Work Text:
As it turns out, surviving the Upside Down has its perks.
Eddie can tell you a few ones. For example, the scars: as he takes off his pyjamas and stares at himself in the mirror, he thinks he looks metal as fuck. They’re all over his waist, hips, and thighs, all silvery white and raised like they’re proud, forever marked on his skin. They’re proof that, for the first time, he didn’t run away, he stayed and fought, something he’d never thought about doing and, even as he was scared shitless, he survived.
Well, he still clinically died for like, 5 minutes while Dustin dragged his ass back to the gate, finding Harrington, Wheeler, and Robin, who immediately sprung into action to bandage and CPR the shit out of him.
And, honestly? Even if they didn’t make him look like a DnD warrior, or add to his metal freak persona, he’s glad to have them, because the other option would be to rot six feet underground.
Another perk is the military doing what they do best and covering the whole thing, not only the fact that Hawkins now looks like a cracked porcelain doll. The reason for the murders was pinned on two psychopaths who emulated one Victor Creel’s murders, going so far as to trick the staff of the mental facility to go meet their hero; and, okay, if Eddie took the creative liberty of telling people that Jason just hated him and wanted him and the entire town dead because he was actually the one who was possessed, then no one needs to know. After all, small town, big hell, and by the end of the month everyone believed that.
As Wayne slides a warm coffee thermos filled with that precious liquid, he ponders on his newfound life. After the military cover up, Eddie was released from the hospital, getting a public apology from the mayor —and a little bit of hush money from the government— he went back to living with his uncle. Granted, the old man gave him shit for doing something like that, but never left his side as he healed.
“I’m gonna hang out at the Squack after work.” Eddie announces after a few bites of his eggs. Wayne raises an eyebrow, smirking, but says nothing, instead drinking from his too-hot coffee. He knows, of course he knows, but it’s a secret. An open one, anyway.
After saying his goodbyes, he rushes towards his van, dropping his backpack on the passenger seat, and setting his thermos carefully on the cup holder. The darkness is still there, slowly making way for the sun to take over as he drives around a militarized Hawkins.
The walkie roars to life as he crosses Robin’s house.
“Good morning, sweetheart.” He melts a little, actually, as he reaches over and grabs it. “How did my princess sleep tonight?”
“Eat shit, Harrington.” He’s grinning, because of course he is, and sets the walkie down on his lap as he parks. “I slept pretty well, actually. How is my precious little ray of sunshine this fine morning, as fine as him?” Steve groans as he hears the over-the-top terms of endearment, although Eddie knows he’s probably blushing.
“Fuck off, Munson.” Eddie laughs, killing the engine.
“Yeah, I love you too.” They talk for a few more minutes, cutting contact only when Eddie realizes he has two minutes to clock in.
“See you tonight, love you.” Eddie fakes a couple of kisses before laughing manically and shoving the walkie inside his backpack.
Goddamn, he loves his job. That’s the first thing he thinks about as he walks into the hospital, greeting everyone there with a smile and a wave.
“Looking pretty sweet in today’s scrubs, Eddie.” Vickie giggles, no heat behind her words as he passes her the pen. Eddie groans in response, looking down at the red and white striped scrubs. He doesn’t hate them, per say, but he thinks they look a little childish.
“We should trade with the guys at pediatrics, they shouldn’t have boring scrubs, bet the kids are bored as hell there.” Vickie laughs as they both stare at the giant list of patients for the day, remembering the full day they’ll have. “Alright, let’s do this.”
Working at the hospital brings Eddie so much joy, which is weird given the fact that he’s constantly surrounded by dead people. Still, he’s glad to make their last days more comfortable, ensuring they are well taken care of, and that they’re never bored. He spends his day in and out of rooms, singing whatever tune comes to mind, sometimes putting on a show for the charming old lady or the scared little boy, making them laugh and forget about their circumstances even for just a second.
The first half of his shift is spent in the general area, tending to patients with various ailments, listening to the radio as Robin and Steve dedicate songs to both Vickie and him, which makes them share a knowing smile as they pass each other down the halls.
By the time lunch rolls around, he’s starving and ready to get more fuel, his coffee long gone and his thermos abandoned inside his backpack.
He’s just finishing changing the bedsheets when he hears the door close behind him, then a whistle.
“Damn, Munson, what a way to receive me.” Steve says, taking in Eddie’s posture, who is still bent over trying to get the damn bedsheet to stay in place. He laughs as Steve rushes to smack his ass. “Brought you lunch, Nancy and Jonathan are with Robin so I thought, you know, we could spend a little time together.” Eddie’s heart warms as Steve shrugs, trying to make such thing less of a deal than it really is.
It brings him back to that day, two months after Eddie was released from the hospital, and three since Hawkins split open. He'd been craving a pizza, but Wayne was at work, and he still couldn’t drive. So he called through the walkie; no one but Steve picked up, who then told Eddie to ‘fuck off and let me sleep’, only for him to show up with the pizza and booze twenty minutes later.
“I have ‘The Hills Have Eyes part 2’...” Eddie said, handing Steve a beer, who nodded and sat down on the couch.
Half the movie progressed in relative silence, only broken occasionally when one of them offered a witty comment. That was, until Roy wakes up, and Eddie, half drunk, decided to open his mouth one more time.
“ God fucking damn, Kevin Spirtas is just so beautiful.” He realized what he said seconds later, when Steve’s hand freezes halfway to his mouth. Too late to take anything back, so he just shrugged and downed his beer.
The silence returned, only broken when Eddie announced he needed to smoke. Steve followed him into the woods, where they shared a joint, something Steve had never done. As he passed the joint back to Eddie, he felt brave enough to speak.
“I think… I think he’s really fucking hot, too.” He said it. Shaky voice and all, he said it. Eddie smiled, nodding as he took a hit, and started talking about nothing and everything at the same time. Almost an hour later, still drunk and high, Steve and Eddie laid side by side, staring at the night sky.
“I’m so glad you’re alive, man.” Steve whispered, his hand falling in the space between them, almost touching Eddie’s but not quite.
“Yeah… me too. I finally graduated.” Eddie smiled, turning his head only to find Steve already looking at him. Their hands met, and seconds later, Eddie was gasping for air after kissing Steve. And the look Steve gave him, fuck everything, it was so… he could never explain it, not even now, more than a year later. It was filled with love, care, lust, want, protection, fear… it was everything, and it made Eddie’s heart skip a few beats even now.
“My hero.” Eddie says, coming back to the present, a strand of hair instinctively between his fingers, hiding his smile. Steve laughs softly as he sits down.
“Yeah, well, couldn’t pack the dessert, sadly.” His eyes gleam with mischief, and he smirks. “Though I have a couple ideas for that.”
“Oh, yeah?” Eddie inquires, leaning forward, still keeping his hands to himself.
“Yes, and they include me getting you out of this uniform that makes your ass look great.” Steve shamelessly lets his eyes roam around his boyfriend’s body, relishing in the way his shoulders tense, and how his mouth trembles as he tries to keep his smile from showing up.
“Y’know an old man just died right here, right?” Eddie asks, kicking Steve’s feet so he spreads his legs further.
“Well, you know what they say.” Steve grabs the end of Eddie’s shirt, pulling him closer, his hands eventually sneaking up to the naked skin, to the scars of his waist, and closes his legs around his boyfriend. Eddie smiles, his arms wrapping around Steve’s neck, his mouth close enough so their breaths mix together, but slightly out of reach so Steve can’t kiss him.
“What do they say, big boy?” He whispers, licking his lips. He runs one of his hands through Steve’s hair, tugging it lightly, just enough to make him squeeze his waist a little bit, his other hand roaming on his shoulders.
“I don’t know, but if you don’t stop I’m gonna get you fired.” Steve is fumbling his words, his mouth slightly open as he pushes Eddie just enough so he can stand up, then bringing him closer, flushing their bodies together as he walks forward, his mouth finally catching Eddie’s, who whimpers into the kiss.
“And how will Steve Harrington get me fired, huh?” Eddie asks between kisses, feeling Steve’s hands on his lower back. Instead of answering, Steve stops the kisses, only to shove him against the wall and attack his neck, ripping a low moan from his boyfriend’s throat.
“I’ll fuck you right here so hard the whole wing will hear you.” Eddie’s legs shake as he tugs on Steve’s hair, getting a grunt in response.
Just as he’s about to say something equally dirty, the sound of a can and hissing brings them back to earth.
“Shit, shit.” Steve whispers, untangling himself from Eddie to rush outside. There, he sees a bowl cut fleeing, and Will’s familiar jacket with it. He huffs, the moment dead, and shakes his head, hands on his hips. “I need to explain that to the kid.”
“Oh no, mister gay just saw something gay, how very.” Eddie says, deadpan, appearing behind Steve, who turns instantly, confusion written all over his face. “Oh, please, Steve, don’t tell me you’ve never noticed the little sad eyes he makes every single time Mike is near him.” Eddie pulls him back inside the room, now fully closing the door behind them. “So, dessert.”
Will is used to being the third wheel. He’s always been. But now it’s… different, because now Max is comatose, has been for the past 18 months, and Lucas still visits her every single day. It feels more… intimate, somehow. He’s intruding so much more. Which is why he decides to step outside so Lucas can speak to her more freely.
He mumbles a song, trying to keep his mind from wandering as he searches his pockets for some change. He says hi to Vickie, Robin’s friend, who waves back and rushes to a room. He’s been here enough times to know most of the staff, but there’s only one he’s looking for: Eddie. He wants to ask him his opinion about his new OC he’s been working on, and maybe a few tips for the next campaign.
As he bends over to grab his can, he sees a familiar someone out of the corner of his eyes.
“Steve!” He yells, looking at the man who’s quickly walking down the hall. “Steve, hey!” He yells again, completely sure that the man didn’t hear him. He turns and enters a room, and Will decides to rush to him. He might know where Eddie is, after all, he sometimes brings him lunch.
As he walks down the hall, looking for the room Steve just entered, he hears soft laughter.
“Yeah, well, couldn’t pack the dessert, sadly.” Steve says, and Will sees a small gap on the door. “Though I have a couple ideas for that.” He continues, and Will leans forward to get a better look.
“Oh, yeah?” That’s Eddie’s voice, and Will moves a little more to be sure he’s out of sight. It’s not his intention, really, to eavesdrop, but there’s something about the way Eddie speaks to Steve that he can’t name, and it makes his hand twitch to not know.
“Yes, and they include me getting you out of this uniform that makes your ass look great.” Will stops breathing, stops moving, and his head starts spinning as he finally clocks the tone they’re speaking to each other in.
“Y’know an old man just died right here, right?” Does that mean that they are…?
“Well, you know what they say.” Will holds his breath, lost in a moment that isn’t his.
“What do they say, big boy?” And he suddenly remembers where he is, and what he’s doing, and he wants to run because he’s so ashamed.
Steve mumbles something he can’t make out, then he hears the soft sounds of kissing.
Oh, this is so, so wrong, he should go.
Eddie says something else he can’t understand, and just as he’s getting ready to leave, they appear in his line of sight. Steve shoves Eddie against the wall, kissing his neck, his hands appearing from under Eddie’s scrubs to grab his ass, and the other man moans, hands tugging at Steve’s hair as his back arches.
Will is gonna puke. This is what he gets for eavesdropping, he shouldn’t have done that.
“I’ll fuck you right here so hard the whole wing will hear you.” Will drops the can, startled, and runs away. He can ask Eddie about DnD another time when… when he’s not doing… whatever.
It’s five hours later, when Eddie’s shift is over, that he comes over to the Squawk, now changed into his normal clothes, that Will gets nervous. It’s another hour until they’re alone, and he tries to ignore the older man.
“I knew it was your fuckass bowl cut.” Eddie whispers, staring at the teen, who simply stares at the ground.
“Sorry, I… I was looking for you… then Steve… and…” Eddie smiles, dropping an arm on his shoulders.
“It’s okay, mini Byers. Just… this stays between us, okay?” Eddie all but pleads, and who is Will to not do it? After all, Eddie knows he’s… well, not right. So he won’t tell, and Eddie won’t tell.
It benefits everyone, really.