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Warmth seeped into his bones, swelteringly thick as light danced behind his eyelids. Heavy stillness weighed on one arm, the other pulled tight around something soft. Bony fingers tangled with his, calluses tickling him ever so slightly with each breath. With a sigh, his bedmate snuggled back into his chest, smothering him with a mass of curls that smelled of tobacco and cheap shampoo.
Curls?
That used to mean Carol, but it’d been more than a year now, and anyway, she wouldn’t be caught dead buying shampoo from Melvald’s.
The cigarette smoke ruled out Nancy, and it was way too much hair to be Robin, so…
Where the hell was he?
See, Steve had this really… unfortunate habit of waking up in unfamiliar places. Occasionally, when he was too exhausted to think straight and a little bit tipsy, he’d decide to take himself off to bed.
Anyone’s bed.
Sometimes with them still in it.
He found out when he woke up one morning to Tommy’s screeching. To be absolutely fair, if he’d found his girlfriend curled up with his nearly naked best friend, he also would have given the friend a black eye and not spoken to either of them for a week.
Tommy was a good sport about it, though, because after an apology bottle of whiskey, it happened again. Except this time, it was Carol’s snorting laugh from the doorway that startled him awake.
This pattern repeated with a lot of girls and once, oddly enough, with Jonathan Byers.
The sunlight pricked at him as he let his eyes slide open. He breathed slowly, careful not to disturb the person beside him as he worked to figure out where he was. Robin and Chrissy worked on a school thing with… someone. He’d driven, of course, because Rob was a wiener—lovingly—and Chrissy lived just down the street. Then… then he wasn’t sure.
There was a water stain on the ceiling in the corner. Dark posters he couldn’t quite make out lined the walls, and the surfaces around were littered with papers, wrappers, and knickknacks. It was a hot mess, sure, but that didn’t give him anything useful.
What did, however, was specks of red dancing on the ceiling. Desperate not to pull on his partner’s hair, he wriggled until he could safely lift his head to find its source.
That guitar looked familiar.
He tried to blink the sleep out of his eyes as his stomach dropped off a cliff. Please, God, don’t let him be where he thought he was. He had to check, then once he was sure, he had to do whatever he could to get out of here with his dignity intact. He could manage that, couldn’t he?
Oh so slowly, he pulled his fingers free of their entanglement, the pads running down the lines of a smooth palm. He gently swept wild curls back from his partner’s face, fingers trailing to rest softly on a pale neck.
The little shiver that maneuver elicited did things to him he wasn’t proud to admit.
Steve’s eyes scanned over long, dark eyelashes, feather-light as they dusted over thin cheeks. A long nose made its way down to plush pink lips that practically glowed in the slivers of dawn peeking through the blinds.
Eddie Munson was cuddling him and he… he was beautiful.
Pulse pounding in his ears, he laid back carefully, dragging his eyes away from the curve of Eddie’s jaw. He watched the lights reflecting off the guitar absently, mind wanting to race, but the weight, the warmth kept his conscious drawn to the mattress. Hyperaware of every draw of breath, he couldn’t—no, didn’t want to make a joke of the whole situation. In fact, he didn’t want to do much of anything, content to remain in the syrupy stillness until whatever happened happened and his life changed forever.
He struggled to recall the events of last night. Eddie’d been grouped with Chrissy and Robin in O’Donnell’s at the start of the year. Chrissy quickly deemed the super-senior her passion project and enlisted Robin’s help, and his platonic soulmate was just as swayed by a pretty girl as he was, so it was acquiesce or be dragged along.
Not that he was complaining, obviously. He didn’t do a lot of hanging out with people his own age these days.
As for Eddie… well, Robin was right to make fun of him for having a type. He’d been putting that crisis off for a while, and with the way his attention was stolen by the slightest rumble in Eddie’s chest, he decided to just skip it altogether.
Steve sunk into the sheets, mesmerized by the soft cotton brushing his legs and the tickle of Eddie’s shirt against his ribs. Mind adrift, he wrapped a stray curl around his finger, admiring how the sun glinted off it to bring out fiery undertones. He gently tugged, consumed with the small whine that freed itself from Eddie’s throat.
Eddie rolled, laying a cheek on his shoulder and running a hand up his chest. Maybe he was just touch-starved, but the casual intimacy ripped the air from his lungs. He was Icarus on the cliff’s edge, praying for a wind to lift him toward the sun. Could anything more come of this, or was he living a fever dream? Was it time to face his demise? Or would the heady air offer leniency?
Fingers traced down his sternum, once, twice before Eddie mumbled, warm lips brushing against his skin. Heat pooled in his stomach, and his hands begged to be put to use. He indulged them, letting his nails scrape gently against the base of Eddie’s neck. The other wormed its way to his back, gliding over the soft skin above the waistband of his boxers.
“This better not be a dream,” Eddie sighed.
“Wanna find out?”
Eddie flinched, lifting his head slowly even as the gentle caresses continued. The sun caught in wide eyes, and Steve was drowning in honey, flecks of cinnamon passing him by as he was dragged into their depths. If the Powers That Be would allow it, he would spend eternity right there, watching emotions dance in the amber warmth until the universe burned away.
Movement drew his gaze down to where Eddie was worrying a rosy lip between his teeth. One little duck of his head and the pull of the tether around his heart would be satisfied.
“If…” Eddie’s voice was hoarse. Steve was glad he wasn’t the only one torn up about this. “If you keep looking at me like that, I can’t make any promises as to where this stops.”
Something akin to hope soared in his chest. “You’ll miss your chance if you keep hesitating.”
The challenge was enough. Eddie closed the scant inches between them with a coordination he’d never shown before, but there was no time to be impressed. The heat of his lips, the hammering of his heart, the easy touch of his hands, Steve felt it all in an instant and a lifetime, the very fabric of space suspended in the void, absolutely still except for here, now.
Too quickly, it was over. Eddie pulled back, chest heaving and blinking those doe eyes at him. “Is this okay?”
Steve knew he was a weak man, but God. That quiet moment of concern took all the hesitation left in his body, crumpled it up, and tossed it out the window. He pulled Eddie’s lips back to his, moving now with an unbecoming need, kissing him with all the ferocity he deserved. It was a bit unbelievable that loud-mouth Munson was putty in his hands, but Steve had had weirder fantasies, and there was no use in wasting an opportunity that so readily presented itself.
He basked in the breathy moans escaping from a soft throat that demanded attention, and really, who was he to deny himself the pleasure? He let his lips drift along the barest hint of stubble and down to where he felt Eddie’s pulse drum a quick pace. Fingers tangled in his hair in response to the gentle nip of his teeth, tugging just enough to drive him insane.
Eddie dug his nails in his shoulder, shifting to straddle him. In the process of sitting up, he rubbed his ass against just the right spot, and Steve decided then and there he would worship at the altar of Eddie Munson for the rest of his life.
Apparently he’d made a noise, because Eddie gave him a wicked grin. Slowly, torturously slowly, he repeated the movement, sending sparks along Steve’s nerves. “You’re enjoying this,” he said, smug.
Steve ran his hands up smooth thighs, occasionally marred by the silver scars of a childhood outdoors. “And you aren’t?” he retorted, nodding at the tent in Eddie’s boxers.
“Give me a break. I’ve been dreaming about this for years.” The blush that crept down his neck disappeared under the collar of his ratty-ass T-shirt.
That couldn’t stand. He tugged on its hem in relentless pursuit of more skin, more heat, more Eddie. “Years, you say?”
If those eyes could keep rolling at him forever, he’d never leave this bed. “If you’re going to be a dick about it—”
Laughter bubbled from his chest. “Never,” he swore, “never.” A bright smile disappeared behind dark fabric for a brief moment as something sweeter than lust twisted through his ribs. This could be something more than a dream, more than a fleeting moment of madness. Hell, Eddie had said just that, promising him the only thing he could.
Every second that Steve wasn’t consumed with him was a second of that time he was wasting.
Hope drove him to plant messy kisses along a freshly exposed collarbone, to lose himself to the fire needy hands left on his skin. He was melting, reduced to the base parts of who he was and pieced together in perfect artistry under Eddie’s lips as they captured his once more. Tangled together in the light of dawn, Steve began to understand reverence, reformation, rebirth.
Gravel crunched outside as a rumbling truck came to a stop. Eddie went rigid, heart skipping a beat against Steve’s chest. A minute of silence passed before Steve let himself breathe, kneading his fingers into a bony hip. “Maybe it’s not here?” he whispered.
The slam of the front door was like being doused in cold water. “Edward Thomas Munson!”
In a flash, Eddie scrambled away, kneeing Steve squarely in the dick before landing on the floor with a thud. He let out a groan as pain blossomed in his stomach, distracting him from the stomp of boots and Eddie’s little, “shit, shit, shit.”
“Boy, if you stole that goddamn car and parked it outside of this house—" The door cracked into the wall, and Steve rolled to find a haggard face losing its color.
“Bad day?” Eddie offered weakly, shirt clutched to his chest.
Wayne grunted and spun on his heel, muttering something as he closed the door behind him.
“I, uh…”
He uncurled and laid back, eyes tracing the watermarks as he caught his breath. Then, despite the tension, or maybe because of it, he began to laugh.
A quiet sniffle brought that to a screeching halt. Steve sat up too fast, ignoring the stabbing in his gut. Tears welled in Eddie’s eyes, his shoulders quivering as he stood still, staring at the door.
“I’m sorry, I wasn’t laughing at you, I swear.” He reached out, pulling hands into his own and bringing their owner to sit beside him. “I just—that’s the best a parent walking in has gone for me. Usually, they start screaming and trying to swat me off their daughters.” He heard the words pouring out of his mouth before he could think them, that little bit of soul that he shared with Robin shining through. “Not that that’s happened recently. The sleeping in other people’s beds just sort of happens sometimes when I drink. Not just to people I’m into. I mean, I haven’t even been on a date in months. I wanted to ask you, I just hadn’t put my brain together enough to say it. But, if, if you’re interested—I gotta shut the hell up.”
Eddie blinked a couple times, jaw slack. “What?”
Steve sucked in a breath, exhaling slowly to steady himself. “I really like you. And I haven’t figured out what it means for me to like you yet, but I want to. If you’d let me?”
Anxiety gnawed at him as those soft brown eyes continued to stare. He could almost see the puzzle pieces trying to fit together in Eddie’s mind, not quite finding where they aligned. A minute passed, then another, and it was all he could do to rub a comforting thumb over white knuckles as his newfound hopes slowly withered.
Wayne knocked on the door. “Eddie, get in the shower. You, get dressed and come with me.”
The noise knocked Eddie out of his stasis. “It’s alright. He’s cool.” He gave Steve’s hands a squeeze and pulled free. He gathered a pile of clothing and shoved it at him. “A little modesty, dude.”
Steve pouted. “You just don’t want to be tempted anymore.”
The low chuckle sent his heart soaring. Even after Eddie stepped out, he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. He’d get through this conversation with Wayne, and then who knew? Maybe he’d get that date after all.
When he was dressed, he made his way to the kitchen. Wayne waved to the seat next to him at the table, fixing him with a curious gaze so like his nephew’s. He sat.
“You’re Steve.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You like Eddie?”
“Yes, sir. You heard all of that?”
“Yep.” He drummed his fingers on the faded wood, thinking for a moment. “I need you to promise me something.”
Steve was quite experienced in receiving shovel talks. “What’s that?”
“You have to help me keep him safe.” That wasn’t what he was expecting to hear. “He’s my boy. He’s all I’ve got. You know how it is for kids like him.”
“Of course. I promise.” He meant every word.
Wayne nodded and stood. He puttered about the kitchen, pans clattering as he started on breakfast. “You’re friends with the girls, right?”
“Robin and Chrissy, yeah.” A glass of juice landed in front of him. “Would you like help with anything?”
The skillet sizzled. “It’s alright. How are things going with school?”
“Good, I think. Last I heard, they were getting him close to a C.”
“Hmm.” The hush settled between them, interrupted only by the popping grease.
At last, Eddie emerged from the bathroom, damp curls plastered to his forehead. Worry painted the crease between his brows as he surveyed the scene. Steve tried his best to put on a reassuring smile.
Plates landed on the table. “Sit. Eat.”
Dutifully, he shoveled bacon and eggs into his mouth, eyes flicking between Eddie and Wayne as the clatter of silverware filled the silence. Steve’s nerves needed to go somewhere, so once his leg began to bounce, there was little to stop it.
A warm hand rested gently on his thigh, the slight tremble belying Eddie’s uncertainty as the quiet stretched on, slowly growing comfortable.
Steve let the little hitch in his chest release. No one was dead. No one was yelling or angry. No unknown monstrosity was crawling out of the vents to rip them to shreds. Everything was fine.
God, how long it’d been since everything had been fine.
Wayne broke the silence. “You’ve got that math test today. Ready for it?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Eddie replied.
“You can do it, kid.” A shrill alarm rang from somewhere in the house. “Y’all head on. Better not be late.”
Eddie clutched his chest in mock indignation as they stood. “Rude. I am always perfectly punctual.”
Wayne shook his head at Steve. “If I find out he’s playing hooky, I’m coming for you first.”
He grinned and offered a hand. “Absolutely. Good to meet you, Mr. Munson.”
“Wayne’s fine, and good to meet you,” he answered with a firm handshake before gathering their plates. As they made their way to the door, he called, “Eddie?”
Wide eyes flicked back. “Yeah?”
“Answer the poor boy, will you?”
Steve watched a blush climb up Eddie’s cheeks as he was pulled out into the morning sun. They walked a little farther, finding a bit of privacy behind the van. “So…” Eddie began.
“I meant it. All of it.”
“That’s the part that scares me.”
Doubt gnawed at him. “Do you… regret anything?”
Eddie huffed a laugh. “No. Lord, no. It’s just that you might if this goes any further, and I don’t want to make you live with that.”
The thought struck him as absurd. He pulled warm hands into his own, admiring the way the light played across rose-dusted cheeks. “I don’t think I could ever regret you. Maybe a missed chance, but never you, Eds.”
The question remained in those dark eyes, compelling him to place a quick, fierce kiss in his lips.
Eddie’s apprehension melted with his spreading grin. “Keep being sweet to me, and I might have to make Wayne make good on his threats.”
“If you miss this test, it’s not just going to be Wayne, it’ll be Robin and Chrissy, too.” The revelation struck him like a bolt of lightning. “Son of a bitch, I forgot about Robin and Chrissy!”
“They’re fine, I took them home last night.” The keys Steve had begun searching for magically appeared in Eddie’s hand. “You better go pick them up, though, or Robin might think I’ve deflowered you.”
“God, if only. Are you free Thursday?”
“Thursday works. You know where to find me.”
Steve couldn’t hide his smile as he gave Eddie a final peck. “Trust me, I’ll find you.”
It didn’t fade even as he drove to Robin’s. “What’s got you in such a good mood?” she asked, slinging her bookbag into the back seat. He’d have to talk to her about it eventually, but for now, it was his little secret.
He shrugged. “Pretty sunrise this morning.”