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Steve was used to impressing people. As self-centered as that was, he was always kind of a big shot. Maybe that was why it was so easy to walk into a high school party, despite the fact that he graduated (thanks a lot, Robin) and instantly take up the mantle of The King once more. He was only here because Robin had been invited by Nancy and was told she could bring whoever which, as someone who had done that move before, Steve knew was Nancy’s way of finding out if Robin was seeing someone. However, Robin had taken that as her sign to invite Steve because he’s a “party person” and she didn’t wanna go alone. Then again, Steve hasn’t really been a party person since before the interdimensional monsters came into his life. Still, he wanted to make Robin happy even though she had found Nancy five minutes into the party and he hasn’t seen her since. He’s happy for her, though. He’s happy at least one of them could be happy.
So, he starts drinking. The last time he got this drunk, his girlfriend broke up with him. However, he has no girlfriend on his arm this time and he has nothing to hide so he cracks open can after can until he can barely stand because anything is better than going back to an empty house and sleeping with the lights on.
He isn’t sure what time it is when he stumbles outside to the back porch of whatever rich boy’s house this is, hands falling and gripping the railing with white-knuckled fists as he sucks in a deep breath of fresh air. Being drunk and stupid is fun, throwing up is not. He catches his breath, waiting for the feeling of nausea to fade. It settles at the bottom of his stomach, no longer clawing at his throat as he swallows the disorientation down.
“Harrington? Jesus, dude, you’re a mess,” a voice interrupts him, the words woozy to his mangled brain. He turns around and sees Eddie Munson smoking a cigarette under the porch light. The still-lit cigarette hangs from his lips as he regards Steve with crossed arms and a questionable glance. When Steve looks over at him, probably looking a little worse for wear, the other chuckles softly, “Okay, you’ve had a little too much, huh? No more cheap beer for you.”
He tries to step over to get closer to Eddie because he sounds so far, but he trips up over himself and the other ends up having to catch him. Their faces are much too close as Steve looks up at him and maybe Steve is drunk, but he doesn’t remember Eddie ever being this pretty up close. Maybe he’s just never let himself take a longer look before.
Eddie looks at him softly, one hand still on Steve, maintaining his balance since he can’t do it for himself, as he takes the cigarette from his lips and stubs it out on the floor. “Yeah, alright, I’m taking you home, Harrington before some wily underage maiden tries to have her way with you or something. C’mon, let’s go. Did you come here with anyone?”
The other put his arm around Steve’s waist and navigates Steve’s arm around his shoulders as they begin to head back inside, Steve still tripping over his own feet as he mutters, “Uh, Robin, yeah, Robin, but she uh, she disappeared.”
“Okay, you stay put,” Eddie tells him as Steve finds himself seated at the kitchen table. When did they get to the kitchen? “I’m gonna go find Robin and tell her I’m taking you home. Please do not run off, I’ve already wasted so much time chasing you.”
“Chasing?” Steve mumbles, confused, but the other is already gone. He sighs and lets his head slam against the table as he just lays there for a moment. It’s nice, to be still. No one bothers him while he waits for Eddie. This is weird, he thinks. He and Eddie haven’t really talked since they fought Vecna and Nancy almost died and then Eddie almost died from saving her and Steve’s chest had gotten tight and instinct had taken over and they saved each other, it was what they did, what they all did. Eddie fit right in. They had looked at each other, once, after it was all over and they were back in their own dimension and Steve had wondered if it was just the adrenaline or if Eddie had looked nothing short of beautiful in the morning light. God, his head is already starting to hurt.
There are hands on his shoulders before he can register them and he hears Eddie’s voice again, “Okay, Robin knows you’re safe and with me, let’s go pretty boy.”
“Pretty boy,” Steve repeats as he’s hauled to his feet and an arm is around his waist once more. “That’s you.”
Eddie looks at him for a long moment as they leave the party, a small smile playing on his face, “Sure thing, Harrington. C’mon, let’s get you home. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this shitfaced.”
“And I don’t think I’ve ever seen you at a party,” Steve slurs, his words coming out less clear than they were in his head, but Eddie seems to understand him just fine.
The other chuckles softly as somewhere in the back of his mind, Steve registers the doors of the van opening. “After Jason went crazy about the devil and got his ass handed to him, he took up the mantle as town freak. Also, parties are just good business. C’mon, Harrington, make this easy for me, and don’t make me lift you into the van.”
He looks up and Eddie’s smiling softly at him, something a little too close to fondness in his eyes as he helps Steve into his seat. His hands stay carefully on Steve’s shoulders and arms as he tries to do most of the work for himself, slowly sobering up, but still feeling sick to his stomach. Once he’s in, Eddie buckles his seatbelt for him.
“I’m not sure if you driving is really going to help how shitty I feel,” Steve mutters, resting his head in his hands just because it feels nice.
Eddie barks out a laugh as he closes the door and settles into the driver’s seat, “Better than Max, though, I’m sure.” At Steve’s confused look, he laughs even harder, “Oh, yeah, she told me all about that. Gotta hand it to those kids, every time they tell me something they went through before I met them, they just get even more badass. More badass than I was at that age; than I am at this age.”
“You managed to shred a killer guitar solo while in another dimension and also fighting off demon bats,” Steve comments cynically, noticing how smooth the other seems to be driving. Usually, he’s hauling ass down Hawkins roads and hitting every pothole imaginable. “I’d say that’s pretty badass.”
“Says the one who literally bit one while they were taking bites out of him,” Eddie scoffs.
“Yeah, so you know I’m qualified,” Steve shrugs, his words coming out quieter than he intended. “Remind me to show you my nail-bat sometime, I think you’d like it. Baseball bat, not actual bat.”
“Your what?”
“Just drive, Munson.”
The other shakes his head softly but follows instructions as the quiet night surrounds them. Holding Out For a Hero plays softly through the radio in the car and Steve nods along absentmindedly. Under his breath, Eddie hums the song, but neither of them makes a comment on it.
It’s not long before they pull up outside of Steve’s house and Eddie asks, “Do you think you need help getting inside?”
Steve shakes his head, but he stays there, frozen. His hand is on his seatbelt, knowing he needs to take it off and go inside, but he really doesn’t want to. He hates sleeping alone, but he can’t even tell his parents because they won’t even care and if they bother to ask why, he can’t even give them a real answer. No one ever tells him how lonely saving the world will be. He thought his life would be so different, that The King would live forever. Turns out he died a long time ago; part of Steve has been buried since 1983.
“You okay, Steve?” Eddie asks softly, the use of his first name surprising him more than it probably should. After all, to some degree, he and Eddie were friends. They should be. Saving the world together will do that to people. However, he and Eddie have barely spoken since everything happened and he feels guilty for it. After all, Eddie kind of got the worst of it. He was hunted down for murdering a girl that wasn’t even his fault, he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Yet, Steve couldn’t even look him in the eyes. Not after everything. It was pathetic, really.
He shakes his head, whispering, “I still sleep with the lights on, you know.”
Eddie looks at him, eyes wide from the driver’s seat as he says just as quietly, “Me too.”
“Can you stay?” he asks before he can stop himself because Steve is sick and tired of feeling so goddamn lonely. He’s sober enough to know that he’s not in any state to be left alone right now, but he was sure that was obvious judging by the way Eddie nods right away, that same look of pity yet understanding in his eyes.
The other parks the van and gets out, coming around the side to open the door for Steve and help him out since he’s still a little heavy on his feet. He likes the warmth of the other around him, hugging him close but still timid about it. Steve fumbles for his keys once they reach the door and Eddie just laughs and takes them from his hand, their fingers brushing ever so slightly as he lets them in.
All the lights are on, just how he left them as they enter the house. Steve turns around, double-checking that it’s locked; triple-checking after only a moment’s hesitation before grabbing Eddie’s wrist and leading him upstairs. He has flashbacks to when he had led Nancy up these stairs almost four years ago now, his brain reminding him what had been happening in his pool just outside. A chill goes up his spine and he shivers, hating himself for just a moment. Even though Nancy thought he didn’t care, he had never really forgiven himself for Barb. He didn’t think he ever would.
Once they’re in Steve’s room he begins to rifle through his drawers, tossing a pair of sweatpants over to Eddie, “So you don’t have to sleep in, what are those, leather? Jesus, Munson.”
Eddie laughs, “Glad to see you’re sobering up, Harrington.”
Steve makes a flippant motion with his hand as he pulls his shirt over his shoulders. It’s nothing Eddie hasn’t seen before, but he can feel the other’s eyes on him as he searches for a crewneck to warm up the chill on the back of his neck. His eyes flicker over to Eddie, “Don’t get any ideas, Munson, I’m still too drunk.”
The other raises his hands in mock surrender, scoffing, “Yeah, I know. If you were sober you’d probably be looking a little more disgusted right now.”
Steve shakes his head, finding the shirt he wanted and pulling it over his shoulders, “Shut up, all my fucking friends are gay, too, you aren’t special, Munson.”
“Aw, you called us friends,” Eddie says with a mocking pout and the two of them laugh quietly. “I’m gonna change in the bathroom and grab you some water, you look dead on your feet.”
Steve nods softly, calling out so the other pauses in the doorway, “Oh, and Eddie? Thank you. For your help tonight and… for, you know.”
Eddie smiles at him but doesn’t say anything more before leaving the room. Once he’s gone, Steve groans and lets himself fall into bed. His head already hurts and he just wants to sleep off the impending hangover as soon as possible. He hears the door open, but his face is squished into the pillows so he can’t see Eddie. He hears a glass being put down on the nightstand and feels the mattress dip as the other gets onto the other side of the bed.
There’s a very notable gap between them and Steve finds himself turning his head to see Eddie laying stiffly, his arms pressed to his side as if he were trying to sleep in the army. “I’m not gonna bite, Munson.”
“I dunno, usually people are freaked out after they find out about me, I didn’t wanna push any buttons!” the other whisper-yells, “Just drink your water, Harrington.”
Steve sits up with a judgemental expression, taking a sip of his water and tracing his finger around the rim of the glass as he mutters, “It would be a little hypocritical of me, but whatever floats your boat, I guess.”
“You’re drunk.”
“Meh, more or less,” Steve shrugs, hugging the glass close to him as he takes another sip. “Drunk or not I wouldn’t joke about being gay. Well, bisexual really, but you know, we don’t need to get into the specifics, you get the gist.”
Eddie looks at him the same way he looked at him as they were leaving the party, distant amazement in his eyes, muttering softly, “Steve Harrington.”
“That’s my name, don’t wear it out,” Steve mumbles before putting the glass down and promptly falling against the pillows. He isn’t sure if Eddie says anything after that because he’s already asleep for the most part, exhaustion taking over as he registers the comfort of having someone he trusts in the same vicinity while he sleeps.
He manages to wake up before Eddie, his head pounding as he grabs his glass and stumbles over to the bathroom. He fills the glass with water and takes a sip, trying to ignore the feeling in his stomach that he knows isn’t going to go away whether he throws up or not. A sigh leaves his lips as he takes in his appearance, running his hands through his hair and brushing his teeth so he feels just a little bit more like himself. With the lingering taste of stale alcohol gone from his mouth, he feels a little bit better as he walks downstairs, leaving Eddie in his bed because he looked far too comfortable to wake up.
He had actually woken up with Eddie’s arm around his waist and he had been all too tempted to fall back asleep just so they could be close a little longer, but he felt gross so the need to take care of himself had unfortunately won that battle. Grabbing bread from the pantry, he drops a slice into the toaster before adding a second one just in case Eddie wakes up soon.
Eddie comes down the stairs a couple of minutes later, just as Steve predicted, rubbing sleep from his eyes. Something about seeing Eddie in the morning light in his kitchen of all places is jarring to him as he stops, eyes landing on the boy at the bottom of the stairs. He’s reminded of the sun first coming up after they had fought for their lives all night. Steve and Eddie were both bleeding more than they probably should have been and Eddie was panting and his hair was a mess and all Steve had wanted to do was kiss him. Maybe it was the adrenaline then, Steve thinks now it’s just pure yearning.
He doesn’t give in to his urges as he greets the other with a nod of his head, pulling two plates down from the cabinet and dropping a piece of toast onto each. “There’s butter or jelly if that’s your… jam.”
Eddie groans, “I liked you better when you were drunk.”
“Shut up,” Steve laughs, nudging the plate towards him as he butters his own toast. “Thanks for staying. Sorry, I didn’t wanna wake you up, you looked… content.”
The other regards this with a quiet nod, asking, “How’s your head?”
“Had better days,” he shrugs and leans against the counter as he takes a bite out of his toast, the food not going down easy, but he knows he needs something in his stomach. “You really saved my ass, dude. I would have totally crashed at that party and felt a million times worse when I got up.”
“What are friends for?”
“Are we?” Steve asks, hesitating for a moment before adding, “Friends, that is. I just, I feel like I’ve barely seen you since… Spring Break. I mean, it’s probably my fault, but I just, I don’t know. I guess I kinda liked having you around. Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” the other scoffs, leaning against the counter next to Steve, nudging him gently with his shoulder. “I’m gonna be honest, it was… hard to be your friend. Well, hard to be just your friend after everything. I was jealous, I think. I knew you’d never look at me the way you looked at Nancy.”
Steve shakes his head, “Nancy and I are long over, like, long over. I don’t… I don’t feel anything for her, not anymore.”
“And me?” Eddie asks with a raised eyebrow and Steve has to hand it to him for the boldness. Morning sunlight shines through the curtains, casting a golden glow on his face that feels more like a halo than anything else. His saving grace, without even realizing it.
“I feel… a lot of admittedly very confusing things for you, Eddie,” Steve whispers, much more honest than he planned on being. “I think I know where to start, though.”
Eddie hums softly, looking down at Steve with his hands braced on the counter behind him as he asks, “And where would that be?”
Steve looks up at him through batted eyelashes, reaching a hand up to cup the side of Eddie’s face, turning him ever so slightly so he can smile into a gentle kiss. The sunlight is warm on his skin as they move into each other’s space, Eddie’s hands coming up to hold Steve’s waist, gripping softly as he melts into Steve’s kiss like he had been anticipating it. Everything clicks into place, just beginning to make sense as they don’t bother to deepen anything, just sharing the same pace.
“You know, these were not my intentions when I took you home last night,” Eddie mumbles softly once they pull apart, a small smile playing on his lips as he leans in and presses a kiss to Steve’s forehead before cradling the other against his chest with one hand holding Steve by the back of his head. He can’t remember the last time he was held by anyone, even after everything. “Not mad, though.”
“I’ve been wanting to do that since we first got out of the Upside Down,” Steve admits against the other’s chest. “Can I do it again?”
“You can do it a hundred times if you want, Harrington,” Eddie says breathlessly, “I don’t know if you noticed, but I’ve kinda got a terrible crush on you.”
Steve laughs, pulling the other into another kiss. When their foreheads rest against each other, he says, “Well, if that’s the case, I guess I’ve sorta got a crush on you, too. Funny how that works out.”
“Funny,” Eddie mutters, kissing him again (and again, and again, and again).