Chapter Text
Steve was never surprised when his phone rang in the middle of the night. Pretty much every member of their rag tag monster-fighting group, that the kids insisted on calling "the Party", had called him in the middle of the night at some point since their first encounter with the Upside Down. They had called for so many different reasons, Steve had lost track. He never minded the late night calls. No matter what reason or excuse any of his friends gave, Steve knew it was usually just an excuse to hear a friendly voice and to talk to someone who knew the truth, during a night that was filled with nightmares or insomnia. A friendly voice and someone who could relate was often the only remedy.
They all called each other a lot. There had been more than one parent complaining about high phone bills in the last few years, and multiple family spats over someone hogging the phone for too long. They all liked to check in on each other and the walkie talkies could only cover so much distance. During the day, calling anyone from the Party was fair game, but at night, everyone called Steve. His parents were almost never home and he had a phone next to his bed. There was no one around to take offense to a phone ringing in the middle of the night and Steve always answered. He didn't really sleep that much anymore, the house was too empty and the nightmares too frequent. Most of the time he was thankful when the phone rang and got him away from his own night time daemons. It wasn’t like he could call anyone, no one else was available the way he was.
Well, maybe he could have called Eddie, his uncle worked nights, so Eddie was probably alone most nights. But Eddie was only member of the Party who had never called Steve, not during any time of day or night, so Steve didn’t want to bother him. He had thought that they had become friends, or at least friend adjacent, during everything that happened over spring break and after, when Eddie had been in the hospital. But Steve hadn’t heard from Eddie since he had gotten out of the hospital, so maybe Steve had read their relationship wrong. Eddie seemed to still be in contact with the kids. Dustin had told Steve, that Eddie was working on a new DnD campaign for them and that they had all been over a few times since Eddie had gotten home. Steve also suspected that Dustin now called Eddie some of the times he had used to call Steve, because his phone calls had become less frequent. He tried very hard not to be jealous about that.
Dustin evidently wasn’t the only one who called Eddie. Steve had gone to pick up Robin for a shift at Family Video the other day, like he usually did, but she hadn’t come out of the house at their usual time. When he had rung the doorbell, her mom had opened and told him that Robin was on the phone. Steve had heard Robin’s laughter from upstairs and then "Sorry Eddie, Steve's here. I gotta go, can't be late to work. Talk to you later!" Robin had run down the stairs so fast that she tripped on the last step and almost fell into Steve's arms.
Steve was happy they were friends obviously. They were both great people, Robin was probably his favorite person in the world and Eddie… well Eddie was great too. Yet, there was still a pang of jealousy which was embarrassing and childish and Steve didn’t want Robin to know that, so he didn’t bring up the phone call, no matter how much he had to bite his tongue.
The next time Steve's phone rang in the middle of the night he was actually asleep for once. He startled awake, grabbed the receiver and, expecting it to be one of the kids, said: “Fuck, the one time I’m actually asleep. This better be important.”
He was met with silence on the other end of the line that stretched for so long, that Steve got a little worried and was just about to say something when he heard a familiar but very unexpected voice: “Shit, sorry. I shouldn’t have called. I’ll let you go back to sleep. Sorry again.”
“Wait! Eddie?, Steve hurried to say before Eddie could hang up.
“Yeah… sorry. I- uhm. I had this dream… and I couldn’t go back to sleep.” He cleared his throat. “Sorry, I don’t know why I called, Dustin just said… it doesn’t matter.”
Steve sat up properly now, gripping the phone tighter. Eddie sounded different from his usual easygoing self. “No, don’t worry about it. You can call whenever. Sorry, that was a shitty way to answer the phone. What’s up, what can I do to help?”
Eddie was silent for a moment, but eventually spoke again. "It's ok, I'm... l'm fine. I'll just- play some music or something." He cleared his throat and Steve was just about to offer his help again, when Eddie rushed out another string of words. "Actually, fuck it. Could you come over? Wayne's at work and I... I just really don't want to be alone."
Steve couldn't help but smile, it felt good to know that Eddie trusted him enough to ask him that."Yeah sure, no problem man. I'll be there in like 20 minutes."
There was a noise at the other end of the line that sounded as if Eddie was trying to cover a sigh of relief. "Thanks Steve," he mumbled quietly and hung up.
15 Minutes later Steve stood in front of the new Munson trailer, which wasn't parked at the trailer park anymore, but close to Hopper's cabin out in the forest instead. Hopper had pulled some strings after a few of the Munson's old neighbors had put up a fuss. Eddie had been cleared of all charges, but the minds of small town people weren't so easily changed.
Steve hated that Eddie had to hide like this, the feeling of being alone after a nightmare out here had to be worse than if he was back at the trailer park. Not even Hopper and El were close by, they were basically living at the new Beyers house.
Steve hadn't even had a nightmare today and he felt uneasy being out here in the forrest at night. Before he could spiral into wondering if that rustling was just a harmless woodland creature or an Upside Down Monster he knocked on the door.
When Eddie opened the door Steve's brain stopped working for a moment. Eddie was wearing a Hawkins High Basketball hoodie. A hoodie that Steve knew very well because it had come from his own closet. It had taken a while before the wreckage of the Munson trailer had been cleared to salvage the little of their belonging that had survived, so when Eddie had been in the hospital he'd had no clothes of his own.
The Party had done their best to gather some things for him even if it hadn't been his usual style. Nancy and Robin had gone on a quick shopping trip for the basics and since Steve was the only one with clothes that could actually fit Eddie, he had raided his closet. The hoodie had been a last minute addition, Steve hadn't expected Eddie to like it or ever wear it, but he figured something comfortable and soft that could easily fit over all the bandages would be good. He'd never actually seen Eddie wear it before now. It... Steve couldn't really pinpoint what it did to him, but it did something.
"Steve. You're here." The surprise in Eddie's voice pulled Steve out of his stupor.
"You called me," Steve replied with a shrug.
"And you really came."
"Of course I did." Steve would always come when a friend explicitly asked him to. What had Eddie expected? Had he not actually wanted Steve to come by?
They stood there, just looking each other for a minute or so before Eddie shook his head as if to shake of a thought. “You want to come in?”
“Yeah… uh, that would probably be good right?” Steve replied awkwardly and walked past Eddie when he stepped aside a little to let Steve in. Steve’s arm brushed against Eddie the slightest bit and yet somehow the faint touch sent shivers up Steve’s spine.
Once Steve was inside, he looked around a little lost. He hadn’t been here since Eddie came home from the hospital and the trailer had still been very empty, only furnished with the bare essentials. Now it was starting to look more like the old trailer. There were mugs on the walls again, not as many as before, but it was a start. It felt lived in, there were a few dirty dishes in the sink, clutter on the coffee table and a shopping list on the fridge.
Eddie closed the door and turned to look at Steve. Steve looked back, unsure what was expected of him.
“Uh… do you want to talk about your dreams? Or like, just hang out quietly? I can hang out on the couch and you can try to go back to sleep if you just want the knowledge that someone is around…” Steve offered, feeling a little awkward.
“You think I would make you drive all the way out here just to leave you alone on the couch while I sleep?” Eddie sounded almost offended.
“I… uh - No?” Steve had no idea what to say to that.
Eddie sighed and walked over to the couch to flop down on it with a yawn. Steve awkwardly followed him over just to discover that there was no other place to sit so he just stood there, feeling a little like he was hovering.
“What do you usually do when Dustin or Robin or one of the others calls you in the middle of the night?”
Steve scratched his chin. “Uh- Well, I can’t just show up at their places. Their parents wouldn't like that. So- usually we just talk on the phone for a bit. Sometimes just hearing someone's voice helps. Or I just stay on the line until they fall back asleep.”
“Hm..” Eddie looked unconvinced. “Can you sit down? You’re hovering is making me nervous.”
“Oh, sure. Sorry.” Steve sat down, on the outer corner of the couch and Eddie huffed, annoyed. He reached out and manhandled Steve until he was sitting on the couch properly, leaning against the back rest and everything. Steve let it happen, too confused by… Eddie's hands on him? No, it wasn't that. It was just that he didn't know what to do and he wasn't used to being manhandled.
”Better” Eddie declared and leaned back into his own space. Steve’s face had grown inexplicably warm from the whole thing. He cleared his throat and tried to relax into the couch cushions.
They were silent for a few more moments before Eddie spoke up again, much to Steve’s relief. He wasn’t being a very helpful friend, was he?
“What helps you when you have nightmares?”
“Uh… Well I can’t call any of the others, because that would wake up their families, so I usually just get up, get something to drink, maybe listen to some music. If there’s no chance to get back to sleep I drive around a little or watch a movie or something. Sometimes I bake, but Robin and Dustin have gotten suspicious so I can’t bring baked goods to work as much anymore and it’s kind of hard to find people I can hand all the baked goods of to without the others finding out and asking about it.”
Eddie frowned. “Why?”
“What?”
“Why can’t they find out that you bake to help with nightmares?”
“Because they would worry.”
“Like you worry when they call you in the middle of the night because of their nightmares.”
“No… Well, yeah, but it’s different.”
“Why?”
Steve groaned. “I don’t know it just is, ok?”
“Hm.” Eddie said again and looked at Steve with his big brown eyes that seemed to look right through Steve.
Steve cleared his throat a little awkwardly, feeling pinned by Eddie’s gaze. “Uh… so what would you like to do?”
Eddie shrugged, and his focus on Steve shifted. “I could play you something on my guitar?”
“That sounds good. I didn’t really get a chance to take in your last performance.” He cringed when he realized what he had said. Maybe reminding Eddie of his concert in the Upside Down wasn’t the best idea.
But Eddie just grinned. “Maybe something a little more low profile tonight though, right?”
He stood up to get his guitar from his room. When he came back he wasn’t holding the electric guitar he’d used in the Upside Down but a beat up acoustic guitar. He also wasn’t wearing Steve’s sweater anymore. Steve was kind of disappointed, even though Eddie looked more like himself in the faded black band tee.
“I didn’t know you had more than one guitar.”
“I used to have three. This one only survived because it was in the van. My third one was in the old trailer and… well, maybe it’s still somewhere, but not in this dimension.”
“Oh… that sucks, I’m sorry.”
“It’s ok. This one is the one I learned on anyways, my mom got it for me at a garage sale. Henderson saved my baby from the Upside Down, so it’s all good. I didn’t use the other one a lot anyways.” Eddie said with a shrug that seemed a little forced. Steve kind of wanted to ask what the story behind the lost guitar was, but he didn’t want to upset Eddie. Instead he leaned back and watched as Eddie sat back down, propped the guitar on his knees and began playing.
Watching Eddie play was something else. Steve couldn’t look away. Eddie was playing a surprisingly soft melody, not at all what Steve would have expected, but fitting for the moment. Steve could have watched him all night.
Eventually he must have dozed off though, because he woke up to soft morning light spilling into the windows of the trailer. He took a deep breath and looked around. The guitar was leaning against the couch and Eddie was nowhere to be seen. Steve was about to get up and look for him when he heard the flush of a toilet and moments later the bathroom door opened and Eddie stepped out.
“Oh sorry, did I wake you?”
“I don’t think so. What time is it?”
“Uhm, six-ish, I think.”
Steve yawned, stretched and stood up. “Good, then I have enough time to go home and shower before my shift.”
Eddie watched him. “Shit, you have the early shift today? I’m sorry I kept you awake so long then.”
Steve shook his head. “It’s no trouble. I slept more than a lot of nights. Thanks for playing for me last night. You’re really good.”
Eddie looked down, and Steve almost thought he blushed but it was hard with his hair falling into his face. “No problem. Thanks for letting me play for you.”
“Anytime. It’s no hardship. Hey, can I use your bathroom quickly before I leave?”
Eddie nodded. “Yeah of course.”
Steve went past him into the bathroom. He emptied his bladder, washed his mouth out with some water and quickly rinsed his face before going back out. Eddie was waiting for him. “Hey, uh- Thanks, thanks for coming over last night. It helped a lot.”
Steve smiled at him as he put on his shoes. “No problem. Seriously, call anytime. I don’t mind.”
Eddie opened the door for him. “Thank you. I might take you up on that. Have a good day at work and say hi to Buckley from me.”
“I will.”
Just as Steve was unlocking his car Eddie called out to him. “Steve.”
“Yeah?”
“Next time you have a nightmare, you can call me, ok?”
Steve didn’t know what to say to that and before he had found anything to say, Eddie had closed the trailer door.