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1984 was a hard year.
After months of debates and arguments, your family had decided that moving to California was the right option. Your dad got a new job out there and it only made sense that the whole family should move states too. Except, you weren’t ready to leave Hawkins, Indiana. It was your senior year of high school at Hawkins High and although you weren’t exactly popular, your time in high school was going pretty well. Your grades were great. You spent most of your time listening to music on your Walkman in the cafeteria, sharing snacks with Steve and Robin or reading books that Miss Darville kindly leant you when you asked her for book suggestions. But the one reason you truly didn’t want to leave was your best friend.
Eddie Munson was an odd boy. Tall. Lanky. Unruly hair that sat just past his shoulders. A mischievous smile always gracing his face. Though Eddie Munson wasn’t popular, or like anyone else in Hawkins High for that matter, he was still the most interesting person there. His love for heavy metal made him the coolest guy in Indiana in your opinion and his endless rants about Black Sabbath never ceased to put a smile on your face. His edgy sense of style set him apart from the cheerleaders and basketball players who swarmed the halls, like some ocean of mainstream maniacs that judged anyone who dared to be different.
They’d laugh and they’d point at him. Call him a freak or made up rumours about his club being a cult. Eddie didn’t care though. He’d yell right back and laugh. Pull faces and scare them away. He didn’t care what people thought of him. And that’s what made him so great. When he found you in freshman year, you had been an emotional mess, thriving off validation from others and sitting alone at lunches. He’d invited you over to his table one day where he talked your ear off about music, movies and weed. You just listened intently and giggled whenever he told a joke. He was a charming soul like no one you’d ever met before. Eddie was great.
But in 1984, when your parents had insisted on moving to California, the first thing you thought about was Eddie. His grades were sinking, and Miss O’Donnell had pulled him aside a couple weeks ago concerned that he wasn’t going to walk at graduation. Eddie’s nonchalant façade slipped that day. He came back out of the classroom white as a sheet and shaking promising he was fine, but you knew he wasn’t. When he finally told you back at his trailer you hugged him and promised you would help him as best as you could with what he was failing on. You held out hope. You made a promise to him. He was going to graduate in ’84.
He didn’t.
You moved to California the next week and Eddie collapsed. He felt lost. Sure, he still had Hellfire, but the weight of you leaving left him in pieces. He wasn’t one to share his emotions, but Gareth and Jeff shared knowing looks at lunch when Eddie didn’t speak as much anymore and when he started cancelling campaigns to go drink in his trailer. He was a mess.
You didn’t do that well either. The weight of you moving to a new school in Senior year was insane. You missed Eddie. You missed Steve. You missed Robin. No one wanted to sit with the girl studying her ass off in the corner of the cafeteria. But you passed. Course you did. Eddie always told you that you were the smartest girl he’d ever met.
Eddie resat high school another time after that and failed again of course. By 1986, Eddie didn’t care at all. Hellfire was his pride and joy. He was making money from deals in the woods at the back of the school and life couldn’t be better. Though you still sat in the back of his mind, a permanent mark in his brain, like that of a sharpie.
It was ’86 that your family decided to finally come back to Hawkins. You had some extended family that still lived there that your mother missed, and your father wanted a change of scenery after working in California for the past couple of years. You however were just excited to get back home.
-
The first person you saw was Steve. You heard from an aunt that he worked at the Family Video in the centre of town, so you headed straight there when you finished unpacking.
“Miss me, Harrington?”
“L/N? This better not be some sick joke” yelled the boy as he ran out behind a shelf of VHS tapes. His face turned from shock to joy as your face came into sight. You gave him a friendly smile and opened your arms wide for a hug.
“You know, a lot has gone down since you left,” he said as he embraced you quickly before letting you go and giving you a wide grin.
“I can imagine” you giggled. Another voice soon chimed in.
“Do my ears deceive me or did I just hear that Y/N L/N is back in Hawkins?” said Robin as her head poked out from the backroom. She soon joined in for a hug and you caught them up about California and everything that happened. You told them about how much it had sucked being out there and how much you missed them.
“You spoke to the freak yet?” Steve asked.
“Hey. Don’t call him that he’s not a freak” you scowled.
“Okay, sorry. Have you spoken to Munson yet?” “No, I haven’t.” “What the fuck, why not!”
“It was late when we got back, and I didn’t have time!” you argued.
“Didn’t have time or didn’t have the balls, L/N?” Robin quirked, you answered with a quick flick of your middle finger, which caused Steve to laugh.
“I’ll see him soon… I promise. I just need some time to prepare before I see him. That’s all” you said sitting on the countertop and fiddling with your nails to avoid eye contact.
“Hey, look Y/N, I’m only joking when I call him a freak you know. I know I’m not exactly Munson’s biggest fan but you guys were close—”
“Super super close” Robin cut off.
“Shut up,” you answered.
“You can hide it all you want Y/N we know you liked the guy. I don’t exactly see why but if that’s who you like then we support you. I just think if I was in his position, I’d want to know when my best friend came back to town. The guy was a wreck when you left you know.”
“What do you mean?” you tilted your head to the side; you’d never heard anything about it.
“He totally flunked on finals. He failed senior year and had to sit it again and was super quiet for months. He didn’t talk to anyone, and he stopped coming to school. Then apparently, he failed again and is still trying to get out now. I don’t know what happened to him but for a good year, he lost his spark when you left. According to Mike and Dustin, he’s okay now though. They’re in some club together where they play some board game.”
You smiled at the mention of Hellfire. Back in freshman year, you remember Eddie was desperate to find people to play D&D with. He got the name from some X-Men comic he picked up at a store one day. But you couldn’t escape the way your heart sank at the mention of Eddie’s decline. Your chest tightened in guilt, and you couldn’t escape the image of a quiet Eddie sitting alone in the cafeteria.
“No one ever told me about that…” You said.
“You never exactly called for a catch up” “Hey!” “Ow! What it's true!”
“No Robin’s right. I should have called. I just- I never knew if I was coming back, and I didn’t want to clutch at the life I led here if I was never going to see you guys again” You mumbled, looking at the intricate designs on the carpeted floor as guilt flooded your veins, “Where would he be now?”
Steve’s eyes flicked to his watch, “11:23. Lunch at Hawkins High.”
You booked it to the doors and hopped straight into your mom’s car. Steve and Robin shared a knowing look as you drove down the road to Hawkins High school.
-
You sat anxiously on the bench in the woods as you waited for his arrival. What if he was mad? What if he didn’t want to see you? What if he doesn’t care anymore? All these questions flooded through your head as the minutes ticked by. The wind was picking up and you started to wonder if Eddie even came out here anymore. He used to come out here daily for his joint at lunch and you would usually follow, not to smoke, but just to listen to him ramble about a new song he learnt on guitar and stare at his pretty smile as he talked. What if---
“Y/N?”
It seemed like time stopped. Just for a little bit. The wind didn’t seem so rough anymore and the ache slowly growing in your mind ceased. Just hearing his voice was like medicine. It was soft and quiet. Almost like a whisper.
“Am I like super high or is this real?” you giggled at that one you must admit. A smile made its way to your face as you turned to face him.
“Hi Eds” you smiled softly. He walked towards you slowly, keeping his eyes fixed on yours. He stopped just before you.
“Where’d you go, princess?” he asked quietly. Your eyes dropped to your lap, guilt crawling back up into your mind.
“California” you answered in a whisper. Eddie paused and sighed.
“You know I really missed you, sweets,” he said with a sad smile.
“I know. I’m sorry. It really sucked out there Eddie. I didn’t want to leave you.”
“Just a call, princess. That was all I needed.”
“I’m so sorry”
You felt his arms wrap around you as you started to cry. You could see the shine in his eye before he came in to hug you. You felt awful about leaving Eddie in Hawkins alone. His embrace however was warm and loving. His hugs were second to none, at least that hadn’t changed, and they still felt like home.
Home. That’s what it was. You hadn’t been home in a very long time. But home isn’t always a happy place. It’s just the right place. And that place is with Eddie Munson.