Archive of Our Own ^beta

"Fab five freddy told me everybody’s fly. Dj’s spinning, i said, “My my.”” Steve steps out of his truck and takes his time locking the door. He’s parked in a loading zone for postmen but he’s a police officer, so it’s fine. “ Flash is fast ,” He pauses, pointing to his right. “Flash is cool .” He turns around, shoving his keys into his back pocket, “ François c'est pas, Flash ain't no dude.”

“You’re so late!”

Like, fifteen minutes later maybe. He kind of forgot he’d promised to come to the  record store’s grand opening and slept in a bit, but he’s here, on company time and all. He’s dressed for work, cop uniform, gun on his hip, singing Blondie to himself. Steve Harrington functions on Steve Harrington time. After last night he was in a coma, so if anything the trio should be happy he’s here at all. 

Nonetheless he ignores the comments made by the trio regarding how late he is, stomping out his cigarette as the three look on in pure frustration, “We ready to go in?” Steve asks, Lily replies, her tone annoyed, “We’ve been ready, Steve!”

“You should have seen the line up.The doors opened and everyone ran inside but we stayed and waited for you.” Alex explains, sounding just as irritated as Lily. Steve sighs, “Alright, alright. I’m sorry. I slept in, but i’m here now, right?”

With a sigh Lily rolls her eyes and turns away, leading the group to the store. As she pushes open the double doors the sound of garbage rock music fills Steve’s years followed by the smell of smoke. The place is cramped, littered in all kind of music paraphernalia from instruments to merchandise and obviously vinyls and cassettes. The layout is relatively simple, tables full of records line the purple left and right walls with shelves in the middle being covered in cassettes and other strange trinkets. The roof is crazy, band t-shirts line it, pinned to it, covering the entire thing like a collage. Steve notices a few bands, although a lot of them are completely unfamiliar to him. 

When he looks down again the kids are gone. His eyes dart around, looking between the crowds of people making their way through the store. It’s so busy, like, weirdly busy. There’s no way this many people want to buy records, right? 

He begins weaving through the crowd, trying his best not to knock into too many people as he does. There’s eyes on him, to no one’s surprise. The kind of people who shop at a store like this aren’t exactly fond of cops. He didn’t think about that. He doesn’t mind either, nor is he. 

Thankfully  he bumps into the kids again only seconds later, they hadn’t gone far. They were admiring a display by the window. The drum kit that had fallen down the day prior. It’s familiar to Steve in a weird way, but he can’t place why. He supposes all drum kits do kind of look alike, but this one’s been beaten to filth. Scratched, discolored, absolutely brutalized. It’s not exactly the sort of thing Steve would display if this were his store. But you know. What does Steve know. 

“I’m gonna bang it.” Alex states before attempting to climb over the little metal gate that had been put up to protect the drum kit. “No you’re not.” Steve says, grabbing Alex on the shoulder. He gives him the look , but it’s no use. Alex continues his attempt to reach over and slap one of the drums and so Steve has to act, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him away, “I said no.” 

Alex finally gives up on his dream of banging on the drum kit and instead decides to start and argument with Ben and Lily over something stupid. Steve didn’t even catch it, honestly. His attention is on something else. Behind them, hung from the side of one of the shelves is a piece of fabric covered in patches. All sorts of patches. Mostly rock bands, obviously, but Steve notices  a Queen one that catches his eye. 

Freddie Mercury passed away at the end of last year and it was very emotional for Steve. Queen has always, secretly been his favourite band so it was very hard to cope with. Death’s a crazy thing. To think a man Steve so strongly idolized simply doesn’t exist anymore. It’s rough. 

Steve debates buying the patch for a bit, running the idea back and forth in his head. He’s not really sure what he’d do with it, though. He doesn’t have anywhere to put it. 

He still has Eddie’s vest. Obviously. You’d have to pry that thing off of his cold, dead body… But he doesn’t wear it anymore. It just sits in a box under his bed collecting dust. Ever since Eddie left he felt it was wrong to wear the jacket; it was a symbol of their relationship, a relationship that no longer existed. To alter the thing? A crime. 

“Steve…” Ben violently jabs Steve in the side, snapping him out of his train of thought. It’s a gnarly habit of his, noticing Steve zone out and then attacking him to get his attention. “Yes, Ben?” Steve asks, sarcastic tone to his voice as he turns around to look down at the other. 

Ben points and turns to their left, Lily and Alex were arguing over a record, “We’re over here now. I didn’t want you to lose us.” Steve thanks Ben for informing him and follows him as he rejoins the group. It was a W.A.S.P record of all things, their self titled album. Lily turns to look at Steve, shoving the album in his face, “Do you like them?” Steve shrugs and shakes his head, “Not really my thing.” 

Alex shouts a quiet “Yes!” and Steve realizes they were arguing over whether he liked W.A.S.P or not. This wasn’t unusual to him as the group often bombard him with questions regarding his music taste only to bully him relentlessly when he answers. 

“And this?” Lily holds up a Twisted Sister record, tapping the cover. Now this is more like it. To the children’s dismay Steve breaks into song, “ We’re not gonna take it. No, we’re not gonna take it. We’re not gonna take it anymore. ”

“Shhh! ”  All three shush him at once, crippled with embarrassment. Steve just laughs at them, taking the record from Lily and gently placing it back, “I have listened to them. You just don’t get it, guys. I’m an Elton John guy, even a DEVO guy. Rock isn’t my thing.” 

As Steve says that Ben leans over the table, spotting a Goodbye Yellow Brick Road vinyl displayed on the wall behind it. Steve now notices how the albums are display, the less popular ones being on the table for people to sort through while the album toppers are displayed on the wall. 

“Hey, hey.” Steve  reaches over and grabs the album for Ben, handing it to him, “If you can’t reach something just ask me.” Steve’s real tired of these grubby little kids embarrassing him by touching everything, but the place is dim enough that no one seems to notice or care. 

“Gay.”

Excuse me? Ben showed Alex the album and Alex simply replied with “Gay.” Nothing more, nothing less. But the thing is… He wasn’t even looking at the album. He was looking at Steve, making direct eye contact with the guy. 

Steve stammers a bit before replying, “Me or Elton?”

“Who knows.” 

Terrifying. Genuinely. Lily takes over from Steve and proceeds to lecture Alex on why that was inappropriate while Steve attempts to collect his thoughts. It’s funny. He’s laughing. It took him off guard, is all. To be accused of being a homosexual on this fine Sunday morning. Crazy. 

Ben hands Steve the record back as he lays into Alex with every gay joke he can think of, accusing the boy multiple slanderous things that Steve quite frankly doesn’t want to hear. So, instead, he  turns around and walks deeper into the store, approaching a shelf full of new cassettes. Steve’s a cassette fan. Jonathan introduced him to them in ‘84 and he’s been hooked ever since. They’re great. Steve has a walkman and everything. 

Unfortunately Steve doesn’t manage to escape them entirely as it’s not long before the three are beside him once again, still arguing over some nonsense Steve simply doesn’t care about. They’re so loud too. He’s had enough. 

“Be quiet. You’re being rude.” 

He used his cop voice. A stern, deep voice that rattles the three to their very cores. He rarely uses it on them as he knows of it’s great power but, cearly, they’ve drawn a line. The three cease all conversation and quickly apologize, “It’s fine.” 

Don’t worry. It’s not long before they’re back to normal, Ben breaking the silence only to belittle Steve for his music preference, “You’re in a record store browsing cassettes. You’re sick in the head and need to be put down.” That’s a lot. Steve chuckles, albeit nervously as he places the cassette he’d been looking at down, “Trust me. The people who make the music you listen to don’t give a damn how you listen to it.” 

He does not trust Steve. 

Steve turns back around to the shelf of cassettes, hoping to go back to browsing through the store’s vast collection when Alex appears with a question, “What’s this?”

He’s holding the craziest thing Steve’s ever seen in his life. A plush bat whose head is attached with a magnet. It’s gruesome. “Uh. Bat.” Steve blurts out, Alex quickly replying, “No shit. But why?”

“Ozzy Osbourne bit the head off of a live bat on stage once. Like, twenty years ago or something. “ 

“Your dog?” Lily asks. 

“Obviously not. The guy from Black Sabbath.” Steve gives up on his dream of browsing through the cassettes, turning away from the bookshelf to face the three. Thankfully Ben has a question to ask as well, “If you saw him do that on stage would you have to arrest him?” 

Steve doesn’t hesitate, “Yes.” 

The kids are distraught, throwing themselves around like they’re in agonizing pain, “No way. You’re such a snitch.” Alex begins, Lily continues, “What a loser!” 

He expected this reaction from them but it doesn’t make it hurt any less. Steve Harrington is no snitch, damn it. He places his hands on his hips as he watches the kids carrying on, apologizing to a woman as she walks past. So embarrassing. 

“Where’d you get that from, anyway?” Steve asks. Alex guides him towards a display on the opposite side of the store. There’s a bunch of stuff on a shelf near the counter, mostly vinyls along with other significant pieces of merchandise. 

He scans the albums before him, landing on a Black Sabbath one in particular. Paranoid. Without hesitation he picks it up, admiring the cover art before flipping it over to read the tracklist. He hasn’t willingly listened to a single song off of this album since Eddie left; he misses them. He’s just not sure if he can stand it yet. 

Alex peaks over Steve’s shoulder, reading the tracklist as well before asking, “What’s your favourite song?” It takes Steve a moment to respond, thinking it through- but the answer is obvious. “Planet Caravan.” How could it be anything else? 

He remembers discovering the song after the Black Sabbath concert and playing it for Eddie that time he picked him up. He remembers laying on the roof of Eddie’s old van, watching a meteorshower, the song playing in the background. He remembers being in love. 

It was the first time he realized he loved Eddie. That he had feelings for him. It was strange, scary, different. It was love in its purest form. Something Steve doubts he’ll ever feel again. Not that he even deserves to. 

Steve places the album back on the shelf and scans through the others. Banger after banger, classic after classic, as if Steve were going through the collection of album’s Eddie left behind when he left. There were a few new faces, though. Bands he’s never heard of, probably because they’re foreign. Names in lots of strange European languages. 

His eyes eventually land on the Corroded Coffin album in the center of the display. He hasn’t actually sat down and listened to any of their music before. There’s a lot of reasons why but undoubtedly is the bitter feeling Eddie chose the band over him. Of course he did. He should have. He made the right decision by all means but that doesn’t make it hurt any less. 

He picks the album up and observes the cover. It’s called ‘Radio Silence.’ Steve has no idea when the album was released, could have been their first or last, he has no clue. The cover is interesting. It’s the three boys facing away from the camera, standing beside one another. Eddie seems to have his arms crossed, Gareth’s arm is on his shoulder and Jeff’s holding his bass. He turns it over to read the tracklist and is surprised, the picture flips as well and now the boys are facing the front in the same way. 

Eddie looks good. Like, so good. His hair is the same but his clothes are nicer, he’s also got a few more tattoos on his arms. Steve’s kind of stunned, eyes ogling at Eddie, unashamedly. He tries to read the tracklist multiple times but his eyes always seem to drift back to Eddie. 

“JFK, past future and do or die.”

“What?”

“Those are my favourite songs.” Lily says, pointing them out on the album. “JFK is my all time favourite. The first half of the song describes this perfect guy. He’s handsome, smart, charming, gets all the girls but then the second half of the song is all about how he’s sad and lonely.”

Steve reacts with a quiet “Hm,” placing the album back on the shelf. He kind of wants to buy it to listen to the song, curiosity is eating him alive, but at the same time he’s not ready to face the downward spiral that could possibly send him on. Ben chimes in, “So. You were friends with Corroded Coffin in highschool… and you don’t know anything about their music? You are the worst person i’ve ever met. Seriously.” 

He doesn’t really have an excuse to give Ben. He’s avoided them like the plague in order to protect his feelings. Seeing Eddie succeed and move on in the way he has will always upset Steve, because at the end of the day he misses him. He misses him more than words can describe. He still hasn’t accepted the fact its over, he longs for the day when Eddie returns but deep down he’s sure that’ll never happen. Eddie’s a rockstar living in London surrounded by better looking, cooler people. Steve’s sure he hasn’t even thought about  him in years. 

Steve just kind of shrugs, hand still on the album as he turns to face Ben, “I never said i was a good friend.” Ben drops it after that, walking over to meet Alex and Lily who’re looking at a different display. Steve’s not done here, though. 

He wonders why this collection of albums and memorabilia are separated in particular.  As he scans the stand he notices a sign above it and decides  to step back in order to read it. “ E’s picks. ” 

“Huh.” Steve says, out loud, to himself. Who the hell is E?

As if summoned, a hand is placed on Steve’s shoulder, “Hey.” Steve spins, assuming it’d be a friend, a colleague, a familiar face. He’s not entirely wrong. The face is familiar. 

Eddie stands before Steve in all of his rockstar glory. The first thing Steve notices is the hair- just as long as it’s always been but styled a little different. It’s wavy instead of crunchy, it looks soft to the touch. He’s wearing this tiny little tshirt and these low cut, tight leather pants, a tattoo on his hip bone poking out just above them. Steve’s paralized on the spot, unable to find the words… Until he does. 

“Eddie…?”

He saw Steve for the first time in years yesterday. Initially he didn’t recognize him, the facial hair, glasses and uniform throwing him off at first but there was no denying it-– that was his Steve. In typical Steve fashion he was chatting to a small group of loud kids, which is what initially caught Eddie’s attention as he was only meters away, inside his store. 

He was standing in the blacked out window display, arranging Gareth’s old drum kit and the particular way he’d have it if he were playing it, a minor detail no one other than Eddie would bother with when he overheard the talking. Peeking through a small gap in the curtains Eddie spots Steve, in all of his Harrington glory, gun on his hip, cigarette to his lips. The sight took Eddie’s breath away.

Eddie listened in on the conversation, watching Steve in awe. Stifling laughter at Eddie’s stupid jokes,  smiling when the other did. Then, CC is mentioned and Steve’s face drops. So does Eddies. The reaction snapped Eddie back into reality, a reality where he and Steve were complete strangers, strangers with bad blood. Their last day together plays over and over in Eddie’s head, thinking of all the things he should have said, the things he could have done to prevent what had happened. 

He stumbles back, head spinning and crashes into the drum kit, knocking the thing down. He hears Steve run towards the window and quickly drops, ducking behind a decorative amp, hiding from the other. He can see Steve’s eyes face in the gap in the curtains, watching as the other’s eyes scan the room. 

“All clear.”

The following day Eddie made it his mission to speak to Steve. He was sure he heard those kids ask Steve to come with them to the grand opening; He’ll be here. 

And he was. 

As soon as Eddie’s eyes landed on Steve he froze up. Unable to move, think, to act. He’d spent the night prior planning how he was going to greet the other at the door with a smile, but in the moment… He simply couldn’t. Instead he followed the other around the store, hiding in the crowd, watching. Listening. 

Eventually the kids parted ways with Steve and left Eddie a big enough gap to approach, which he did. Hand on Steve’s shoulder, heart racing, adrenalin speeding through his veins. 

“What, you don’t recognize me or something?” Eddie jokes, smiling, although on the inside he’s completely freaking the fuck out. Steve replies in a similar way, a smile forced on his features to match Eddie’s, “Oh, no. I just wasn’t expecting to see you here.” 

The two stand there in silence for a moment, looking for things to say. How do you casually speak with someone you’ve mourned for five years? How do you hold a conversation with someone you  feel so strongly towards? Where to begin? What can you say?

All of these emotions are bubbling in the two. There’s so much to say. So much to feel. Anger, frustration, sadness, heartbreak… But also this longing. This need. This want. A clusterfuck of emotions brewing like a storm in the pits of their stomachs, overwhelming Steve who can’t handle the slightest inconvenience on the best of days. 

“Um. I was about to go, so…” Steve begins, Eddie quickly nodding, “Oh, yeah. Sorry. No worries.” 

Steve nods and backs up, “It was good to see you, though.” He comments, voice cracking. Eddie replies, quietly, “Yeah. You too.” Steve turns around, about to depart when Eddie quickly stops him, “Wait,” grabbing him by the shoulder again, “This is for you.” 

Eddie hands Steve the Corroded Coffin album he’d been looking at earlier, along with the queen patch. “No, i couldn’t-” He begins, only for  Eddie to cut him off, “You can.” He then repeats himself while Steve stammers over his words, “You definitely can.” 

—

Before Steve knows it he’s driving again. He’s not sure where he’s going, he just needs to get away. Tears well in his eyes, his bottom lip shaking as he holds back sobs. He can’t handle this. This is too much. 

Eddie looked so fucking happy. Speaking to him as if nothing happened. Was that it, then? Was Steve the idiot? Did nothing happen? He feels so stupid, embarrassed by the way he feels. He wishes he didn’t have to feel anything at all. 

Suddenly he’s parked in Robin’s driveway, legs barely able to carry him as he makes his way to her front door. He knocks once, no answer. Again, nothing. 

“Robin?” He calls out, continuing to knock. Still nothing. Those silent tears turn into sobs as he slams on Robin’s door, calling out for his best friend, “Robin! I need you… Please tell me you’re home!” He shouts, voice cracking, unable to keep himself together long enough to get a sentence out, “Please…” 

Steve drops to his knees, just a pile of police uniform on the floor, crying into his lap. Robin opens her front door soon after, mortified. She doesn't ask questions, she doesn’t say a word, she just helps Steve find his feet and guides him inside to her couch. 

This isn’t new for her. She’s seen him in this state once before; she only hopes whatever triggered this isn’t the same as the incident. They don’t say anything for a while, Robin just sits next to Steve, running a hand through his hair in an attempt to calm him down. 

Steve’s like a cup, full to the brim with stress, anxiety, sadness, trauma. He’s managing to contain it all and continue to function, maybe spilling over a little bit every now and then but it’s manageable with substance abuse. Then, something traumatic happens. The incident. Now this. It overflows. 

She’s aware Steve suffers from panic attacks, he’s briefly mentioned it to her before but always assures her he’s getting better. She’s not stupid. She’s a licensed therapist and Steve is  her best friend. She knows Steve hasn’t been getting better, she’s been watching him spiral. All she wants is to help but it’s out of her hands- he won’t listen to her, or anyone for that matter. 

“What happened, Steve?”

It’s embarrassing. It’s embarrassing to admit that, despite being a full grown man, running into his ex who’s not even really his ex triggered all of this. He tries to justify his feelings in his mind but right now he can think of nothing. Not a single excuse. ‘Cause if everyone else can handle everything they’ve been through, why can’t he?

“Eddie’s back.”

Robin is shocked. Stunned. Mouth agape as she looks over at Steve, blinking a bit, unable to register what the other had just said. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think Eddie Munson would return to Hawkins, he was the last thing on her mind right now.

“He owns the new record store on Main Street. Don’t know how, don’t know why. I don’t know anything other than that.” 

She doesn’t blame Eddie for never wanting to return either. After everything this town put him through, if she were in his position she’d never turn back either— but she would have left on better terms, considering his relationship with Steve. That’s why his return makes no sense. A record store? The man is a millionaire, why would he want to open a record store in Hawkins? 

“Did you speak with him at all?” She asks, leaning back on the couch, head on her knee as she waits for Steve’s reply. “Yes. Kind of. He just… walked up to me, tapped me on the shoulder and said ‘Hey.’ Like nothing happened. He gave me one of his albums and i left.”

Robin speaks before she thinks, “Does he look good?”

At first Steve looks offended by the question, shocked she’d ask such a thing when he’d only just stopped crying. Then her face drops, shocked by what she’d just said and he laughs. “You know what? He really does. His hair is all… soft and wavy now, you know, and he’s wearing the sluttiest outfit i’ve ever seen on a guy in my life.”

The pair break into a fit of laughter, Robin covering her face and throwing her head back. Steve leaning forward, hand on his chest, “He’s got these…” He’s speaking between fits of laughter, “Leather pants, tight as fuck, low enough you can see his hip bones with his tiny little shirt.” Steve wipes away a tear, throwing himself back now, “He looks like Courtney Love or some shit. Honestly!” 

Steve sighs as he calms down from the laughing, Robin shaking her head at him. She’s glad he’s feeling himself again, she was really worried for a second there. She leans over and wipes a tear from under his eye, Steve sitting there kind of embarrassed by the whole thing. 

“Do you think Dustin knows?” 

Steve hadn’t even thought about Dustin or Mike, whether they knew he was back or how they’d feel about that.  He’s sure they don’t know, Mike’s an asshole but he would have told him if he were back in town by now and there’s no way Dustin would keep something like that from him, “No, they don’t. I’ll find them later and tell them after my shift.”

“Okay. Good.” Robin replies, “You’re doing good, Steve. I know… I know how hard this is going to be but i’m here for you. So is everyone else. You can tell me anything, alright?” She’s looking at him with such a genuine, concerned look that crushes Steve. “I have. I will.” 

They sit and talk for a little while. They’d barely spoken at the Wheeler’s place the previous night so  they had a little catching up to do. They discussed everything; Dustin and Suzie’s relationship, Robin and Jonathan’s,  how excited Max will be when Lucus gets back.. Steve attempts to pry a bit into her and Nancy’s relationship, curious as to why the pair disappeared the night prior, but Robin refused to budge, “Nothing, Steve! Nothing!”

Eventually Steve realizes he’s been sitting in Robin’s living room for over an hour on company time, “Time to skedaddle, i think.” Gag worthy. Robin rolls her eyes, leaning back into the couch, “You’re such a loser. “ Steve smiles at the comment,  stretching a bit before heading towards the door. “Take Ozzy with you!” 

—

Steve holds his passenger door open for Ozzy who eagerly jumps before climbing into the truck himself. Finally, he was actually going to go do his job. He calls in on the radio and asks if he’s needed anywhere only to be told to head to Main Street and patrol- the same thing as the day prior. 

He’s not surprised by this; Main Street is his usual spot during school break, someone has to control the ‘wild’ vacationers, breaking public nudity laws by walking around in their swimwear. It’s perfect for him. He gets to wander around talking to locals and tourists alike, maybe confront a few rambunctious teenagers on an especially rowdy day. 

Steve used to spend his summers patrolling the Tippecanoe River Tourist Park, keeping an eye on all the rowdy visitors, making sure they were abiding by the law and keeping the park clean. It was great, he’d spend all day in the sun, talking to new people, sleeping with the many girls visiting on vacation. That was until the incident. Ever since then Main Street has been his haunt. 

“Come on, boy.” Steve  climbs out of his truck, holding the door open for Ozzy to follow. He starts at Bradley’s Big buy, popping in to say hello to Joyce. They chat for a little bit, sharing their excitement for the summer, how they’re so glad that everyones back in town. She’s a big fan of Ozzy, giving him a good pat. The dog couldn’t care less, sitting by Steve’s feet, panting. 

Then  they’re off again, walking down the street. Steve stops at every other store, chatting with whoever’s working, catching up. They all greet him with a smile. “Good day Officer Harrington,” “Nice to see you, Officer Harrington,” “How have you been, Officer Harrington?” That sort of thing. He’s beloved by the townspeople, viewed as a hero amongst many for his achievements during his short time in the police force. Steve doesn't think about it much. 

As he and Ozzy make their way to Family Video,  they run into Dustin and Will of all people, “Funny seeing you two here.” He quips, hands on his hips. Will all but ignores Steve, dropping to his knees to give Ozzy a quick pat and a hug. “Stopping by to see Mike and Max?” Dustin asks, Steve nodding, “You betcha.”

The three enter the store, Will holding the door open for Ozzy who reluctantly trots inside. Family Video never changes; there’s not much to say. Steve’s sure he could jump behind the counter right now and get to work with no issues as the system hasn’t been updated since the 70’s. 

“What are you guys doing here?”  Is the first thing Max says when she lays eyes on the group, pulling her headphones down as she does.  Will’s the first to respond, skipping over to the counter, “Good to see you too. Jeez.” 

Mike exits from the back room, lollipop hanging from the corner of his mouth, wiping his hands on his shirt. He’s surprised to see everyone in the store, eyes widening as he takes the candy out of his mouth, “Hey guys.” The only thing on Steve’s mind right now is why are Mike’s hands wet and why didn’t he dry them on something that wasn’t his shirt. 

“Hey!” Dustin replies back, stepping away from the shelves, turning round to do a little handshake with Mike. “Mm. Yuck.” Max comments, arms folding over her chest. It’s clear to Steve that Will was thinking the same thing as the pair of them, physically recoiling. 

After a little bit of catching up Mike finally asks, “What’re you guys here  for anyway?” He’s addressing Will and Dustin, Steve’s always here. “We just wanted to know  when your shifts end,” Will starts, Dustin finishing his sentence for him, “We should hang out after.” Max quickly replies, “In an hour.” Leaving Mike nodding in agreement. 

“-I’m glad you’re all here.” Steve cuts off the conversation, he just wants to get the damn thing over with. The anticipation is killing him. “‘Cause i have something to tell you.” 

He’s being very dramatic about it which is irritating an already frustrated Max, “Okay?” Shesays, jutting her head forward, motioning for him to get on with it. “Eddie’s back.” 

Shock. Mike and Dustin’s faces display one emotion- pure shock. Eyebrows raising, eyes widening, mouths gaping. They turn towards one another, searching for something to say only to turn back to Steve and ask, “What!?”

Will reacts indifferently, he barely knew Eddie. They spoke a handful of times and played D&D twice. He does, however, know how much he meant to Mike, Dustin, Lucus and Steve and thus understands this is a big deal. Max? Max is just as shocked, but in a very different way to Dustin and Mike. She’s concerned. She was  by Steve’s side during his lowest moments after Eddie left, she saw the insane impact he had on him.  Right now he looks fine, but she doubts that's the truth. 

“He owns the new record store in town. I don’t know when he got back or why— I was there this morning with Ben, Lily and Alex and he was just like “Hey” and stuff. I dunno.” Steve’s trying to brush it off like it’s nothing but its very clearly not nothing to everyone else. “Why didn’t you tell us sooner!?” Dustin asks, hands on his head, pacing, Steve quickly replying, “I’m working, dude!” 

Steve’s gaze flashes between Dustin and Mike as they talk to one another, “Well we have to go and see him.” Dustin starts, Mike quickly replying, “Yeah. Like, right now. We can close early, right?” He looks at Max who just shrugs, “I guess.” Will’s there too, “We can take Steve’s truck.”

—

Next thing Steve knows he’s crammed in his truck, Max in his passenger seat, Ozzy between them, the boys in the back. The last thing he thought he’d be doing today is driving back to that Record store but alas, he is. 

It’s at the opposite end of the street, two minute journey give or take. During that time Max manages to notice the Corroded Coffin and  Queen patch he haphazardly threw onto his dash hours earlier. They share a look and nothing more, they’ll talk about it later. Maybe. 

As they approach the store he can’t believe his eyes. It’s closed. He pulls up right by the front door, squinting to fight off the glare, unsure if he’s seeing things. He’s not. “Closed already?” Max asks, Dustin replying, peeking out the back window, “No way. It’s only 3pm.”

Mike ends up climbing out of the back of the car and running up to the front door to check. It’s a no go. He quickly jogs back, shaking his head, “Nope. There’s a sign on the door saying he had to leave early.” 

“Weird.” Steve remarks, Mike agreeing “Weird.” 

“Where could he be now, then?” Will asks as Mike climbs back into the truck, taking a seat next to him. “I don’t know.” Steve replies-  not entirely being truthful. He could be at Uncle Wayne’s house for a start but Steve’s in no mood to chase him down. “What about….” Dustin starts, stroking his chin as he thinks, “Hm.” 

It’s been so long since they’ve seen him and so much has changed. Back in the day they knew he’d either be at Jeff’s or his trailer, but now? Who’s to say. For all they know he could have left the country and flown back to the UK. 

Fearing they actually think of a good idea, Steve decides to speak up, “Well, he’ll be back in store tomorrow, right? How about i drop you all home and we visit him in the morning?” Of course there’s protest, especially from Dustin who’s dying to see him. Steve gets it, he does, but he just can’t… 

“Good idea.” Max says, speaking over the three boys in the back. “Tomorrow. We were going to hang out this afternoon anyway, I don’t want to spend that time chasing after him. He knows where to find us.” Good point Max, good point. The boys reluctantly agree, Dustin being very bitter about the whole thing but he’s a good sport. 

“Where to now?” 

He never thought he’d be playing taxi for his kids again. First he drops Dustin, Will and Mike off at Mike’s house, Mike wanting to get changed before they hang out. They plan to use Mrs Wheelers car after that, Steve often forgets they’re all old enough to drive now. It’s so strange. 

Then he drives back to the trailer park to drop Max off. They’re gonna head down to the river afterwards so she’ll just get changed and meet them there since it’s only a quick walk from where she lives. 

As he pulls up to her trailer he looks over at his own- There’s a car parked out the front. At first he assumes its Jonathan again, but as he looks  closer he realizes the car is way nicer than anything Jonathan drives. He quickly turns back to Max as she jumps out of the truck and says, “Thanks, by the way.” 

“For what?” She’s questioning him but she knows exactly what he’s talking about, she just wants to hear him say it. “For, you know-” He gestures wildly with his arms, she’s not budging. He sighs. “For helping me get rid of Dustin, Will and Mike. I’m just not…”

Max leans closer in, “I get it. I don’t understand why they don’t.” Steve begins to defend them but is swiftly cut off, “They’re just stupid. I get it. They need to be told things… Take care of yourself Steve. Please. Smash that stupid record over his head if you need to. Say it was self  defense.” She jokes, stepping back away from the truck now and closing the door, “See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah. Probably.” Steve replies, waving her goodbye as she steps inside her trailer. Max is the best. He  thinks about how he needs to hang out with her more, it seems like the only time they really get to be alone is when something extremely traumatic is happening. It’s a shame. 

Steve now turns his attention back to the mysterious car sitting at his trailer. It’s a puke-green Pantera, and a nice one at that. Steve’s first thought is some privileged dickhead from the city has decided to use the front of his trailer as a parking spot, given most of his neighboring trailers were rentals for the summer. 

He pulls up beside it and hops out, holding the door open for Ozzy who jumps out and promptly… Runs away, behind the trailer. “Ozzy- Fucking dog.” Steve mutters, slamming the truck door’s shut before approaching his porch. There doesn’t seem to be anyone around, especially not the kind of person who’d drive a Pantera. What kind of loser would drive a fucking Pantera?

“Ouch, ouch, I’m coming. No, that’s my leg-” Steve can’t believe his eyes. Ozzy has Eddie by the pant leg, dragging him between the two parked cars. God, he fucking loves that dog.

 “Ozzy. Off.”  Ozzy lets go of Steve as soon as he asks and trots off to sit by his feet, panting. Steve can’t believe his eyes, but at least now the mystery of the hideous Pantera has been solved, “What are you doing here?”

His tone is harsh, sure. But he’s genuinely shocked. The last person he expected to see was Eddie, he thought he’d officially dodged him for the day and yet here he is. He looks fucking stupid, too, rubbing his foreharm, awkwardly looking up at Steve who’s looking back at him completely baffled. 

“Wayne told me you lived here.” He says, rocking on the spot as he does. Steve doesn’t reply, he doesn’t need to, the ball is in Eddie’s park right now, “We need to speak.” 

Steve pauses for a moment, sliding his glasses off and hanging them from his front pocket. The suspense is killing the pair of them, but at this point Steve really doesn’t care, “I don’t think we do.” 

Not the answer Eddie was hoping for, like, at all. He steps forward, ready to beg, “Please.” 

Whether Steve likes it or not he has no power over Eddie. He can’t control himself around him. He’d love to stand his ground and tell the other to ‘fuck off’ but every atom in his body wants to do the opposite. Without a word he steps aside and unlocks his front door, holding it open for the other, “In.” 

Eddie does as he’s told and steps inside. Steve gives Eddie a moment to take everything in, this is the first time he’s seen the inside of the trailer in five years and obviously a lot has changed. Steve quite literally gutted the place and built it from the ground up, it’s unrecognizable. 

Eddie scans the place, spinning around in the living room as he takes everything in. Not a word is shared between them, Steve moving over into the kitchen to grab himself a beer- lord knows he’ll need it. 

“The place looks amazing, Steve.” Eddie finally mumbles, looking back over at the other who’s leaning over his counter, elbows resting on it, beer in his hand. “Yeah. Took me six months all together but i was busy with other things. I dunno how long it would have taken me if i had time.” 

Eddie walks over, pulling out a stool from the counter and taking a seat on it. Steve finds something about the gesture unimaginably irritating, make yourself at home why don’t you, you asshole. 

“So.” Steve begins, gesturing for Eddie to speak, “You said we needed to talk. Talk.” 

Steve’s reaction to his presence  doesn’t come as a surprise to him.  Uncle Wayne had warned him prior to coming home, so had Gareth but… It still hurts to see. He thinks he deserves it; he’s not stupid. He knows exactly what he did  and why Steve feels such  a way, but coming face-to-face with it… It’s different. He’s also still hurting, too. A part of him feels frustrated with the fact Steve still views himself as a victim, given he didn’t want a relationship in the first place. 

“How are you?” Starting off strong; Steve hates it.  The last thing Steve needs is to hold a silly little conversation when there’s so much real shit to be said. “I’m fine.” He quickly replies in an attempt to shut the whole thing down but, of course, it doesn’t work. “I mean, really, Steve. How have you been?”

He exhales, throwing himself back to lean on the counter behind him, arms crossing over his chest as he looks down at Eddie. He doesn’t want to open up, he won’t allow himself to be vulnerable in front of Eddie. Never again. “I’ve been fine, Eddie. What the fuck do you want me to say to you? Tell you everything that’s gone since you left?” He starts, Eddie tries to respond but just stammers over his words so Steve continues, “It’s been five years. Would you like me to sit here and describe everything thats happened during that time? Would that suffice?” 

“That’s not what i meant, Harrington.” Eddie finally blurts out, attempting to shut down the rant before it takes off, “I just…” He trails off, “You just what?” He’s taking no prisoners. Steve’s on the defensive, ready to attack if need be. He needs to preserve himself. 

“I’ve missed you.” 

Wow. Wow. The gall. Steve can’t believe what he’s hearing, throwing his hands up in the air as if to surrender, “I can’t believe it. I can’t.” He starts pacing back and forth in the kitchen, shaking his head, “I can’t believe you.” “Steve, please.” Eddie begins, intertwined as if he were begging, “I’m not trying to fight. I just want to talk.”

“You’ve had years to talk.” Steve says, quickly turning around to face Eddie who’s hunched over the counter now, leaning closer to the other, physically and audibly pleading. “I don’t want to hear it. I don’t care for it at all. You seriously think you can come back after five years and pretend like everything is peachie? Like… Like you didn’t run off to become some fuckin’... rockstar and just leave me here?” 

Eddie’s shaking his head, “It’s not like that. It wasn’t like that and you know that.”  Steve just pauses, hands on his hips, he’s doing a lot. He’s overcompensating because he’s a nudge away from crying, “You don’t know what i know. You literally don’t know me at all anymore.” 

That's the truth that hurts the most. For both of them. Steve actually believes its a one way street, that Eddie knows every detail about his life because he has people like Gareth and Wayne reporting back to him. That fact is  one of the many things that keeps him up at night- the fact he doesn’t know Eddie anymore. He’s a stranger. 

The feeling is sickly. It turns Steve’s stomach. Who knows what Eddie has done during the past five years. Steve has no clue. He has no idea of the people he’s met and fucked, the food he’s eaten, places he’s been, music he’s heard. He knows nothing. In fact, Steve knows less about Eddie than the average stranger. He has avoided all information like the plague this whole time. The man standing before him is a complete stranger. 

What he doesn’t realize is that it’s much the same for Eddie, but for different reasons. People have refused to tell him anything about Steve for years, assuring him he’s better off not knowing, that the other is doing fine and well and thats all he needs to know. It’s been a conflict in he and Gareth’s relationship for a while- Gareth would intentionally withhold information about Steve as to not ‘upset’ him. Well he’s pretty fucking upset. 

He’s been upset the whole time. From his first day in San Francisco to now. There’s not been a moment where he’s not thought about Steve and what he’s been up to. Nothing, and he means nothing, has distracted Eddie from his thoughts about Steve. Steve’s always been there. He was there during their first proper recording sessions in a studio, to their first stadium concerts, Steve was there when Eddie moved to England, there for every line Eddie snorted and pill he popped. Drugs, alcohol, groupies. Steve was there. 

Now he stands before him, a stranger. Eddie’s not sure how he’s going to rekindle the relationship they once had— he doesn't know if he even can but one things for certain; he’s going to try. 

“I know.” Eddie states, quietly, barely loud enough for Steve to hear, but he does. Then he repeats himself a little louder, “I know.” 

Steve stays silent, willing to give Eddie a chance. If anything he’s curious to hear his perspective. “I knew i fucked up. I knew that shit before i even left. I just couldn’t…  I didn’t know what to do. Or maybe i did, i don’t know I- I loved you, obviously, and i never doubted you but i couldn’t live like this. I was in a rut. I sort of thought if i put off telling you about the band, i’d think of something or something would change so we didn’t have to leave or  i could take you with me. But it came too fast.”  Even during a serious conversation like this, Eddie almost laughs at his accidentally cum joke. 

“I can’t change what I did. I can’t, you know, take away those four- five years. No matter how bad i want to and trust me, i do… If anything i wish i could just ignore it, i wish we could carry on like nothing ever happened.  I know we can’t. I gotta face my demons. Head forth into Mordor.” Steve playfully rolls his eyes at the Lord of The Rings reference, maybe even smiling a bit. 

Steve’s spent the past five years planning out what he’d say to Eddie if he ever saw him again, replaying the scenario in his head over and over again whenever he gets the chance. Now’s his chance. Despite what he fantasized, he’s lost for words. The culmination of emotions sugaring through his body has rendered him dumbfounded. Despite this, he replies, “You ruined my life. You took it from me.” 

That wasn’t the reply Eddie was expecting, it clearly taking him by surprise judging by his reaction, “I didn’t know what to do with myself. You were gone, Robin was leaving, everyone else was moving on and getting along with it and i was just… stagnant. I had nothing. “ He’s keeping it together all things considered, but tears are welling in his eyes, a few spill over and glide down his cheeks. 

“After a while people started to notice which was worse. They’d ask me if i was okay- i wasn’t, but how could i tell them that? How could i explain to them that after all i’ve been through, fighting alien demon monsters and soviet spies, it was you that pushed me over the edge? Or worse, the actual truth,  that i did it to myself? ‘Cause i’m not a complete asshole, Eddie…” 

This was another twist Eddie wasn’t expecting, Steve’s really playing with his heart strings right now, “I know i fucked up. I was just scared. You were right, too. I was more scared of being gay than fighting alien demons alongside a little girl with super powers— that’s the actual truth. “

Silence fills the room. Steve’s unable to look Eddie in the eye as the other gazes off, thumb rubbing over his bottom lip as he thinks.  Steve steps back, turning away to wipe the tears from his eyes, trying to collect himself again; the silence is killing him. 

Suddenly Eddie speaks, “Let’s try again.” 

“What?”

Eddie doesn’t reply, instead turning around and exiting the trailer. Steve’s perplexed by this and begins to follow him, slowly walking around the counter, peering out the window to see if he can spot Eddie getting in his car, which he does. Steve watches as Eddie climbs back into his car, sits there for five seconds and then gets out again.

He then proceeds to walk up the stairs of his porch, say hi to Ozzy who’s entirely disinterested and knocks on the door. Steve quickly opens it, shocked to see a smiling Eddie standing before him, “Hi.” Eddie holds out his hand, “My name is Eddie Munson.” 

Steve takes his hand and shakes it, “I’m Steve Harrington.”  He can’t help by smile, finding the whole thing so goofy. “Steve? Just Steve? You’re not secretly a Stephen?”  Eddie asks, Steve shaking his head, “Just Steve. What about you, are you secretly an Edward?” 

“Nope, an Edmund, actually.” Eddie says,  leaving Steve stunned, he can’t tell if the other’s being serious or not. “I’m not lying.  Look,” He pulls his wallet out of his pocket and shows Steve his license, ‘Edmund Lee Munson.’ Steve quietly chuckles, “Fair enough.” 

There’s a pause as Eddie shoves his wallet back into his leather pants, Steve’s just taking the whole thing in, his heart’s racing. “Uh..” Eddie begins, “Can i come in?” Steve’s eyes widen and he steps aside, “Of course, of course. “

He takes a moment to look around again as if it were his first time looking at the inside of the trailer, hands on his hips, “Nice place you have here, Officer Harrington.”  Steve  nods, slowly closing the door , “Thank you, Mr Munson” 

If Steve’s gonna do anything, he’s going to play along. Eddie takes a seat on the sofa, Steve finding his place on the armchair across from it. Eddie’s the first to speak, “So, how have you been? Busy?” Steve thinks for a moment before responding, “Yes, actually. All of my friends are in town for the summer along with hundreds of tourists. I don’t know what’s worse anymore, Summer or Christmas. And you? ” 

Eddie laughs at the comment the same way you’d laugh at a stranger’s joke in a store checkout line, “Oh, i see. Who would have thought Hawkins would become a holiday trap?” Steve shrugs in response, Eddie continuing, “For the first time in five years ive actually not been busy. I actually have free time.  Time do to what i want.” 

“And what do you want to do?”

He pauses, looking up at the ceiling, stroking his chin as he thinks of a reply- He doesn’t have to, though. He knows exactly what he wants to say, “Catch up with an old friend. I haven’t seen him in five years. I miss him so much. That’s the only thing on my mind at the moment which is fine with me.” Steve rubs the back of his neck, he can’t help but smile at that. “Really? Some guy is the only thing on THE Eddie Munson’s mind?” 

“Yeah, pretty much. Money is fun and all, but you quickly realize there’s some truth to that whole ‘money can’t buy you happiness’ thing. ‘Cause i could be doped up out of my mind sitting in my million dollar flat in London with a groupie on my lap and the only thing i’m worried about is ‘some guy.’ Wondering how he’s doing, who he’s seeing, if he’s thinking about me.” 

Steve doesn’t have a response to that, he’s going through it, actually. Although the sentiment is heartwarming, a pang of jealousy plays in the back of his mind, the idea that someone other than he has slept with Eddie upsets him greatly. He’s not delusional, he’s more than aware that that would be the case, but being told… It irks him. Those feelings subside as soon as they arrive, though, as he looks over to Eddie who’s fidgeting with his hair, the same way he used to. 

“Get up,” Steve says, standing, walking over to the other. Eddie looks confused at first, even a bit worried, but his expression quickly changes as Steve opens his arms for a hug. Eddie basically runs into Steve’s arms, wrapping his arms around Steve’s abdomen as Steve wraps his around his neck, pulling him in. “I missed you, man.” Eddie says, Steve replying, “I missed you too.” 

Everything has changed but Eddie is the same— he smells the same, sounds the same, acts the same. It’s almost like he never left. 

Eddie pulls away from the hug first, only to cup Steve’s face, pressing their foreheads against one another. He says, “I like the stache, by the way.” Steve gently chuckles before replying, “Really?” There’s a pause— “No.” 

There’s still tension. No amount of sweet words and apologies will be enough for either of them to disregard what happened five years ago and everything that’s happened since. This isn’t them making up— rather them settling an argument that could have gone sour, fast. As Steve steps back, he can’t help but feel the same conflict of emotions he’d been feeling ever since first seeing Eddie and by all means Eddie feels the same way. 

It’s heartbreaking to think things may very well never be the same. They can’t be— they’re entirely new people who’ve lived lives apart. Steve’s scared for the future now, scared to see where this will go. Eddie’s hopeful, he’ll try his damned best to win Steve back. He’s the only th

ing he wants. 

Its painfully awkward after that; neither really know what to do with themselves. There’s more awful small talk, although it’s far less hostile now, “So… Why’s the band on hiatus?” The question has been eating Steve alive for the past few days, he’s glad he’ll finally get an answer to it. 

They’re sitting on the couch, facing one another. Eddie’s chewing on a toothpick, Steve’s sipping on a beer, “Eh. We needed a break from one another.” That was probably the most boring answer Steve could have expected, “I never could have guessed. What about the record store, then?” Eddie sits forward, elbows on his knees, “Just thought it’d be fun. What about you? A cop? Seriously?”

Steve laughs, sinking into the couch with his arms folded over his chest, “Hopper offered me a job, i wasn’t gonna say no. I was homeless for a bit there, after Robin left. Sleeping on Max’s couch.”  The news of that didn’t sit well of Eddie who had no idea, “Why not stay with Wayne, then?” 

“Oh, he asked. All the time.” Steve continues, “But he refused to sleep in your old room and i obviously didn’t want to go in there either.” A simple shrug, “Nor did i want to take advantage of him. He was lonely.” 

They talk for a little while longer but the conversation inevitably dies down. Neither are wiling to over speak, to share too much information about the time that has passed or pry into the other’s history. They’re both scared to know the truth. Eventually Eddie announces his departure as the sun is setting, informing Steve he’d promised Wayne he’d have dinner with him. 

Steve walks Eddie to the door, Eddie having to step over Ozzy to exit, “See you tomorrow, probably.” Steve says, Eddie replying, “Oh yeah?” “Mhm. Dustin, Will and Mike  miss you. We’ll be there first thing.” 

“I missed my boy-” Eddie begins, Steve cutting him off, “Our boys.” Eddie quickly corrects himself, “Right. I missed our boys.” 

On a whim, Eddie leans over, placing a hand on Steve’s  right arm and presses a kiss to his cheek, “See you tomorrow.” Steve’s only left stunned as Eddie pats Ozzy on the head before dashing off to his car. Steve hates him.

Waving Eddie goodbye, Steve decides he’s going to spend the rest of the evening inside, maybe even make himself some real food for dinner. He really needs time to process everything; Today has been hectic. 

He steps back inside, Ozzy following behind. He decides he’ll get dressed into something more comfortable before doing anything else– he hates wearing outside clothes in his house. He heads to the bedroom and does just that, sweatpants and a shirt, slippers on his feet. Midway getting dressed he debates taking a shower but eventually decides against it, he’s too lazy. 

He then quickly gets to work making himself dinner. A burger to beat all burgers. Local pickles,  fancy tomatoes thinly cut, fancy lettuce, a patty seasoned and formed by himself- his own, signature sauce. The only thing bought is the buns because lord knows this man cannot make bread. He’s very particular about it, stacking the burger in the perfect order. There’s lettuce, tomato, onion, a fried egg, a piece of bacon…  He tops it off with a little secret Argyle introduced him to a few years ago- a piece of pineapple, fried. 

Satisfied with his creation he takes a seat on his couch, dragging a little table over for him to use. He flips through  all of the tv channels, he can’t eat until he finds the perfect thing to watch. After a struggle it eventually flips to the first ghostbusters movie… This’ll do. 

He devours the burger in five minutes. There’s no pacing yourself when something this delicious is in front of you; he has no regrets. He quickly gets up while an ad break runs and pops his empty plate in the sink  before washing his hands. He returns with food for Ozzy- a bowl of kibble with a raw, unseasoned hamburger patty on top. What, you thought he’d leave his favourite little guy out?

As he bends over to place the bowl on the ground he swears he spots something move by his bedroom door in the corner of his eye. Shrugging it off, he places the bowl down and heads back to the couch. It’s dark and the television is bright, he assumes he was just startled by his own shadow. 

Falling back on the couch, his attention is quickly taken by the film. They’re at the library, this was his favourite scene when it came out. When did it come out, again? 1980… 3? No, 4. It must have been  4. He’d just broken up with Nancy around that time, he saw it with a random girl in his English class. Mm. Janet something. With the blonde hair. 

It was definitely 1984. The same year Nancy cheated on him with Jonathan while he was cheating on her with the same guy. Fucking Jonathan. What’s he going to do about him now that Eddie’s back? Should he do anything at all? Their arrangement had been working great for Steve for years now, is it worth ending just because Eddie’s back? 

What would Eddie think if he came to know about he and Jonathan’s relationship? He was jealous back then, he’s not sure how the other would react. Really, it’s none of his business. Dude’s been balls deep in hundreds of groupies over the past five years, why wouldn’t he sleep with Jonathan? And then the realization sets in. 

He really needs to stop thinking about the fact Eddie has definitely had sex with hundreds of people in the time they’ve been apart. It shouldn’t matter. But it does . Steve’s not even sure why. The idea that someone else got to see Eddie naked, to kiss his lips, touch his skin, everything else makes Steve’s skin crawl. He cant identify why either; Is it the fact  someone else got to see him so intimately? The idea he’d trust another in the same way? Does it invalidate the importance of their relationship if Eddie is willing to do that with anyone? 

It’s hypocritical given Steve has been exactly the same way. He’s slept with more girls than he can count, especially after becoming a cop. Local girls, city girls, daughters and wives. How would Eddie feel if he were to find out?

 The more he thinks about it, the worse he feels. He better stop before he spirals again.

As another commercial plays Steve looks over at Ozzy who’s just getting finished with his dinner when he notices his bedroom door open itself. This is… bizarre, to say the least. The door had fallen off his tracks a few days ago and had to be picked up in order for it to slide open or closed. There’s no way it could just open itself. 

Fear sets in. The hairs on the back of Steve’s neck stand as the reality of what he just witnessed sinks in. “Hello? Anyone there?” Steve jumps to his feet, eyes darting around the room. Why the fuck would someone break into his trailer? Let alone while he’s home? 

“Officer Harrington. You’re better off just revealing yourself. This is not funny.” Maybe it’s one of the holidaying kids playing a little pank. Totally. Why? Who knows. Kids are fucking evil. Steve approaches the door cautiously, peering around the corner and into the room. Deciding it’s safe, he enters. 

Nothing. He opens his wardrobe just to double check but no one’s there- his bedroom window is also still locked shut, so no one could have escaped through it either. Weird. As he thinks about it he decides he must have just made the whole thing up, you know, given all the stress he’s been under recently. Sighing, he turns around to exit the room. 

“Hello Steve.” 

Steve screams. A high pitch, blood curdling, horror movie kind of screamm and for good reason. Standing in the doorway of his room,  a mound of melted flesh and bone, Vecna. Steve can’t believe his eyes, unable to process what he’s seeing, what he’s hearing, what he’s smelling. It’s hard to convince yourself you’re hallucinating when you can smell it. It’s rot mixed with blood and burnt hair, sulfur and ammonia combined. His voice is deep, gravely, forced as if he’s fighting for life with every word. It’s real. 

Every step seems to be a struggle for the monster, pieces of melted flesh  sliding off his body before dropping onto the ground with a meaty thud. “Did you think you could run forever?” It asks, his voice sounding disembodied as it bounces around the room. He slowly makes his way around the bed, face to face with Steve, every movement and effort. As the thing reaches for Steve he finally snaps to his senses, bounding over his bed and running out of the room.

Looking forward, he stops in his tracks. Vecna was in front of him now, standing in his living room, making his way towards him, “Give up, Steve.” Steve stumbles back and dives into the bathroom beside him, quickly locking the door.

There’s no way this is a hallucination, right? This looks so real. But at the same time, Vecna is dead. He’s been dead. Steve was there as Nancy laid waste on him, they watched him die. Tears begin to stream from Steve’s cheeks again as all those awful memories come rushing back. Barb, Billy, Bob, Chrisy, Fred and almost Eddie. There’s no way that things back. What could that possibly mean? 

He collapses onto the toilet seat, head in his hands as he attempts to calm himself down and for a moment he thinks its working. Maybe it was all in his head after all.  Then he’s startled by sound of squeaky taps and running water.

His shower had turned itself on. Instantly the room began to fill with steam, piping hot water bursting from the shower head. Steve slowly finds his feet and creeps towards the shower, sure  listening for any sounds of life. He questions his next move- he can either run, or let curiosity get the best of him and see who’s behind the curtain.

Curiosity wins, a fact Steve will soon live to regret. He pries the curtains open and as he does he feels his whole world shift around him, he raises his arms to block his eyes as a sudden bright light blinds him. He stumbles back and lowers his arms, pearing around his bathroom, but it’s not his bathroom anymore. Orange and cream walls, dark and dank, he  finds himself in the Hawkins High bathroom once again.

Only then does he notice how his hair is wet, how his hands are covered in soap suds. As he looks up, his gaze meet’s Billy Hargove’s. He looks the same as he always did, thin, long hair wet and pushed back out of his face, lips contorted into a  familiar, revolting smirk as he eyes Steve down. 

“Found you, pretty boy.” 

Beyond the sound of running water it’s dead silent. So quiet that the sound of Steve’s breath seems unreasonably loud, filling his ears. He watches in horror as Billy runs a soapy hand down his chest, eyes locked on Steve. “You know you want to,” He says. 

Suddenly Billy lunges for Steve, grabbing onto his shoulders in an attempt to pull him in. Steve throws himself back,  falling to the ground, watching on in horror as Billy’s hands detach from his wrists and fall to the ground with a splat. Steve feels a similar shift as he hits the ground, frantically looking around only to see that he’s back in his bathroom, dry and clothed. Billy’s still there though, handless, the left side of his face  melting like wax, liquid flesh dripping from his jaw, down his chest and to the floor. 

Steve stumbles to his feet and hurriedly unlocks the door, bursting through it at such a speed that he crashes into the wall across from it. He ricochets off of the wall and bolts into his bedroom, using all of his strength to violently close and lock his bedroom door. 

With no time to spare Steve begins piling things up against the door, a chair, a few old crates of records, whatever he can get his hands on. Stepping back to look at his creation, hands on his head, he listens quietly for any signs of Vecna or Billy. 

The only sound Steve can hear is coming from his living room,  the ghostbusters theme.  Other than that, silence. His eyes dart around the room, looking for those clumps of waxy, melted flesh that had fallen of Vecna only minutes ago. Nothing. 

He sits on the end of the bed, hand covering his mouth as he contemplates what just happened. Was he really hallucinating that whole time? What the fuck was that? 

It felt so real. He could smell Vecna, his burnt flesh, the dank stench of the upside down. He could also smell Billy, his cologne, the musty stench of the boy’s locker room, the shampoo in his hair.  It was so real. He felt it when Billy grabbed onto his arm. He felt the wet tile under his feet in the bathroom.

But how could that be? Vecna is dead. Billy is dead. It’s over. 

Still too scared to exit his room he decides he’s had enough for the night and crawls into bed, wrapping himself in his sheets. He’s shivering uncontrollably, shaking, cold and terrified of what could possibly be lurking just outside his door. 

It’s a good hour before he falls asleep.