exasperated expression on his face.

" What ?"

"Obviously, Steve likes you. We don't know why but he does. And, like, we're happy for you. Really, we are. But, uh, can we do something about the clothes? Cause if he shows up to shows looking like a trust fund baby, or you show up wearing his old jock costumes we're going to be laughed out of venues."

Gareth and Kevin's resolve broke– the two of them dissolved into giggle fits. Eddie blinked slowly back at Jeff who was fighting for his life to keep from smiling, his lips were twitching with restraint. 

Eddie exhaled sharply through his nose, "If you guys are jealous that I'm getting laid and you're not, just say so."

His words had left his mouth without much thought, but they registered quickly in his brain as he caught the shocked expressions of his band mates. Kevin stared back at him with eyes the size of dinner plates. Jeff's eyebrows were raised fair above their natural resting point.

And Gareth, well Gareth just looked kind of smug.

"Doesn't kiss and tell, my ass," he snorted back a laugh. 

Eddie stared blankly at the expectant faces in front of him. The guys had been Huddleston up for far too long working on their characters for the new campaign that they were going to run, and now Eddie could see why. They were fucking with him.

Again.

"You cannot run an all bard party," Eddie sighed heavily, dropping their character sheets onto the rickety table in Gareth's basement.

Jeff rolled his eyes, "Why not? We're literally a band. We're an all bard party!"

"By day– three bards in a band," Kevin said dramatically, spreading his hands out in front of him, "By night– three bards in a band… slaying dragons."

Gareth tossed his head back in a full belly laugh.

Eddie groaned, running a hand over his face, "Until the dragon eats you because you can't do any substantial damage or take any damage!"

"Who pissed in your corn flakes?" Kevin huffed, leaning back against the couch with his arm crossed.

Looking down at his watch, Eddie realized that he had to head over to Steve's soon. He picked up his can of coke and drained the remaining fizzy liquid as he got to his feet. "If you wanna run Oops All Bards, be my guest," he said as he set his can back down. He pushed his hair back out of his face with a smile. "But don't come crying to me when you all die two sessions in. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date."

"Make sure you get your shirt back!" Jeff called after him.

Eddie flipped him off before running up the steps.

There was no denying Eddie's excitement as he all but jogged up to the Harrington's front door. While he loved spending time with his friends and had a great time over at Gareth's house, he had been many ticking away the hours until he could go back over to Steve's house. So, he was thrilled to bits as he came to a stop at the door and rang the doorbell.

Faintly, he thought that he could hear the sound of Steve rushing down the stairs inside. But he didn't have long to think about that as the door in front of him was all but ripped open.

He was immediately greeted by Steve, who looked so soft and sweet back-lit by the lights in the foyer.

"Hey," Steve said softly as he stepped aside to let Eddie into the house.

Eddie crossed over the threshold into the house, keeping his eyes locked on Steve as he did so. He was wearing a pair of plain grey sweatpants along with the Mötorhead tank top that Eddie had worn the day before and left on his bedroom floor when he'd gotten dressed that morning. The sight of Steve's gently defined arm muscles and swaths of tanned skin along his sides had Eddie feeling a little dizzy.

Once the door was closed, Eddie reached out to grab hold of Steve's wrist and gently tugged him closer to his chest. " Hi ," he breathed out before pressing a kiss to the corner of Steve's mouth, "I like the shirt, by the way."

"It's my 'I Made Eddie Munson Come in His Pants' commemorative shirt," Steve replied with a fond chuckle and eye roll.

Eddie laughed loudly, "Not many people are fighting for those."

Steve shrugged his shoulders before turning on his heel and walking off. Eddie kept his grip on Steve's wrist, so he followed behind, if only to shamelessly look at the way the fabric of his sweatpants clung to the curve of his ass. Eddie was a weak man– he knew that. And he was truly powerless to whatever spell Steve had convinced a forest witch to use to endow him with such a fantastic and pert ass.

In the living room, Steve picked up the remote from the coffee table and slid his wrist out of Eddie's hand. The move would have made Eddie pout, but he watched the way that Steve flopped back onto the couch, and he couldn't really be that upset. Steve's hair fluttered against the throw pillow under his head like a golden brown halo while his shirt– Eddie's shirt– shifted and settled on his body to show off more skin.

How in the hell did Eddie get so lucky to deserve a boy who looked like that?

Not that he was going to question it much further, lest the universe realized its mistake.

Eddie smiled broadly as he kicked his shoes off, letting them settle next to the sofa, and climbed onto the couch as well. He crawled up the length of Steve's body, feeling an awful lot like a tiger stalking his prey. He pressed his body into the space between the back cushions and Steve, enveloped in his warmth.

Steve reached out with a hand to twist a strand of Eddie's hair around his finger. There was a smile on Steve's face, but it wasn't quite reaching his eyes. He looked like he was thinking much too hard about something, like he wasn't fully there in the moment with him.

"Everything okay, babe?" Eddie asked, head tilting to the side slightly.

His eyes narrowed ever so slightly. He could see the bob of Steve's throat as he swallowed harshly. He looked suddenly nervous, and it really put Eddie on edge. What could have happened in the few hours that they were apart to make Steve look so skittish?

"Tommy and I got into a scuffle tonight when I was leaving work," Steve explained slowly, pointedly looking away from Eddie– that didn't bode well . "He said some shit about how he's heard that we've been hanging out and how you're… you're gay, and I said something he didn't like, so he shoved me against my car."

Anger and concern washed over Eddie. His eyes widened as he leaned back slightly to look Steve over, one hand pressing into the arm of the couch to get a little space between their bodies. It didn't look like he had gotten into a physical altercation. 

"Did he hit you? Are you okay?"

"I shoved him off of me. I'm okay," Steve assured, his voice small and distant. Steve's chest expanded and decompressed as he took a deep breath. Eddie felt sick to his stomach for a reason he couldn't quite place. "He kissed me."

"What?" Eddie asked abruptly. He pushed himself up more to sit on his knees. One of his knees was pressed to the back of the cushion while the other was between Steve's legs. 

Tommy had kissed him?

What the actual fuck? Eddie was going to kill that little rat.

Steve moved just as quickly. He leaned up on his elbows, trying to follow Eddie, "He kissed me and that's when I pushed him off. I told him he can't just go kissing people because Billy told him some-"

"What did Billy tell him?" Eddie asked with a bit of a snap to his tone. Why the hell was Billy getting involved with this? He couldn't really be that upset at him for cutting off whatever arrangement they had. He was playing with Hagan and Steve like they were pawns in some sick chess game.

But how did he even know to mess with Steve in the first place?

"He told him that you were into guys?"

Steve blinked rapidly at the question, "I- I don't know. He didn't say."

Eddie felt his nerves fraying as he tried to make sense of what all of this meant. Did Billy find out about him and Steve? Did he know that Tommy had feelings for Steve so he encouraged him to make a move? Could he take Billy in a fight?

Steve shifted around underneath him until he finally managed to sit up straight, reaching a hand out to gingerly grasp at the back of Eddie's neck. The touch brought Eddie back– out of his spiraling thoughts. Eddie looked back at Steve, letting out a long breath. Right, there were other issues to deal with.

And Steve looked so nervous. 

"I'm not mad at you," Eddie murmured. Steve's whole body seemed to relax a little as he let out a breath. Eddie hated that he would ever think that. Of course he wouldn't be mad at him because someone had forced themselves on him. He couldn't have helped that– it wasn't his fault. 

"I mean, I'm a little mad you didn't deck Hagan for kissing you but not mad at you."

Steve let out a soft chuckle, the corner of his lips kicking up into a grin. He leaned closer until Steve's lips gently brushed against Eddie's. A shiver rippled through Eddie's body at the touch.

"I only want to kiss you, you know?" Steve murmured, hot puffs of breath ghosting over Eddie's lips. Steve tilted his head to deepen the kiss, drawing Eddie in with every soft, smooth movement.

"Me too," Eddie couldn't help but groan into the kiss.

He lifted his hands and allowed one to push back into the thick strands of hair at the back of Steve's neck to hold his head where he had it. His other hand laid on Steve's shoulder, sliding down so his fingertips dragged along the frayed collar of his own shirt while they kissed. The skin under his fingers felt so warm and thrummed with life and excitement.

It almost made Eddie completely forget about the last five minutes as his brain tried to run away with new possibilities.

Almost.

Eddie pulled away from the kiss, grinning at the soft whine that slipped past Steve's lips. He wasn't sure if Steve even knew he'd made that sound, but he still loved it. He pressed his forehead against Steve's as his eyes fell shut and they panted together until their breaths were intermingled in the humid air between their lips.

"What're you gonna do about Hagan and Billy?" Eddie asked through labored breaths.

Steve made a confused sound, "Hmm?"

Eddie chuckled low and licked his lips. He sat back on his heels, keeping his hands on Steve's chest and in his hair. He blinked slowly at Steve and took in his wide moon-eyed expression that made his heart beat harder against his ribs.

"You want me to kill them for you?" Eddie asked, a teasing tone to his voice.

He was joking.

Mostly.

Not really.

Steve laughed, his face pulling back into a picture of creased sunshine and surprise. " No. I'm just… I'm going to ignore Billy. I don't know what his deal is anyway," Steve said, shrugging one of his shoulders, "But Tommy… I told him I wouldn't tell anyone about him. If he tries something else, I'll deal with him. But, I think he'll just leave me alone."

Eddie nodded absently, twisting some of Steve's hair around his fingers. He'd let Steve deal with Hagan however he felt was best. It wasn't exactly Tommy's fault, Eddie supposed. He could understand trying to shoot your shot if someone told you that the guy you were secretly pining over was also into dudes.

But there was a niggling feeling in the back of his head about Billy.

He'd have to have a conversation with that asshole.

The gentle touch of Steve's hand against his jaw, his thumb brushing his cheek, broke Eddie free of his thoughts. Steve was smiling coyly up at him. His lips were spit slick and plush pink. God, he was so fucking pretty.

He really couldn't blame Tommy.

But he was so thankful for his idiot friends for pushing him into Scoops Ahoy before Tommy rucked up any sort of courage.

"I know that we said we'd actually watch the movie," Steve spoke slowly, eyelids drooping, giving him an unfairly sultry look that would surely kill Eddie.

Eddie tightened his hand in Steve's hair and grinned, "I'm going to begin to think that you see me as a tramp, Harrington. You invite me over with the pretense of movies and food, but then you just want to take me to your bed."

"Are you really complaining that your boyfriend wants to get you off?" Steve asked, voice dropping low and nearly monotone.

Eddie laughed, delighted, and shook his head, "Fuck no."

Chapter Text

Balancing a phone between his ear and shoulder while trying to rifle through his dresser was proving to be more difficult than Steve had initially thought it would be. A soft, playfully annoyed sigh came from the other end of the line as he pulled out a pair of looser jeans from one of his drawers. He rolled his eyes, tossing the garment to his bed.

Robin sighed again, "This is the first day in over a week that we've both been off, and you're just not going to spend it with me."

"Remember when you hated me?" Steve asked with a wistful laugh. Robin scoffed, which just made him laugh louder. "Besides, you were supposed to go to that thing at your cousin's house today, so I made plans with Eddie."

"Well, now my cousin has a collapsed lung–"

" –Pneumonia," Steve butted in, grabbing a t-shirt and a pair of boxers.

"And I'm stuck at home while you go have sex with your boyfriend."

Steve sputtered in surprise, almost completely dropping his phone. He scrambled for a moment before managing to get a grip on the receiver again and holding it firmly against his ear.

"We are not– we haven't. I don't even know h–"

He was floundering. He knew that. Steve had never been good with words, but now it suddenly felt as if he had never strung a sentence together in his entire life. It was like his brain and his mouth were actively working against one another, which just left him stumbling over words like a complete idiot.

Because, yeah, he and Eddie had fooled around.

A lot.

But they definitely hadn't had sex. Embarrassingly, Steve wasn't exactly sure what to expect when it came to doing that with Eddie. Which felt extremely disconcerting the longer that he thought about it. He didn't want to make a fool out of himself in front of Eddie.

"You're telling me that King Steve–"

" –Don't call me that."

"Doesn't know how sex works? I've heard many stories to the contrary."

Steve groaned as he all but slammed his dresser drawer shut. He could feel himself flushing hot with unease. This was not at all a conversation he wanted to have with anyone. Let alone Robin. He sighed, stalking off to his bathroom to find a towel in the linen closet.

"I know how sex works with girls, " Steve mumbled under his breath. Which just felt silly. He was home alone, and the only person who could hear him was Robin. "It's just… Eddie is definitely not a girl."

Robin made a vague nose of discomfort. Served her right, honestly. "I'm sure the same basic principles are involved," she said in a clipped voice.

Steve paused for a mid-step on his way back to his bedroom, towel in hand. He'd thought about this. A lot. And yeah, he was sure that basically speaking it was roughly the same but…

"What if I don't want to play the same role that I do when I'm with a girl?"

He held his breath as silence settled between the two of them. He half expected Robin to laugh at him and make fun of him. But, maybe that was just some personal shit that he had to work on. After a few seconds, Robin hummed softly down the line.

"I think that's something you need to talk to Eddie about," she said with no trace of judgment in her tone.

Steve groaned softly. He knew that, obviously. It just felt so humiliating to have to ask your boyfriend how the two of you should have sex. There wasn't a lot of time for Steve to worry, however, since his thoughts were interrupted by the drawn-out echo of a doorbell ringing. Shooting a glance at his alarm clock, Steve cursed under his breath. 

"I have to go. Eddie is here," Steve huffed into the phone as he shoved his jeans, shirt, underwear, and towel into an old backpack.

Robin hummed softly, "Well, have fun without me."

"I will, bye," Steve laughed and hung up the phone before she could say anything else. 

He tossed the phone onto his bed and slung the strap of his bag up onto his shoulder. He then turned around and hurried out of his room, jogging down the stairs to the front door. With a deep breath to steady himself, Steve pulled open the door to reveal Eddie on the other side. His hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail, and he was wearing the same swimming trunks and tank top he'd worn the first time he came over.

"Hi," Steve said on an exhale with a no doubt goofy smile on his face. 

Eddie grinned broadly back at him, "You ready to go, baby?"

An unintentional shriek of laughter escaped Steve as he held his towel up in front of him to shield himself from Eddie shaking out his hair like a dog. He recoiled slightly from where he was sitting just as the back of Eddie's van with the doors wide open. Water droplets landed on his bare knees under the line of the towel and his fingers where they were gripping the top.

"Stop!" He laughed loudly. He slowly lowered the towel to see Eddie grinning back at him with a crown of wild curls on his head. "You're like a dog. "

Eddie howled with laughter– his head thrown back as he clutched his towel in his hands. Steve was mesmerized. The late afternoon sun reflected off of Jordan Lake behind him sending sunspots dancing across his pale skin. He looked so goddamn beautiful.

Picking his head back up, Eddie draped his towel around his neck before he stalked closer to where Steve was sitting. His eyes shimmered like a dark aged bourbon in the sun. It made Steve's heart skip a beat. His pulse spiked even more as Eddie wrapped him up in his arms. They were at the far end of the lake– secluded. Eddie nuzzled into the side of Steve's neck, pressing soft kisses to the still damp skin.

"Because I'm so loyal and cute and fun?" he asked, nipping at Steve's sensitive flesh.

Steve rolled his eyes, wrapping his arms around Eddie's shoulders, "Because you shake dry and like to bite– I should probably get you a rabies shot."

"Mean. Mean boyfriend," Eddie said, words muffled against Steve's neck.

Steve absently ran his fingers over Eddie's bare shoulders. He could see the smattering of light colored freckles across the tops of them– an unbearably cute detail that Steve loved to run his fingertips over whenever Eddie had his shirt off. Eddie let out a low hum as he straightened up enough to face Steve again. His lips twitched happily.

"You wanna get dressed and go hang out at my place? My uncle should be off to work by now."

Steve tucked a particularly wild curl back behind Eddie's ear and nodded, "Sounds perfect."

Time had lost all meaning somewhere between Eddie gently pushing Steve backwards onto his bed and kissing so long that Steve was sure that his lips were tingling. Eddie perched himself in Steve's lap, knees bracketing his hips as their tongues and lips worked together easily to draw soft moans and breaths out of each other. His hands slipped up under Steve's shirt which would have been nice had it not left like icy little pinpricks.

"Your hands are freezing . It's almost July, how are your hands so cold?" Steve all but hissed as he tried to wiggle away from the cold touch.

Eddie let out a huff of a laugh, moving to kiss at Steve's throat, "Shh, let me warm them up."

His voice was low and felt like warm caramel cascading over Steve's brain. He inhaled sharply at the press of Eddie's flat palms against his sides– the touch was both ticklish and cold. Though, he wasn't sure if the goosebumps erupting across his skin were from the temperature or the soft touch. Although, the touch quickly turned less soft as Eddie all but shoved his cold fingers into his armpits.

The squeal that escaped him was no doubt embarrassing, especially judging by Eddie's delighted cackle, but Steve couldn't focus on that. He could only think about getting away, about pushing Eddie's hands out from under his shirt. 

Finally– finally – after a few moments of struggle, Eddie pulled his hands away.

"You're mean," Steve panted breathlessly, pouting at his boyfriend. 

Eddie let out a coo that tread the line between condescending and placating. His lips slowly dragged up the line of Steve's neck to his ear.  "I'm sorry, baby, let me make it up to you," he murmured in a low voice.

There was no helping the uptick in his blood pressure, or the way he shifted underneath Eddie. Steve exhaled softly, feeling the way his body was reacting to the kisses that Eddie was laying to his overheated skin. Eddie's teeth nipped and tugged at Steve's earlobe before he began slowly sucking kisses at the moles dotting Steve's neck.

He was getting hard and his mind was drifting– couldn't help but think of more . His hands gripped at Eddie's hips almost unconsciously, holding him close. He could feel where Eddie was pressing against him and it filled his head with so many images that he had no idea what to do with.

He felt dizzy, letting out soft breaths and moans as Eddie kissed his way back down his neck.

" Eddie ."

Eddie let out a low hum from the back of his throat, his teeth scraping against the dip of his collar. The sound alone sent shivers down Steve's spine.

"Eddie, wait ," he groaned, fingers flexing at Eddie's hips.

He stopped right away. Eddie's hands pressed into the pillow at either side of Steve's head so that they could look at one another. Though, seeing Eddie's face when his brain was fully spiraling made Steve feel infinitely more nervous. His teeth dug into his lower lip before anxiously worrying the flesh between them.

Eddie shifted his weight to his left arm so he could lift his right hand to brush some of Steve's hair back from his forehead.

"What's the matter, baby?"

Steve quickly cut his eyes away from Eddie's. He couldn't look at him right now. He took a deep breath which caused Eddie to shift slightly on top of him before his tongue swiftly wet his lips.

It was now or never.

Steve sighed, "I have… a question. And you can't laugh at me."

"I would never actually laugh at you," Eddie spoke softly, smiling down at him. He sounded genuine. It eased some of Steve's nervous energy. 

It was quiet for a moment between them for a long moment. Steve was trying to figure out how to broach this topic without looking or feeling like an absolute idiot. Eddie didn't pressure him, though, he just started to twirl some of his hair around his fingers. The touch was soothing. It made Steve breathe a little easier.

"If… if I wanted to do more ." Steve spoke deliberately,  feeling his cheeks burn hotter with each syllable.  "How… how would we do that ?"

A wide smile spread across Eddie's face.

"Stevie, baby , are you asking how we would have sex?"

Eddie's question sounded both teasing and genuine. Steve swallowed harshly around a newly formed lump in his throat as he pointedly looked away from Eddie's big brown eyes. His hands squeezed at Eddie's hips once before completely falling away.

He shifted uncomfortably, just barely whispering a soft ' yes ' in response.

"Hey," Eddie said softly, making Steve look at him again. He lowered himself down to lay chest to chest with Steve, his arms pressing forearms flat into the pillow. "There's no need to be embarrassed, Steve. I have experience you don't, it's fine. But to answer your question, I need you to answer some of mine."

Steve felt his heart lurch inside his chest.

Eddie leaned in to press a slow, lingering kiss against his lips. The touch almost instantly relaxed Steve's body– put him at ease.

"Have you thought about it before?" Eddie asked, his voice low and intimate. 

Steve didn't answer– couldn't answer. Of course he had. He was a teenage boy with a hot boyfriend. He just struggled to find the words to say so. Steve nodded his head slowly in response.

"And, in these thoughts, were you fucking me ?" Eddie asked softly. The thought wasn't a bad one, it just wasn't what he wanted. Steve took a quick breath in, averting his eyes. A delicious sounding groan escaped Eddie. His fingers tugged on Steve's hair to get his attention, to make him look back at him and the touch felt electric. "Or was I fucking you ?"

Steve swallowed thickly, locking eyes with Eddie, "The… the second one. Definitely the second one."

Something flashed behind Eddie's eyes before he took a deep, steadying breath. His hands gently started to pet through Steve's hair, and for a moment Steve almost forgot what exactly they were talking about. 

Almost.

"Okay. Do you want me to talk you through how it'd work and then you can decide if that's what you want?" Eddie offered.

Steve nodded quickly, without even thinking about it. Yes, he wanted Eddie to tell him what he could do to him.

Eddie leaned in again to seal their lips together. His hand slipped behind his neck to angle Steve's head for a better angle, and the deep kiss made a soft whimper escape Steve's lips. Eddie promptly swallowed the noise before nipping and sucking at Steve's lower lip.

"Well, we'd be naked, obviously." Eddie grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. Steve rolled his eyes, but he appreciated the soft ploy at comforting humor. "I'd use some lube on my fingers before I slowly worked one into you." 

The thought alone made Steve's blood sing in his veins. Above him, Eddie's hips slowly began to rock down against Steve's. Low sparks of pleasure licked up his spine.

"It'll feel different but it's easy enough to get used to. I'd make sure you feel good with it, taking just one finger before I'd move to using two." Eddie kissed softly at Steve's jaw. "Two might be more than a little uncomfortable. But the good thing is there is a little spot in you, Stevie, that when my two fingers brush over it feels like electricity in your veins."

Steve knew that he was trembling. He could feel the way his body was shaking. His eyes fluttered shut as he bit at his lips. Eddie's own lips moved closer to his ear as his voice dropped lower.

"Three might burn a little. Might hurt. But it'll ease. I'll take my time and make sure you are stretched and wet and ready. And when you tell me, I'll take them out of you. You won't be empty for long because after I put on a condom and some more lube, I'll press my cock nice and slow into you, baby." 

Steve was taking quick short breaths, he was sure that he was going to pass out. Eddie slowly sat up and Steve let his eyes pull open once again. He was sure that he looked as disheveled as he felt. His hands came to rest against Eddie's thighs, feeling the muscles flex beneath his palms. He felt so dizzy and he just wanted so much.

"Please, Eddie," Steve whispered almost without realizing.

Apparently that was enough to make Eddie spring into action. Eddie slipped his hands under Steve's shirt again– the plain t-shirt that he'd changed into at the lake. This time Steve sat up just enough to help Eddie in pulling it off his body. When Steve laid back down, Eddie reached back to grab his own shirt between his shoulder blades to yank it up off his head. Steve felt a little breathless at the sight alone. 

Both of their shirts were tossed into the void of Eddie's bedroom.

Eddie slipped off of Steve, and he would have mourned the loss of pressure but laid beside him on the mattress and kissed him. He pressed their lips together while his hands made quick work of undoing Steve's jeans and pushing them down his legs. Eddie was moving with a confidence that Steve wasn't sure that he'd ever really seen. 

Their jeans promptly joined their shirts on Eddie's messy floor. 

Eddie sat up quickly, prying his lips from Steve's which left him panting and whining as he stared up at the older boy. His hands moved down Steve's body to hook his fingers into the band of Steve's boxers before tugging them down, tossing them behind his shoulder. Steve was helpless to stare wide-eyed at his boyfriend– he was struggling to keep up with everything that was happening. 

There was a prolonged moment of just staring between the two of them. They were both naked and while that wasn't a new sight for them the air crackled with the promise of something more that set Steve's nerves on edge. His eyes trailed down Eddie's body unabashedly until they landed on where he was hard between his thighs. Objectively speaking, Steve was aware that Eddie wasn't exactly small when it came to his endowment but faced with it now, when it was going to be inside him, it left Steve dumbfounded. 

A soft while slipped past his lips at the thought, which seemed to jog Eddie from his own staring.

Eddie's lightly calloused hands smoothed down Steve's chest before he leaned over him to his mess of a nightstand. Steve lolled his head to the side to watch as he shifted through things looking for what he needed with a look of pure concentration on his face. Finally, he sat back between Steve's legs with lube and a condom.

He leaned in to kiss Steve slowly and Steve all but melted at the contact. "You're sure?" Eddie mumbled against his lips.

"Absolutely."

Eddie sat up with a small smile before he reached to the side for another pillow. Steve watched as he folded it in half before he looked back down at him. "Lift your hips for me, baby," he said softly.

Nodding, Steve did as he was asked. He planted his feet and lifted his hips off of the mattress, giving Eddie enough space to slip the folded pillow under him. Eddie then helped him to settle back into place so that his hips were canted upwards. The angle felt a little indecent, especially paired with the hooded look in Eddie's eyes, but Steve couldn't help but feel a thrill run up his spine.

He watched as Eddie popped the cap of the lube before dribbling some out onto his fingers. Steve was transfixed on the easy and practiced way that he moved. Then, Eddie locked eyes with him as a smirk tugged at his lips.

"You ready, pretty boy?"

Steve swallowed hard and nodded.

It was now or never.

His body jolted at the first cool touch of Eddie's finger at his hole. Though he quickly relaxed as Eddie gently petted the puckered skin, pressing as if to test the give of his muscles. Slowly, bit by bit, the digit sunk deeper into Steve's body until Eddie's knuckles were pressed  flush against Steve's ass. The sensation was… different. It wasn't good or bad, just something that was happening. Steve took a deep breath as he lowered his eyes to watched Eddie's face just as he pulled back to begin a soft push-pull of his finger.

"How are you feeling?" Eddie asked after a few moments. He turned his head to kiss Steve's knee, the touch delicate and light.

Steve let out a soft hum. He could feel something clawing inside of him for more. It felt almost insatiable. "I'm good. You can… you can do another," he encouraged.

Slowly, Eddie extracted his finger and Steve felt himself missing it for just a moment before he felt two fingertips pressing right back into him. He felt his muscles giving way– stretching to accommodate Eddie's fingers. It was definitely more than the single finger had been. Steve's face scrunched up slightly as his back arched. His body rolled from his shoulders down to his hips as he attempted to adjust to the stretch.

The fingers inside of Steve twisted and scissored apart as Eddie built up a steady rhythm. Steve could  feel  his body relaxing with each thrust of Eddie's hand– soft gasps of air escaping him unknowingly. Suddenly, Eddie pressed in close and it felt as if Steve's entire body had been lit on fire. Steve jerked near violently and clamped a hand over his face, slowly sliding down.

"Oh, fuck ."

Eddie fucking giggled as he continued to rub at the spot, "Good, right?"

Steve huffed out a breathless laugh as he pushed both of his hands into his hair. He needed something to do with his hands and settled on tugging at his own hair. He'd never felt anything like this before but could easily see himself getting addicted– craving it. His back arched and bowed on its own accord and his eyes rolled back into his head as Eddie continued to prod at the spot inside of him with every couple to thrusts in.

It was too much.

It was nowhere near enough.

Steve tossed his head back with a loud moan, feeling his vocal chords crack as he did so, "Eddie. Please, Eddie, more."

He had gotten so accustomed to the stretch of two fingers that when Eddie pushed back in with three Steve felt his body tense just a little. He bit as his lower lip, his eyes screwing shut as he pulled a bit harder at his hair as if it would distract from the dull burn.

"Deep breaths, baby," Eddie soothed, using his free hand to run over Steve's thigh.

Eddie eased him into it. He worked smoothly and carefully until Steve felt himself begin to relax again. He let out a soft sigh just as Eddie kissed Steve's knee again. "That's it, baby. You're doing so good. So fucking good," he murmured against the bend in his knee.

He lost track of time again. Nothing mattered except the way that Eddie was meticulously spreading him open. There was a deep arousal coursing through Steve's veins and he loved the way that it pulsed with each firm press of Eddie's fingers inside of him. But he wanted more. He needed more. Steve struggled for a moment to push himself up onto his elbow, his limbs felt heavy and loose, and reached down between the spread of his legs to grab hold of Eddie's arm.

"I'm ready, please ," Steve whispered, voice gone hoarse.

Eddie nodded his head before he gingerly removed his hand from Steve, pulling a weak moan out of him. "Hold on, Stevie," Eddie mumbled as he grabbed the condom off of the bed. He used his teeth to tear the foil packet. It was quick work to get the latex on. He got more lube on his hand and wrapped it around his cock.

Steve couldn't look away even if he tried.

Eddie let go and shuffled closer. He pressed his left hand into the bed and reached down with his right until Steve could feel the blunt head of his cock pressing against him. His brain whited out at the feeling. Just as Eddie began to push in, Steve felt their lips press together and his hands immediately gripped into Eddie's hair. The roots were still a little damp from their swim in the lake.

"Holy shit ," he whispered into Eddie's mouth.

Steve heard a soft hum escape Eddie but he couldn't focus on that. He could only pay attention to the pressure of Eddie pushing into him, spreading him open with each gentle roll of his hips. He was sure he'd forgotten how to breathe as Eddie settled with his hips flush against his ass. 

They stayed still for a moment or two just breathing each other's air.

After a moment or two, Steve shifted and let his hands relax. He used one to push some of Eddie's fringe back from his face. Looking up at him made Steve's heart skip several beats inside his chest. He felt… he didn't know what he felt. Something almost familiar but wholly foreign and new. Eddie sat up a bit more, watching him with heavy lidded eyes.

"You okay, baby?" Eddie whispered, his voice a little gruffer than normal– it sent a ripple through Steve's body.

Steve nodded jerkily, "I'm good. You can. You can move."

Eddie ducked forward to press their lips together again, though there was very little kissing happening. When he pulled away he straightened up and carefully grabbed one of Steve's legs to wrap around his waist. The move pushed Eddie just a bit deeper inside of him and Steve almost sobbed at the feeling. Eddie then grabbed hold of his hips and slowly pulled backwards.

Steve felt his jaw slacken at the drag of Eddie's cock over his sensitive rim. The feeling was intense and vibrant. He felt dizzy with it. Steve's hands clenched into fists against his own stomach as Eddie pushed back inside of him. He could feel beads of sweat breaking out at his lower back.

Eddie continued moving his hips at an almost crawling pace until he shifted just so and Steve couldn't help the moan that was ripped out of him, or the way his back arched clean off the bed. His face screwed up and his hips pressed down into Eddie's thrusts, seeking more.

"Oh God, Eddie," he moaned, his hand tangling into his own hair. " More ."

Steve's back stretched out as he lifted his other leg to secure it around Eddie's hips, using the leverage to pull him closer– deeper. He felt Eddie's hands grip at his hips tightly, the pressure was electric. And then Eddie's thrusts picked up in speed and force. The sound of their bodies meeting was filthy, but Steve loved it.

The only better sound was the low moans and muttered curses slipping through Eddie's lips as he fucked into him. Each sound made Steve feel like he was being melted from the outside in until he was inevitably just a puddle of teenage boy in Eddie's bed.

Drawn out, broken moans escaped from his mouth each time that Eddie's hips met his body. Steve couldn't help it. It was as if those soft noises were being punched out of him beyond his control. Not that he would try to stop them if he could. With each sound he made, he could see Eddie's face twist up with pleasure as his teeth dug in his lower lip.

Eddie folded his body closer, Steve could feel his hands sliding up the sides of his body. He groaned low and grabbed at Eddie's shoulder and bicep, his fingers digging into the muscles there. One of Eddie's hands threaded into the back of Steve's hair. He tugged it back just enough to encourage Steve to lift his chin so that he could crush their lips together. The strain on his neck and the tightness at his scalp had Steve whimpering into the kiss.

"Eddie. Fuck, Eddie , feels so good," Steve panted against his lips, "Wanna… fuck, I'm so close ."

The feeling was unlike any other Steve had ever experienced. He hadn't ever felt so much pleasure from within before. He'd never been so close to the edge without something touching his cock. He felt dizzy in his pleasure. He wanted to tip over the edge but also never let it stop. He wanted to feel like this all the time.

Eddie nodded shakily against his lips. The hand in his hair stayed tight but then, unexpectedly, Steve felt Eddie's other hand reach between their bodies to wrap around his dick. A damn near guttural moan pushed its way out of Steve's throat at the sensation. He began to stroke Steve off in time with his thrusts, making Steve whine softly as he clenched around Eddie's cock and tried his best to push back against him.

"Fuck, Stevie, baby… you're so good. Feel so good, perfect ," Eddie gasped as he buried his head in Steve's neck.

The praise went straight to Steve's groin. His fingers dug tightly into Eddie's skin and his heels pressed into the top of his ass. It felt like Steve was going to vibrate apart. His body was strung tight like a bow until suddenly it snapped. He could feel himself start to cum, spilling over Eddie's fist and his own stomach. 

Eddie's hips faltered, losing rhythm. He let out a soft, low moan of Steve's name as he came, biting into the soft skin at the base of Steve's neck. 

Slowly but surely, his hips stopped moving and the two of them panted against one another. Steve's senses felt fuzzy around the edges. His heart was full and his brain was damn near empty. He hardly noticed when Eddie carefully pulled out of him or discarded the condom. 

Eddie settled beside him, taking Steve's face in his hands, "You okay, Stevie?" 

Looking over at Eddie, Steve felt something shift inside of him. His heart tripped over its own feet, sending it careening down an avenue that Steve had thought he'd blocked off. It felt light, and airy. It felt happy. It felt like something old and familiar, yet new and exciting.

It felt a lot like love.

"Better than okay," Steve breathed, smiling stupidly back at Eddie. 

Love.

Eddie leaned in to kiss Steve's nose, making him giggle softly. "Stay here," he whispered. Steve didn't have time to dwell on the request before Eddie climbed out of bed. He watched as Eddie shuffled, still naked, out the room.

Love.

Seconds later, Eddie returned with a washcloth. He perched himself on the edge of his mattress and carefully wiped down Steve's stomach, and between his legs. Any words had to be choked down inside of him, he was afraid he'd say something stupid if he opened his mouth again. But Eddie just looked so beautiful as he loomed over him, taking care of him.

He tossed the cloth towards his hamper and turned back to Steve with a small smile.

"You wanna get dressed and we can hit the McDonald's drive-thru?" he asked with a chuckle.

Steve grinned, feeling his cheeks hurt with how big it was. He could do that. He could go get McDonald's with Eddie and not tell him that he loved him. That was easy. He would just get dressed, stealing a Dio shirt from Eddie's drawer, and keep his silly feelings to himself.

For now, anyway.

Chapter Text

One of the main problems with Steve's Scoops Ahoy uniform– not that there were many– was just how difficult it made it for Eddie to behave like a rational human being. He had spent too much time sitting outside the ice cream shop at the end of the school year and beginning of summer just hoping for a glimpse of Steve in those shorts. How much time? Eddie would take that secret to the grave with him.

But, now that he was dating Steve?

Now that they were having regular sex?

It was a lost cause.

Whoever designed the Scoops Ahoy uniform held Eddie's kryptonite in the palm of their hand and served it up on a Steve Harrington shaped platter. Eddie kind of wanted to shake their hand.

Although the only thing he could think about doing when Steve stepped out of Eddie's small bathroom in his uniform was getting his hands and lips on his boyfriend. So, he did. Eddie all but crushed their lips together– stifling a low moan that slipped from deep within Steve– and pressed their bodies close together.

Mindlessly, as their lips and tongues worked against one another in a probably too messy kiss, Eddie managed to move and push Steve back against a wall. He then moved his lips down to skim along the strong line of Steve's jaw– relishing in the light stubble that brushed against them.

Steve laughed breathlessly, "I have to go, Eddie. I have work."

The laughter tapered off into another moan as Eddie kissed just below the hinge of Steve's jaw and his hands gripped tightly at his hips. God, Eddie just wanted to devour the boy. He wanted Steve to call out, to spend the day here with him– in his bed.

For a moment he thought he was winning the unspoken argument, but Steve's hands came up to rest against his shoulders before giving them a soft squeeze and push. 

"Really, babe, I've gotta go ." Steve said in a breathy chuckle. Eddie loved that sound. He loved all the sounds that Steve made. "I'll see you later. After my shift."

Eddie hummed a bit petulant as he nipped at Steve's jaw, "You wanna come over here or you want me to meet you at your house?"

"I'll come by here," Steve murmured, pushing a gentle hand through Eddie's hair.

Fuck, Eddie was so whipped. He'd do anything, go anywhere, that Steve asked him.

Eddie finally picked his head up and smiled back at Steve. He was sure he looked more than a little dopey,  but he couldn't help it whenever he looked at Steve. It was like whatever part of him that was even remotely cool fully melted to goo in Steve's presence. 

"I'll see you tonight then," Eddie said before he leaned in to kiss Steve. He heard a soft exhale escape Steve's body before he felt his hands burying themselves into the front of his shirt.

Maybe Steve was reconsidering this whole work thing, too.

Eddie could feel himself getting lost in the way that Steve kissed him. His fingers flexed restlessly at the waistband of Steve's sinful little shorts, like they were itching to just pull them down. As their tongues met filthily, Eddie could feel the way that Steve's body relaxed back against the wall behind him and it was taking all of his very limited self-control to not just let himself melt into him.

Steve very slowly pulled away from the kiss, leaving Eddie to pout sadly back at him. Although, he couldn't be that upset at the way Steve's hands trailed down his chest as a grin spread across his lips.

"I'll see you."

Eddie nodded as he took a step backwards to allow Steve the space to remove himself from the wall. As Steve seemingly checked to make sure that he had everything that he needed, Eddie hurried ahead of him to the door. He pushed it open and turned to grin broadly back at Steve, who was just shaking his head at him.

"I told you I'm a gentleman," Eddie said as he leaned against the open door, grinning toothily at Steve. 

Steve hummed as he reached out to gently press his thumb against Eddie's cheek. Eddie's smile grew, his eyes just beginning to crinkle at the edges. "Tonight," Eddie said tenderly, positively beaming at Steve.

Steve nodded once, his own borderline mushy smile on his face, "Tonight."

Without another word, Steve hurried out of the trailer, down the steps, and to his car. He cast a small wave over his shoulder as he walked which just made Eddie laugh softly to himself. Once Steve was in the car, he looked back in Eddie's direction one more time– so, he also gave Steve a slight wave.

He silently watched as Steve started the car and pulled away from the trailer. Dust and small bits of gravel kicked up from under his tires as he drove off. Eddie stayed there for probably too long, until Steve's car was completely out of sight.

Now, he just needed to find something to keep himself occupied until Steve was done with work.

Maybe he'd call Gareth– watch some movies.

"Don't look now," Gareth mumbled under his breath.

Now, you can just say that to Eddie Munson unless you want him to look quickly, and obviously. Which Gareth obviously should have known. Eddie tore his eyes away from the shelf of movies in front of him to whip around. Just beyond the Family Video window, out in the parking lot, was none other than Billy Hargrove and Tommy Hagan. They appeared to be having some sort of conversation just outside of Tommy's car.  Well, Tommy was talking and Billy was mostly staring blankly.

Eddie's nose crinkled in distaste.

He huffed out an annoyed breath before he turned back to the movies. 

"Are they still bothering Steve?" Gareth asked absently as he picked up a VHS, turning it over in his hand.

Eddie sighed, hands smoothing down his battle vest, "I don't know about Hagan, but I dealt with Billy."

Gareth set the tape back onto the shelf. He walked around Eddie to stand on his other side. Eddie could see the way that his lips were pursed and his brows were pinched like he was thinking hard about something, or trying to keep his thoughts to himself. Eddie let out a sigh as he turned to face Gareth.

"What?" he asked in exasperation.

At first Gareth only shrugged. But he finally took a deep breath and slowly shook his head from side to side.

"Have you told Steve about… about all of that?" Gareth asked, flippantly waving a hand towards the window.

Eddie's brow creased, "Why would I do that?"

"You guys don't talk about that stuff?" Gareth asked, almost incredulously. 

Normally, Eddie would be a little more guarded about having this conversation in public. But the only other person in the store was Keith and he disappeared into the back not long after he and Gareth came in. 

"Why would we? It's not like I want to hear about the long line of girls who came before me," Eddie said, but paused at his own choice of words. A lewd grin spread across his lips and he playfully slapped at Gareth's shoulder. "Get it? Ca–"

"–Maybe you're just too immature to talk about it."

"Rude."

Gareth wheeled around to fully face him with an unreadable expression on his face. "I just think that maybe you should at least tell him about Billy. That dude has a fucking screw loose and he already beat the shit outta Steve without any jealous undertones," Gareth said with a sigh, raising both of his brows.

Eddie tilted his head to the side, "When did that happen?"

"Jesus Christ, you're dense," he mumbled under his breath. Again, rude. Gareth crossed both of his arms over his chest. "Last fall? You remember how shitty Steve looked for a while at school? I think you made some joke about a baton twirler or something."

Eddie narrowed his eyes as he tried to remember. He vaguely remembered seeing Steve in the halls or the cafeteria, not long after Halloween the year before. He looked like he'd gotten his whole face rearranged. Thankfully, he healed spectacularly. You'd have no idea the damage that beautiful face took just looking at him now.

"Wait. Billy did that to him?"

Gareth rolled his eyes, "That's what everyone said. And, if the person who did that to my face used to hook-up with my boyfriend, I'd want to know."

Eddie looked away from Gareth. He had no idea that it had been Billy that fucked up Steve's face like that. But, he'd already talked to Billy– told him to back off. He couldn't be stupid enough to keep fucking with Steve, right?

Lifting his eyes, Eddie chanced another look out the large window to see that Billy and Tommy had gotten into Tommy's car. Billy was in the front seat staring straight ahead– right at Eddie. It was unnerving. He wasn't blinking, or moving. 

He was just… staring.

Eddie pulled his eyes away to look back at Gareth. He cleared his throat and rubbed at the back of his neck a little anxiously.

"Come on, pick a movie so we can go."

Lights spilled through the window into the living room where Eddie was sitting, dragging slowly across the furniture until they abruptly turned off. Eddie's head snapped up, tearing his eyes from his campaign journal he had been going over since he got back from Gareth's place a little while ago. He found the clock on the wall and an immediate grin broke out across his face. 

It had to be Steve. 

He hurried to pack up his things and stow them away in his room. When he made it back to the living room, he saw Steve's silhouette against the door. He just couldn't help himself. Eddie pushed open the door with a bright smile before Steve even had to knock. Something was off about Steve's face, and posture. But Eddie could easily chalk it up to a crazy shift at Scoops.

Once Steve stepped into the trailer, Eddie closed the door tightly behind him. He then leaned in for a kiss. Except, Steve turned his head to the side at the last second so that his lips just caught the corner of Steve's mouth. That was odd. Eddie pulled back to look at his boyfriend with confusion evident on his face.

"Can I try and scrub this shit off first?" Steve asked, holding his hands up. They were a bright shade of red. Steve probably spilled something at work.

Eddie knew how much Steve hated getting the different sauces and syrups from work on his skin. He was probably just irritated. His brows furrowed for just a moment but he promptly replaced the look with a smile before motioning toward the kitchenette.

"Of course, go ahead, baby."

Steve gave one quick, stiff nod before he walked off over to the sink. Eddie watched him for just a moment, still confused by Steve's cold nature, before he followed him over. He watched as Steve worried his lower lip between his teeth as he grabbed the soap and started the water. He was going pretty hard at his hands, essentially using his nails to claw at his palms.

Eddie briefly wondered if he should step in because it didn't look like it felt good.

He bent slightly to rest his elbows on the edge of the sink, his left foot slightly further back behind him, and his hip popped just a little. Eddie was only a teenage boy and despite his worry, he couldn't help but let his eyes travel down the length of Steve's body as he shifted positions. As his gaze got lower, he noticed the way that Steve's uniform shirt had ridden up to expose his hip.

And the particularly nasty bruise there that Eddie knew for a fact wasn't there when Steve left for work.

"Shit, Steve, what is this?" he asked, reaching out to gently run his fingertips over the discolored patch of skin.

Steve fully flinched away from the touch. Which didn't feel good, having his boyfriend violently jerk away from his hand. He shut off the water, and lifted his arm before he twisted his body enough to peer down at his hip. Eddie could see something akin to confusion and then anger flash across Steve's face before he reined it into a neutral expression. 

He dropped his arms and the bruise was once again covered by his shirt.

"It's nothing. I bumped into the door when I was taking the trash out at work," he mumbled before reaching for a paper towel.

He kept his eyes down and away, like he was purposefully avoiding looking at him. Something was definitely wrong. All Eddie wanted to do was help, but couldn't do that if Steve wouldn't even look at him.

"Steve, are you okay? You seem off," he broached carefully, stepping just a hair closer.

Steve nodded his head as he visibly swallowed, "I'm fine. I'm just tired."

Eddie blinked slowly as he watched Steve dry off his hands. The bright red stain was gone– a soft pink now in its place. Eddie would have made some comment about how cute it was if Steve didn't look like he was struggling with something. 

"Are you sure? Because you don't seem like yo-"

"Did you sleep with Billy Hargrove?"

That certainly wasn't what Eddie had ever thought Steve would ask him. Especially after the conversation that he'd had with Gareth earlier in the afternoon. He felt his eyes widen in shock before his brows furrowed in confusion. What in the hell did that have to do with anything? He felt his jaw clenched in annoyance as he stared back at Steve with slightly narrowed eyes.

Steve crossed his arms over his chest– like he had any reason to be angry about in this conversation. 

"Where is this coming from?" Eddie asked with a soft sigh. They had never really delved into past partners. It was just understood that the two of them had two vastly different frames of reference.

"That's not an answer," Steve spat back at him with real venom in his tone.

Eddie's eyebrows pulled together as he let out a harsh exhale through his nose. He didn't want to fight. This wasn't what he'd hoped would happen when Steve came over. This was such nonsense.

"Yes. I have slept with Billy," Eddie finally said. He licked his lips slowly, still confused. "Why are you bringing this up?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Steve's voice broke softly in the middle of his sentence.

Steve's stance was defensive. His arms seemed to tighten where they were crossed over his chest. Eddie felt so lost. Why was this such a point of contention? Eddie tried to think of something to say, to smooth this over. But he just couldn't wrap his head around how he was the bad guy for having sex with someone before he and Steve ever got together. 

It didn't make any goddamn sense.

"Why are you so upset? It's not like you've told me the name of every girl you've fucked," Eddie hissed meanly. 

And, to be honest, Eddie didn't want to know. Which is why this conversation felt so fucking surreal. How did they even end up here?

"That's not the same thing! None of the girls I've slept with have kicked your ass to the point of blacking out within the last year. None of the girls I've had sex with have made it their mission to make your life hell. None of the girls I've fucked have cornered you at your job to make sure you knew that they slept with me! They didn't taunt you with very specific information about what I do in bed to make sure you knew we'd fucked!"

Eddie's eyes widened as Steve's voice rose in both volume and intensity. Had Billy done that? Eddie really thought he'd dealt with Billy and that he'd back off.

Apparently not.

"You made me look stupid," Steve said on a heavy exhale. He was almost panting as his shoulders slumped.

Eddie's body looked tense, his hackles raised. He shifted his weight from foot to foot. "Steve, c'mon, this is all such bullshit," he said in a low voice. It wasn't his fault that Billy was such an asshole. How could Steve hold him accountable for someone else? 

What would knowing that he and Billy used to fuck change about what happened?

"What?" Steve asked a bit breathlessly.

"This fight is bullshit. I used to fuck around with Billy. But then we started hanging out and I told him it was done. You're angry over a bunch of bullshit."

Steve flinched– he actually flinched. His face fell almost immediately, and it was like he wasn't there anymore. Like his body was standing in front of Eddie but his mind was someone else entirely. And then he just looked so heartbreakingly sad. He shook his head slowly, and Eddie felt his chest clench as he saw tears beginning to fill Steve's eyes.

Steve's arms fell from where they were crossed, and the paper towel he'd been holding fell limply to the floor. Eddie heard the softest sniffle before he noticed the way Steve's hands were starting to tremble. 

What the hell just happened?

And then, Steve was moving. He brushed past Eddie and made a beeline for the door. Eddie spun around, gaping at his back.

"Steve!" he called desperately. He paused for a moment at the door but didn't turn around. Eddie let out an exasperated sigh. "Where are you going?"

Steve still refused to turn and look at him. He just shook his head as he pushed open the door.

"Home. I'll… I'll talk to you later."

Without another word, or a single look, Steve just left. He walked out of the door, letting it slam heavily behind him, and left Eddie alone.

Chapter Text

There was no denying the sense of deja vu as Steve white-knuckled his way home.

Bullshit. 

His eyes stung with unshed tears and his chest ached with each shuddering breath that he took. His heart was thrashing against his ribcage so harshly that he could scarcely hear the radio over the blood rushing in his ears. 

Bullshit. 

Steve hit his brakes a bit too forcefully as he pulled into his driveway, sending his body jolting forward against the safety belt. With shaky hands, he killed the engine and pulled the keys from the ignition before he undid the seatbelt. He leaned forward, now that he was no longer restrained, and laid his forehead against the steering wheel.

Bullshit. 

His fingers were freezing cold where they were grasping his keys in his lap. Each inhale was a fight that he seemed to lose as his lungs promptly pushed the air back out before it could do any good for him. His head swam with a torturous cycle of Nancy, nine months prior, calling him and their relationship bullshit followed by Eddie's hard eyes while he called their argument— something that Steve was actually hurt by— bullshit . 

He squeezed his eyes shut in a silent hope that it would push back whatever tears were threatening to fall.

There was no way for Steve to know for sure how long he stayed out there in his car. But he sat in the driver's seat until he was able to at least breathe normally again before he got out to head up to the door.

As he closed the doors behind him, Steve heard the answering machine pick up with his mother's voice instructing whoever was on the line to leave a message. He froze for a moment, straining his ears, but whoever had called hung up without leaving behind a message.

Steve didn't think it was Robin— they'd just gotten off of a shift together and they'd see each other tomorrow.

If it was his mother calling, she would have left some passive aggressive message behind for him.

It could have been one of the kids, but if they really needed him Steve knew that they'd probably use their walkie talkies or, god forbid, just show up.

While he took off his shoes and set them aside, the phone began to ring again. Steve, however, was not in the mood to talk to anyone so he ignored the grating, repetitive ringing as he trekked into the kitchen. He pulled open the refrigerator door with enough force to send a precariously perched bottle of ketchup careening to the floor.

An annoyed huff escaped from Steve's nose as he bent down to pick the plastic bottle from the floor. As he did so, he glanced up to see a few bottles of Corona sitting in the very back of the fridge. Steve hadn't really partied or drank since Halloween, at least not on his own— he'd had a beer or two at Eddie's with him but that was it.

His father wasn't a big beer drinker either but he remembered how he showed off the imported beer with glee to his colleagues several months ago before they disappeared into his office for a few hours to discuss work matters. 

The phone abruptly stopped ringing and the machine in the other room had picked up again. But this time, Eddie's frantic voice came from the speaker.

"Steve. Steve, if you're home please pick up. Pick up and talk to me. I… I need to talk to you. I'm just going to keep calling so you might as well pick up."

Two things happened in quick succession.

Steve slammed the ketchup bottle down into its rightful place in the refrigerator, and then he snatched up a few glass bottles of Corona by their long necks. He stood upright and heard Eddie hang up again. Steve's nose scrunched up in distaste.

Eddie didn't get to treat him like he was stupid, get mad at him for asking a simple, but important question, and then rapid-fire call his house.

Without much thought, Steve pulled the phone that hung in the kitchen off of the hook— letting it dangle freely from the cord. Now, he wouldn't be bothered by Eddie for the rest of the night.

Steve pulled open a drawer, grabbed a bottle opener, and stomped off towards the living room. He didn't want to go to his room. He didn't really spend much time in there if he and Eddie weren't fooling around anyway. He just wanted to sit on the couch, get drunk, and fall into a hopefully, dreamless sleep.

Steve's feet planted in the loose gravel, his hands flexed and gripped the wooden handle of his bat tightly before he swung. His upper body twisted and the end of the bat smacked solidly into the head of one of those not-so-little four-legged monsters. The screech it made at the impact was bone chilling, but he didn't have time to dwell on it.

There were more coming.

So many more.

"Steve!"

He pulled his eyes away from the monstrous creature in front of him to see Henderson's round little face pressed against one of the glass windows on the bus. His eyes were frantic, and his hands were balled up– banging against the glass.

One of the lizard-dog-things was on the hood of the bus— another on the roof.

He brought his bat down on the monster in front of him before turning and sprinting toward the bus.

"Get to the back door!" Steve shouted over the horrifying sound of the demodog slamming its body against the windshield.

He could see Lucas, Dustin, and the new girl– Max – all running to the far end of the bus. But suddenly, Steve was on the ground face to face with the open many-teethed maw of one of those awful grotesqueries. He could hear the kids screaming. He could hear the windshield cracking, the metal of the roof groaning.

He wasn't fast enough. He wasn't strong enough.

He wasn't enough to save them.

Steve jerked awake, sitting bolt upright, on the living room couch with his heart pounding heavily against his sternum. Something had woken him up— a crash of some sort had ripped him from his restless sleep. His head throbbed and his stomach rolled uneasily as he squinted through bleary eyes while trying to assess what was happening around him. 

It was just a dream— a nightmare.

It wasn't real. It didn't happen like that.

The kids were okay. 

He had taken care of them. They were safe.

Pale light was streaming in through the windows behind him, which did not help his headache. 

The crash that woke him happened again, but now that he was awake he was able to figure out what exactly it was. It wasn't a demogorgon or a demodog tearing down his door. It wasn't any other kind of grotesque creature at the bidding of the mindflayer— despite what his dreams often tried to tell him.

No. It was the ice maker in the freezer spitting out a few more ice cubes into the tray.

Steve pushed a hand through his hair before he flopped back down against the sofa to try to regain control of his heart and breath. He lolled his head to the side and his eyes landed on the clock on the wall.

"Shit!" he cursed, struggling to get to his feet. 

He had to get to work. He'd slept for too long and now definitely did not have enough time to shower or anything. The sound of glass tinking together brought his attention to the floor, and subsequently the empty bottles of beer laying at his feet. With a less than happy groan, Steve gathered up the bottles and hurried into the kitchen to dispose of them. 

As he passed by, he put the phone back into the cradle before scurrying off to the front door to pull on his shoes.

He felt awful— physically and emotionally.

Maybe he could convince Robin to let him chill in the back most of the day.

That probably wasn't likely, but a guy could dream.

Steve's cheeks ached as he dropped the forced polite smile he'd been holding in place for the last several minutes. The young couple he'd just served exited the ice cream shop with their chosen cones in hand and their fingers laced between them. It made him sick to his stomach.

"What's the matter with you?" Robin asked as she returned to the front with a new sleeve of cones. "You look like a kicked puppy. It's honestly kind of depressing."

He let out an aggravated groan as he turned around to lean against the counter with his back to the front of the store. Robin watched him cautiously from the corner of her eye while she restocked the plain sugar cones. He should probably offer to help but he just couldn't find it in himself to do anything but mope.

"Eddie and I got into a fight last night," Steve finally murmured, crossing his arms over his chest. He let out a long sigh and tucked his chin forward to his chest. "We fought and I left and I just… didn't sleep well last night and now I'm here and—"

The rest of Steve's complaint was cut off by the lights going out. 

Further out in the mall, he could hear small children scream and it sent a shiver of fear down the length of his spine. Steve stood up straight and spun to look around the shop, and into the food court. Everywhere was dark except for the gray light from the midday rainstorm filtering through the skylights.

With very little thought, just hope, Steve shuffled over to the light switch on the wall to give it a few cursory clicks.

"That's not going to work, dingus," Robin scoffed.

Steve defiantly held her gaze as he continued to flip the switch up and down until, against all odds, the power kicked back on. He raised his brows in silent victory which just made Robin roll her eyes before tossing the crumpled sleeve the cones came in at him.

"What did you and Eddie fight about?" she asked, going back to their previous conversation.

Steve grimaced.

He didn't even know how to begin explaining his argument with Eddie.

"He, uh, he didn't tell me something and someone else made it a point to rub my nose in that information so I got mad that he didn't say anything and made me look stupid," he vaguely explained, body swaying from side to side— matching his waffling tone.

Robin blinked slowly at Steve. Her expression was a mix of confused and irritated. Which Steve understood, to be completely honest. He wasn't exactly spilling all the pertinent information. 

"And he called the entire argument bullshit which made me think about how things ended with Nance and I just… I bolted. I went home and I took the phone off the hook so he couldn't call me anymore and just got drunk alone on the couch."

For a moment, it seemed as if something akin to sympathy crossed Robin's features.

It didn't last long.

"So, that's why you look like trash and smell like stale beer?" she asked with a teasing quirk to her lips.

Steve gaped at her. He'd grown used to Robin's particular mix of bluntness and dry humor since their first shift together, though sometimes it was difficult to gauge where exactly her biting comments fell— if she was being serious or just making fun for the sake of messing with him.

He watched the way her eyes slowly crinkled and a wide grin pulled across her painted lips.

His anxiety thawed at the sight.

"You're a bitch," he said with a soft laugh.

Robin chuckled, shrugging her shoulders, "See, I was gonna say you should go take a break in the back to get your head right but, if you wanna be mean to me—" 

"—No! No, that's great. Wonderful. You're the best. See you in, like, fifteen!"

Steve didn't wait for an answer. He simply turned on his heel and shoved his way through the door to the back room. He stood there as the swinging door slowed to fully close behind him, and only then did he let out the heavy exhale that had been holding his muscles taut. His shoulders slumped and his head dipped forward as his eyes fluttered shut.

There was a part of him that wished that, maybe, Eddie would come knocking at the back door like he'd done before. That he'd apologize, and actually understand why Steve had been so upset— not because Eddie had slept with Billy, even though he didn't exactly like that that was a thing, but because Billy had used it against him in a way that he was ill prepared for and made what he shared with Eddie feel less than.

Like, maybe, the love that had begun to take root and blossom in his chest was somehow wrong. 

Steve had to shake himself out of those thoughts.

He wasn't ready to deal with them just yet.

Grabbing an unused apron from the counter, Steve dropped himself down into a chair at the table, crumpled the apron into a ball in his arms, and laid his head down on top of it.

He was exhausted from both the argument he'd had with Eddie, and the fitful, nightmare laden sleep he'd gotten the night before. It took some shuffling, but after a moment or two, Steve finally got comfortable enough to let his eyes fall shut. He knew that he wasn't going to get any real sleep but he could use the time and the quiet to rest just a little.

Robin could handle herself, and she could get him if she needed him.

Sometime later, the sound of the bell from upfront made Steve jerk and sit upright. He groaned softly as he ran his hands over his face and scrubbed his palms up and down. Why did any sort of nap have to make it feel like he'd been dragged through quicksand? He took his hat off, pushed a hand through his hair, and replaced the ridiculous thing on top of his head.

He pushed himself up from his seat to stand in spite of the way his body disagreed with the movement.

From the front, Steve could hear Robin talking to someone— the voice was vaguely familiar but his ears felt like they'd been stuffed with cotton.

"Is he here?"

"Is who here?"

Steve's eyes widened in recognition as a wave of clarity washed over him. He looked down at the watch on his wrist to see the small date inside the circle of numbers. He sprang toward the door, throwing it open to see that Dustin Henderson was in fact standing in Scoops Ahoy after being away since school let out.

There was no helping the excited jump or stupid grin on his face.

His little buddy was home.

"Henderson!" Steve cheered excitedly.

Any remaining melancholy or exhaustion promptly disappeared from his body at the sight and sound of Dustin Henderson laughing brightly on the other side of the counter. While Steve would never willingly admit it out loud, he had definitely missed Dustin hanging around. The other kids were fine as far as little shits went, but he found himself really enjoying being able to play the big brother role to Dustin.

"Henderson, he's back!" Steve said in a sing-song voice as he rounded the counter.

Dustin was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet, "I'm back! You got the job!"

"I got the job!" Steve laughed— the sound almost giddy.

In perfect sync, the two of them promptly pulled out invisible light sabers. They had made up this stupid handshake one evening when Steve was just supposed to be dropping Dustin off at home, but Mrs. Henderson got hung up at work so Steve hung around. They made frozen TV dinners and watched Star Wars. Which somehow devolved into this elaborate secret handshake complete with Dustin stabbing Steve through the stomach, and his guts spilling to the floor.

Robin looked less than amused by their antics.

"How many children are you friends with?" she asked, deadpan.

Steve scoffed loudly and grabbed a small handful of napkins from the countertop to toss in her face. "Shut up," he laughed, rolling his eyes. After the night he had, all this laughing felt like it was cleansing some smudge on his heart. 

"You want some ice cream?" he asked, turning back to Dustin. He rarely offered to get the kids ice cream, a fact that Mike had lamented about quite loudly the last time Steve had let them in to the movies through the back. But he'd let it slide for Henderson— the kid had been away for a month. "I can make you a sundae and you can tell me all about your nerd camp."

Dustin's smile stretched even wider, "Yeah, that sounds great! I'll grab a booth!"

It was almost endearing how excited Dustin was at the prospect of ice cream and talking. He scurried across the shop to a big U-shaped booth, and slid all the way in to sit in the middle. 

Steve turned back and rounded the counter, pulling his scooper from his holster.

"You look better than you did twenty minutes ago," Robin observed.

"Well, avoiding thinking about how your stupid boyfriend is an asshole does wonders," he grumbled, mostly under his breath. He grabbed a dumb little boat shaped bowl from under the counter and breezed past Robin on his way to the freezer. 

As he scooped ice cream into the boat, he could heat Robin suck at her teeth. 

He glanced over his shoulder to see her watching him intently.

"What?" he asked, exasperated.

Robin shrugged, "Nothing. I just think that maybe talking to Eddie would be better than purposefully avoiding him or thinking about him."

"I don't wanna talk about this, or him. I'm going to go over there and catch up with my friend, okay?"

In a very showy way, Robin raised both of her hands in front of her in mock surrender. Though the move was mitigated by the annoyed eye roll. Steve huffed loudly as he finished assembling the sundae for Dustin, snatching a spoon from a cup, and stomping over to the table where the young boy was waiting.

Who cares if he was avoiding Eddie? He was mad. He was allowed to be mad.

It wasn't like it was the end of the world.

He'd call Eddie later when he'd calmed down and then they could talk.

Turns out that Dustin didn't want to talk about whatever it is that they do at a science summer camp. No, he wanted to regale Steve with stories about some girl— who was apparently hotter than Phoebe Cates. Which, under normal circumstances, Steve would have been absolutely jazzed about.

However, as it stood, he was in a fight with his boyfriend and left him contemplating taking one of those stupid sail shaped cones in Dustin's sundae and jabbing it into his neck until he bled out onto the table.

"Where's everyone else? I figured you'd all be joined at the hip now that you're back," Steve said as he reached out to pluck a cherry from a melting scoop of vanilla ice cream and popped it into his mouth— desperate to change the subject to something other than relationships. 

Dustin deflated instantly, "They ditched me yesterday. On my first day back. Can you believe that shit?"

"Seriously?" Steve asked as he slumped back in the booth. He couldn't believe that the kids would blow Dustin off like that after he'd been gone for weeks. "That sucks, man. I'm sorry."

"Mm, they're gonna be sorry," Dustin said, shoveling a large spoonful of ice cream into his mouth. Steve's nose scrunched up in nothing confusion and distaste. "They'll be sorry when they don't get to share in my glory."

"Glory? What glory?" Steve asked skeptically.

Suddenly, Dustin's demeanor shifted. He cleared his throat and scooted closer to Steve as his eyes darted around the store.

"Last night, I was trying to get in touch with Suzie—"

Steve made an interested sound but once again found himself eyeing the sharp point of the cone sail that was sinking lower in the steadily melting sundae.

Dustin raised a hand to cover his mouth and mumbled… something. 

"What?" Steve asked, leaning closer.

With an annoyed huff, Dustin moved just a hair closer and again mumbled something under his breath. Steve felt like he was going crazy as he strained his ears to pick up anything the kid was saying.

He rolled his eyes in annoyance, "Just… speak louder."

"I intercepted a secret Russian communication!"

The people sitting at surrounding tables all turned to look in their direction, and Robin caught Steve's eye from across the room at the counter. Steve waved his hand in Dustin's direction, making a low shushing noise— like it would counteract whatever just happened.

He slid closer to Dustin's side, folding his hands together on the table top in an attempt to appear as nonchalant as possible.

Like the kid wasn't yelling about secret Russians during the Goddamn cold War.

"So, what does that all mean?" Steve asked after a few beats of silence.

Dustin looked back at him with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "It means… We could be heroes, Steve. True American heroes. You could have all the ladies you want, and more," he said, waxing poetic as he waved a hand through the air in front of them.

"More," Steve parroted back with a nod. His brain was quick to supply an image of long, dark curls and big chocolate eyes— ring-clad fingers, and dark tattoos against pale skin.

"I like more."

Steve learned rather quickly that Russian just sounds like gibberish to him.

Dustin had played the recording of the transmission he stumbled upon over and over and over again. It all just hit Steve's ears like a wall of sound. And even with the stupid Russian to English dictionary the kid got his hands on nothing made sense.

Their alphabet looked like a bunch of angry squiggles.

As Henderson rewound the tape again, Steve continued to pace the length of the back room while silently mulling over everything.

"What do you think?" Dustin asked as his tape player stopped.

"It sounds familiar," Steve muttered. There was a bit at the end of the recording with some kind of music playing. It was soft, a bit mechanical. But he knew that he had definitely heard it before. The issue was where had he heard it?

Dustin's brow creased, "The Russian?"

"No, the music. At the end, the music that's playing," he explained, stopping his pacing.

"Why are you paying attention to the music, Steve? We're trying to translate the Russian!"

The tone of Dustin's voice rubbed him the wrong way. Sure, Steve knew that he wasn't exactly a genius— hence the stupid sailor suit and not getting into college. But, he wasn't stupid. Dustin was so very smart and sometimes it left Steve feeling inadequate but that didn't give the little shit an excuse to be an asshole.

Before he could say anything, the door from the front burst open and Robin charged into the room.

"Okay, spy games are over. It's my turn to play."

Steve's steps gradually slowed as he, Dustin, and Robin walked toward the exit after close. His head hurt and he was exhausted. Between everything that had happened with Eddie, his terrible night sleep, and somehow getting roped into the Indiana version of Red Dawn he was almost dead on his feet.

But something caught his attention that made him stop walking while the other two continued on.

"Steve?" Dustin asked a moment later, turning from a few feet ahead to look back at him.

Steve began to frantically pat his pockets only to find he didn't have any loose change. He looked back up at Robin and Dustin to see them approaching him and the coin operated horse he was standing in front of— Indiana Flyer.

"Something tells me you might be a bit too big for that ride, Stevie," Robin teased with a chuckle.

Rolling his eyes, Steve pulled out his wallet and contents of his pocket to double check for any coins. "Do you— I need a quarter," he mumbled, dropping a crumpled napkin to the floor.

"Is now the time to—"

"Quarter!" Steve huffed, stuffing his things away.

Robin looked a little shocked at his outbursts but fished the coin from her own pocket anyway. Steve took it from her outstretched hand and crouched next to the machine. He inserted the coin and twisted the knob to bring the little horse to life.

A familiar soft but mechanical song filled the air between them.

Steve looked back up at Dustin and Robin with raised brows, "It's the same song."

"So," Dustin's voice trailed off from where he was sitting next to Steve. With a sigh, Steve looked over at the boy who was perusing the food court through a pair of bulky, black binoculars.

Steve rolled his eyes and scanned the areas as well, "What, Henderson?"

"I just think it's kind of cool that you got to spend all summer with Robin," he said in a suggestive voice. Steve wrinkled his nose. Dustin lowered the binoculars to look at him, wagging his brows up and down. "She seems pretty cool."

There was just… so much wrong with the assessment.

Part of which was not Steve's business to share with Dustin.

The other was still a bit tender seeing as he still hadn't talked to Eddie about their fight.

Besides, it didn't really feel like the right time to come out to Dustin— not while they were looking for evil Russians at the mall.

"Robin and I are… not like that. We aren't really each other's type," Steve mumbled uncomfortably. He reached out to snatch the binoculars from Dustin and held them up to his eyes to get a better look around for anyone suspicious. "Besides, I've been kind of seeing someone."

Dustin gasped in surprise and hit Steve a bit too hard on the bicep, making him hiss softly.

"Who? What's her name? Do I know her? Is she—"

"—Look! There, on the escalator!"

Steve shoved the binoculars back into Dustin's hands, to cut off his questions. There was a suspicious looking man with long hair and a duffle bag slung over his shoulder.

Definitely a possible evil Russian.

"Come on!" Dustin breathed, jumping up from the bench.

It was a bad idea to involve Erica.

Steve knew that.

But they could be heroes. 

And if nothing else— he'd been too preoccupied with all of this Russian business to even think about his fight with Eddie or how in quiet moments he still heard his biting tone calling bullshit. 

He, Dustin, and Robin sprinted across the pavement of the loading dock together toward the doors that Erica had opened for them after crawling through the air ducts. Inside was filled with boxes, and looked to be some sort of storage room— it all looked exactly the same as it had when they'd spied the space from the rooftop.

The doors closed behind them, and then everything happened so fast.

The room began to plummet— free fall— at an alarming speed. Everything was shaking, Dustin and Erica were screaming at one another, and Steve's stomach leapt up into his throat. 

An abrupt stop made Steve lose his footing and sent him careening to the floor, before a heavy box landed directly on top of him.

"Oh god," he wheezed, struggling to push the box off of him. "Henderson, a little help."

Dustin hurried over and with the younger boy's help the hefty cardboard box was pushed up and off of him. Blinking quickly, Steve spotted Dustin holding a hand out to help him up off the floor which he sluggishly accepted.

"Is everyone okay?" Robin asked from across the tiny room.

Steve's initial shock gave way to fear which was overtaken by a panic that he quickly masked under the guise of anger. Anger was easier. He could work with anger— fear and panic made him weak and useless.

Fear and panic got people hurt.

"Yeah, I'm great! Now that I know that Russians can't design elevators!" Steve shouted, pushing Dustin out of the way of the control panel on the wall.

He began to press at the buttons frantically, hoping that maybe this was like the lights at the shop— if he tried long enough maybe it would just work. 

Robin sighed loudly, "That's not going to work! It's an electronic lock— like the doors— it's not going to work without a key card."

"So, we're stuck," Dustin said in a low voice.

"Just so you nerds are aware, I'm supposed to be spending the night at Tina's house," Erica said loudly. Steve huffed out a breath as he slumped over a box on the table. "And Tina always covers for me. But if I'm not home for Uncle Jack's party tomorrow and my mom finds out you three are responsible, she is going to hunt you down and slit your throats."

Anger may have been an easier emotion to channel when he needed things done, but sometimes it got out of hand.

"Erica. I don't give a fuck about your little slumber party or some stupid fucking party. And your mother won't care either if we suffocate or starve to death at the bottom of a Russian elevator shaft!"

The room fell silent as Steve breathed heavily and stared at the young girl. He'd feel bad about yelling at her later— he knew that he would— but right now all he could think about was Eddie. He'd left Eddie's trailer days ago, hadn't spoken to him at all, and now he was stuck in the center of the fucking Earth with his lesbian best friend and two literal children.

"Maybe we can climb out," Dustin finally offered after a stretch of silence. 

Getting out of the elevator had been a feat unto itself.

But walking along a seemingly endless hallway while Dustin and Robin prattled on about a whole host of absolutely nerdy possibilities for the death trap of a base they'd stumbled upon, Steve couldn't help the sinking feeling in his gut.

Something wasn't right. 

None of this made any sense.

These supposedly evil Russians built a base in Hawkins, Indiana of all places.

As he slowed his steps, Steve noticed Dustin matching his pace while Erica and Robin continued walking down the corridor. The two of them stopped and stared at each other for a few seconds as realization dawned on them.

"You don't think… that they know and this is about–"

"–A gate, maybe," Dustin interrupted him in a rush.

Steve's heart clenched painfully while his breath hitched in his throat. This couldn't be happening. Not with Erica and Robin down here too. His stomach dropped into his pelvis at the thought of something happening to either of them— to Dustin.

"Hey! Now isn't really the time for a tea party, boys," Robin called out, her voice echoing slightly off the solid walls. Steve snapped his head in her direction to see her looking more than a little impatient. "We need to find a way out of here."

A tiny black hole formed inside of Steve— just behind his belly button. It slowly churned, pulling and dragging everything inside of him closer and tighter until all he wanted to do was keel over, maybe lie down on the ground in the fetal position. His thoughts raced away from the gravitational pull of the steadily growing, all consuming mass but they too were soon yanked— kicking and screaming— until he was left in a spiral of ' upside down, monsters, get out, get them out, protect them.'  

The static crackle of a walkie-talkie followed but a deep, muffled voice speaking Russian hauled him out of those thoughts.

Everyone turned to stare at Erica and the sound emanating from within her backpack like they were a beacon of hope.

"The walkie," both and and Dustin sad in unison.

They rushed toward the girls as Erica pulled the bag off of her back. She'd already fished the device from within by the time that they got to her.

"It's picking up a signal from down here," Robin said softly in disbelief.

Steve nodded his head eagerly.

"And we know that signal can reach the surface," he murmured, his eyes shooting over to Dustin.

"We need to find where they're broadcasting from."

Locating the room where they were sending communications was simple enough once they'd found the main hub of activity. Mostly thanks to Erica's keen eye. 

It was also, surprisingly, easy for Steve to deal with the lone Russian soldier who had been in the room. At least it was when Steve realized he'd been reaching for the gun at his hip. The rush of anger and need to protect everyone else had propelled him forward until the man was knocked out on the floor of the comms room.

"Where are you going?" Dustin asked, drawing Steve's attention away.

Robin was halfway up a set of stairs at the other end of the room. Flashes of light stretched down the walls from wherever those steps led. She turned to face them and she was back-lit in swaths of bright blues and purples from up above.

"Somethings up here," was her only response.

Reluctantly, Steve strode across the room to follow behind her— Dustin and Erica fell in behind him. 

At the top, Robin carefully pushed open the door into a glass paneled observation room. The four of them crept inside toward the line of windows. As they pressed closer, Steve could see a handful of scientists and soldiers below them working on a switchboard and a machine of some kind. The light was coming from what looked to be a beam or laser aimed at the far wall.

The black hole inside of him twisted and jerked hard enough to make him double over— he had to pressa hand against the glass in order to stop himself from falling out.

"Steve," Dustin whispered in apprehension.

He had to swallow the rush of saliva in his mouth, "I know… I know. We have to go."

Quickly, Steve turned away from the image of the growing crack on the wall. The forming gate. He didn't leave much room for explanation or argument as he heeded the group of them back to the door and down the steps.

"What's going on?" Robin asked.

Steve shook his head, "This is… not good. They're… Why are they trying to open a gate?"

"I don't know. I-I don't know," Dustin said, his voice trembling.

"A gate? What are you talking about? You know what that shit is?" Erica asked as they approached the bottom of the stairs.

"Kind of. It's, um, it's not good at all. They're trying to o—"

"–Steve, where's the Russian?"

Dustin's question had cut him off and drawn his attention away from Erica. His eyes widened in alarm. The soldier was not where they'd left him. He wasn't in the room any more. 

"Oh, oh no," he mumbled under his breath as he rushed to the door.

He pulled the heavy door open enough for both him and Robin to peer out. There was a group of soldiers surrounding the one who he'd fought as the man pointed at them, saying something that Steve couldn't understand. 

A deafening alarm sounded and men with guns rushed at them.

Quickly, he and Robin slammed the door and pressed their backs against it. On the other side of the room, Erica seemed to find a hatch that led to a vent.

Unbelievably, a sense of relief washed over Steve.

"Henderson, take Erica. Get out, get help," he instructed, grunting against the force of people pushing against the door.

Dustin stared back at him with wide eyes, and just for a moment it was so incredibly obvious just how young he was. He was a kid. 

"I won't leave you!" he shouted.

Robin huffed loudly from beside him, "Go! You're more help out of there than in here!"

"I'll be okay, Henderson. Go with Erica," Steve said, trying to sound as calm and reassuring as possible.

Easier said than done when literal soldiers were trying to break down the door. 

"We'll be back for you!"

"Go!" 

Dustin hopped inside the vent after Erica, but held onto Steve's struggling gaze for a few seconds longer. Just as he ducked out of view, and the hatch slammed shut behind him, the door that Steve and Robin were holding burst open. They were flung forward and sent sprawling out onto the cold concrete floor.

Quickly, Steve's eyes found Robin to make sure that she was okay.

In an instant, he was surrounded by men in an unfamiliar military uniform, speaking a language that he absolutely did not understand. The butt of a rifle came down from above to crash into the side of his head and then, before he could even register the pain, everything was black.

There were blank spots in Steve's memory— big lapses of time missing as he struggled to sit upright and blink the blood away from his eyes.

He was aware of the way that unseen sore spots under his shirt throbbed with each heavy beat of his heart, and the warmth on his face that at this point could have been blood or tears; there was no way of knowing for sure.

His vision was blurry, thanks to the swelling around his eye paired with the slow drip of blood. He struggled to see much of anything other than the hanging fluorescent lights and the amorphous shadows which were speaking heavily accented English to him followed by rough fast-paced Russian to each other.

"Who do you work for?"

Steve was fully unable to rein in the pained groan that escaped him as he tipped his head backwards to stare at the ceiling. He didn't know a lot of things at that moment. 

He didn't know how long it had been since they'd gotten into the elevator. He didn't know if Dustin and Erica had found a way to safety. He didn't know what the Russians were doing to Robin. He didn't know when they had separated the two of them. He didn't know if he would ever get out of this god forsaken bunker.

He didn't know if he would get to see Eddie again.

But he definitely knew that he had answered that particular question more than once. 

"I already told you," Steve mumbled, chin dipping forward. There might've been a bit of a language barrier, but they seemed to understand him well enough. So, why couldn't they just understand what he was telling them? "I work at Scoops Ahoy. I sell ice cream at the mall." 

A big, meaty fist connected with Steve's face— cracking against his cheekbone and causing his head to snap to the side.

The vision in his left eye briefly went dark as an anguished sound tumbled past his lips. 

Fingers pushed into the hair at the back of his head, twisting meanly and yanking until he had no choice but to look back at the two men in front of him. He was vaguely aware of the fact that he was shaking— from fear, exhaustion, pain, or surging adrenaline, he had no clue. But as he made eye contact with the old man staring down at him, Steve was filled with a sinking sense of dread.

Steve had faced a lot of terrifying things in his life, including literal monsters and his own father.

This was an entirely new beast.

He wasn't afraid for his own life, not really. And while he was worried about Robin, Dustin, and Erica, the feeling burning low inside of him wasn't necessarily fear. But his brain, though now moving much slower thanks to the incalculable time he'd been in this underground bunker, drifted to Eddie.

Eddie, who had no idea where he was.

Eddie, who hadn't heard from him in days. 

Eddie, who Steve so desperately loved but hadn't even told yet.

Gasoline poured generously onto the spark of fear in his belly, sending the flames upward into a roaring fire that licked at all of his nerve endings— threatening to consume him.

"How did you get down here?" The man interrogating him asked slowly.

An unintentional whine escaped Steve on an exhale. The questions weren't changing. The answers weren't changing. He was going to be stuck in this never ending cycle of pain until, eventually, he died.

"W-We went looking for a late delivery! At the loading dock! The door was open, we went in and got stuck," Steve explained, breathing heavily.

The old man holding onto his hair let go of him and glanced at the younger soldier beside him, who gleefully cracked his knuckles.

Steve shook his head, "No. N-No, c'mon. Ple—"

When Steve finally came to, his body was so heavy and the only thing keeping him upright was a leather strap wrapped around his chest. His chin pressed into his chest as he struggled to take in even breaths in an attempt to quell the nauseous swell raging inside his stomach.

Fingers brushing against his own where they were secured behind his back made him jolt in surprise.

"Steve? C'mon, Steve, wake up," Robin's voice pleaded. She sounded so scared, and also a million miles away.

Steve grunted, trying to move only to find that his legs were also secured to the chair. He slumped backwards, his shoulders bumping into something sturdy and warm behind him.

"R-Robin?" he mumbled with some difficulty. His tongue moved like it was a piece of lead wedged between his aching jaw.

The fingers against his hands gripped tightly at his own with a fair bit of scrambling. He could feel the rough brush of Robin's ring and her bracelets. A relieved breath escaped him as some of the tension melted from his bones.

Robin was here.

They were together.

"I… oh God, Steve. They brought you back and I thought you were dead," she said in a rush, her voice cracking.

Steve gave her fingers a gentle squeeze, "I'm okay. We'll be okay, Rob."

Since the beginning of summer, his and Robin's friendship had been built on being honest with each other.

Sometimes too honest.

But that was the first time Steve felt like he was lying. How could they be okay? There was absolutely no way that they would make it out of all of this.

The heavy door along the wall opened, causing Steve to snap his head in that direction. The same men who had been interrogating him strolled into the room followed by a man who looked much more like a scientist— maybe a doctor. The new man didn't say anything to them as he stepped to the far end of the room to root around in some of the drawers.

"Are you going to tell us who you work for?" The general asked, rounding the pair of them to stop in front of Robin.

Robin replied in Russian— something Steve had no way of knowing what it meant— and he heard her spit rather forcefully at the end of her sentence.

The crack of a slap echoed in the room.

Robin's body jerked from behind him.

Steve growled and tried to pull himself up out of his chair, "Hey! Don't fucking touch her!"

Suddenly the doctor was walking into view with a tray holding a whole host of terrifying looking tools including a bone saw and a particularly large syringe. An icy current ran up Steve's spine at the sight, and the blood drained from his face at such an alarming speed that it left him feeling woozy.

"Maybe you just need a little help to loosen your tongue," the general sneered from beside him.

Steve's heart began to pound harshly against his ribs and he struggled to catch his breath as a million different scenarios ran through his head. Robin's hands gripped his tighter, and it would have hurt if he hadn't already been beaten half to death or if he wasn't staring at the doctor picking up the syringe.

A hand in his hair once again ripped his head back just before the needle was buried into his neck, shocking a scream from deep within him.

A pinpoint of blinding light moved slowly from left to right in front of Steve's eyes which made him wince and pull away at the painful throbbing in his head. His hands weakly held onto the blanket that had been draped over his shoulders, and he struggled to make heads or tails of what the EMT in front of him was saying.

All he could think about was the bunker, the mall, Back to The Future, the mindflayer, crashing cars, fireworks, and explosions.

He didn't even know how he was alive.

The paramedic moved on to someone else, leaving him alone where he sat on the back of an ambulance just watching the mall burn.

Good riddance.

He very carefully got to his feet and took a few shuffling steps as he tried to figure out what to do. He didn't have his car keys— they were currently trapped in the bunker hundreds of feet under the flaming building in front of him. He was sure that the government entities swarming the area would, eventually, find a way to take him home but who knew when that would be?

"Steve!"

Slowly, Steve looked over his shoulder to the back of the parking lot. Eddie. Eddie was running closer to the semi circle of ambulances, and military vehicles. In an instant, none of the pain mattered anymore. He didn't even know how bad he looked, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

Because Eddie was there.

Eddie found him.

Tears pricked the backs of his eyes as he began to jog over to him— heavy legs moving on their own accord.

"Eddie." 

They quickly met in the middle, just inches apart, and Steve so desperately wanted to collapse in his arms. He longed to bury his face in Eddie's neck and stay there for as long as the other boy would have him.

"Stevie… What happened?" Eddie asked on a breath.

Casting a quick look around, Steve shuffled closer. The terrible tension in his body seemingly relaxed in Eddie's presence, and he could feel his shoulder slump along with the rest of him.

Steve licked his lips slowly and let out a soft sigh, "Can you just… take me home? I'm so tired."

Without another word, Eddie nodded and stepped closer to slip an arm around Steve's waist. At the contact, Steve allowed himself to rest heavily against Eddie's side and just feel his comforting warmth.

"Let's get you home," Eddie murmured softly.

Steve allowed Eddie to lead him across the parking lot toward the van, where Eddie opened the door and helped him into the front seat. After who knows how long in a concrete bunker, the familiar comfort of Eddie's van made more tears build up in Steve's tired eyes.

He looked over just as Eddie climbed into the driver's seat and caught his eye.

"Thank you," Steve whispered, reaching out a trembling hand to wrap gently around Eddie's.

Eddie's brow furrowed, "For what?"

"For finding me— coming to get me. For taking care of me," Steve croaked out around the suddenly formed lump in his throat.

"Baby," Eddie cooed softly. That word— baby— made Steve's heart clench in his chest. Eddie lifted Steve's hand to press a kiss to his knuckles. "I'll always take care of you."

He gently lowered their joined hands and let go only long enough to start the engine.

Steve was asleep before the left the parking lot.

Chapter Text

It wasn't very often that Eddie drove in a manner that would be considered safe, or legal. It was even rarer that he drove without his music blasting at a level that would no doubt leave him with less than perfect hearing in his old age.

But with Steve curled up and asleep in the front seat, Eddie gladly drove in silence and obeyed every single traffic law as he drove toward the Harrington house.

Pulling into the driveway, Eddie parked the van and turned to look at Steve after taking his key from the ignition. 

Steve looked…

Eddie would always think that Steve was beautiful. But his lip was burst open, his face was caked in dry, flaking blood, and his eye was so bruised and swollen it was almost shut. How could this have happened? It looked like a fire had broken out at the mall when Eddie pulled up, but how did Steve end up looking like that due to a fire?

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Eddie very quietly exited the van. He needed to get Steve inside and into bed.

He rounded the van to get to the passenger side, and carefully opened the door.

Unfortunately, Eddie knew that he'd have to wake Steve up. There was no way that he was going to be able to carry him up the stairs without the both of them taking a tumble. With a small sigh, Eddie reached out to brush back some of Steve's hair only to find it sweaty, and some hard strands which he realized in horror were streaks of dried blood in his hair.

"Pretty boy," he called softly, gingerly brushing the back of his finger over an unbruised portion of skin. "Baby, we're at your house, come on."

Steve's entire body flinched at the touch before he sat bolt upright in the seat— his head whipped from side to side until his gaze finally settled on where Eddie was standing just outside of the van. Steve's eyes were as big as dinner plates and his chest heaved with each breath that he sucked in through cracked and busted lips.

It was like he'd woken from a nightmare, or was expecting something worse to be waiting for him when he woke.

Eddie's heart gave a painful throb inside his chest.

"It's okay, baby. You're okay," Eddie said in as comforting of a voice as he could muster. He didn't want to risk touching Steve again and freaking him out any more than he already was.

Slowly, Steve's body relaxed and his breathing returned to normal.

"I'm sorry," he whispered– voice cracking.

"Don't be," Eddie said, shaking his head. "Let's get you upstairs into bed, though. Can you manage or do you want me to help?"

He would follow Steve's lead on this. Whatever happened to him was obviously making him nervous or anxious about being touched and the last thing Eddie wanted was to make the situation worse for Steve. He watched the way that Steve closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

After a few quiet moments, Steve reopened his eyes and blinked slowly at Eddie. His gaze was hazy— unfocused— and definitely a little sad.

"Help?" he croaked in a thick voice.

"Of course, baby," Eddie murmured.

He stepped closer to help Steve slide out of the van. Once his feet were on the ground he leaned heavily against Eddie's side, and he had to wrap an arm around Steve's waist in order to steady him. Slowly but surely, Eddie managed to lead Steve up into the house. The stairs were difficult. Steve's feet were uncooperative and he was obviously in pain, but Eddie did his best to alleviate the strain on his body by having Steve put most of his weight on him.

When they finally made it to Steve's room, he pulled away from Eddie so that he could pull off his Scoops Ahoy uniform. Under normal circumstances, Eddie would definitely enjoy the view of his boyfriend stripping off his clothes but Eddie felt sick to his stomach. Steve unceremoniously tossed the uniform toward the trash bin beside his desk until he was just in his boxers.

His torso was littered with bruises in varying shades of blues and purples. Paired with the damage done to his face, it looked like Steve had gone a full twelve rounds with Sugar Ray Leonard.

Eddie had no idea what to say or do as Steve turned and shuffled toward his bed. He easily crawled under the blankets, pulled them tight around his body, and almost immediately fell asleep. Eddie stood there, slightly dumbfounded, as Steve drifted off to sleep.

He quietly crept from the room, closing the door almost all the way, and headed down the stairs.

Steve obviously needed rest. Whatever happened since their fight had been awful for Steve, and Eddie couldn't help but feel guilty for thinking his experience had been bad. A few nights of poor sleep and smoking too much weed apparently didn't even scratch the surface of whatever Steve had been through.

So, Eddie would hang out until he woke up.

He definitely wasn't going to leave Steve alone again.

After a few hours of restlessly floating around the downstairs of the Harrington house, Eddie decided to head upstairs to check on Steve. He hadn't made a sound since he fell asleep and it was definitely more than a little disconcerting now that so much time had passed.

He padded down the hall to Steve's bedroom and laid a gentle hand on the door to push it open. The hinges gave a groaning squeak at the movement which had Eddie wincing to himself.

Apparently the sound was enough to startle Steve awake. The boy was up and out of bed with almost superhuman speed. He had produced a bat from somewhere, and spun the weapon in his hand before hoisting it over his shoulder like he was ready to swing.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Eddie said loudly, hands defensively raising in front of him.

Steve seemed to realize what was going on– who he was– and lowered the bat. It was then that Eddie noticed the long nails protruding from the end of it. What the fuck was that? Where had Steve been hiding it? Why did he even have it in the first place?

Apparently there was a lot he didn't know about his boyfriend. 

"What the hell is that?" Eddie asked, gesturing toward the bat.

Steve shrugged a single shoulder and mumbled softly, "it's, uh, it's for protection."

"Y'know, most guys just use condoms," Eddie teased in an attempt to loosen the tension. 

The small smile he gets in return from Steve is almost enough to soothe the bubbling anxiety inside of him. Almost. At least until a grimace of pain flashed across Steve's features before he turned to carefully tuck the horrifying bat away between the bedframe and night stand.

Steve exhaled shakily and lowered himself down to sit at the end of his bed. He looked so little. Like a small child trying to curl up and disappear. It made Eddie's heart ache.

"Steve, what," he started to ask, but the words stuck in his throat. He swallowed hard and shook his head. "What happened to you?"

Steve shifted positions on the bed to face the door where Eddie still stood. He was only a few feet away but somehow they felt worlds apart. He pulled his left leg up onto the bed, bending at the knee so he could tuck his foot under his right leg. He reached out and patted the spot on the bed in front of him, as if he were silently asking Eddie to come sit.

Eddie slowly crossed the room to perch on the bed beside Steve, mirroring how he sat. 

All he wanted to do was reach out and hold Steve, though he was worried that it would just hurt him further.

"I'm going to tell you something that I'm not supposed to tell anyone. It's going to sound insane; trust me, I know how it sounds. I just need you to listen, okay?"

Eddie's eyes narrowed just a hair in confusion. He had no clue what Steve was going to tell him but the tone of his voice was gravely serious. He nodded his head slowly and settled his hands in his lap so that Steve could continue. 

"Okay, so, two years ago this girl escaped Hawkins Lab. She was raised there and trained to basically have super powers. I mean, I watched her toss a car with her mind like it was a hot wheel last night. The lab they used her to open a… gate to this fucking hell dimension. And a literal fucking monster escaped."

Steve paused and glanced over his shoulder to his bedroom window. Eddie's eyes trailed down the line of his neck and paused at the prominent bruise just below his ear with what looked to be some sort of puncture wound right in the middle.

He was trying to understand what Steve was saying about monsters and super powers but it was difficult to process when he was so concerned about how Steve looked at the moment. 

"Will Byers got taken by it. So did… so did Nancy's best friend, Barb. Nancy, Jonathan, and I fought it. That's where the bat came from. It was this… tall, almost man-like thing with a face that opened up like a horrific flower." Steve shuddered and pulled his eyes away from the window, though he didn't look back up at Eddie just yet.

"The kids called it a demogorgon. Eleven, the girl with the super powers, got rid of it eventually after Mrs. Byers and Hopper found Will."

A demogorgon. 

Eddie had played dungeons and dragons long enough to know what that was, even if it didn't at all fit the description Steve was giving. Part of him wanted to laugh— to accuse Steve of fucking with him. How in the world did Steve expect him to just believe all of this monster nonsense? 

Although Steve sounded so genuinely frightened or on edge as he spoke that it gave some legitimacy to the tale he was weaving. 

And when he looked back at Eddie there was something in his eye that made Eddie take pause.

"Last year, a shadow… thing infected Will. And these monsters that Dustin insists on calling demodogs were all part of this hive mind? I ended up fighting a few at the junkyard with Dustin, Max, and Lucas. And later we all went down to this tunnel network under the town to try and distract the mind flayer from Will."

Eddie glanced down to see that Steve's hands were beginning to tremble. His voice shook and his words were uneasy.

God, Eddie didn't know if he believed all of this but he definitely believed that something had really happened to Steve.

"That's how I ended up being their God damn babysitter. It was me and a bunch of kids while Nancy, Jonathan, and Mrs. Byers tried to burn the thing out of Will, and Hopper and El closed the gate. Only, apparently, when the gate closed it trapped the mind flayer out here with us."

Steve looked away from him again, and wiped both of his palms on the bedspread beneath him. He looked so different from the boy that Eddie had seen nearly every day all summer. It was perplexing. 

After a moment, Steve looked back up at him. He raised a hand and pressed between Eddie's brows, where he hadn't really noticed a furrow had formed. He couldn't help the slight smile that pulled at his lips when Steve pulled his hand away.

"After… After our fight, Henderson came home. He said he intercepted some Russian transmission with his super radio. We managed to translate. Well, Robin did. And we found out there was a secret Russian base under the fucking mall. Trying to open another gate. We… we got trapped down there."

Eddie's eyes widened. Russians? A secret base? 

The entire time that Eddie was looking for Steve since their fight he had just… been in a secret Russian base? Eddie felt a little sick to his stomach.

"They caught us. Interrogated us. They beat the absolute shit out of me, Eddie. They were going to rip out my fingernails and they injected Robin and I with something and. I thought I was going to die in that fucking bunker, I thought they were gonna kill me. But I wasn't afraid of that."

Eddie watched the way tears quickly built up in Steve's eyes, even if he tried to blink them away. God, he just wanted to hold Steve against his chest and never let him go.

"I was afraid that you'd never know what happened to me. I was afraid I would die and the last time we talked was an argument because you slept with Billy before we even got together... I was afraid I was going to die before I told you that I'm in love with you."

Eddie's brain came to a screeching halt.

Forget the monsters, alternate dimensions, and Russian soldiers.

Steve Harrington was in love with him.

Eddie's eyes widened and he was sure that his lips fell into a downright sappy smile as he stared back at Steve.

Eddie reached a hand out to delicately brush some of Steve's sleep-rumpled hair back before sinking his fingers into the hair at the back of his head. For just a moment, the two of them just watched the other in silence.

Steve loved him.

Eddie felt like he could walk on air. Because, of course, he was in love with Steve. He had no choice but to fall for him. But he had never dreamed in a million years that Steve would ever return those feelings.

"I love you too," Eddie very nearly whispered, afraid to speak louder and break whatever spell that had lead them to these confessions m

"I like that that was the thing you decided to comment on," Steve laughed softly in disbelief. He looked beautiful, even behind all the bruises.

Eddie shrugged, "Honestly, that seems like the most insane part of it all."

Steve breathed out an amused laugh through his nostrils. Eddie watched his face with critical eyes. There was a terrible ache from somewhere behind his heart as he looked back at Steve. He hated seeing him hurt in any way, but seeing the swollen state of him now was almost too much to bear.

Steve's hand lifted from where it laid in his lap and grabbed gently at the necklace hanging around Eddie's neck. He tugged at the chain softly as tilted his head to the side, pressing just slightly into Eddie's hand in his hair.

"What're you thinking?"

"You got hurt."

Steve blinked back at Eddie, clearly confused, "Yeah, it happens a lot actually."

"I'm sorry," Eddie breathed.

He wasn't entirely sure what it was that he was apologizing for. There was a lot that he had to apologize to Steve for, but this wasn't for those. This was something else. But the silent moment of reflection was quickly disrupted by a very prominent grumble of Steve's stomach.

Eddie grinned despite himself. 

"You're probably starving," Eddie murmured softly. Steve probably hadn't eaten since before everything happened. 

Steve scrunched his nose up in distaste, "I'm actually dying for a shower. Food can wait."

Eddie wasn't going to argue with him. He just slowly pulled his hand from where it was still tucked into Steve's hair before he got to his feet. He held a hand in Steve's direction, unable to hold back a smile when Steve laid his hand in his and squeezed.

He helped Steve stand from the bed, though he was still a bit unsteady on his feet. He let out a low groan of pain as his body settled, and Eddie was quick to wrap a supportive arm around his middle. Eddie slowly guided Steve toward the bathroom, gently pushing at his shoulders to make him sit on the closed toilet lid. 

With Steve safely seated, Eddie turned to the shower. He leaned into the stall and fiddled with the knobs in order to get the water flowing. As the stream heated up, Eddie took the opportunity to take off most of his clothes until he was just in his boxers. If Steve was struggling to stand on the carpeted floor of his bedroom, there was no way that Eddie was going to let him into the slick shower stall alone.

When he turned back, he spotted a soft pink color filling in the unblemished parts of Steve's cheeks, but he chose not to draw attention to it. 

He just needed to get Steve into the shower.

Eddie once again helped Steve to stand up— easing him to his feet. His fingers slowly trailed along the waistband of his boxers while his heart hammered and his stomach fluttered inside of him. He couldn't make sense of the reaction. He'd stripped Steve out of his clothes more times than he found count at this point.

But this felt different– heavier. 

"This okay?" Eddie asked, glancing up at Steve's face.

Steve only nodded in response.

Eddie carefully pushed Steve's boxers off his hips and down his legs, helping him to step out of them before leading him into the shower. Steve placed a balancing hand on the wall, and Eddie took the opportunity to push down his own boxers before joining him under the spray. 

He grabbed a maroon washcloth and quickly lathered it up with Steve's rich person soap that kind of smelled like coconut and salt. He ran the cloth over Steve's neck, careful of the bruise by his ear, and slowly made his way down the rest of Steve's body. He made sure to avoid the series of bruises that littered Steve's torso on the way down to his legs.

Once he was satisfied with his work, Eddie wrung out the cloth and set it aside before easing Steve back to rinse the suds from his skin.

Then, he moved on to Steve's hair.

Eddie nudged Steve's chin up, so that Steve would tip his head back to let the water soak into the strands. Once the hair was wet, Eddie pulled him forward again to work some of his very fancy shampoo into it— making sure to scratch at his scalp. His effort was repaid by a soft, content sigh from Steve as his eyes fluttered shut.

It was a nice moment, after several days of not so nice ones.

"Hey, Steve?" Eddie nearly whispered, almost unsure if he'd be heard over the spray of the shower.

He carefully moved Steve back under the spray to wash out the shampoo out of his hair. He placed a hand on Steve's forehead to shield his eyes, and wounds, from running water and soap. Steve let out a soft hum of acknowledgement to Eddie's words, but didn't say anything else.

Eddie pulled Steve back out from under the spray before grabbing the bottle of conditioner.

"I'm sorry, you know. I should have told you about me and Billy. Especially when I realized he was going to be a problem," Eddie spoke in a soft voice as he gently massaged the conditioner into Steve's hair. Steve's eyes fluttered open then shut again. "And I'm sorry for… whatever I said that upset you so much. I never wanna be the cause of that look on your face again, if I can help it."

Steve's eyes slowly opened and he blinked slowly back at Eddie. There was something there behind them that wasn't totally dissimilar to the way he looked before he left Eddie's trailer the night of his argument. He took a shuddering breath and wrapped his arms around his torso as if he were trying to protect himself.

It made Eddie's heart hurt.

"Did I ever tell you how Nance and I broke up?"

Eddie's brows furrowed but he shook his head, "Not other than that it happened at Tina's Halloween party last year."

"She got drunk and we argued because I tried to get her to slow down, she ended up spilling a drink on her shirt. So we went to the bathroom and… she called me, us, everything bullshit. She said we were just pretending nothing happened the year before, that we weren't in some way responsible for what happened to Barb, that we were in love."

Eddie wavered slightly on his feet. He was suddenly dizzy and a little disgusted with himself.

"I asked her if she didn't love me and she said it was all… bullshit."

The hands that were still in Steve's hair slowly stopped what they were doing before falling away completely. Eddie kind of hated himself. He had kept something from Steve and then made him relieve a terrible emotional situation that had left him feeling shattered. Eddie was no better than Nancy Wheeler.

The touch of Steve's hand cupping his jaw made Eddie focus on him again.

"When you said our fight was bullshit it felt - I felt - like I was back in that bathroom getting my heart broken all over again," Steve sadly whispered. "You didn't know that. You couldn't have known that. It's okay."

Eddie shook his head, "I'm so sorry, Stevie. I don't wanna ever make you feel like that."

Steve only nodded his head before he stepped closer to Eddie. His arms moved to wrap around Eddie, just under his arms, so that he could tuck himself into his chest. Eddie's arms immediately wrapped around Steve, securing him in place. Their bodies easily fit together and normally that would leave Eddie wanting more, he was just content to hold the boy that he loved and hoped it was enough for him to feel it in return.

They stayed like that long enough for the water to begin to turn cold.

Eddie chuckled, "We should get the conditioner out of your hair."

Slowly, but surely, Steve loosened his hold on Eddie and stepped back from their embrace. He allowed Eddie to dip him back just enough to work the conditioner out of his hair, before he turned off the water. Eddie stepped from the shower stall first, and turned to give Steve a hand in getting out as well.

He was moving better than he had when he first got up, though he still moved a bit slowly.

Steve pulled towels out from a small linen closet for them to dry off before he grabbed Eddie's hand and led him back into his bedroom so that they could get dressed. Steve tossed Eddie a pair of sweatpants from his dresser before pulling on his own pair, along with Eddie's Mötorhead tank top which hadn't made its way home since Eddie left it here weeks ago.

While Steve slowly dressed, Eddie popped into his closet to retrieve a rather comfortable basketball sweatshirt. When Steve finally turned to look at him, the quiet chuckle he let out filled Eddie's heart with glee.

He rolled his eyes affectionately as he grabbed Eddie's hand, "C'mon, I need food."

"Hold still."

Steve let out an adorable, annoyed huff as he finally stopped moving around on his stool. Eddie stood in front of him, pressing close so that he couldn't get up, holding a tube of neosporin in his hand. Steve eyed the tube skeptically but sat still with his hands in his lap.

"Why are you trying to rub that on my face?" he asked as Eddie pulled the cap off.

Several less than savory responses quickly flooded his head but Eddie pushed them aside.

"I'm trying to make sure your cut doesn't get infected or scar," he said, rolling his eyes.

He squeezed a small amount of ointment out onto his fingers before he gently dabbed at the rough looking gash at the corner of Steve's mouth. He could feel the harsh exhale of air out of Steve's nose as he worked, which just made him grin.

"So you only care about how I look. Is that it?" Steve asked once Eddie had finished.

He screwed the cap back onto the tube and gave Steve a playfully annoyed look.

"Of course. I need to have the hottest boyfriend around or what's the point?"

Steve pushed at Eddie's shoulder but a wide smile spread across his lips, "You called me your boyfriend."

Eddie rolled his eyes again and placed his hands at Steve's hips.

"Yeah? What're you gonna do? Kiss me about it?"

The laugh that Steve let out was so bright and airy that it made Eddie positive beam back at him. It blew him away that even after all the terrible things that he had just suffered, Steve was still so soft and happy with him. 

Steve leaned in closer until their lips gently touched. Eddie could feel the tackiness of the neosporin transfer from Steve's skin to his own, but it didn't matter. He loved Steve, and Steve loved him.

What was a little antibacterial ointment between boyfriends?

Eddie set an empty bowl down on the coffee table— his third bowl so far— and leaned back on the couch. Steve quickly returned his feet to where they'd been propped up in his lap, and Eddie let his hands rest on his ankle.

His head was spinning as Steve once again ran through all of the craziness of the last few years, and the past weekend on particular. It seemed like each time he asked a question, Steve had a new lengthy bit of detail that somehow slipped his mind.

"So Billy sacrificed himself to the mind flayer to save Eleven and then the machine that the Russians were using to try to open a gate exploded, killing the flayer?" Eddie reiterated, squinting at Steve.

Steve hummed softly as he nodded his head, "Yeah, and then the military and everyone showed up to get us out of there. And then you showed up."

"And then I showed up," Eddie grinned.

Sure, things were bad. Steve was hurt, people were missing, but… Eddie was a teenage boy in love for the first time.

He had bigger fish to fry.

He twisted slightly and all but crawled up the length of the couch to lay beside Steve, careful not to put too much weight or pressure on him lest he unintentionally hurt his boyfriend. Eddie's hand gently pushed through Steve's still damp hair as he slowly leaned in closer. He looked into Steve's warm, coffee eyes and let out a content sigh.

"I love you," he whispered. His nose gently brushed against Steve's before he dipped forward to press their lips together.

Steve hummed softly as his arms looped around Eddie's neck, holding him there— not that he had any plans to leave any time soon. He kissed back slowly, savoring each press of lips and slip of tongue. The kiss was lazy but wonderful. They had nowhere to go and worries. 

They had each other.

"Love you too," Steve breathed against Eddie's lips.

Their quiet moment of reprieve was interrupted by a strange sound of static from somewhere nearby. It sounded like people talking, arguing in the distance.  Steve groaned, clearly annoyed, and pulled away from the kiss. Eddie watched curiously as Steve dropped an arm to the floor and blindly slapped around beside the couch. 

After a few seconds of flailing, Steve lifted a walkie talkie into the air.

"Steve? Do you copy? This is Dustin. Over."

Eddie quirkiness a questioning eyebrow at him, but Steve just ignored him and pressed a button on the side as he lifted the device to his mouth.

"I'm here, dweeb. I'm a bit busy though so what do you want?" He let go of the button but was met with several seconds of ssilence. Eddie tilted his head slightly while they waited. Steve huffed and pressed the button again. "Over."

Eddie giggled at the absolute silliness of his boyfriend stopping kissing him to answer a walkie talkie . Steve lightly slapped his arm but smiled back at him anyway. 

The static was back as the infamous Dustin began to talk again, "Copy that. We'll make our debrief quick.  The Party will be arriving at your house in T-minus fifteen minutes. Over and out."

The line then went dead. Steve pressed the button again, "Henderson? Henderson?" 

When he got no response, Steve sighed loudly and dropped the walkie talkie to the ground. He looked back at Eddie, who was just beaming down at Steve. He was just so enamored with the idea of Steve babysitting and watching this ragtag gang of monster fighting children. 

"So, do you want to meet my children?"

A wide grin broke out over Eddie's face, "I'd love to."