fitzy

[JEREMY ALLEN WHITE, MALE, HE/HIM] who’s that? oh it’s [GARETH “FITZY” JOSEPH FITZGERALD III]. i hear they’re [21] and are known as [THE SCAREDY CAT] around [HAWKINS]. they’re also a [FRY COOK] at [BENNY’S BURGERS]. they’re known to be [+creative, +loyal] and [-cowardly, -lazy]. some people say they remind them of [broken drum sticks, a standard set of polyhedral dice, tattered flannels, a backpack littered with anarchist and band buttons].

who: lucas & @fitzythegreat​ what: a little reunion tbh where: benny’s burgers 2.0

lucas was never as hungry as he was after back-to-back physical therapy and counseling sessions. even after two-a-day basketball practices, he’d just rehydrated and pounded a couple of protein bars and waited for dinner. but something about trauma dumping to joann after doing balance exercises for an hour made him ravenous. so he did the only reasonable thing: headed to benny’s for a burger, shake, and fries. 

he hadn’t actually been back to the diner since the grand re-opening until now. it still looked mostly the same to him, just newer and with a few less grease stains. he was about to make a beeline for the booth he and the rest of the basketball team always occupied post-game when something -or someone, really- caught his eye. fitzy fitzgerald must have been on break or post-shift, because he was tucked into one of the smaller, two-person booths. 

they’d been friends at one time, back when they’d both been in high school and in hellfire together. lucas’ circle had gotten both bigger and smaller as he got closer and closer to graduation. it was mostly the party and the team with some of the adjacent jocks and cheerleaders being friendly-but-not-friends. and after all of the shit that had gone down in hawkins over the last several weeks? he missed the simplicity of his biggest worries being if he’d make the starting lineup for tuesday’s game or if eddie’s latest campaign was going to result in a total party kill because they’d been stupid enough to split the party early on. without thinking about it too much, lucas veered over to fitzy’s table and lifted a hand in greeting. “hey, fitz. long time, no see.” he offered an almost apologetic smile. “could i…do you want company?”

🍔

“order up!” fitzy exclaimed as he placed a meal tray on the pick-up counter and slapped his palm down on the bell, the ding reverberating loudly through benny’s. “and on that note,” he started, wiping his hands on a rag and playfully whipping it at his co-worker, “i’m officially done for the night.” with a satisfied sigh, fitzy wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his arm and excused himself to the break room. he ditched his apron and changed into his sneakers so that when he sat in a booth to scarf down his first dinner, he didn’t look like an employee. 

fitzy ordered a burger, soda, and fries for himself, all large, and then waited less than ten minutes for his food to be ready. once his co-worker called out his name, fitzy picked up his food, found an empty booth, and go to work. while he ate, he people watched vaguely, noticing a few has-beens from high school, but thankfully none that recognized him or felt the need to say hi. he was daydreaming away, thinking about van halen’s next tour, when lucas sinclair suddenly popped up at his side. 

“oh shit,” fitzy said with his mouthful, “hey, man.” fitzy gave himself a moment to chew, swallow, and wash it all down with his coke before he answered his old friend’s question. “depends if you’re alone...” he cleared his throat and scooted to the edge of his seat so he could peer out at the door, “or if you got any douchebags with you?” when it became obvious that lucas was alone, fitzy motioned for him to take a seat across from him. “been a minute, fella. how you been?” he asked, popping a few french fries into his mouth before crossing his arms over the edge of the table, “you look tired. go get some food and then we can catch up.” and then, over his shoulder, he shouted to his co-worker at the counter, “hook this guy up, alright? he’s my friend and he doesn’t suck.” he then gave lucas another encouraging smile and waited for his friend to return so they could really get into it.

Evie waved to Joyce as she exited the back door, “Thanks, Joyce! Have a good weekend. Kick up your feet, or something!” She wasn’t one to worry about others, but sometimes stress radiated off of her older coworker, and Evie had come close multiple times to inviting Joyce to her car on their breaks for a hit of her joint. But, ‘professionalism’ or whatever said that probably wasn’t a good move. Walking back to the register, Evie just had to do the final count to close out for the day. When she heard the desperate knocks and rattling of the door, Evie peered out through the glass– which desperately needed to be cleaned. 

The perpetrator looked familiar– although, who in Hawkins didn’t?– and Evie took a few steps toward him. Folding her arms across her chest, she pretended to weigh her options. Truthfully, she had no plans tonight, but he didn’t know that. When he breathed out, fogging up the glass that already needed a clean, Evie let out an exasperated sigh and unlocked the door. “Just to keep you from ruining my spotless door,” she quipped, letting the guy in and promptly locking the door after him. 

“So, what’s in it for me?” Evie asked, watching as the other hurried off with his list. “I happen to have very important plans, you know, and it’s just out of the goodness of my heart and class solidarity that I let you in after-hours,” she divulged, though the smirk on her face revealed that she was teasing. Evie busied herself, tidying up the shelves as she kept an eye on the stranger. He wasn’t half bad looking, which only helped his cause. When she noticed the quantity he was buying, she arched a brow. “All that for you, big guy?” 

🍔

the second he made eye contact with the girl on the other side of the glass door, fitzy felt a wave of relief wash over him. before she’d even visibly decided to let him in, he had already started waving around his prayer hands and whispering, “thank you, thank you, thank you!” once she reached for the handle and he heard the click of the door unlocking, he let out a sigh and stepped into melvald’s. never had he been so happy to be greeted by the smell of cardboard boxes under the glow of fluorescent lights. “i owe you big time,” fitzy assured her, taking one glance over his shoulder at the ‘spotless’ door and inhaling sharply, “yikes...someone should really clean that.”

not his problem though! his only purpose was making sure he stocked up on every item scribbled onto his pink slip. he wasted no time making his way over to the dairy aisle, but realized quickly that he wasn’t off the hook yet. “i promise i won’t be long,” he assured her, grabbing milk carton after milk carton until he had his arms full. shit. this was just one thing on his list. he’d need a, “cart?” he looked over at evie, “is there one handy over there? i don’t wanna drop all this stuff...” 

the girl’s question paired with her quirked brow caused fitzy’s stomach to knot. “are you flirting with me?” he asked with no game whatsoever, “not to be presumptuous but the way you’re looking at me is kinda making my face red and i don’t do super well under pressure, so if you are flirting, i’d be happy to continue it just...maybe not...when i’m holding a shit ton of milk.” her follow up question earned her a breathy chuckle. letting his guard down like that nearly caused one of the cartons to slip out of his grip, but he managed. “oh yeah, you know...milk is good for your bones and stuff, so...i try to stock up. a carton a day keeps the doctor away or whatever.” his crooked smile made it clear that he was joking, but in case she hadn’t caught on, he explained himself, “i work at benny’s. burger joint around the corner. we just reopened so it’s been busy...we haven’t figured out a good bulk buying system, i guess.” 

realizing benny’s was probably a good bargaining chip to repay her fort his favor, fitzy hugged the milk closer to him to ensure nothing would slip and shrugged. “if you like burgers, i can hook you up whenever you come through,” that felt like a pretty sweet deal, “i’ll even do it after hours.” now the deal was irresistible. the more he stared at her, the more sure he felt that they’d never met before. “you didn’t go to hawkins high, did you? i don’t recognize you,” if he had more sense, he probably wouldn’t have revealed that he didn’t recognize her so readily, but he had never been an expert when it came to being tactful or thoughtful, “i’m fitzy, by the way. i’d shake your hand but...” he glanced down at the milk, “i’ve got my hands full.”

There had been a lot of changes to Hawkins that Julie had missed while she’d been in college; Starcourt had been created and destroyed, the Palace Arcade, the Hawk and the new mall had been built. Everything seemed to have changed over the last five years, which made moving back a little disorienting. Hawkins had definitely needed some updates, but she wasn’t used to them yet. The familiar stomping grounds she’d grown up with seemed to have mostly disappeared or fallen into obscurity by now. So when she heard that Benny’s was reopening, Julie thought she really should go and check it out.

They had had the best burgers in town when she was growing up. She could remember coming here with her cast mates after shows or rehearsals in high school, or with her volleyball teammates on the weekends for team bonding. It had held a lot of fun memories for her, and she’d been distraught when she’d come back to Hawkins to find it burnt down. It felt like another big change that she wasn’t ready for, and while Julie usually embraced the spontaneous, this hadn’t felt like something she was ready for. 

One spontaneous thing that Julie wasn’t running from though was spying her old sort of ex from high school. Julie hadn’t known he worked here now, but the second she’d seen Fitzy carrying several trash bags outside, she’d figured it out and made a beeline for him across the parking lot. When she scared him, Julie couldn’t help but smile, still enjoying having that effect on people. “Hey, Fitzy,” She greeted, crossing her arms in front of her. Things had ended…weird, more than anything else. He hadn’t really been into her - which was fine! She just wasn’t really into being the girl that he awkwardly learned how to fool around with and then couldn’t really talk to outside of that. “Yeah, it’s been a few years,” Julie laughed, trying not to feel awkward. After all, things with them had ended a long time ago, being friendly now wasn’t weird.

“I’m here for lunch,” Julie told him, raising an eyebrow at the question. Why else would she be here? But she couldn’t help the actual laugh at the comment about the fry cook. He was a dork - but in a sweet way. “Oh yeah? I’ll have to see about that. I’ve been told I have high standards; it can be hard to impress me,” Julie grinned teasingly, tucking some of her blonde hair behind her ear. She was lying through her teeth - Julie had eaten fries off the floor before without hesitation. But, she liked messing with Fitzy a bit and keeping him on his toes. When they’d been whatever they had been back in high school, Julie had loved pushing his buttons and getting a reaction of any kind from him. “What have you been up to?” She asked after a second, a little more serious this time. 

🍔

the sight of julie now was no less stressful than it was in high school. despite having grown up, grown into his features, and maturing substantially after high school...fitzy was ultimately still simply a guy. and pretty girls, no matter the history, still made him nervous. the only difference was that now he wasn’t a baby faced teenager with absolutely zero experience and an almost debilitating inability to communicate. holding his arms open as julie stood in front of him, fitzy let out a bit of a laugh and shrugged before dropping his arms to his sides, “i’d give you a hug and stuff, but i’m sure i reek.” he clicked his tongue as he nodded towards the dumpster in a way that said, i don’t wanna hug you when i’ve been lugging around literal trash. 

“has it really been a few years?” he mused, sighing sheepishly as his eyes momentarily widened and he shook his head, “that’s...now that’s just nutty.” the further fitzy got from high school, the shorter the years felt and the more they blended together. it was bizarre, but what could he do?! such was life. 

when julie confirmed that she was there for lunch, a smile danced on to fitzy’s lips immediately. “oh fuck yeah,” he said goofily, clearing his throat as he stood in front of julie and took a few steps backwards, towards benny’s, hoping she’d follow. “high standards, huh?” he let out a light chuckle, “i find it better to have no standards. that way i can always be impressed.” no standards also meant less disappointment. it was a survival skill at this point. 

fitzy watched the way julie tucked her hair behind her ear in response to the wind blowing past them and it reminded him of being sixteen. it was a different time, but he was happy to catch up with her now. “i’ll get you the best seat in the house,” he assured her, bringing his backwards walk to a slow backwards jog so he wouldn’t have to quit looking at her, “and your meal’s on me. friends and family discount.” a beat. “just don’t tell anyone, because i don’t do this very often.” that was kind of a lie. he pretty much gave all of his friends free shit. but oh well! 

he was able to herald her into benny’s where the air was immediately thick and smelled strongly of burgers and french fries. comfort food. “pop a squat in that booth over there,” he told her, pointing, “and what we get you? i’ll get it started!” after getting julie situated, fitzy made his way back into the kitchen and got to cooking her order. he managed to do it in record time, eager to get back out there. a waiter was about to take the finished order and deliver it to julie’s table when fitzy lightly smacked their hand away. “ah, ah, ah—” he stopped them, shaking his head, “i got this one.” and without waiting a second longer, he grabbed the tray and placed it on julie’s table before sliding into the booth across from her, beads of sweat still glistening on his forehead from being close to the grill. “to answer you question,” the one she’d asked while they were outside, “i haven’t been up to much. just working since the reopening really. i went to mr. clarke’s memorial and uh...that was pretty fucking sad. also vickie’s...” he let out a sigh. “dark times in hawkins, man...dark times.” with a quick sniffle and a shrug, he slumped into the booth and locked eyes with julie. “what about you? how’s college and all that stuff?”  

these weren’t the big strong arms that bev had been imagining, but as fitzy rattled on and on about mr.clarke, her head tilted more and more to the left, expression contorting with great confusion. as judgmental as she looked her hands lingered, squeezing his shoulders for an extra moment before she fully stepped back and let him know, “you’re really awkward.” bev folded one arm over the other, “and you’re an even worse liar. like, really bad.” she told him, although some of that initial distaste was dwindling. “i don’t believe in like, jesus christ, or whoever said lying was a sin, so if you’re going to do it at least be good at it.” clearing her throat, in a terrifying switch, bev began gasping for air, fake crying convincingly enough to produce a tear, “i had him! he was everything to me!” she buried her face in her hands and when she looked back up, she was giggling, “see, totally convincing!” 

bev’s eyes flashed to his tapping hands as he introduced himself and she looked dangerously sly as she took a step back towards him, “fitzy…” she noted, voice low and dripping with interest. some fabricated, some genuine. her gaze flicked down to his hands as she asked, “do i make you nervous?” her eyes locked with his own for a moment, trying to draw him in even further. ones like this were always easy, but still fun nonetheless. cute. it had been a while since she’d even been able to play around, so she would take what she could get, even if that included this weirdo at a memorial. even if it led nowhere. even if she kinda liked the conversation. she broke eye contact when she made for the bench, sizing up fitzy’s father. a cop. ugh. “what? are you guys like best friends or something? why did you come with your dad?” in no world would she be caught in public with her father. 

settling on the bench, her brows arched, a warning sign. quickly, she corrected him, “wildfire. don’t forget it again, blitzen.” bev smiled as the half rhyme to his name slid off her tongue, sweet as sugar. “i don’t remember that.” she admitted, but what was there to remember? bev wasn’t at all shocked to learn she hadn’t recalled sharing a classroom with him. she was far too busy in high school to know every person in every class for four years. as fitzy asked to sit, she eyed the bench next to her, pretended to think about it, then nodded. intentionally, she sat close beside him, thighs touching, simply curious to see his reaction to her proximity as they chatted. the first genuine smile came to her face when fitzy brought up the old haunts and she teased, “no way you’ve made out at lover’s lake…with who? barb holland?” though her words were harsh, she rubbed her lipgloss against her lips in a way that said would you want to go? with me? bev sighed, then rapidly abandoned that energy to genuinely ask, curious like a little kid, “do people still really do that stuff?” there was something more alarming in her eyes than anything else that evening– tenderness. 

🍔

you’re really awkward. “ouch,” fitzy responded, bringing his hands up to his heart in feigned pain, but before he could even make a case for how he wasn’t awkward, he was told he was also a bad liar. unfortunately that he couldn’t dispute. as he wracked his brain for something clever to say—something about how he was honest and didn’t need to lie—bev decided to pull his focus with her alligator tears. “what the hell...?” fitzy asked, completely amused as he stared at her, his eyes filling with wonder, “you’ve got a technique?” a laugh escaped him as he shook his head and placed his hands on his hips, “wow. you’re like evil-evil, aren’t you?” a beat. “it’s impressive.”

when the conversation hit a natural lull, out of habit, fitzy began anxiously tapping his fingers against his legs like a drum. he would’ve gotten away with it too, had bev not been so set on calling him out on apparently everything. “do you make me...? ha!—do you make me nervous?” he retorted, cheeks flushed as he stared down at her and finally ceased tapping his fingers. she’s already called him out for being a bad liar, so he decided to go with his gut. he told the truth. “of course you make me nervous. have you seen you? i mean...sheesh, come on.” he shrugged and stared at her, a smitten smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he crossed his arms and added, “look at ya.” 

in that moment their eyes locked, and fitzy felt like his heart was thumping so wildly that it was moving in and out of his chest like a bugs bunny cartoon. the hold his high school crush still had on him was embarrassing, but not more embarrassing than this whole interaction was thrilling. but of course his dad had to ruin it. “we’re definitely not best friends,” fitz assured her, following her to the bench after asking permission, “he just forces me to do this stuff sometimes. says i have to because him and my mom don’t make me pay rent.” he sighed and shrugged indifferently. “not much else of a story there.” 

throughout this conversation with bev wildfire, fitzy had learned something about himself. he’d learned that perhaps he was a masochist. there was something about the way she insisted on always knocking him down a peg that intrigued and amused him. what could he say? maybe he just liked his girls a little mean. “barb holland? really? you can remember barb holland but you don’t remember me? the guy who sat next to you in 9th grade english, behind you in physics and had P.E class with you?” he scoffed playfully, slumping into the bench with a dramatically defeated sigh before he looked her way again, “that’s just cruel. i don’t know if i can come back from that one.” 

fitzy looked back at bev in time to see her rubbing her lips together and staring at him like that. it made his mouth dry almost instantly. but the moment was gone as quickly as it came. clearing his throat, awkwardly, he then began to nod. “i mean, yeah, people still do that stuff...like...hawkins is still hawkins. i don’t think that’ll ever change...” he glanced out at the crowd at the memorial, “even in the face of all...” he gestured towards the performance of it all, “this.” running his hands through his hair for a moment, trying to decide where to go next with this, he chose to play it safe. “so what have you been up to since high school?” ya know, besides being dead, “i haven’t seen or hear that much about you...” because you were dead. 

not too long after the annual summer carnival went up in flames, benny’s burgers finally had their grand reopening. in the darkest of times, having a town staple re-open was like a “tiny beacon of light” or whatever benny’s nephew, who was now running the place, had said. fitzy was glad to be back at work, he was happy to have something to do and be around people again, but he hated having to hear all this talk about forest communes or supernatural forces or other equally scary stuff that people were whispering about.

fitzy was not a hero. he was a fry cook with a high school degree. his special skills were playing the drums, D&D and you guessed it, flipping burgers! not...fighting off whatever new thing plagued his cursed town. uh-uh. no sir. so whenever fitzy heard too much talk of all the nonsense happening in the newspapers, he removed himself. this time it was the dishwashers who wouldn’t shut up about “knowing who planted the bomb” when fitzy decided it was time to take out the trash. 

he collected all of the bags from the bins that were littered around the kitchen and walked out the back door with two bags in one hand and one in the other. although he was visibly straining, he somehow managed to get across the lot to the dumpster without any of the bags breaking. with a grunt, he flung the bags over until they crashed on the other side of the metal frame. clapping his hands together, satisfied, fitzy turned one his heel and immediately jumped back, spooked by the person directly behind him. “ah,” he shrieked, but then quickly let out a sigh of relief when he realized he knew the person, “julie! julie, shit. good to see you! you scared me for a second there. damn, we haven’t seen each other in a while, huh?!” fitzy was a bit breathless from lugging the trash across the lot, but with his hands on his hips, he slowly began to collect himself. “what’re you doing here?” he asked, glancing at benny’s, “hope you’re stopping by for a bite to eat. i hear they’ve got a mean fry-cook.” and as if he didn’t already look dweeby enough, he pointed at himself with both thumbs to indicate that he was the cook...like the apron didn’t already say that much. 

after a double shift from hell, fitzy was ready to hotbox his shitty car and then collapse on to his bed to watch thundercats reruns for five minutes until he fell asleep. the day had been long and exhausting. fitzy didn’t want anyone to get it twisted, he was happy that benny’s reopened and that he had something to do and somewhere to be, but man, he was tired. he was just about done cleaning the grill when his boss, benny’s newphew, approached him to let him know they were low on some things and he’d need to make a stop first thing in the morning the next day. 

first thing in the morning? not a chance. fitzy was not a morning person. he’d make the stop tonight, store what he needed in his fridge at home, and bring it in the next day. that would be an efficient use of his time. so with the grocery list in hand, fitzy walked to his car, rattled the engine to life, and sped off to melvald’s. when he got there, their doors were locked. 

“no,” fitzy groaned, shaking the handles, “no, come on. please! i’ll be quick!” most of the workers he could still see inside cleaning were acting like they couldn’t see him, but he knew they could. “come on,” fitz begged, now banging on the glass, “do a guy a solid!” it was then that he locked eyes with someone he hadn’t seen before—someone about his age. “hey!” he waved, smiling widely at the girl as he held up his hot pink sticky note, “can i please just grab a few things? i’ll be in and out, swear.” both his hands were pressed to the door and his face was so close to it he was fogging up the glass with his breath. “please,” he mouthed, hoping his detour wouldn’t be for nothing. 

bev hadn’t known what she was expecting when she threw herself into a stranger’s arms, but it wasn’t this sad sack’s job of comforting her. it flew over her head that this was a perfectly natural response from the other, and she was more irritated that she wasn’t instantly showered in compliments of how beautiful she looked crying by the candlelight or how adequately dressed she was for a memorial. shortly after her head hit his chest, and he started speaking, bev lifted her chin and stepped back, looking at the other with a frown. she didn’t have to say it because it was written all over her face– ew. 

with a singular raised brow, she tilted her ear towards him, suddenly not mourning at all, and demanding an explanation, “did you have mr.clarke?” she didn’t remember him from any of her classes, let alone high school. she chalked that up to being gone for four years and maybe this idiot got sold on the idea of hawkins and moved there in her absence. what did she know? “who even are you? you can’t just like, grab girls like that.” bev lectured him, tone shrill, like she hadn’t thrown herself at him. 

even if it made perfect sense that she was so alluring, so distraught, that a stranger couldn’t help but hold her near, bev was still curious about who he was. her company over the course of the last four years had been dirt and worms, so she wasn’t as opposed to talking to a nobody as she normally might be. besides, who was going to clock her bumming it with him in the midst of a memorial? nobody. she sat down on a nearby bench, and confessed, “i barely remember the guy, to be totally honest.” bev then shrugged. she knew she didn’t need to provide an explanation, but she did anyhow, “i was just bored.” 

🍔

fitzy’s experience with girls was fairly limited. save for an almost fling with julie foreman in high school, there wasn’t much else to report. so while he was doing his best to hug and comfort bev, the way she looked at him when she pulled away made it clear that his moves weren’t working. crap. how could he save this interaction? he opened his mouth like he was about to speak, but she beat him to it with a question he knew he’d have a bad answer to. so naturally, he lied. “um...i mean...yeah...of course i had him,” but only for a second, “sorry, i don’t know why i said that...i...no. i didn’t have him.” he cleared his throat and dropped his hands before he began rhythmically and lightly tapping his hands against his sides—a nervous habit, if you will. 

when bev asked for an introduction, fitz stared at her blankly for a moment. they’d gone to school together all those years and she had no idea who he was. he’d always figured that, but getting the confirmation stung. he cleared his throat and forced a smile though. “sorry, i didn’t mean to grab you...you were the one who...anyway, i’m fitzy...fitzgerald. well, gareth fitzgerald but everyone calls me fitzy,” he clicked his tongue and glanced over at his dad who was wearing his cop uniform despite being off-duty, “that’s my dad and he...forced me to be here, so...” he shrugged and pursed his lips, hoping that was explanation enough.

“and who are you again?” fitzy asked, half-trying to be funny and half-trying to save face since he so clearly knew who she was. “you’re...bev...?” bev love-of-my-life-who-died-but-somehow-came-back-to-life wildfire, “bev wild...wildes? what is it again?” and before she could respond, he added, “i’m pretty sure we had a couple of classes together.” and by pretty sure, he meant definitely. his eyes moved with her to the bench first but his feet were quick to follow. “may i?” he asked, but didn’t wait for a response before plopping down beside her and gazing at the whole crowd of people crying and hugging over the beloved middle school teacher. her unprompted statement made him snort before he glanced over at her. “who goes to a memorial because they’re bored?” despite being inappropriate, it was making him laugh. “why not go get drunk at skull rock or make out at lover’s lake like the rest of us?”