Chapter Text
Fifteen - Monday June 2, 1981
Wayne wakes Eddie up on his 15th birthday. This isn’t unusual, seeing as Wayne usually rolls in from work just when Eddie needs to be getting up for school - and unfortunately Eddie has school, Hawkins High not letting out for the summer until the end of the week. What is unusual is the smell of bacon lingering in the air of the trailer.
“Eds I made breakfast!” Wayne calls through the door, confirming Eddie’s suspicions that something other than cereal or pop-tarts is on the menu for the morning. That gets Eddie out of bed quicker than usual. He throws on a t-shirt and black jeans, fiddles with his hair that’s still growing in from when his asshole of a father buzzed it all off two summers ago, and heads out into the living room where Wayne is sitting at the breakfast table, a rare smile on his face and a large wrapped package propped up beside him.
“Happy Birthday Eddie!” Wayne greets, far more cheerful than he typically is after a long shift.
“Thanks Wayne.” Eddie smiles back, joins him at the table and immediately starts piling his plate with bacon, eggs, and pancakes. Wayne really went all out, all for little ole Eddie.
“I got you something!” Wayne bursts out, shoving the package towards Eddie. “I know I should probably wait until you get home from school to give this to you but I just couldn’t wait.”
“Wayne, you didn’t have to get me anything.” Eddie tells him. It's the same thing he told him last year, the first birthday that he spent with Wayne, when the man had handed over a set of DnD dice, rubbed at the back of his neck and nervously asked, ‘this is what you use for that game of yours, right?’. Eddie had teared up. Wayne had too.
“Well I know that Ed.” Wayne waves him off. “But I wanted to. Got a good deal and everything. I think you’ll be real pleased.”
“Thank you, Uncle Wayne.” Eddie says sincerely, abandoning his breakfast to pull the package closer. It’s big, much too big to be anything DnD related. Wayne is watching him with barely contained excitement, eyes shining, and Eddie rips it open, desperate to see what’s gotten Wayne so uncharacteristically perky. Eddie’s eyes widen when he sees it's a guitar case. He looks up at Wayne with wide eyes, heart pounding in his chest. “You didn’t.”
“Open it.” Wayne, honest to god, bounces in his seat a little. So Eddie does and sure enough, there in the case, is a red and black Warlock NJ series electric guitar.
“Holy shit Wayne.” Eddie breaths, lifting it out of the box and holding it reverently. “I can’t accept this. This is way too expensive.”
“None of that nonsense boy." Wayne waves him off. "I wouldn’t have gotten it if I couldn’t afford it. Do you like it?”
“Like it?” Eddie repeats dumbly. “Of course I like it. Wayne, this is the best present I’ve ever received. I- thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Wayne grins, pleased. “Guy down at the store said it would be good for playing that screaming you call music.”
“You know it’s called metal Wayne.” Eddie rolls his eyes and lays the guitar back down in the case. In seconds he’s around the table, wrapping his arms around his uncle. “Thank you. I really love it.”
“Happy birthday Eds.” Wayne replies, hugging him back tight.
When he gets to school Eddie beelines straight to Rick’s locker, relieved to see that the junior is here today - he’s been skipping school a lot recently.
“Hey man, happy birthday!” Rick greets him.
“Guess what?” Eddie asks, bouncing on all the balls of his feet. Before the other boy can even answer, Eddie forges ahead. “Wayne got me an electric guitar for my birthday. A Warlock NJ to be more specific.”
“No shit!” Rick’s eyes are wide. “Then what the hell are you doing here? Why aren’t you at home shredding?”
“Wayne was up.” Eddie shrugs. “He would've known if I ditched.” Eddie pauses. “Want to come over after school and see it?”
“Sounds great man!” Rick nods. “I’ll invite the guys!”
Eddie deflates a bit at that. By 'the guys', Rick means the other upperclassmen that he sometimes gets high with in the woods during lunch. Eddie’s tried weed a few times, likes the way it makes him feel, but he doesn’t particularly like Rick’s friends, so he doesn’t usually join them. He’d kind of been hoping it would just be him and Rick, didn’t particularly feel like showing the guitar to ‘the guys’.
“Or not?” Rick’s eyebrows pinch together and Eddie flushes. He must’ve read the disappointment on his face. “You got a problem with Keith and Paul? That why you never smoke up with us?”
“No it’s not that.” Eddie shakes his head. It’s a lie, but he doesn’t really want to tell Rick that the other boys tease him - about his hair, about his clothes, about Dungeons and Dragons - and make him feel like a little kid. “I just, we haven’t hung out just the two of us in awhile.”
And it’s true. Back when Eddie had been living with his parents, Rick had been his neighbor. Even though he was two years older, they’d hung out all the time - first it was riding bikes and building forts and then when Rick’s brother Dan turned 18, it was drinking and smoking and sneaking his pornos that Eddie was never particularly interested in.
But ever since Eddie had moved in with Wayne, they mostly only see each other at school. When Eddie started as a freshman earlier that year, Rick had been happy to let him tag along with him and his friends. His friends? Not so much.
“Yeah okay.” Rick nods, smiles at Eddie. “I’ll give you a ride, yeah?”
“Sounds good.” Eddie smiles, relieved that he said something, that Rick didn’t care. The bell rings and they go their separate ways, Eddie to English and Rick to History. Eddie goes through much of the day without really talking to anyone and regrets that he’d clung so hard to Rick when he first got to Hawkins High. His bandmates are a few years younger, still in middle school, and so Eddie doesn’t really have any friends here besides Rick, who is two years older and not in any of his classes.
When the final bell rings, he practically sprints out of his seat to go meet Rick in the parking lot. His excitement fizzles when he sees that Rick is talking to Paul and Keith, the aforementioned ‘guys’. They haven’t noticed him yet and Eddie slows his pace when he hears his name, realizes that they’re talking about him.
“Really?” It’s Paul who speaks. “You’d rather go over to the freaks house than come over and smoke? C’mon man, didn’t you say Dan just got you a new stash?”
“We can smoke it tomorrow. Hell we can skip if you want and go out to my Uncle’s cabin on Lover’s Lake.” Rick says. “I’m going to Eddie’s.”
“But why?”
“I told you man, I’ve been friends with Eddie forever.” Rick explains. “It’s his birthday, and his uncle got him a new guitar. We’re gonna mess around with it.”
“But he’s like a total dweeb.” Keith continues. “Won’t shut up about all that fantasy shit. And Kyle M told me he's a total fag, caught him looking at his dick in the locker room.”
Eddie feels sick. That rumor was going around again? He thought he’d put it to bed last year after a very public kiss - his first kiss - with Miranda Sullivan.
“Don’t say that shit.” Rick says but what he doesn’t say is ‘Eddie’s not like that’ or ‘Eddie isn’t a fag’.
“Do you think he has a crush on you?” Paul adds, breaking into a fit of giggles, Keith joining in.
“No way man.” Rick shakes his head like that's the most ridiculous thing he's ever heard and Eddie's stomach lurches. “We’re just friends.”
“Hey look.” Keith points over to where Eddie is standing frozen on the curb. “Here comes lover boy now.”
“Eddie hey!” Rick calls, ignoring Keith’s comment. He jogs over, leaving his friends behind in a fit of giggles. “Ready to go?”
“Uh actually I think I’m just going to take the bus.” Eddie replies, suddenly he doesn’t really feel like hanging out with Rick. Rick frowns.
“I thought we were going to yours?”
“Wouldn’t you rather hang out with someone who isn’t a queer?” Eddie bites, unable to bring himself to say the word ‘fag’. Rick deflates.
“You heard us.”
“Yeah not shit Sherlock.” Eddie says. “It’s not like they were quietly talking about how much they hate me.”
“Come on now. You don’t like them either.”
“I didn’t say that.” Eddie shakes his head, even though it’s true. “They’re assholes.”
“They’re my friends.”
“Well then maybe you’re an asshole too.” Eddie stares at him defiantly. “I’ve got to go or I’ll miss the bus. See you around Lipton.”
“Eddie, come on!” Rick calls after him, but Eddie doesn’t turn around.
Wayne is at work when Eddie gets home. There’s a cupcake sitting on the table, a note beside it wishing him a happy birthday. His eyes well up with tears as he retreats to his room where the guitar is sitting on his bed where he left it.
How did his amazing day turn shitty so quickly? Why can’t he just have something good for once in his miserable existence?
He turns on his stereo, cranks it up real loud, so loud that he almost misses the knock on the door that comes an hour later.
He turns down the music and listens, hoping whoever it is will just leave.
“Eddie it’s me!” Shit, it's Rick. Maybe he can just pretend he isn’t here? “Come on man, I know you’re home. I heard your music.”
Well fuck.
“What do you want?” He pulls open the door, crossing his arms over his chest.
“I’m sorry about Paul and Keith.” He says. “You’re right, they were being assholes and they shouldn’t have said all that shit about you.”
“No, they shouldn’t have.”
“But you know I don’t think that, right?” Rick asks. “I mean Eddie we’ve been friends for like 10 years man.”
“What if they’re right?” Eddie says, feeling brave and a little bit reckless. “What if I am a fag?”
Rick’s eyes widen and Eddie watches the way his Adam's apple bobs as he swallows. “Are you?”
“I mean I’ve never like been with a guy or anything.” Eddie says. “But yeah. Yeah, I am.”
“Oh.” Rick swallows again but he doesn’t like punch Eddie or anything so he’ll take that as a good sign. “Do you want to be?”
“I mean yeah, that’s kind of the whole point of being queer isn’t it?”
“Right.” Rick nods. “That was a stupid question. Sorry, I don’t really know what to say. No one’s ever like come out to me before.”
“Well I’ve never come out to anyone before so…” Eddie trails off. “I mean I think Wayne knows, but we’ve never like explicitly talked about or anything.”
“How long have you known?”
“A while.” Eddie shrugs. “Since I was maybe like 12. Dan’s magazines did absolutely nothing for me man.”
Rick barks out a laugh at this and the last of Eddie’s nerves vanish. He told someone, and they don’t seem to mind, and the world hasn’t like spontaneously combusted.
Eddie pulls open the door further. “Want to go check out the guitar?”
“Shit, I’d love to man.” Rick says smiling, seeming relieved. Eddie smiles too. Maybe he does deserve nice things after all.