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eddie kaspbrak couldn’t help but glare across the lunch table as he picked at his inedible school food.
does this kid ever shut up? he thought to himself, as eddie munson yelled something crude across the cafeteria to the basketball team, making everyone at the lunch table crack up, but especially richie.
eddie kaspbrak couldn’t quite explain why he hated eddie munson so much. since getting to high school, richie, his twin brother mike, and many of their other friends had joined the hellfire club, a group for d&d. eddie wasn’t a d&d person himself, but out of their entire friend group, only him, mike hanlon, max, and el didn’t play. granted, some of the group members didn’t understand what they were doing, but they played nonetheless. eddie, however, really didn’t understand the hype over the game. plus, he really didn’t want to spend any more time with eddie munson than he did already.
eddie munson was a stoner. he had been held back god knows how many times and it didn’t seem like this year was going to be any more successful for him. he was loud, annoying, and grunge. he wasn’t the type of loud, annoying, yet somehow charismatic that richie was. he just pissed people off.
“FUCK YEAH, GIVE IT HERE!”
eddie was suddenly shook out of his thoughts by richie shouting and reaching for a lunch tray in the middle of the table, which had 7 chocolate milks on it.
“dude, you’re gonna puke!”
“i need my strength for the campaign tonight!” richie insisted with a laugh. he immediately started opening the chocolate milks and chugging them. eddie, not in the mood for this crowd anymore, rolled his eyes and got up from the table, going to dump his tray. after he was done getting rid of his uneaten slop, he made a beeline for the bathroom and locked himself in one of the stalls.
a few minutes later, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, but eddie couldn’t care less. maybe if he stayed in the stall long enough, the combined smell of weed and shit would be enough to send him home sick. before he could think any more about that plan, however, the door banged open and two familiar voices echoed.
“dude, her class is a fucking buzzkill, i know.”
eddie groaned internally. it was eddie munson.
“listen, when you go to her class high for the first time, you’ll never want to go sober again,” he insisted. the other voice laughed before speaking.
“i never wanted to go to her class sober in the first place, i just didn’t have a hookup on school grounds.”
it was richie. eddie sighed and unlocked the door to the stall. as much as he didn’t want to see them, he didn’t want to smell pot more.
“well, look who it is!” eddie munson called out as eddie kaspbrak came out of the stall. “we were just about to light up, want to join in, little fella?”
“no,” eddie mumbled, shoving past without looking at either of them.
“eds!” richie said. “don’t go yet!”
eddie stopped right at the door and turned around, rolling his eyes and hating himself for loving this boy so much.
“that’s not my name,” he said. “and what do you want?”
“jesus christ, someone’s a little testy today,” eddie munson muttered, but eddie kaspbrak ignored him.
“he’s always like that,” richie said, continuing to stare at eddie kaspbrak with a loving grin. “anyway, eds. you should come to the campaign tonight.”
“no way,” eddie said, immediately turning back around. richie tried to get him to do this EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. but it never worked. as much as eddie wanted to spend time with richie, he could not stand being around eddie munson for that long, watching his friends play some long and boring game that he didn’t even understand.
“aw, come on, eds!” richie insisted. “you can shadow me! i’ll teach you everything i know,” he added with a wink.
eddie, however, refused to turn back around. “i’ll think about it,” he mumbled, pushing the door open and heading to his next class.
eddie hated the thought of spending his night like that. but he hated the thought of richie spending that much time with eddie munson without him there even more. maybe it was stupid, but eddie had this burning need to be the better eddie in richie’s life. i mean, the two had been best friends for forever. what did this loud-ass have that eddie didn’t? eddie had always hoped that he and richie would one day end up together, even if it was kind of a stupid thought. but that didn’t seem very likely, seeing as richie couldn’t keep his eyes off of eddie munson.
eddie kaspbrak had to drag himself through the rest of the school day. it was painfully slow and boring. even though eddie would never touch a joint (does richie even know the risk those things carry?), he couldn’t help but finding himself wishing that he wasn’t entirely in reality right now, either.
after school, eddie trudged home with stan. eddie liked stan. stan played d&d, but he certainly didn’t make it his whole personality. and, since he knew that eddie wasn’t a fan of the game, he just made conversation about other things. this was the one time, however, that eddie wouldn’t have minded talking about d&d. not because he liked the game, but because he couldn’t get this shit off his mind.
“what does munson have that i don’t?” eddie blurted out suddenly, interrupting stan’s story about him walking in on will and mike w. making out in the computer lab.
“uh, what?” stan said, confused. he knew eddie liked richie. he had heard it a thousand times. but eddie NEVER talked about eddie munson.
“what the FUCK does eddie munson have that i don’t?” he repeated, exasperated. “or- well- what does he have that richie is so attached to?”
“oh, uh,” stan started. he didn’t really know what to say. “well, he smokes and he plays d&d and he doesn’t give a fuck about anything,” he said. “he’s basically adopted richie at this point, richie really looks up to him.”
eddie groaned.
“why the fuck am i in love with this idiot?” he asked, looking down and kicking a rock on the pavement.
“that question is beyond me, eddie,” stan said. “i ask myself that every day.” he paused. “are you really jealous of eddie munson? because i guarantee you richie sees him as an older brother. i mean, for fuck’s sake, he’s like 20 at this point. even if richie DID like him, eddie’s not a creep, so he’s not gonna go for a 15-year old.”
eddie stayed quiet and kicked the rock again as he walked along.
“i’m not gonna smoke pot,” he said.
“no one ever said you had to.”
“let me finish.” eddie took a breath, ready for the criticism that was no doubt about to come out of stan’s mouth. “i’m not gonna smoke pot, but maybe i can learn to like your stupid game for him.”
“i’m sorry, WHAT?” stan said, raising an eyebrow. “you HATE d&d, you always say how boring and confusing it is.”
“well yeah, but it’s what richie likes, and i’m not gonna keep fucking sit at home every friday and think about all the time he’s spending with munson and not me,” eddie argued. “maybe i can find some grunge shit to wear too, i don’t know,” he added.
stan rolled his eyes.
“whatever, dude,” he said. “just don’t call me complaining about how you wasted your night playing with us.”
it turned out that eddie didn’t really have anything grunge to wear. he scoured his closet and drawers, but the closest he had was a pair of black skinny jeans and a black and white striped shirt. whatever. it would have to do.
“hey!”
bev’s cheery voice picked up on the other line as eddie set the phone on speaker and got dressed.
“bev, what the fuck am i doing?” eddie groaned, flopping back on his bed after zipping up his jeans.
“i would ask what you’re referring to, but stan kinda told me everything,” bev admitted. “and before you get mad at him, he only said something because he was trying to help and wanted to see if i could- well- reign you in, i guess.”
“reign me in? really?” eddie rolled over and screamed into his pillow. “i knew i should’ve called max instead.”
“okay, rude,” bev said, pretending to be offended. “but really, eddie, you don’t need to change anything. if richie likes you, and i think he does, he’ll like you for YOU, not this persona you’re putting on.”
“can i just borrow some eyeliner?” eddie interrupted, not even processing what bev had said. “please?”
bev sighed.
“fine,” she said. “but i’m coming over and putting it on for you, because god knows you can’t do it by yourself.”
about twenty minutes later, bev, ben, mike hanlon, max, and el burst into eddie’s room. even though mike, max, and el didn’t play, they always went to campaigns to hang out with their friends, unlike eddie.
“what the fuck?” eddie said when he saw them all. “bev, did you seriously tell all of them?”
“no, you just called me when they were all over,” she said. “here, sit up.”
eddie sat up half-heartedly and let bev put the eyeliner on him.
“is this really your attempt at grunge?” max said, raising an eyebrow.
“shut up, i’m working with what i’ve got,” eddie snapped back.
“eddie, i know you kind of have a plan here, but i really think bev’s right,” ben said slowly. “richie will like you for YOU.”
“okay, then he’ll have no problem with me making my own choices and wearing this and playing your stupid game,” eddie said.
“that’s not really what i was getting at,” ben mumbled.
“i think richie does like you. for you,” el stated matter-of-factly. “you are just being a stupid boy.”
“hell yeah, he is,” max said, pecking her girlfriend on the cheek.
“i can’t believe you’re going to the dark side, eddie,” mike said. “now i have to third wheel with el and max as the only people there who don’t play.”
“hey, steve doesn’t play either,” eddie said pointedly. steve was one of eddie munson’s and dustin’s friends. he didn’t play either, but he always tagged along to the campaigns for whatever reason.
“okay, he may not play, but he’s constantly coaching over dustin’s shoulder as if he does, so steve doesn’t really count.”
“done,” said bev. she closed the cap of her eyeliner. “you look hot.”
“i know,” eddie said. “let’s go.”
the group of six headed out the door and to the school for the campaign. eddie didn’t know what he was getting into, really, but at least he looked good while doing it.
mike pushed open the doors when they arrived. everyone else was already there. eddie munson was talking to steve in a low voice and pointing to some things behind his divider. steve looked like he was trying very hard to understand what was going on. mike w., dustin, lucas, will, richie, bill, and stan were in a corner, also talking in low voices. mike and richie seemed to be arguing about something, as per usual. they all turned towards the door when the remaining six walked in. at the sight of eddie, richie fell backwards out of his chair.
“holy shit!” he yelled, sitting up amongst the laughter. “you’re here!”
“don’t make a big deal out of it,” eddie said. but he was feeling pretty confident at the reaction he had just elicited from richie. and he was feeling extra confident at the fact that richie was scanning his eyes up and down eddie’s body.
“what are you wearing?” richie asked, as mike h., el, max, bev, and ben went to join the others. “not that i don’t like it!” he added hurriedly. “it just- it doesn’t seem like you.”
“i’m just trying something new,” eddie said innocently. “now, come on, are we gonna play, or not?”
richie opened his mouth to say something, but eddie munson spoke first.
“kaspbrak, you in?” he said incredulously. “holy shit, i never thought i’d live to see the day.”
“yes, i’m in,” eddie said, louder than he meant for it to come out. “i want to learn. richie, i’ll shadow you. let’s go.”
richie quickly pulled up another chair for eddie and the two sat down. eddie tried hard to pay attention to everything richie was whispering to him, but it made absolutely no sense. did this game even have rules? it just sounded like you made up everything as you went. every time eddie tried to ask a question, richie just had some long-winded response, and he kept leaning over him to discuss with the others, and to argue with his brother, of course. eddie understood less about d&d now than he did before, and that was certainly saying something. not only was he incredibly confused by the game, but eddie munson kept doing all these annoying voices, each making richie laugh more than the last. how the fuck could he stand this kid? finally, after 2 1/2 hours and no end in sight, eddie couldn’t take it anymore.
“i hate to step out now, guys, but my mom wanted me home by 9:30 and i’m already gonna be late,” he lied.
“what? booo!” richie groaned. “come on, you can’t leave now!”
“nah, i really gotta get home,” eddie insisted. he stood up and pulled on his jacket.
“well, kaspbrak, it’s been a pleasure,” eddie munson called after him as he headed for the door. “i would say see you next time, but i could see the boredom on your face, so i think i’ll just see you at lunch.” eddie kaspbrak clenched his teeth and didn’t acknowledge him whatsoever.
what was i thinking? eddie thought, shaking his head as he trudged home. stan was right, i hate this game and i hate these clothes and i really should’ve just stayed home. it was bad enough that he had wasted his night playing a game he didn’t understand, but he would’ve so much rather stayed home and wondered about richie and eddie than been there and seen the heart eyes richie kept making at him. stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stu-
“eds!”
eddie stopped and turned around. richie was jogging after him. “wait up!”
“what is it, richie?” eddie asked. “i’m serious, i need to be home.”
“that’s bullshit,” richie said, catching up and grinning. “your mom wants you home at 9 every night and you know it. you were already late.”
eddie turned red. why the fuck did richie know when he was supposed to be home?
“all the more reason i need to get home,” eddie said, turning around and continuing in the direction of his house.
“wait, eds, come on.” richie reached out and tugged on eddie’s jacket. “where are you running off to? i really thought you were starting to get the hang of it.”
“starting to get the hang of it?” eddie exploded. richie looked taken aback, but eddie couldn’t help it. he had had enough. “starting to get the hang of it, richie? are you kidding me? i didn’t know what the fuck i was doing. i just spent my night playing a game i hate with someone i can’t stand. i get it less now than i did before! and i dressed in these stupid clothes because i thought that MAYBE that would mean you’d pay attention to me again, instead of making heart eyes at stupid eddie senior over there. you’re my best friend and i spent my night MISERABLE because i just wanted to fucking do something you liked and try and get you back from your new fucking boyfriend. and i know i sound like an idiot and this was all my fault, but it’s so much easier to just yell at you for it. so go finish your stupid game and go make out with your boyfriend, and i’m going to go home and get yelled at by my mother for being out all night having the worst. day. of. my. LIFE! so sorry if i’m ‘running off’, but i’m tired and i’m bored and i want to go HOME!”
richie was silent for a moment.
“eds,” he said quietly, “eddie munson is dating steve harrington.”
eddie fell silent. his eyes went wide and his face turned beet red, and he collapsed onto the pavement, head in his hands.
“oh my god,” he whispered. “oh my GOD, i’m so fucking STUPID.”
richie sat down next to eddie quietly.
“why on earth do you care so much about munson?” he asked, after a moment.
“because,” eddie said, “i thought he was, you know, stealing you from me, i guess.” he cleared his throat. “and i’m selfish. and i want to-”
“yeah?”
“i- i want to date you,” eddie choked out. “and i want to be the only one to date you. and i hated the idea of anyone else being with you.” he sniffed. “and it’s really fucking stupid but i wanted to be the best eddie in your life.”
richie smiled. he reached over and tilted eddie’s chin towards him.
“you are the best eddie in my life,” he said. “and the best eds, and the best spaghetti. and you don’t have to play a game you hate or dress in clothes you don’t like for me to like you, because- well, because i do like you. just as you are.”
eddie’s heart skipped a beat.
“wait, what?” he said. “you- you like me?’
richie laughed.
“man, i knew you were oblivious, but this is BAD,” he joked. “yeah, i like you. and i can prove it too.”
eddie’s heart fluttered and his breath hitched as richie leaned in, and softly kissed him. it was gentle and sweet and perfect. richie put his hands on eddie’s waist, and eddie cupped richie’s face. the world seemed to slow down, not for long, but enough to enjoy the tender moment and the feeling of richie’s lips against eddie’s. all too soon, richie slowly pulled away, leaving eddie stuttering and starstruck.
richie chuckled softly.
“i should kiss you more often,” he said. “i think this is the longest you’ve ever gone without insulting me.”
“shut up,” eddie said, but it was with a blush and a smile. richie grinned back and pulled eddie into his chest for a hug.
“so,” he said after a moment, “you were really jealous of EDDIE MUNSON?”
“stop it!” eddie whined. “i- i thought you liked him.”
richie laughed.
“he’s like a brother to me, dude, gross!”
“do you really like me for me?” eddie asked after a moment. richie pulled away and looked in eddie’s eyes.
“of COURSE i do,” richie said genuinely. “i always have.”
eddie smiled.
“good,” he said. “because i’m never playing d&d again.”