Work Text:
It was one of those dreadful autumn days when you wish you’d just stayed in bed.
Summer had finally packed up and left, but winter was still a long way off. The ground was muddy, the air smelled of wet earth, and the trees clung to a few ragged leaves, dark, dull things that had long lost their gold and crimson shine.
Steve was honestly surprised that the day had gone so well up until noon. Business was slow that Monday morning, and he’d spent the hours sipping cup after cup of fruity tea Robin had brought along, chatting with her the way they always did on slow days.
Then Keith had shown up, just after three, and one look at his skeptical, dissatisfied face told them both that one of them was in trouble.
Steve had hoped, of course, that it wouldn’t be Robin. And yet, he couldn’t help but be annoyed when it turned out he was the one being dragged into the office.
Apparently someone had told their boss that a number of tapes had been lend out and never properly listed. Even worse, the people who regularly stopped by the store, but whose names didn’t appear anywhere on the rental lists, were none other than the kids Steve Harrington had been looking out for years now. Especially one, Dustin Henderson, whose name, it seemed, showed up suspiciously little in the records for how often Keith had seen the little pest wandering in his store.
Steve tried to explain, but it was pointless. Everyone knew how close he was with Dustin, and of course Steve wasn’t about to make the little idiot pay for every tape he wanted to borrow. And what kind of uptight jerk would he be if he hounded the kid every week for returns? He knew Dustin would bring them back eventually. He just hadn’t expected anyone to notice.
Robin was a bundle of nerves, pacing behind the counter, glancing toward the office door every few seconds. Steve had been in there for what felt like forever, arguing with Keith, who lectured and scolded and accused him of being ungrateful, after all, hadn’t he given Steve this job, despite his utter lack of film knowledge?
Steve must’ve apologized a dozen times, maybe more, before he was practically begging to keep his job.
So when he finally sat in his car a little after five, rain drumming against the windshield, hair still damp from the dash across the parking lot, he felt drained. He’d barely kept his job by a hair’s breadth, and right now, he just wanted to be held. Not by anyone, though, by someone.
Eddie had stayed home that day, like he did most days lately. He was still getting used to calling the small house Wayne had rented on the edge of town home. Going outside still scared him, especially on days like this, the stormy, merciless ones, when the cold wind cut through his curls and reminded him of all the icy fear that had lived down there, in the dark.
The people weren’t much better than the memories. Maybe worse, even.
Harsher. Meaner. So many still believed he’d killed Chrissy. With Jason gone too, things hadn’t exactly improved. The police could announce his innocence all they wanted, no one really believed them.
Eddie was lying in bed when Steve unlocked the door with his key. Some Metal song played in the background, though not as loud as usual, a sign that Eddie was focused on something. Or maybe, Steve thought, a little sign of compromise, it was because he had spent hours convincing Eddie that blasting music at full volume all day wasn’t exactly neighbor-friendly.
Steve kicked off his shoes in the hallway, tossed his jacket over one of the kitchen chairs, no need for a coat rack in the Munson household, and ran a hand through his damp hair. It wasn’t far, the short walk from the car to the door, but enough to annoy him. Not that it mattered, his hair had been wrecked long before that, after a full day of nervously running his hands through it.
He followed the faint sound of music down the hall, ignoring the instinct to duck into the bathroom to fix his hair, silly thought. It was just Eddie, after all. Just his Eddie.
And yet, standing in the doorway, something heavy in his chest loosened. The exhaustion didn’t vanish, Keith would still be watching him like a hawk for weeks, and these bleak autumn days were far from over, but at least right now, he could just stand here and look at Eddie.
Eddie, lying on his stomach on the bed, scribbling something into his notebook while Rainbow in the Dark played softly in the background, or at least Steve thought that’s what it was. He’d had to memorize a whole bunch of bands lately, which wasn’t half as bad as all the Dungeons & Dragons trivia and campaign updates he’d been subjected to.
The room was, as always, a mess, not that it surprised Steve. It looked exactly the same as it had when he left that morning, and it would’ve been more shocking if Eddie had actually cleaned. Steve still remembered when Eddie had climbed onto his shoulders just to reach the high spots for his band posters, grumbling about the crooked edges, or the time he’d insisted on installing proper hooks for his guitar.
Eddie had been wary about the new place at first, but Steve thought the room suited him perfectly. It looked like Eddie. And because Steve liked Eddie, he liked this room too, no matter what kind of disaster zone it happened to be today.
Eddie’s hair hung wild around his face, and Steve immediately felt the urge to tie it back, like he so often did, because Eddie was always too lazy to do it himself, insisting Steve was the only one who could ever get it right anyway.
Then Eddie lifted his head. He’d known for a while that he wasn’t alone, but since his boyfriend was still standing in the doorway, he finally decided to look up.
“Hey,” he said, smiling softly up at Steve.
Steve smiled back and stepped further into the room. From this angle, he could see what Eddie had been writing in his notebook, ideas for a new boss in his current campaign. There were sketches too, designs Eddie had already shown him the night before, and Steve had told him how good the dark mage’s armor looked.
Eddie was wearing one of his band shirts again, Black Sabbath today, apparently. Or maybe it was just the only one that was halfway clean. Naturally, it was paired with sweatpants.
Steve looked down at his own work uniform and instantly wished he could burn it. But that, he thought, would definitely cost him his job.
“Trouble at work, sweetheart?” Eddie asked when he saw the way Steve slammed his uniform into the closet before borrowing one of Eddie’s T-shirts, though honestly, half of them were his at this point.
Steve mumbled something unintelligible in response, and Eddie decided to give him a minute to change in peace.
A little while later, Steve dropped down onto the bed beside him. Eddie shifted over, moving his notes and sketches to the windowsill, already cluttered with ashtrays, beer cans, and suspicious-looking tissues.
“I’m so done,” Steve sighed, burying his face in the pillows.
“Fuck, that bad?” Eddie murmured, stretching out a hand to run his fingers gently through Steve’s hair. All Steve managed was a tired hum of agreement.
He reached out blindly, searching for something, anything of Eddie’s to hold on to. His fingers brushed against Eddie’s forearm, curling around it instinctively, and his thumb began tracing slow circles over the skin.
“Wanna talk about it?” Eddie asked, his tone light enough to make it sound like Steve actually had a choice.
Steve turned his head, glancing up at him through half-lidded eyes. Eddie was lying on his side now, propped up on an elbow, still running his fingers lazily through Steve’s hair. Steve didn’t even mind the mess it made, Eddie could ruin his hair a hundred times and he’d still prefer it to the wind and rain outside.
“Just stupid arguments today,” Steve started quietly. “Well, maybe not completely stupid. He had a point, kinda. Keith found out I’ve been letting the kids rent movies for free. He wasn’t a big fan of that.”
Eddie made a small sound of understanding, the kind that meant go on. His hand slid down the back of Steve’s neck, then between his shoulder blades, tracing soft, calming lines against his skin.
“He actually threatened to fire me,” Steve admitted. “I almost lost my job today, Ed. And I have no idea what I would’ve done after that.”
He let out a long breath. “It just hit me today, y’know? That I actually like this job. I like working with Robin, I like the whole movie thing, I’m kinda getting into it. Sometimes I even give decent recommendations now.”
“Sometimes,” Eddie grinned, earning himself a half-hearted, offended laugh.
“I’m pouring my heart out here, and you’re mocking my movie recs?” Steve said, voice muffled against the pillow.
“In my defense,” Eddie chuckled, “when I asked you to pick an action movie for movie night with Robin and Nancy, you came back with The Muppets Take Manhattan.”
“Oh my god, not this again,” Steve groaned, lifting his head. “How many times do I have to tell you I grabbed the wrong tape?”
“Of course, sweetheart. Whatever you say,” Eddie teased, leaning over to plant a kiss on Steve’s forehead.
Steve shook his head, laughing. “You’re impossible.”
“But you’re laughing,” Eddie grinned, looking at him with that soft, fond gaze. “So I guess it worked.”
Steve rolled his eyes, but there was nothing but warmth in them. He pulled Eddie closer until their bodies touched. Eddie smelled like weed and cheap silver jewelry, and Steve pressed his face into the crook of his neck, breathing him in like relief.
“How was your day?” he mumbled, reaching for Eddie’s hand and absently spinning the rings around his fingers, slipping them off and back on again. “Were you feeling down today?”
Eddie made a low humming sound, more focused on pressing lazy kisses into Steve’s hair than on answering.
“C’mon,” Steve murmured, nudging him gently. “Tell me about your day.”
He knew Eddie sometimes needed a little push to talk, unlike himself, Steve preferred to untangle things in his own time, in silence first.
Eddie sighed, looping his arms around Steve’s waist before replying. “Well, I had breakfast with Wayne this morning. The usual stuff. He left around noon for his shift. Then I just… lay around for a while. Felt kinda wiped out all of a sudden.” He shook his head, as if to chase off the drowsy heaviness creeping back into his voice. “Smoked half a joint after that, got a few ideas for the campaign. Was feeling a little motivated, until I remembered I actually have to leave the house on Friday for Hellfire. The damn school, man.”
“You don't have to go,” Steve reminded him gently. “But hey, I’m sure the guys would come here if you asked. Or we could take over Mike’s basement again. Joyce keeps saying she’s got space too, and well, my parents’ house is still standing, you could fit fifty nerds in there for your campaign and still have room left over.”
Eddie snorted, lips twitching into a smile at the ridiculous image. “Or I could just pull myself together and drag my ass to school for once.”
“Eddie,” Steve said softly, warning in his voice. “That’s not about ‘pulling yourself together.’” He met Eddie’s eyes, serious now. He saw the way Eddie’s mouth opened, the protest forming, so he kept talking before he could.
“Even aside from how you’re feeling, there’s still so many assholes out there. People who don’t know anything about the Upside Down or Vecna or what really happened. They think all the wrong things about you. Of course I worry too.”
He brushed a stray curl behind Eddie’s ear and smiled, gentle and sure. “But I’ve got Friday off. I’ll drive you there myself. Hand you over to Gareth and Jeff, then come back after class with my baseball bat and stand guard.”
Eddie laughed. “Yeah, I’m sure the school administration would love that. King Harrington strolling through the halls with a rusty nail-studded weapon. Amazing call, darling.”
Steve shrugged with a grin. “I hid from Demogorgons. I think I can handle some old fuckers.”
And then Eddie was already leaning in, pressing his lips to Steve’s in a sudden, fierce kiss. Steve laughed against his mouth, his hands tangling in Eddie’s wild curls as Eddie gently pushed him back onto the mattress.
They smiled at each other when Eddie finally pulled away, lips red, eyes warm and bright. “Y’know,” he murmured, voice soft now, “I don’t think I was that depressed today. Not if I know you’ll always come back to me.”
Steve chuckled softly, brushing his thumb along Eddie’s jaw. “Guess we’re both doing something right then.”
Eddie shifted, tugging Steve closer until there was no space left between them. The music had long faded into silence, replaced by the soft rhythm of rain against the window. Steve’s breath evened out first, his head tucked under Eddie’s chin, fingers tangled in his shirt.
Eddie traced slow circles on Steve’s back, eyes heavy. “I wouldn’t know what I would do without you”, he murmured, voice low and fond.
“Good thing you’ll never have to find out, huh?”, Steve whispered back with a small sleepy smile.
And maybe, in the end, finding safety in Hawkins was easier than either of them had ever thought.