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“Eddie doesn’t hate you, Steve. And this is not going to make him start, believe me. Also, your atrocious taste in movies hasn’t sent him running yet, so why would it today?”
Steve Harrington, who had been pacing the empty Family Video store for almost 20 minutes during an oddly slow Friday afternoon, stopped for a moment to look at Robin. She was rewinding tapes behind the counter and snorted in disbelief after catching the wildly desperate look in Steve’s eyes. Steve groaned into his hands, dropping his head towards his chest as he heard Robin toss a fully rewound VHS down into her pile of finished tapes.
“Come on, dude, it’s not that big of a deal. We go through this every week.” Robin leaned forward onto her elbows and tilted her head towards Steve’s distressed profile. “Like, every single week since April, and I don’t know what to say that will make you understand that Eddie won’t stop coming to movie night if he doesn’t like a film you pick out. Why is that so hard to believe?”
“I don’t know Robin, but I feel it coming. Like it’s inevitable.”
Robin turned around to lean her back against the countertop, crossing her arms and leaning her head back. She took a long, deep breath before responding. “Listen, Steve, you’re being, like, so extremely lame right now, and it’s kinda making me regret entertaining your weekly freak-out.”
“But-”
“Stop being lame. Please.”
Steve shook his head like he was trying to dislodge any remaining doubts, and Robin must have taken pity on him because she threw a package of Milk Duds at his head and said, loudly, “Just pick the next movie you think would be fun to watch, dingus, don’t overthink it.”
Steve nodded, then took a couple of steps down the aisle. He grabbed a movie from the shelf to his right, grinned, and held it up so Robin could see the cover. “Oh my god, Robin.”
“Gremlins?” laughed Robin, “Really?”
“Hey, guess we couldn’t go wrong with a box office success, right?” Steve shook his head and chuckled slightly at the idea.
He walked back behind the counter to check out the tape under his account. “Thanks,” he muttered, bumping shoulders with Robin as he grabbed the pile of rewound tapes and headed back to shelve them on the display racks.
“Sure,” she said, “Whatever it takes to get you and your puny little brain through the day.” With that, Robin continued to rewind her tapes with a smile.
The rest of Steve and Robin’s shift went well, with only a few unpleasant customer interactions. Soon enough, they were closing up the shop and heading off in Steve’s car to pick Eddie up.
***
Honestly, the only reason Steve made it through the summer was these weekly movie nights. It had started off as a large group, with Steve, Robin, Eddie, Nancy, and even Dustin and his little gang of knuckleheads gathering at Steve’s house on Fridays after the whole Vecna ordeal was over. Steve would order pizza on his dad’s credit card as they piled into the living room to watch whatever movie Steve and Robin had picked out during their shift at Family Video. Lights would stay on, and they ate pizza crowded on the floor. Steve sat on the couch so he could easily do a head count whenever he felt the urge to check that nobody had been snatched or had wandered off when he wasn’t looking. It soothed the aching in his stomach and usually worked to calm his shaking hands.
After the movie (or two) finished, Steve would nudge Eddie or Robin, and they would haul cots, sleeping bags, and more blankets and pillows from the basement so everyone had a soft surface to sleep on. They would walk back upstairs to quiet conversations, enthusiasm smothered by the setting sun. It was harder to pretend to be fine in the dark.
The return to normalcy was rough. After Eleven turned Vecna into dust and closed the entrance to the Upside Down yet again, Steve found himself constantly on edge. It was like his body couldn’t grasp the idea that Hawkins was not in immediate danger anymore. The nightmares returned–although he was never sure they left in the first place–and as much as he tried to hide the bags under his eyes with a dangerous amount of caffeine, Robin had commented on his lack of sleep the week after Vecna’s defeat.
“You look like shit,” Robin stated bluntly, as her gaze tracked Steve entering the front doors 10 minutes late to their opening shift at Family Video.
“Yeah, whatever Buckley, you’re not looking too hot yourself,” Steve said as he waved a hand limply in her direction. He made a beeline to the back room, calling out, “I’m doing returns in the back if you need me.”
Robin found Steve in there an hour later, passed out on the tattered couch that was definitely not long enough for him to be comfortable.
Sighing, Robin poked Steve’s shoulder. “Steve, hey, hey, Steve. Hey.”
“Hngh, what?” Steve rolled over, eyes bleary. “Oh, shit, did I fall asleep?” Steve asked as he sat up and planted his feet on the floor. “Where, what-”
“You’re fine, you just fell asleep. I need some help on the floor today if you don’t mind. Kinda busy out there.” Robin pointed past the door frame, indicating towards the crowd that had appeared, watching as Steve nodded and gathered the energy to stand up. She watched as he walked past her, a little unsteady on his feet, with a thoughtful look on her face. She called out after him. “Hey, Steve?”
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“Are you down for a movie tonight? We could invite the kids, Eddie, Nancy?”
“Sure, whatever, sounds fun,” Steve mumbled.
“Oh, and I don’t mean to invite myself over, but could we do it at your house? I can’t host tonight, and you said your parents are out of town this weekend,” Robin added.
“Fine, but you’re in charge of calling everybody.”
“Deal.”
And just like that, the tradition started. It was awkward at first, with Steve feeling so very exposed at the way Nancy and Robin kept looking at him with something akin to pity in their eyes, and Eddie nattering about movie references that Steve didn’t understand. It was just a lot of emotions all at once, and Steve was tired. He couldn’t keep up. So when Nancy suggested a sleepover, he readily agreed. He was ready to sleep.
After the group’s best rest in a while, they made it a weekly thing. Movie, pizza, sleepover–every Friday without fail. Nobody missed a night, not through exams, graduation, or after bad days at work. Sometimes they talked about Vecna and what they’d gone through, and sometimes they ignored it entirely. Whichever one it was, Steve didn’t care as long as they were together.
Crowded together and listening to snores and deep breaths, no matter how long it took for everyone to fall asleep, Steve felt like he could finally relax. And if anyone woke up in the middle of the night, breathing fast and limbs reaching out, someone was always there to grab tight and offer comfort. It made sure Steve got at least one good night’s sleep every week.
Eventually, though, as the kids seemed to bounce back as quickly as ever, and Nancy started preparing for college, the group dwindled down to three–Steve, Robin, and Eddie.
Tonight, on a cool, damp Friday in October, it was just the three of them. Nancy had gone off to college back in August, and the high schoolers were busy with classes and planning ridiculously intricate D&D campaigns. Dustin was in charge of the most recent campaign, and Eddie didn’t seem like he wanted to spend much time at Hawkins High now that he had finally graduated. Steve got that. He didn’t quite enjoy people reminding him how he peaked in high school and was now working a minimum wage job.
***
The drive from said minimum wage job to Eddie’s home was a familiar one. Windows down, radio blasting, Robin singing loudly off-tune, left turn here, right at this intersection. The drive wasn’t long, and it was less than 10 minutes before they pulled into the gravel road that led to the trailer park and came to a stop in front of Eddie’s home. Steve and Robin hopped out of the car and ran up the steps to the front door, but before they could knock, Eddie pulled the door open with a wide smile.
“Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Eddie said, before wrapping them both in a tight hug.
“Oof,” said Robin, “You’re squishing me.”
Steve didn’t really mind. Eddie smelled like smoke and cologne, and his long brown hair tickled Steve's nose. He hugged him back with one arm.
“My bad, Buckley. Harrington, hey man.” Eddie smiled in apology-slash-greeting as they let go, but he stayed close, leaning against the doorway. Steve could hear some muffled heavy metal music coming from inside the trailer.
Steve smiled back. “Hey, dude, it’s good to see you. I’ve got a good movie for tonight.” A tight feeling in the lower part of Steve’s stomach rudely reminded him of earlier’s uneasiness, and he took a second to remember his conversation with Robin. It was easy to believe her, here and now, with Eddie smiling at him like that, all genuine and shit, dimples showing. Steve didn’t know Eddie had dimples for a long time. It’s moments like these where he’s amazed at how far they’ve come. All of them. Steve pushed the strange, uneasy feeling down; he could deal with that later.
Okay, maybe Steve still had a while to go in regards to his emotions or whatever, but right now he was feeling fine. He was fine, and he was spending his Friday night with his two best friends, and Steve didn’t know what else he could’ve asked for.
“Awesome, just hold on a sec,” Eddie told them, holding up his hand, “I’ll be right back.” He rushed into the trailer, disappearing off to one side. The music stopped, and Steve could hear the fridge opening, the clinking of bottles, and then Eddie was running back with a six-pack of beer in hand and leather jacket in the other while he shoved them both outside and locked the door.
Robin stumbled down the stairs when Eddie turned back around a bit too quickly and caught her with his shoulder. “Hey! What’s the rush, Munson?”
Eddie's eyes widened slightly, and he ran down the steps after her. “Oh shit, Robin, you okay?” He grabbed her by the shoulders and manhandled her as he looked for any visible injuries.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Robin said as she brushed some hair from her eyes, “Are you?”
“Oh, um, what?” Eddie’s eyes darted between Robin and Steve, who were staring expectedly at him. “I’m fine. All good over here with me, um,” Eddie nodded and gave them a vigorous thumbs up.
Steve raised a single eyebrow.
“I'm fine!”
Rolling his eyes, Steve walked towards the car, jangling his keys. “Come on , man, we’ve got a movie to watch!” He looked back at Eddie, who was standing in front of the steps as Robin called shotgun. Pointing at him, he said, “We’ll talk more once we’re at my house, Munson.”
Eddie nodded once and scrambled into the back of Steve’s BMW.
***
Once they’d arrived at Steve’s house, they made their way into the kitchen. Eddie put his beer into the fridge and hopped onto one of the bar stools at the kitchen island. Across the island from him, Steve was on the phone ordering a pizza. Robin slid onto a stool next to Eddie.
“Are we gonna talk about why you were acting so jumpy back there?” she said, placing her head in her hand and turning to look at Eddie.
Eddie gazed straight ahead at Steve, who hung up the landline and announced, “20 minutes ‘til we feast.”
Eddie shrugged, maintaining eye contact with Steve, who leaned back against the wall. “I dunno, I mean, you guys probably are used to this by now, but for me, it’s only been a couple of months, so,” Eddie took a deep breath, “It’s just, I feel like I shouldn’t still be acting like this. Like, the cold is reminding me of being in the Upside Down, and it’s making everything worse. And I’m spending as much time as I can outside my trailer, but every time I have to go back it reminds me of, well,” Eddie looks away from Steve, “You know. We haven’t been able to get the ceiling fixed.”
Robin looked pointedly at Steve, and Steve looked down at Eddie. Eddie fiddled with his rings and hunched over slightly.
Tilting his head against the wall, Steve decided he needed to do something about this. It was hard to see Eddie so distraught.
“Look, man, I don’t really know what to tell you. I’m not all that great at consoling people. But, um.” Crossing his arms over his chest, Steve continued, “When Barb died in my pool, I had to close the blinds over there,” he gestured towards the living room, “For maybe half a year. I couldn’t muster the courage to jump back in until last summer.”
Steve realized he had to make this train of thought lead somewhere encouraging, so added, “It wasn’t until I really talked about it with Robin, and Nancy, and Jonathan,” Robin gave him an encouraging smile, “That I felt better about it. I wasn’t completely healed, and I’m still not, believe me, but it made things more tolerable.”
He walked to where Eddie was sitting and put his hand on Eddie’s forearm, which was resting on the counter, fingers twisting the rings on his left hand. “I’m glad you talked to us.” Robin nodded eagerly beside him. This was good. They needed to work through this, however long it took. Steve searched Eddie’s face and was surprised to see tears forming in his deep brown eyes, which were darting around Steve’s own face like they couldn’t decide on a place to land.
Clearing his throat, Eddie ducked his head down sharply and stood up, pulling away from Steve’s grasp in the process. “Thanks, man,” said Eddie, in a quiet voice. Steve and Robin watched as he walked into the living room and curled up on the couch.
A horrified look suddenly appeared in Steve’s eyes.
“Oh, man, I fucked up, didn’t I? Jeez, what did I say this time? Fuck, what do I do now?” Steve fell onto the stool next to Robin and buried his head in his hands.
“God, dude, the man just needs some time to breathe. He’ll come to us when he’s ready,” Robin whispered, placing a gentle hand on Steve’s back. “That was actually really cool of you to do, Stevie.” She didn’t catch the next words out of Steve’s mouth because he was still muffled by his arms, so she asked him to repeat himself.
Steve lifted his head up from the counter to say under his breath, “I just realized that I’m going to have to go in there and put goddam Gremlins into the VCR. I’m mortified, Rob. Mortified.” Steve knocked his hand against his head. “Like, read the room, Harrington!”
Robin laughed. She laughed at him, while he was suffering.
“You- I- I feel like you’re trying to make things harder for yourself right now,” Robin said, still laughing, “I mean, it’s like you’re doing everything in your power to go against common sense, and making everything miserable for yourself, and honestly, for me too.
“What?”
“I just mean that I think we could all do with a little comedic relief tonight. You’re fine. Chill out.”
Steve groaned and put his head back in his arms. “I don’t feel fine.”
“Ugh, whatever. I’m going to enjoy my night, and you,” she prodded at Steve’s head, “can either keep moping over here if you want to, or you can forget about your insecurities for a couple of hours and have a good time with your friends.”
“Okay.” Steve conceded, sitting up. “Okay! Fine, I’m cool. So incredibly chill right now.”
“Good.”
A knock on the door sounded, and Steve stood up to pay for the pizza, grabbing the VHS he’d rented earlier from off the entryway table on his way back.
When he returned with two boxes and a liter of soda, he found Eddie sitting up on the couch, chatting with Robin, who was sitting on the floor in front of it. She clapped when she saw him enter. “Pizza time!”
Steve handed the boxes to her and started to get the movie ready, but Eddie stopped him from inserting the tape into the VHS player. “Hey, wait a second, are you gonna tell me what we’re watching tonight? Or is it supposed to be a surprise?”
Deciding to get it over with, Steve held up the tape. In response to the amused look on Eddie’s face, he laughed and added, “Yeah, yeah, whatever, Munson. It’s October, which means we’re required to watch cheesy horror movies. Anyways, this seems right up your alley.” Steve gestured towards the creepy Black Sabbath band shirt Eddie was wearing.
“Dude, really, Gremlins? Those little shits are nightmare spawn. I guess compared to what we saw in the Upside Down, though, these are nothing. Might still get nightmares though.” Eddie shuddered dramatically. Robin scoffed at that.
Chuckling, Steve started the movie. “Good thing you have us here, then. I promise I won’t let you get attacked by a swarm of two-foot-tall gremlins.”
“I’m swooning, Harrington, truly. My hero.” He clutched his chest over his heart and fell back onto the couch. Steve dropped down next to him. He pulled the blanket Eddie had draped over his legs onto his lap as well.
Robin shushed the two of them as the opening credits rolled. They watched the movie in relative silence as they ate their fill of pizza, and Robin got up to grab them each a beer after a while. While she was grabbing those from the kitchen, Eddie gave Steve’s shoulder a nudge. “What you said back there helped, Steve. I needed to talk.”
“Yeah, man, anytime.”
“Thanks, though, seriously.” Steve felt Eddie’s knee knock against his. “Something about this weather is really getting to me,” Eddie admitted.
Steve grabbed an extra blanket that was next to him on the couch and tossed it over the two of them. “Hey, no big deal. I get it.” He reached over to make sure the blanket covered Eddie’s legs.
“What did I say? My hero.” Eddie grabbed the edge of the blanket and pulled it tight to his chin, curling his legs up under him so only his head was poking out. Steve laughed softly, and Robin came back with their beers. Steve laughed louder when Eddie’s hand got tangled in the blankets and he couldn’t grab his beer. This made him stick his tongue out at Steve, who wrinkled his nose.
“Dorks.” Robin poked Steve in the head and made him take both beers while Eddie worked his way out of the blankets, and she sat down to watch the rest of the movie. Eddie thanked Steve when he passed him his beer, gaze lingering on his face before turning back to the screen. Steve paused, and his eyes fluttered down to where Eddie’s rings clinked against the glass bottle. They looked good on him, he thought. Made his fingers look impossibly longer.
Steve jerked his eyes away before he got caught staring, took a sip of his beer, and turned his attention back to the movie.
As the movie went on, Eddie leaned more and more into Steve’s side. At some point, his head lolled over onto Steve’s chest, eyes still fixed on the screen.
It would be more comfortable if Steve could put his arm over the back of the couch, Steve thought, and dislodged the arm from between them and tossed it behind Eddie. He ended up miscalculating the movement slightly, and his arm ended up over Eddie’s shoulder. An accident, he told himself. But it was a significantly more comfortable position, and it would be weird if he moved now, right?
Steve felt Eddie tense up and began to remove his hand, feeling guilty that he didn’t ask Eddie before invading his personal space. But Eddie only leaned his head further into Steve’s chest. He took this as a form of permission and lowered his hand back down onto Eddie’s shoulder. Steve looked down to see that Eddie’s eyes were closed. He was grateful to see his friend so calm, and he slid his hand further down Eddie’s arm to squeeze him in tighter.
They stayed like that for the rest of the movie. When it was over, Robin announced that she would be sleeping right there on the floor and turned the TV off with the remote. She flopped backward onto a pillow.
“Night, Steve, Eddie,” Robin said, before doing a very obvious double-take at the couch. “Good. Yeah, goodnight! Sleep tight.” She grinned and turned her back away from Steve, pulling a blanket over herself.
What a weirdo, Steve thought.
Not bothering to get up to turn off the lamp for fear of disturbing Eddie–who was now sound asleep, and, was he drooling?–Steve decided he could fall asleep with the lights on. He kicked his feet onto the ottoman in front of him and shifted to give Eddie more room to stretch out. It was quiet in the house, and the floor lamp cast a soft light into the room, highlighting Eddie’s profile. Yup, Steve would definitely have drool on his shirt in the morning.
Nevertheless, Steve wished he had a camera with him to preserve this moment. He wanted to make sure he remembered this. He didn’t want to think about how he might do something stupid and send Eddie running, somehow. So, he held him tight and fell asleep wishing for pleasant dreams. This would do, for now.