Chapter Text
Eddie Munson was a rockstar above all else.
Of course, he was the only one that saw it that way. Sure, back in the day, he stood a chance. Back when his band was still thriving, winning talent shows and proving to this dumb little town that he was too good for them. That was all over now.
Eddie had grown up since then. Not enough to become a total square or a narc, but there were other things he had to focus on outside of just jamming with his buddies.
A shame since he had some real talent that was being utterly and completely wasted. The band called it quits back in sophomore year, dismantling in the most honorable way. One dude moved and both Boko and Donny had to focus on getting their grades up so they could get into college.
Eddie didn’t care about any of that. Nah, he knew his fate. He’d graduate with zero honors and get a union job just like his uncle. It was fine. An honest way of living, you know? For now, all he cared about was being in the moment.
And despite not being the rock God he was destined to be, he was thriving in his way. Grades were decent, so it’s not like he had any teachers munching his ass, and he had partnered up with Reefer Rick, earning a pretty penny with the side gig. There were plenty of kids in Hawkins that needed to take a chill pill so he was happy to supply all their demands.
And in a more legal way of things, he also got a good gig down at the music store in town. That's where he met Billy.
Billy Hargrove. His numero uno, his best bud. The Taylor to his May.
They hadn’t started strong, with the other coming off as a bit of a dick. Couldn’t help it, you know, with the whole military dad and shitty home life. Eddie could relate, having a pretty tragic backstory of his own, but he quickly warmed up to the dude when they put their differences aside and focused on what was important: music.
Billy was a rocker, just like him. Maybe a bit more metal, but hey, Eddie could vibe with that. Everything about Billy fits into Eddie’s style. The hair, the clothing, the car. Oh, sweet baby angel that car! Eddie himself drove a van; the cheapest thing on the lot that his uncle could afford and he loved her so, but what he would give to be behind the wheel of Billy’s Camaro.
They had been friends for a while now, both just trying to survive their final year at Hawkins high. Billy was determined to get back to the sunshine state as quickly as possible and Eddie. Well, he’d be stuck in Hawkins for all of his days.
Wasn’t so bad. If you don’t take in all the gossip, or the stares, or the bullying. Could’ve been worse right? That’s what his uncle always used to say. Could’ve been worse.
“Keep staring. Maybe they’ll turn to stone,” Billy commented once an afternoon.
They were in the courtyard, basking in the cool spring breeze during their lunch period. Billy was laying on the grass, doing his best to capture whatever type of weak ass tan he could get and Eddie was going over some material for the Hell Fire Club.
They had some recruits that had been killing it and he wanted to make sure the freshman got paid back properly. After all, they’d be taking over the mantle soon enough and as the leader, Eddie couldn’t just pass it on to anyone. They had to be worthy!
Now and then he could pause his work however and look over to where the royals were sitting. That wasn’t what they were called, but to everyone in the school, that’s what they were. High school royalty.
King Steve didn’t have lunch this period but cut so he could hang out with his jerk-off friends. Jason Carver, who had been fighting Tommy Hagen for the title of Prince even if they came off as jesters. Steve’s girlfriend Nancy Wheeler and her cluster of friends.
And there in the middle sat the Queen of Hawkins high, Miss Chrissy Cunningham.
Eddie had known those kids his entire life and yet it seemed like they all came from different places. Rich kids with nice houses, loving families, and a future filled with possibilities. And here they were, sitting on the grass, as far as one could get while still being pulled into their orbit.
“How is it that Harrington can hang around here and none of the teachers blink an eye but if I’m using the restroom for a little too long, I get written up?” Eddie questioned, finally breaking his gaze from the group.
“Probably because you’re not using the bathroom during those times,” Billy replied, not even bothering to open his eyes behind his sunglasses.
And yeah, he had a point. Most times, if he snuck away from class, it was usually to do a deal in the little boy’s room, but hey. A mans gotta work right? It was either there or at the picnic table behind the school. He couldn’t bring people around his place anymore; his uncle wanted to be a good example and all that and going out of his way to sell just a bit of pot seemed kind of redundant. Like, they should be coming to him, not the other way around!
“I’m just saying, it would be nice for the popular kids to get in trouble every once in a while,”
“Keep dreaming, Munson,” Billy muttered.
Eddie was watching again, his lips forming a scowl as Chrissy laughed at something Jason said. He reached down, tugging Billy’s sunglasses off his face. “You’re cool with me coming in late tonight right?”
Billy offered a scowl of his own, reaching behind him to snag the glasses back. “Yes, dickhead. But this is the last time I’m covering for your stupid board game meeting.”
Eddie scoffed, though he didn’t offer a rebuttal. Billy knew very well that the Hell Fire Club wasn’t some ‘stupid board game meeting’ and that Eddie took it very seriously; more so than he took most things. And today was going to drag on a bit longer, which cut into his work schedule.
Billy, being the good guy that he was, agreed to work a half shift so Eddie wouldn’t get his ear chewed off by their manager again. It was kinda bull since Eddie was the top seller at the store and the whole place would crumble without him, but what could he say? That’s retail life for ya.
“You’re doing me a favor, so I’ll let that insult slide,” Eddie replied, a sharp yelp escaping his mouth as he was suddenly hit with a milk carton.
Jason Carver came striding over, hands on his hips as a look of faux shock took over his Ken Dollface. “Geez, I am so sorry guys. I was trying to get it in the trash can and I must’ve overshot it.”
Eddie grimaced, looking over his shirt which was now soaking with plain, pasteurized school milk. Billy sat up, his fingers digging into the grass below them.
“You missed the bin and they still made you captain? The basketball team sure has gone downhill,” Steve commented, walking over to throw out his own crumbled lunch bag.
“Guess you shouldn’t have left us for the swim team then, Steve,” Jason replied, leaving the three so he could return to his girlfriend's side.
Steve moved forward then, grabbing hold of the now empty milk carton that was lying between Eddie and Billy. “I’d love to say ignore him, but it’s pretty impossible,” Steve muttered, tossing the carton easily into the trash can.
“Nice shot,” Billy said.
Steve smirked, waving him off. “Natural talent,” he answered, heading back to the rest of the group.
“Asshole,” Billy sighed, shoving his sunglasses into his shirt pocket.
“Carver or Harrington?”
“Does it matter?”
The bell rang then, giving Eddie a good five minutes to get across the school to his next class. Grabbing his vest, he tugged it on, pulling his hair from the collar. “One day those assholes are gonna wake up and realize how shitty they are,” He mumbled, offering Billy a hand.
The blond took it and he pulled him to his feet. Throwing out the remains of their lunches, the two made their way back into the school, walking to the halfway point before pausing.
“Screw them. They’re not worth the working brain cells you have.”
Eddie lifted his hand, placing it flat against his chest, directly over his heart. “I love knowing you care,”
“Don’t be later than necessary tonight,” Billy ordered, slipping into the crowded hall to head to class.
Eddie gave a mocking salute, twisting on his heel to head to his class.
He wound up coming three hours later than his original shift time, which was earlier than he had expected to arrive. After bestowing Dustin Henderson the honorable title of junior leader, they spent a good while formulating some ideas on their subsequent attacks before the group had to disband.
He strode into the music store with a smile on his face, which went wonders with the look of death Billy wore. Eddie had seen that face many times and knew exactly what it meant. “How many this time?”
Silently, Billy lifted his hand, raising three fingers.
Eddie whistled, finding that to be a new record. Leave it to Hargrove to get three numbers in three hours. “You know, I gotta say, I’m impressed.”
“Shame I don’t swing that way,” He answered dryly.
Right. There was another reason he and Billy got along so well. And there it was.
Eddie and Billy didn’t play for the same team, but there was still that basic underlying understanding of being seen as a freak just for existing. Eddie, for his desire to play a fantasy game and live in his little world, and Billy, for finding that he liked the company of boys over girls.
Not everybody knew it. Eddie was pretty sure that aside from Billy’s sister, the entire town of Hawkins thought he was just some player who had chicks waiting for him back in California.
Eddie would never tell a soul, of course. He believed in secrets. And yeah, secrets-secrets are no fun unless they're shared with everyone but outing someone is a dick move and Eddie was no dick!
He just hoped that the sunshine state was a lot more accepting than this shithole.
“So, anything else fun happened while I was away?”
“Bulletin board is full again,” Billy answered.
Eddie clapped his hands together with delight, running off to investigate. One of the few rounds of excitement the two duos got was seeing what cracker ass bullshit people in town posted on their board. The music store was a popular place, stuck smack dab in the middle of the mall, so pretty much everyone would put something up there.
Sometimes there were posters for missing pets, yard sales, or even help wanted ads. Other times there would be dating inquiries, usually found somewhere in the local paper. Sad singles looking for even sadder singles.
Eddie rushed over, checking out all the added flyers. “Ooh, Miss Click's cat is missing again!” He called out.
“How much do you wanna bet it’s under her porch again?” Billy questioned, the soft beep of the register rang behind him.
At least they were making sales.
“Yard Sale on Vine. We should check it out. Maybe they got some cool shit.”
“Hard pass. If I wanted second-hand garbage, I’d go to your place.”
“Flattery works on me, William.”
Eddie continued to scan, reading nearly every flier, every business card. His eyes paused on a poster in the right-hand corner, partly hidden away by Ms. Click’s missing cat flier. He pulled it down, his eyes widening as his mind registered the words. “Holy shit,”
Turning around, he hurried over to the register, slamming the poster down on the counter for Billy to see. “What?” The blond asked, squinting curiously.
“Battle of the Bands dude!”
“In Hawkins? Can’t see that going well.”
“No, man! It’s the entire county!” He tapped the counter eagerly. “All music types are welcome. The winning band gets five-hundred bucks.”
That seemed to catch Billy’s interest. Eddie would never say that Billy was a materialistic person because that just wasn’t true. He didn’t care about nice things, but rather saving away all the money he made to buy himself a way out of this town. He took any shift he could, happy to work away his weekends, holidays, whatever so long as it meant being one step closer to the California shoreline.
And Eddie, well he didn’t exactly need the money, but it was always good to have. With the trailer paid off and his uncle taking care of the bills, all of Eddie’s paycheck went into a savings bond. He had no real use for it as he didn’t plan on going to college, but what did it matter?
He’d use it on something cool, like getting a new car or taking a road trip.
Maybe he’d take the new car out on the road trip to visit Billy when he finally made it out of here.
“Split between the two of us, that's two-fifty each man!”
“I’m proud of you for doing basic math, Ed.”
Eddie shoved Billy’s shoulder, ignoring the fact that Eddie just so happened to be a wizard when it came to mathematics thanks to having to learn portion control, percentages, and everything else that went into selling pot.
“This is a lifetime opportunity, Bill!”
“Sounds great, Eddie but there’s one tiny problem. We don’t have a band.”
Eddie blinked, not fully understanding how that was an actual issue for them. “So we make one!” He answered easily. “Look, I play the guitar like a pro and I got damn good pipes too. You used to play the drums didn’t you?”
“When I was a kid,”
“So you’ll pick it back up again! That shits like riding a bike, it never leaves you.”
Billy blinked, unwavering. “So what, we’ll be a two-man band?”
Eddie paused, not thinking that far ahead. Sure, some had done it before. Hall and Oates were pretty damn popular for just being two guys, but even then, they had others with them while on tour. Someone to play bass, another guitar.
“We’ll ask around. See if there aren’t some other secret rock stars living in Hawkins.”
Billy watched him, those blue eyes unmoving for a good while. “You’re serious,” He muttered.
And Eddie, well all he could do was smile. “As a heart attack,”
Sighing, Billy picked up the poster, giving it another read-through. “Shit. Why not? Aside from our pride, what else do we have to lose?”
“That’s the spirit!” Eddie cheered, drumming his hands down on the counter eagerly.
An older customer who was looking at the cassette tapes jumped, earning a quick apology from Eddie. Once they looked away, he threw his hands in the air triumphantly.
It was on.