If she hadn’t looked at Eddie, still standing dumbly in the way, up and down with her eyes narrowed and lips turned down into a frown before she opened them to say, with the most velvet smooth, passive-aggressive voice Eddie had ever heard:

“Can you move?”

It wasn’t a request. It was a demand.

Eddie kinda wanted to bitch-slap her for it, but her own body betrayed her as she moved out of the way instantly and she smiled at her — almost fondly, but venomous, also all passive-aggressive and, honestly? Delicious.

“Thank you, sweetheart.”

Eddie was pissed off and aroused to her deepest corners, and she would later find out that it wouldn’t be the first time Nancy Wheeler would piss her off and still have her do whatever she demanded with that silky way of hers.

Eddie didn’t see her anymore at all after that at the party, and still had no idea who she was for a whole week before she ran into Robin at the grocery store. She asked her who the girl was, describing her looks and clothes. She tried not to be too obvious about her annoyance and also attraction to the mystery girl, and she thought she succeeded because Robin didn’t shoot her one of her bombastic side eyes.

“Oh! Short curly bob, about yay high?” Robin asked, gesturing somewhere around her chin level. Eddie nodded as she turned to pick up some sugar. “Yeah, that’s Nancy.”

Eddie stopped with her hand mid-reach. “Steve’s ex, Nancy?” she asked.

“The one and only,” Robin snickered and Eddie blinked a few times in shock before proceeding with her shopping.

Eddie thought she knew a lot about the infamous Nancy Wheeler, because she had befriended Steve right after Nancy had broken his pure little himbo heart, almost eight years before. She knew Steve and Nancy had worked things out and were friendly now, but didn’t know they were friendly enough for Steve to invite her to his birthday. She shared those thoughts with Robin, who chuckled teasingly.

“Oh, sweet summer child. You have no idea of the intricacies of our friend group, do you?”

That was true. Eddie knew of Steve and Robin’s friend group from their hometown and she knew that it was a whole beautiful mess off queerness, but she hadn’t met anyone but Robin so far, even with the almost eight years of friendship with Steve — and probably only knew her because Steve and Robin were glued at the hip. She knew of Nancy, and of Jonathan, and of course, knewRobin’s girlfriend Vickie, but didn’t know what their intricacies were.

She was honestly a little scared to ask at that point, so she just shrugged and Robin and her continued their shopping talking of other stuff from then on.

She saw Nancy again a couple of months after Steve’s party, because then it was Vickie’s birthday party, and at least this time Chrissy was able to go so Eddie wouldn’t have to be stuck to Robin the whole night.

“I’m so glad I’m not missing this one. I mean, Vickie’s a great girl and of course she’s the main reason, but that Jon boy was looking delicious in the pics Steve posted and I’m so sad I missed seeing him looking like that,” she was rambling on and on about her crush as she reapplied lip gloss on the way to the bar Vickie chose to have her small party at. “Did you meet him at all?”

“No, I only saw him passing by. He did look good, smelled amazing too,” Eddie replied with a grin.

“Ugh, you’re no good as a best friend. You know I’ve been in love with him ever since Steve posted that picture last November! You had to befriend him!” she complained but she had a smile on her shiny pink lips.

“You can’t be in love with him, bitch, you don’t even know him,” Eddie replied.

“I so can, bitch. I feel it in my tits,” Chrissy ended the discussion as the Uber parked in front of the bar, and they left it laughing loudly after thanking the driver. “In my heart, I mean. Under the tits. If he’s not here today I’ll leave immediately!”

“I’ll tell the birthday girl you said that,” Eddie sing-sang as she started walking faster towards the bar entrance. Chrissy yelled after her as they walked through the doors still laughing.

To Chrissy’s delight, the Jon boy was there in all his scrawny glory where he sat across from Vickie at the table they reserved for the birthday. Vickie was excitedly talking to him about something, gesturing all around her as Robin looked at her with pathetic heart shaped eyes. Nancy, sitting beside Jonathan, was also paying attention.

No, she was not the first person Eddie noticed.

Eddie and Chrissy approached the table and Steve lit up at the sight of them from where he was sitting on the other side of Vickie.

“There they are! My favorite sapphics club is complete!” he was getting up from his seat as he talked, and Vickie wrapped up her story before getting up to greet them too.

Jonathan turned to Nancy and they whispered between them, and Eddie would’ve thought they were talking about Vickie’s story if Nancy hadn’t shot her a look from over Jonathan’s shoulder. He then looked over too and smirked before turning back to Nancy and saying something that made her hide a laugh behind her wrist.

“Why do you surround yourself with so many sapphics anyway?” Chrissy asked as she and Steve separated from their embrace, and Eddie finally tore her look away from Nancy and Jonathan to hug Vickie tightly.

“It’s the ally in me,” Steve answered and it got him a slap from his favorite sapphic who had also gotten up to greet the newcomers.

“You’re literally queer too,” Robin said as she made grabby hands at Chrissy for her own hug. Steve just cackled and shrugged.

They finished their greetings session and both Eddie and Chrissy handed Vickie their gifts — a matching set of earrings and a necklace — before walking back to the table. Aside from them, Jonathan and Nancy, there were only a couple more people that were introduced as Vickie’s work friends.

“Nice to finally get your name,” Nancy said with a smirk when Vickie introduced her to Eddie.

Eddie narrowed her eyes. “You didn’t ask for it when you were bossing me around like a bitch last time.” Eddie didn’t made clear who the bitch was. It was on purpose.

Nancy’s smile only widened with her answer as Jonathan hid a snort behind a cough.

“She tends to do that,” Steve said as he pulled a chair for Chrissy to sit at beside him.

“Excuse me?” Nancy asked, but she was still clearly being playful.

“Yeah, no, he’s right,” Jonathan said before sipping on whatever drink he had.

Nancy rolled her stupidly beautiful blue eyes. “Love when my exes team up against me.”

Eddie thankfully wasn’t drinking anything yet or she would’ve choked on liquid, and that would be worse than choking on thin air —which she did.

“What?” one of Vickie’s coworkers thankfully asked, and all of the long-time friends laughed together.

“Oh, isn’t that a long story…” Vickie giggled to her friend who just shrugged:

“We do have all night.”

Long story short, they all had had relationships in some way.

Not like Eddie or Chrissy could judge, since they both met Steve on different nights out and they both hooked up with him in the respective back alleys of the clubs they were in, and Chrissy and Robin were definitely flirting before Robin went all monogamist-serious with Vickie. And they wouldn’t judge even if it didn’t make them hypocrites because there was nothing wrong with all that anyway, but that’s an obvious statement.

But none of their things with each other had been serious or even consummated, meanwhile it was kind of funny that Nancy dated Steve and then Jonathan, and Jonathan dated Argyle who had been in the bathroom and appeared in the middle of the story, and who was now on his journey to woo Steve into a relationship, and Nancy and Robin also had a fling at some point and so did Jonathan and Steve.

Eddie felt tired at the end of the retelling and she had been sitting down the whole time.

“Ah yes, the amazing queer experience,” Vickie’s coworker who had initially asked commented at the end of it all.

They all laughed at that and the coworker — Eddie really didn’t get their name — waved a bartender over for some shots. Once they were delivered and everyone had gotten one, Coworker started a toast.

“To Vickie, and her hometown friends who all fucked each other!” they toasted, and everyone laughed louder as they clinked their tiny cups together before throwing the shots back.

Those were just the first shots of many that night, each round with a more ridiculous toast to accompany the ‘To Vickie’ one every time.

After a few hours Chrissy was best friends with Vickie’s coworkers, and Eddie still had no idea what their names were, and instead had found her way in between Jonathan and Argyle as they all talked about photography, an art they all shared their love for. Jonathan was actually a photographer himself. The talk went from classic photography, analog to digital, and just as they started talking about Instagram accounts, Chrissy stopped by, whispered something right by Jonathan’s ear that made him blush, and they left together. Eddie and Argyle traded knowing looks and continued the conversation without the person who had begun it, and soon Nancy took Jonathan’s seat instead.

“What’s the talk?” she asked while sipping her fruity cocktail that Argyle then took from her and drank before answering.

“Our favorite Instagram accounts. We were talking about photography, but…”

“Oh!” Nancy took her phone from the pocket of her dress — a dress with pockets, amazing; Eddie thought — and opened the app. “It’s not photography, but this one is my favorite of all times. It’s so inspiring to me,” she said as she found the profile she was looking for and then turned the screen for Eddie and Argyle to look at.

Eddie had a really hard time trying not to choke on thin air for the second time that evening.

The profile Nancy was showing was a poet’s page, by the name of M.W. and who posted small, handwritten poems with a beige and brown color palette, a drawn sheet ghost as their profile picture. Clearly anonymous, even with hundreds of thousands of followers, the person behind the poems and the page didn’t want people to know who they were.

The person behind the poems and the page was Eddie.

“What-” Eddie tried to talk, failed, cleared her throat and tried again, “What do you like about it?”

Nancy got this look on her face that Eddie hadn’t seen before so far. Something fond and sweet, her blue eyes like pools Eddie wanted to drown in. Her smile was wide and it turned her face to something entirely different, all the sharpness and sarcastic expressions Eddie had been graced with so far transforming into earnest softness.

“I’m a journalist, and I love writing and sharing stories. Poems have always been something I wouldn’t do, because they all seemed so hard and too complex and I always thought ‘normal’ people couldn’t do them,” she explained, looking Eddie in the eye the whole time. She was like Medusa, and Eddie was trapped paralyzed under her stare but with no intention of leaving any time soon. “And then all these modern poets came around on social media, and they have always spoken to me in some ways, but Emme…” She looked down at her phone screen again, that same soft look that made Eddie’s brain short-circuit. “I don’t know what it is, but they talk to me so personally. I love everything they write. They are delicate with words without losing their candidness, and forthright without losing their gentleness. I just… I’m very impressed and inspired by them.”

Maybe it was then.

Eddie, of course, had no idea what to answer to that. She received comments and messages every day about how her writing helped and affected people, but it had never happened in person because no one knew who she was. That was different. Nancy’s words echoed right into her chest, making it swell with pride, but she didn’t know how to respond. She just stared at the girl before her, hoping her expression wasn’t giving her away.

“That’s so nice, dude. They’re really nice poems,” Argyle said as he rolled through M’s feed. “Do you not like them, Eddie?” he asked, and Eddie shook her head to get out of her wandering thoughts before glancing at the screen Argyle was showing her.

She didn’t need to look too hard, she knew every single poem there by heart.

She shrugged. “I don’t… think too hard about poems, I guess,” she lied without thinking, already trying to come up with other topics she could suggest to stir the conversation before she admitted anything.

The only person who knew she was the one behind M.W. was Chrissy, and Eddie wasn’t ready to make it public — probably never would be. The words were too personal, open windows to her soul that she carefully curated, that she poured so much of herself into and she wasn’t ready to share the backstage of.

Eddie saw as Nancy’s eyes hardened again, as she shut her jaw firmly and she felt immediately sorry for her lie. She didn’t want Nancy to retreat, she liked seeing her vulnerable side. The side of Nancy that related to Eddie’s own vulnerability, even if she didn’t know it.

“Too bad.” And then she gave Eddie that sneering look, the same as she did from her superior level at the stairs of Steve’s house, that up-and-down look that made Eddie’s face turn into a scowl instantly.

Both their jaws clenched and they narrowed their eyes at the same time and stared at each other for what felt like hours, but was probably less than a minute, before getting up to walk to different directions, headed to different groups of other people to talk to.

“What the hell happened, man?” Argyle whispered softly to himself as he was left alone with all the tension still hanging in the air.

Eddie replayed that conversation in her head for many days after Vickie’s birthday. The gnawing feeling in the bottom of her stomach that threatened to burn her from the inside out appeared every other hour.

Why the fuck did she lie about not liking poems?

She didn’t have to tell them the truth about being M.W., but she could still have said something nice about Nancy’s passion for the poems. Not dismiss it completely, making it seem like she was a total bitch, causing Nancy to go back into her distrust, closing the doors to her vulnerability. Making Nancy think Eddie had no interest in her interests at all, like she was still holding a grudge over nothing, like they couldn’t bond over something they both loved.

The what-ifs and the should-haves kept eating at Eddie’s brain, sometimes so strongly that it was overwhelming, and she didn’t relax even a little bit about it for almost three weeks, when she met Chrissy for their monthly brunch together.

“What’s up with you today?” was the first question Chrissy asked over their mimosas, no need to be at Eddie’s side for long to realize that something was giving her anxiety.

It caused Eddie’s shoulders to slump down and her throat to get a little less constricted. Just knowing Chrissy cared enough about her to notice the small signs of her distress made some of the fog in her brain dissipate. It was easy to tell her everything after that, the scene she had caused, the disappointment in Nancy’s eyes, the way it made Eddie feel like shit. Chrissy heard it all quietly, attentively, as if Eddie’s life depended on it because she knew that Eddie felt like it did at the high of her anxiety.

“I think you like her more than you care to admit,” Chrissy answered at the end of it all.

Eddie didn’t like that Chrissy’s mind went straight into that area instead of comforting Eddie, but she rationally knew that Chrissy wouldn’t bring that up if it wasn’t relevant.

“Chris, I don’t even know her-”

Chrissy interrupted. “And I think you should be honest with her.”

“I can’t tell her-”

She did it again. “I’m not telling you to come out to her as Emme, I’m only saying you could honestly tell her she makes you kinda nervous and you stumbled over your words near her, and you said things you didn’t mean because you couldn’t think through.”

“Can you stop interrupting me!” Eddie whined. “Oh, so I just have to make a fool of myself in front of her? Solid advice, Chris, thanks.”

“Why’d you ask for my help if you’re gonna complain about what I say?” She asked, swirling her cup around.

“I didn’t ask for your help, Chrissy!” Eddie all but shouted, her voice a raspy tone, and Chrissy stopped mid-movement. Eddie instantly regretted it. “Sorry. I’m so sorry. Ugh, I’m so stressed out over nothing.”

She hid her face behind her hand, embarrassment making her cheeks burn up, but she soon felt Chrissy’s cool hand on top of her own. It was soothing once again.

“Sorry I pushed too. It’s not nothing, Eddie, I swear. I still think you can be a little more honest with her if you ever see her again, though,” Chrissy still advised.

“Maybe you’re right. I’ll think about it,” Eddie answered.

“And I still think you like Nancy more than you want to admit,” Chrissy continued.

Eddie let her hands fall from her face and stared into Chrissy’s blue pools. They reminded her of other blue pools.

Nancy’s pool blue eyes hardening over Eddie’s words, the way her jaw shut tight, the clinical look she shot at her. Nancy’s pool blue eyes softening over talking about Eddie’s words, the blush on her cheeks, the adoring speech she gave about Eddie’s soul without even knowing.

“Yeah, maybe you’re right about that too,” Eddie finally admitted.

Maybe it was then.

Summer was approaching and as the temperatures started to rise Steve hyped them all up for a lake day. Eddie took Chrissy, Robin, Vickie and Jonathan in her van; and Steve, Argyle and Nancy went in his car. They all brought snacks and smuggled drinks amongst card games and inflatable buoys.

The lake wasn’t packed because summer vacations still hadn’t started and the middle schoolers, high schoolers and college students still weren’t free to enjoy the scalding Sun and the cold water, so Steve’s idea was great after all.

Eddie waited until the Sun wasn’t at its peak to venture under its rays, because she was as pale as a vampire and the Sun was a menace to her just the same as it was to the blood-sucking monsters. She’d burn instantly. So she covered herself in sunblock, hid under the shadow of a big tree with one of Wayne’s old caps on her head and a book in her hands, and watched as her group of people had their fun.

Steve and Chrissy were playing with a volleyball in the sand, while Argyle and Vickie went against Jonathan and Robin in a game of chicken in the water with Nancy as the referee. Eddie had fun people-watching, and when it came to some of her new favorite people it was even better.

As midday approached, they all gathered under the barely-there shadow to eat their snacks and escape the dangerous Sun beams at their high. Argyle had some pre-baked space brownies for dessert and they all shared stories and laughed about nonsense. Eddie felt happy that she and Chrissy were finally being more included into the lives of Steve and Robin, and that their friends came along. It felt like they had always belonged there, as a full group. It was amazing.

When both the Sun and Eddie weren’t as high anymore, she finally felt safe enough to take off her shirt and cap. With another sunscreen layer applied, she stretched a bit before asking Chrissy to join her at the shallow ends of the lake. The pebbles hurt her feet in a good way and the smell of damp earth was refreshing.

“How’s it going?” Chrissy asked.

Eddie looked at her and saw that she was staring ahead. She followed the line of vision and saw Nancy taking a few laps in the deeper parts of the water. She instantly knew what Chrissy was asking.

“I might have been stalking too much on Instagram,” she answered, and Chrissy cackled.

“Does she follow you?”

“Uh, no. Her profile’s open,” she finished and Chrissy almost choked on her laughter.

Eddie tried to hide her smile, but Chrissy’s snorts were endearing even if they were at her expense.

“What are we laughing so hard about?” The subject of the conversation appeared out of nowhere, Robin and Vickie behind her as they approached.

Chrissy laughed harder.

“Uh, just this dude. You guys don’t know him.” Eddie tried to act casual, but Nancy’s raised eyebrow showed she wasn’t buying. Thankfully, she also didn’t press further. “Uh. Nice bikini,” she pointed at Nancy’s torso, immediately regretting it.

Nancy looked down, as if she didn’t remember what she was wearing. There was nothing special about it, just a different color in each of the little triangles covering Nancy’s breasts, but now all the attention was in it, on them, and Eddie felt like a complete fool. If she wanted Nancy not to know about her stupid not-crush, talking about her fucking boobs wasn’t the best course of action.

“Thanks?” she said, kind of asked, as her answer to Eddie’s random compliment. “Yours is pretty too.” She smiled sweetly, and Eddie was a hundred percent sure she didn’t deserve that kindness.

“Not just the bikini,” Vickie whispered a little too loud, causing Chrissy to fall into her laughing fit again. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry. That was so out of pocket.” Her freckled face was all red, and Robin was hiding a grin under her hand, and Nancy was suddenly looking at the water, brows pinched, pink cheeks, perched lips.

Interesting, Eddie thought.

“Ah, don’t be,” she answered Vickie. “I paid a hell of a price for them, they’re supposed to be admired.”

“Wait until you’re at a level three friendship clearance and you’ll get to see them uncovered. Maybe even touch,” Chrissy said, still in between chuckles.

“Well, yeah, I want to show them off!” Eddie spoke up.

Nancy coughed loudly. “I’ll go back to the-” she stopped herself and never finished her sentence before practically running back to the water, her body curving in a beautiful dive once she was deep enough.

Eddie felt glad she was still wearing her shorts, cause the tightness in them could get a little uncomfortable.

“You guys are funny,” Robin said, arm draped over Vickie’s shoulder, and her pointed look at Eddie’s profile seemed to mean something more.

“What do you mean?” Eddie asked.

Robin chuckled a little louder. “You and Nancy would get along real well if you stopped dancing around each other,” she answered.

Eddie bit the inside of her cheek before turning to look at the lake again. Nancy wasn’t doing laps anymore, instead she was talking to the boys. As if she felt Eddie’s eyes on her, she also turned to look back to the shore, and her gaze met Eddie’s.

She smiled so sweetly. As if Eddie had never insulted her, as if her vulnerability had never been hidden, she smiled the same way Eddie saw her smile when she talked about M.W’s words.

Maybe it was then.

“Still don’t know what you’re talking about,” Eddie lied, without ending her eye contact with the girl on the water, and her senses were so focused on only her that she didn’t even hear Robin and Chrissy’s snickering.

She really had to stop dancing.

Chrissy went to Eddie’s house and ruined her life on a simple Friday.

“You’re being so dramatic,” Chrissy said while Eddie paced around her living room, fingers tangled in her hair, and her phone still in Chrissy’s hand.

Eddie knew it had been a horrible idea to download Tinder to get over her not-crush on Nancy, and she knew it had been a horrible idea to tell Chrissy about it — but she went ahead and did both of those things anyway.

It started harmless enough, Eddie and Chrissy sat side by side, a bottle of wine shared with no need for glasses, a random movie on the TV as background noise. Chrissy giving her input on Eddie’s bio, her picture choices, the people she swapped right or left.

It started harmless enough, until Nancy’s profile showed up.

Only a few miles away, a stunning profile picture that made Eddie’s heart almost crack her ribcage, a bio that Eddie couldn’t even read entirely because suddenly her phone wasn’t in her hands anymore, and Chrissy was locking herself in the bathroom.

No amount of Eddie’s banging on the door made her get out, not until she felt like her mission was complete, not until after she swiped right on Nancy.

And then Eddie was spiraling, pacing around her living room while Chrissy finished whatever wine was left in the bottle, the movie had ended on the TV and Tinder was left open and forgotten on Eddie’s phone.

“You acted like a bitch and you know it,” Eddie said, and Chrissy only huffed. “Christine!”

“Calm down, I’ve told you already! It’s not like-” she paused mid sentence when the phone screen lit up. Chrissy’s eyes grew comically larger, and she bit her bottom lip tightly, the skin under her teeth going pale. “So, about that-”

“Christine!” Eddie yelled again, throwing herself on the couch and aiming for the phone already. “Please, for the love of god and all that is holy, please tell me she didn’t just-”

“You have a match,” Chrissy confirmed Eddie’s worst nightmares.

“FUCKING HELL!”

It was undeniable, right at the center of the screen, big bold letters in a way that Eddie couldn’t blame on drunkenness because she hadn’t even drank that much. She had a match with Nancy Wheeler.

“Why is that a bad thing? You have a crush on her anyway, you just learned it’s reciprocated?” Chrissy asked, already getting up to fetch another wine bottle.

“What if it’s a joke. What if she swiped in the wrong direction as an accident. What if she sat on her phone and butt-matched me. What-”

“Eddie, stop spiraling,” Chrissy told her, a new wine bottle in her hands that she passed to Eddie in exchange for the phone again. “We’ll keep watching whatever movie this is,” she checked the TV, saw the movie was over, “We’ll watch whatever other random movie and get your head out of this and tomorrow you’ll wake up renewed and look at this situation with fresh eyes and see it’s not that bad. Okay?”

“You just don’t want me to yell at you ‘cause you know it’s your fault,” Eddie grumbled.

“I won’t lie to you, my best friend, that is partly the reason.” Chrissy chose another random movie without really checking what it was. “But I also really don’t think it’s such a big deal.”

“Whatever,” Eddie whined again, but draped her head on Chrissy’s shoulder when she sat beside her.

She was warm, and smelled of berries and coconut, and she had Eddie’s phone so she couldn’t do anything stupid, and she usually knew better. She was probably right. Eddie let herself be comforted in the presence of Chrissy’s calming aura.

Eddie ended the night having no idea what the movie was about, her mental state a little over tipsy and a little under drunk, her phone back in her hands and the Tinder conversation with Nancy Wheeler opened.

She came to learn a lot in between one and six A.M., the time she spent talking to Nancy while Chrissy still snored beside her.

Nancy had a younger brother and a younger sister.

She loved ballet.

Her favorite singer was Madonna.

Her parents were divorced, and the day they told her the news was one of the best days of her life.

Some of her hobbies included journaling, roller skating, and painting her nails.

Her best friend was named Barb, and she was studying abroad for her PhD.

She legally owned a gun. That was terrifying. (And also a little hot.)

She had never used it, though. But felt safe having it.

She was power driven, passion driven, a force to be reckoned with, and kind and sweet while doing it all.

Maybe it was then.

Neither of them acknowledged the fact that they both had been assholes to each other, and just accepted the Tinder match as if it had been nothing more. Nancy had started the conversation as if they had already texted before, and Eddie just rolled with it.

They talked all night, and Eddie could’ve kept talking to her if she hadn’t passed out from sleep deprivation and alcohol consumption.

She only noticed the next afternoon, when she woke up, that she tried telling Nancy she was M.W. at the peak of her insanity, but thankfully had never sent the message.

She deleted it and said nothing else instead.

Eddie saw Nancy sooner than she expected — and, honestly, sooner than she was ready to.

She and Nancy hadn’t talked after that day, not at all, not on Tinder and not on Instagram after they followed each other. Nancy liked a couple of Eddie’s pictures and stories, and Eddie liked some of her stuff back, but that was it.

She thought it had dwindled out, she was too much of a coward to pull Nancy back to a conversation and thought Nancy had no interest when she also made no move to message Eddie again.

Eddie was nursing a minor heartache when she asked Chrissy to go with her to a party one of her neighbors invited her to merely a week later. It was at the rooftop of another building, fairy lights still turned off during the day but they would look beautiful by night, the Sun was warm and they had punch, so Eddie thought it to be the perfect place and opportunity to get her mind off of Nancy Wheeler.

Imagine her surprise to see Nancy Wheeler there?

Chrissy spotted her immediately, elbowing Eddie until she noticed too. She looked beautiful under the sun, all sparkly makeup and flowy dress and pulled-up hair. And Chrissy gave Eddie no time to think or react before pulling her by the hand straight into Nancy’s direction where she was talking to a short-haired girl.

“Christine, stop, what if they’re-”

“Nancy! Hi!” Chrissy didn’t let Eddie pour out her negative thoughts, and instead called to the source of all of Eddie’s most recent problems.

“Chrissy!” she smiled, oh so pretty. “And Eddie!”

Eddie didn’t want to get all delusional, but she felt like Nancy’s smile to her was wider than the one to Chrissy.

Chrissy hugged her, and soon came Eddie’s turn, and if she put a little more strength into her arms, and if she made it last just a second longer, and if she carefully sniffed Nancy’s hair — well, that’s her problem.

“So nice to see you two. This is Barb!” She looked at Eddie as she said it, maybe to see if Eddie remembered that conversation, and Eddie could never lose that opportunity.

She took a deep breath, inhaled some courage from the air, turned to Barb and said, “Heard only the greatest things about you.”

Barb smiled, and so did Nancy, and maybe, yeah, maybe Eddie was a little delusional and maybe she was a little biased but Nancy’s smile was wider and prettier and more important.

She touched Eddie’s arm after she hugged Barb, and she looked Eddie right in the eyes and there was something there —  some gratitude, some recognition, Eddie wasn’t sure what it was, but it was there.

And maybe it was then.

“So… what about that poem page? Still digging it?” Eddie asked hours later, when Chrissy was hooking up with a stranger in the bathroom and Barb had gone home already.

Nancy turned to pay attention to her immediately. They were leaning against the rooftop’s half-walls, Eddie’s jean jacket over Nancy’s naked shoulders cause there was a funny cold little breeze.

“Yeah, of course,” Nancy answered. Her eyes were sparkling, and the sun was setting, and the fairy lights were on.

She looked breath-taking.

“Still your favorite?” Eddie asked again, just because she needed to have that little pinch of Nancy Wheeler’s approval, even if Nancy had no idea.

“Still my favorite,” Nancy answered again, her eyes narrowing but smile widening a bit. “You still hate poetry?” she asked instead, and the slight twitch in the corner of her mouth was the only hint that she wasn’t as serious, that she was just teasing.

“I don’t hate poetry,” Eddie said with an accompanying eye roll and a small smile of her own. “I actually envy them. I wish I could say stuff that makes you feel… the way you feel. Instead of constantly annoying you.”

She kept a smirk as she said it, but it was a deeply honest confession. Of course, it was her words making Nancy feel the way she felt. But Nancy didn’t know that, and if she didn’t know that, did it really count?

Nancy’s expression softened as Eddie said it, those blue pools opening up for her again. Eddie felt like she would never get tired of it.

“You don’t constantly annoy me, just sometimes… most of the time,” she teased and nothing about her face said sarcasm and Eddie smiled wide back at her.

Nancy’s hand found Eddie’s, her fingers small and delicate and they fit right in between Eddie’s fingers, and it felt like it was meant to be, like the perfect puzzle pieces. There was music somewhere around them, lots of chatter from all the other people, but it all felt so distant as Nancy held Eddie’s hand so tight it almost hurt but it didn’t because it was her.

Maybe it was then.

Eddie wasn’t sure when she fell for Nancy Wheeler, but she knew for sure that’s when their story really started.

SHE DOESN’T KNOW AS WELL

Six months later

“I knew it already,” she said.

Her hair was a bit longer by then, curling around her head like an aura and getting all knotted up right with Eddie’s hair as they laid side by side in bed. The air smelt like sex, like them, and the streets outside the window were quiet in the middle of the night.

“The fuck you did,” Eddie answered.

“I’m an investigative journalist, Eddie, of course I knew you were Emme like, two weeks after we started dating.”

“Shut the fuck up,” she said, and Nancy snorted. She knew Eddie wasn’t actually mad. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Nancy instantly sobered up. “Cause it’s important to you. I wanted you to tell me, whenever you were ready. That’s your soul, Ed.”

It definitely wasn’t then, it had been long ago.

But it was then that Eddie confessed it, out loud, almost screaming in a whisper:

“I love you.”

Nancy smiled, her blue eyes two huge pools of vulnerability, that sweetness that poured out of her like honey.

“I don't think I'm going to make it home tonight,” Nancy told her mom over the phone. “If the snow stops and the roads don't look too bad, I might try to drive home later, but Mr. Munson doesn't think it's safe enough to go out unless it's absolutely necessary. He already said that it’s fine if I stay here for the night. I promise I’ll call you if anything changes, okay?”

If Nancy had known that agreeing to tutoring Eddie at the Munson trailer was going to lead to her having to spend the night, she might have been a little more insistent about sticking to their normal library meeting spot. It wasn’t that she hated the idea of having to stay over there. She just felt bad being another person taking up space in their home when Eddie’s uncle already slept on a cot in the living room due to the lack of space. 

After getting off the phone with her mom, she moved to take her seat across from Eddie at the kitchen table again.

“So, how about we do one more problem set, and then we can call it a night?” she suggested, flipping through her chemistry notes to find some practice equations that they hadn’t done yet.

Eddie flopped forward to rest his head on the table.

“I will actually die if I have to balance one more equation. My head will explode. Can we please do anything else?”

“I thought you wanted to pass this chemistry test? You need more practice.”

“Think of my uncle, Nance. What’ll he do without me?”

“Probably get some peace and quiet for the first time in my life,” Wayne said without looking up from where he was sitting on the sofa tying his work boots.

Nancy stifled a laugh as Eddie shot back up into a sitting position and stared at his uncle with a look of pure shock and betrayal.

“If you really need a break from studying so much, why don’t you make your guest some dinner?” Wayne suggested. “If she’s staying over, you should probably offer to feed her.”

“Of course. Where are my manners?” Eddie said, resting his arms on the table and leaning forward to smile at Nancy. “Welcome to Chez Munson. It would be my honor to make dinner for you.”

“Real food, too. Don't go offering her spaghettios or whatever other canned junk you eat when I'm not around.”

“You don't have to go to any trouble for me,” Nancy insisted. “I'm fine with whatever.”

Eddie ignored her and turned his attention towards his uncle.

“Want me to save you a plate of whatever it ends up being?”

“Sure. Stick it in the microwave, and I'll reheat it when I get home.”

“Any preferences?”

“Surprise me.”

“Can do. Stay safe out there. Don't drive like I do.”

“Wouldn't dream of it.”

Wayne said his goodbyes, and as soon as he was out the door, Eddie was up and out of his seat searching through the kitchen cabinets and checking the fridge to see what he could make.

“You really don't have to go to any trouble for me,” Nancy said as she watched him start to rummage through the cabinet of pots and pans.

“Who says I'm going to any trouble?” he asked. “Maybe I do this all the time.”

“You do?”

“A guy's gotta eat. When my uncle started working nights, I started messing around in the kitchen because I found out he was never eating a hot meal. Just eating cereal or a bologna sandwich when he came home from a shift. And it's fine if I eat garbage, but I'm not gonna let him live like that after everything he's done for me, you know? I almost burnt the place down a couple times, but I haven't gotten any complaints yet.”

Nancy was touched by his story. Truthfully, she still didn't know much about Eddie. For the most part, he was just the guy that she tutored twice a week, but they'd slowly been becoming friends. She liked spending time with him, and finding out things like this - pieces of him she was sure not many other people knew - only made her grow even fonder of him.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” she asked.

“I think I've got it covered. You can go watch TV if you want. When I cook for a beautiful woman, she doesn't have to lift a finger?”

“So you're in the habit of cooking for beautiful women?”

“You're the first actually. Now get out of here so I can work my magic.”

He shooed her out of the kitchen, and she went to go sit on the couch, but she was too preoccupied with the fact that he'd called her beautiful to focus on anything on TV. Since when did Eddie think she was beautiful? She was under the impression that their relationship was strictly professional, but even she couldn't deny that she felt something whenever he smiled at her.

When Eddie eventually made his way over to the couch, he was carrying two identical plates of food loaded up with breaded chicken cutlets, stovetop stuffing, and canned peas and carrots.

“It's nothing fancy, but I guarantee it'll taste good.”

They ate mostly in silence as Eddie channel-surfed trying to find something decent for them to watch.

“Color me impressed,” Nancy said after they'd finished dinner. “I didn't expect that from you.”

“It was because of my uncle's spaghettios comment, wasn't it?”

“You just didn't seem like the cooking type.”

“If it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't be.”

“Don't sell yourself short. You're good at this.”

“Thanks.”

Eddie smiled over at her, and she felt herself focusing on his lips. She couldn't let that happen, so she jumped up and grabbed their empty plates off the coffee table.

“Let me do the clean up,” she said as she headed towards the kitchen. “You cooked, so it's only fair.”

“Absolutely not.” Eddie moved to cut her off and blocked her from the sink. “You're the guest. I'm not letting you clean up the mess left behind by my cooking tornado.”

“I really don't mind,” she insisted.

“I'll never hear the end of it from my uncle if I let you clean up. He's used to coming home to my messes, so we don't have to worry about that right now.”

“Are you sure?” She eyed the dirty pots and pans on the stove. “It feels wrong to leave them there.”

“It's fine. I promise. You don't have to help clean up to earn your keep here. If that was the case, I would've been kicked out a long time ago. Just leave them for now.”

“Fine. But the second you're distracted, I'm doing those dishes.”

“I guess I've gotta keep myself fully focused on you then.”

“I guess so.”

“Wanna do something kind of stupid?” he asked.

“Depends on how stupid it is.”

“Put on your coat and shoes.”

Nancy quirked an eyebrow, but Eddie didn't allow her to question him. He just ushered her closer to the door before doubling back to grab a comforter from the closet. He took her outside and had her sit down on the edge of the stoop with him. He wrapped the comforter around their shoulders and held it closed in front of them to try and trap some extra warmth between them.

“Sitting out here is your something stupid?” she asked.

“Frostbite is no joke. Hence the comforter.”

The worst of the blizzard had passed but the snow was still falling in fat, fluffy flakes. The sky was dark, and there was a sense of calm washing over the trailer park. The only real light was from the stars.

“It's beautiful.” Nancy's voice was barely louder than a whisper as if she was afraid that her speaking would ruin the moment.

“I know.”

“Do you do this often?”

“Only when I need to think about something.”

“What are you thinking about now?”

“I don't know. That I like spending time with you, and I think you like spending time with me, too. That this is easy. That it feels right.”

Nancy was quiet again as she let his words wash over her. He was right. Spending time with him like this felt right. That's when she was hit by a somewhat startling realization.

“You cooked me dinner and wouldn't let me help or clean,” she started. “You took me out to your thinking spot to look at the stars. You called me beautiful . . . Was this a date?”

“Nah. This wasn't a date.” He turned to meet her gaze. “When I finally ask you out for real, you'll know.”

“So you're planning on asking me out?”

“As soon as I find the right moment.”

“And this isn't it?”

“You're stuck here for the night. It feels wrong to ask when you can't leave. Puts too much pressure on you to answer a certain way, and I don't want to do that to you.”

“Ask me tomorrow before I leave then?”

“I'll consider it.”

Eddie went to stand up and pulled Nancy up with him.

“Let's go back inside. I'll clean up the kitchen, and if you really wanna help, I'll let you dry the dishes. Then we can watch a movie or something. I'll even lend you some pajamas so you don't have to sleep in your jeans.”

“Sounds perfect.”

Eddie Munson had been in hiding for over 2 weeks when a transmission crackled over the walkie talkie. 

“Hello? Anybody there?” His voice sounded tired as he pleaded. 

Not speaking or seeing another person for that long was debilitating, he mainly needed food but human company wasn’t that bad.

He was anxious as to who would answer his desperate call. 

Knowing that the town would be a rumour mill by now, gossiping on theories on the death of Chrissy Cunningham. All fingers, Eddie assumed, were pointing at him. 

He waited a few moments before speaking again, this time a voice answered his call. A voice he wasn't ever expecting. 

Their voice was soft but hurried, not saying much other than “be there soon”. His brain worked hard on trying to put a name to the face, struggling to do so. 

Nancy Wheeler was working on the latest addition for the Hawkins High Newspaper, her intention was to cover the events and history around the death of Chrissy Cunningham. Interviewing people who knew Chrissy and eventually people who knew Eddie. 

However, she didn’t expect to be seeing Eddie as soon as she thought. She had been given a walkie talkie by Dustin in case she discovered something suspicious. After she successfully interviewed Wayne Munson, her heart automatically swayed by the heartfelt words of Eddie’s uncle. 

She sat in her car writing up her notes, her thoughts racing with information when the sound of crackling from the walkie talkie in her pocket startled her. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled it out and listened to the voice on the other side. 

The voice was recognisable as she realised that it was Eddie, out of curiosity she answered within seconds. Her unanswered questions were scribbled into her notebook as it fell onto the floor, her hands were shaking as her voice echoed into the receiver. 

After her interview with Wayne, he had informed her briefly on his whereabouts. Reassuring Eddie that she would be on her way soon, so she started her car and collected some items to bring him. Including his request for beers and some food. 

Her car startled him, automatically going to hide. Her voice was new to him, hiding deeper into the back of the shed. The sound of footsteps walked across the floor, his breath was shaking against the fabric.Her soft and feminine voice puzzled him, the sound of his name coming out her mouth made him tingle.

“Eddie, it’s Nancy. Nancy Wheeler and I know we may not know each other very well. Not at all really but I’m not here to hurt you” Her torch shone in the direction of him, blinding him. He came out from behind the material, covering his eyes with his hand shielding the light.

His eyes found hers, they were soft and warm. She raised the blankets and food with a smile. Her outfit was cute, she led him towards a broken bit of wood on the side and sat down. Waiting for her, he hesitantly sat down next to her.

She passed him the blanket and the basket of food, watching him eagerly eat the food. Struggling to open the beer can, their hands met as she assisted him.

Their breath was floating above them as their eyes fixated on each other, their hands still touching on the cool beer can. Slowly letting go, Nancy blushed and smiled lightly, moving her gaze down to her feet.

Eddie broke the silence, “so Nancy. Nancy Wheeler. What brings you here? Seeing the ‘freak’ “ his finger moved to form the quotation marks as the word “freak” slipped past his lips.

She laughed nervously, scanning through her thoughts on why she was there. Her notebook was lying in the back of her car, all her questions had disappeared from her mind as he looked at her.

The rumours about him were far from the truth, his presence didn't unnerve her. The things that Wayne had told her were compliments, his brown eyes stared into her soul.

He passed her the beer to have a taste, politely declining he shrugged and necked the rest of the liquid. The food in the basket had nearly been devoured when he turned to her, a soft look in his eyes.

She stuttered on her words, playing with her fingers before meeting his eyes.

''Well, I intended to ask you questions for the article i'm doing but uh- I think I already have my answers'' she smiled at him wearily.

''Oh yeah? What changed?'' his eyebrows were raised as a smirk curled the end of his lips.

''Uh--well, I met you. I had these ideas in my head about who you were but spending an hour with you'' she chuckled lightly, watching his lips curl further into a smirk.

They stared at each other for a moment before Eddie broke the silence

''What is like out there?'' his voice sounded slightly worried but the smirk was still plastered onto his face.

''As in, out there in Hawkins? It's hectic, I've been hiding too. You shouldn't stay here alone though'' her voice was filled with concern but she laughed lightly after describing the events outside.

''You're probably right but they'll find me'' he sighed, his attention turned to the partially empty basket on the floor. The beers were stacked neatly inside as he kicked it softly.

''Come stay with me, I know we don't know each other well but maybe that would help. No one will suspect the two of us'' she smiled lightly, rethinking what she had just said.

Inviting Eddie Munson to stay at her house was not the words she expected to say, his eyes widened in surprise. He didn't expect Nancy Wheeler to inviting him over, he smiled at her uneasily as she stood up.

He watched her lean over him to pick up the basket at his feet, turning to face him.

''Come on'' tilting her head towards the door as the basket hung in her arms, her eyes burnt into him. She was so pretty, he couldn't stop admiring her.

He had seen her around school, knowing exactly who she was but never in his wildest dreams would he believe anyone if they said she would be forcing him out of his hibernation.

The sunset highlighted her body, projecting her perfect silhouette onto the floor behind her. He stared between her and her shadow as he stumbled across the room. The blanket was still draped over his shoulder, it was a pink quilt that was heavy against him.

He looked pretty as the sunlight hit his brown curls, the blanket dragging on the floor slightly behind him. Dirt collected on the bottom of it. Her car was parked round the side, Eddie watched her walk round to the driver's side before opening the door. She smiled at him before gesturing to him to sit down next to her.

He felt weird sitting in her car, it smelt nice and super tidy. Peering round into the back of the car, he noticed her notebook sprawled on the back seat. He smirked as he remembered that it must contain questions specifically for him. Wanting to read it, he kept his curiosities at bay as she pulled out onto the beaten path. 

The car ride was silent, Nancy wondered if Eddie was nervous to go back into Hawkins. She was vague in her description of the town, which she knew didn’t help him at all. 

Her hand moved from the steering wheel, holding onto the gear stick it slipped and fell onto his knee. Making him twitch, he didn’t move her hand as her heart raced with nerves. 

‘’Uh, sorry I didn’t mean too’’ she smiled wearily at him, he smiled back at. His hand sliding down, unsure whether to touch it back. Not wanting to give her the wrong idea but he missed the feeling of someone’s fingers being intertwined with his. 

Biting his lip, he let his hand meet hers. They both stared ahead as their fingers intertwined on his knee, the tingles shooting rapidly through their bodies as Eddie’s thumb began to circle around her skin.

 His skin was soft against hers, the type of soft that was gathered from copious amounts of moisturiser but she knew that Eddie rarely used that. It felt nice to hold his hand with hers, his anxious shaking had calmed down since. His eyes shifted from her and the road in front of them, he moved his hand off hers for a second to turn on the radio. A waft of cool air hit her skin making her gasp, his hand was quickly back on top of hers making her relax again. 

Some classics played through the stereo as they flew past the ‘Welcome to Hawkins’ sign, she felt Eddie squeeze her hand at seeing the sign. 

‘’It’ll be okay’’ her voice was soft, his eyes were filled with worry as they met. Time slowed down as they drove into the centre of town, their eyes still focusing on each other. 

‘’Woah Nancy! Focus on the road! You nearly hit the curb!’’ Eddie's voice broke their stare, making her laugh embarrassingly. Focusing her attention back onto the road, her cheeks flushed red as he smiled at her. 

She continued through town, driving until they reached her road. His body tensed up as she slowed down, the various cars surrounding her house worried them both. Rolling the car closer to her house, her window was down when Mrs Wheeler rushed over to see her. Her face looked concerned as she leant inside Nancy’s car, her eyes fixated on Eddie before noticing their hands together. Making them drop them quickly, turning to look at each other with a glum but confused look. 

‘’Nancy! Oh gosh I’ve been so worried about you! Her voice was slightly scolding but had a hint of kindness. Staring between them both, waiting for either of them to talk. 

‘’Mom, why are there all these cars parked outside’’ Nancy ignored her mom’s gaze, she knew that she would be wondering why she was in the car with Eddie Munson. More importantly why their hands were intertwined. 

Mrs Wheeler turned her attention to the cars behind her, allowing Eddie to relax now that the gaze wasn’t on him. 

‘’Oh, well they are just the boys' parents. They had been missing since last night and we were just waiting for them at home. But we recently heard them talk through the walkie-talkie and apparently they are heading back’’ her expressions changed multiple times whilst she was speaking, before her eyes rested on her daughter with a weak smile. 

‘’That’s good Mom, but I need to ask you a massive favour’’ Nancy’s voice was shaking as she spoke, her eyes were filled with worry as her mom stared at her. Her smile dropped slightly, as Nancy’s eyes rested between Eddie and her. 

‘’ Now, that depends.  Her eyebrows were raised as her thoughts scanned her mind, knowing that it had something to do with Eddie. 

“So, I'm assuming you know who Eddie is? He is the leader of the club that Mike and the boys are in… Well he needs somewhere to crash. And- well, I was hoping that you would let him” she rambled nervously, her head moved between them both as she almost pleaded with her mom to let him stay. 

Mrs Wheeler sighed, pinching her eyebrows with her fingers. Thinking about the concept, she had watched the news but she didn’t believe it. Mike had been playing the game with the boys long before the incident with Eddie and Chrissy was plastered across the news. 

“Okay, so I have watched the news. I know what happened between you and that girl, if I decide to let you into my house. I don’t want you to hurt my daughter and I want you to sleep on the floor.  I will speak to Mr Wheeler.’’ she was firmly speaking to Eddie as she leant further into the car, wagging her finger in his direction. He leant back in his seat as she spoke. 

‘’Yes Mrs Wheeler, thank you’’ he muttered, feeling slightly scared of her as she backed out of the car. 

Mrs Wheeler leant closer to Nancy and began whispering, 

‘’The moment you feel unsafe, I need you to tell me’’ her voice was kind but firm, her eyes stared at Eddie as she whispered. 

Standing back from the car, she looked at them both before letting Nancy move onto the drive. There was a weird silence that filled the car as she drove it onto the drive, past the parent’s car. 

They sat in front of the garage as Mrs Wheeler walked into the house, leaving them alone together in her car.

‘’I’m sorry about my mom’’ she turned to face him, her eyes were soft but worried. He had sunk into the seat, his heart racing quickly. His eyes moved to look at her, he felt confused but as her hand touched his knee. He felt relaxed. 

“That’s okay, I can understand why she would be concerned. Afterall, everyone does think I murdered her” he fake laughed, his arms were crossed with the blanket still covering his body. His eyes were slightly scared. 

“Well, I dont. Mike has spoken a lot about you. Let’s go inside, you’ll be safer once we’re inside. We can collect more clothes later ok?’’ she smiled softly at him, squeezing his thigh. 

He nodded, weirdly he felt very submissive with her. 

The nervous and scared feelings flooded his veins, as he stood on her drive in her pink blanket as he watched her close her car. The notebook was tucked under her arm, the basket was hanging off her arm. He let her lead him through the garage into her house, the sounds of chattering filled their living room as the boy's parents began to leave through the front door. 

They waited for a moment before rushing up the stairs together, falling through her door. Laughing lightly together, catching their breath as he let the blanket drop to the floor. His eyes admired her bedroom, it felt so light and calm. 

She had fairy lights hanging from the metal headboard, he smiled at them as she watched him. Apologising for the mess, they both knew that he didn’t really care. She had been to Wayne’s caravan and this was nothing in comparison. Sitting down on the bed, her eyes followed him as he found the fairy box, jumping as the music startled him. Laughing at his reaction, her eyes softened when he turned round to look at her, smiling at the music box and her face. 

He perched on the bed holding it in his hand, watching the ballerina turn around on its stick. She stared at him, he looked at it like a child. 

Holding it with pure innocence, holding it as if it could fall any second break. His eyes turned to meet hers, they were icy and sad but softened slightly as she leant closer. Some music was playing softly in the background as he moved closer to her, his breath was shaky as he turned to place it down next to him. Not being able to take his eyes off her, he still felt awkward but as the music filled his ears taking a deep breath in. His hand found hers once more, they sat still for a few moments, just listening to music. His face grew closer to hers, licking his lips slightly and as he opened his mouth the door opened abruptly. Startling them both apart. 

Mrs Wheeler poked her blonde head into the room, smiling at them both as she opened the door further apart. Clasping in her hand a tray with some food and drinks, she placed it down next to the music box. 

“I thought you might be hungry’’ still smiling, her voice sounded cheerily and upbeat, she watched them intently walking backwards out of the room. 

The moment she was gone, Nancy tilted her head towards the tray. Eddie paused for a moment before leaping up and devouring the sandwiches and juice, she laughed lightly but covered her mouth to avoid him seeing her amusement. 

“Do you think me dying from starvation is funny?’’ his eyebrows raised as he piled another sandwich in his mouth, staring at her. 

“Starvation? You wouldn’t have starved’’ laughing in shock, her head tilting down in amusement again at him. 

“See, laughing at me again’’ he joked, loud gulps came from his mouth as he drank both of their juice. 

“Oh, i’m so sorry Eddie’’ she giggled, her laughter getting louder as he ate another sandwich, his eyebrows pierced together as he hid a smirk between the food. 

“Yeah, you’d better be. If you didn’t swoop in and save me, I wouldn’t be here’’ his eyebrows raised still, his smirk was almost visible between the glass as he swallowed. 

Laughing she turned to look away from him, resting her weight on her wrists as she leant back onto the bed. The sound of the glass clinking as it was placed onto the wooden tray, he moved closer to her on the bed. Admiring her features, the fairy lights illuminating them, her arms began to ache so she let herself fall hard onto the bed. 

Eddie joined her, they stared up at the ceiling as the music continued to play. 

“Thank you’’ he spoke into the silence, he continued to stare at the ceiling with anxiety. 

“What for?’’ turning her head so close to him that he could feel her breath hit his hair. 

“For coming to find me, I know you wanted to integrate me but that doesn’t mean I’m not grateful. We can also do the questionnaire. Nancy Wheeler” his anxiety disappeared as he watched her blush lightly. 

The sound of her name slipping off his tongue, made her stomach flip. She couldn’t help but smile at his ramblings. His cheeks were flustered red, something that she didn’t think would happen to Eddie Munson. He always seemed so annoyed in school but he looked at her so softly. 

“Well, you’re very welcome” she smiled at him, rolling over to face him completely. Watching his face flush redder making her chuckle. 

They chatted about nothing of importance, until Nancy began drifting off. Her head had moved closer to Eddie as her eyes closed, 

“Hey, Nancy. I think we should go to sleep” he shook her lightly, her eyes open sleepily nodding at him. 

There was a light mattress at the end of her bed with two small pillows, Mrs Wheeler had curled it up in the corner. Eddie watched her move into bed, not bothering to change as he moved off the bed and made up the minimal mattress on the floor. He lay awake for a while after the light had been turned off and Nancy’s breathing dropped in and out as she slept. 

Just as managed to drift off to sleep himself, Nancy began to stir aggressively in her bed. The bed rocked as her movements shook her around the bed, mumbling loudly in fear. Concerned Eddie sat up at once, watching her movements as she hit her wrist against the wooden tray on her bedside table. Knocking it on the floor, she awoke loudly gasping and breathing heavily as Eddie rushed to her side. 

“Hey, hey. It’s okay, I think you were having a nightmare” Eddie shushed her, his hands wiping her forehead and moving her hair from her face. She fell back onto bed, her eyes wide open as she caught her breath. 

Eddie got up and began walking back to his bed. 

“Eddie?” her voice was shaky as she spoke into the room, sitting upright as she stared at Eddie in the dark. 

“Nancy?” he was curious at what she would ask him, her breathing was shaky as she spoke. 

“Will you sleep next to me please” Her voice was scared but pleading, she seemed tired and stressed as she waited for his response. Not caring that they had only just met, her nightmares were constant and only about the Upside Down. 

“Sure” he seemed hesitant to get into her bed, but as he made out her figure in the dark. He realised that she would have asked anyone in that moment to comfort her, that he wasn’t special. He just happened to be with her. 

Settling into bed next to her, he rolled onto his side facing the door. Her body stopped shaking as she felt him close to her, they lied there together for a while before Nancy’s breathing grew heavier as she drifted asleep. He sighed, his hands going slightly numb from his weight as he rested on them. 

He managed to fall asleep, her body heat warming the bed. When he awoke, Nancy was not beside him. 

Feeling slightly awkward, he wondered if she left because she felt the same. Lying there in his clothes, he stared at the ceiling as the light streamed through her curtains. Her bedroom in this light looked so pure, the light pinks and creams made him feel kind of sick. 

The door opened quickly, her perfect bouncy curls captivated him. Her smile added to the sickness feeling, but he felt himself smiling back at her. 

“Good morning” her eyes were filled with light, the demin jacket suited her baby pink skirt. It dragged on the floor behind her as she walked round towards her desk. 

“Good morning” his voice was deep and husky, sitting up his eyes focused completely on her. 

“So, we never managed to go get your clothes last night. I can always come with you?” Her fingers played with a pen on the desk, her body slowly turning round to face him. 

“Have you heard anything about Jason and his poesse?” His sickness feeling worsened at the mention of Jason Carver, his eyes flooded with worry as he scanned her facial expressions. 

“Mike mentioned earlier this morning, he was still looking but they already went to your caravan and your uncle scared them off. So we should be okay” she smiled, the word ‘we’ made them flutter as he felt himself relax a bit more. 

“Okay, let’s go. I feel pretty gross, I’m sorry for dirtying up your bed” he laughed lightly, getting up when the cool air hit his body. 

Walking round to meet him, she gestured for him to lead the way with her cute smile. Dipping his head politely, he ducked under her arm. She watched him walk past her, her stomach turning as he looked back at her. 

They walked past Mr and Mrs Wheeler, who were too distracted to notice. Her car was cold as they waited for it to warm up, some early pop music played in the background. 

After a while, they set off. Nancy’s fit danced along with the music playing, Eddie’s body was turned towards the window. Watching the scenery fly past as she drove through town, his stomach rumbling from nerves and hunger. Just as she turned into the caravan park, her hand found it’s way to his knee and squeezed the skin softly before smiling at each other. 

“I’ll wait in the car, you can shower and stuff at mine” she smiled, he shot her a worried but nervous look as he walked towards the caravan. 

He was hesitant in case Mike had lied, he had never known Mike to truly lie but he was so full of fear that he would believe anything. 

The door crept open, silence. As he tiptoed inside, the van was cold and dark. It was still slightly messy, worried he thought about Wayne and wondered if he was inside. Darting straight to his bedroom, his body paused as he heard someone stir in Wayne’s bedroom. 

Shrugging it off, he slid into his bedroom. Grabbing two of the nearest bags, he shoved everything he could think of. Stopping to stare at his guitar, he threw the strap around his bodice and clutched onto the two heavy bags. Scanning his room before entering into the hallway. 

He was unable to stop as it all happened so quickly, in the corner of his eye he saw them charge at him. A wooden bat in one hand and a bottle in the other, he picked up his speed and raced through the van. Out into the bright outdoors, Nancy’s car was running as he flew down the steps his voice carried as he got closer to her car. 

“Nancy, GO, GO, GO” the fear in his voice startled her, she watched as he slammed the car door shut. The person stood masked up, on the front steps as she pulled away from the caravan park as quickly as she could. 

Eddie locked eyes with them until they stood waiting at the gate of the park, his breath heavy and hot. He was still shaking as she continued to drive, his head fixed to the back of the seat. They drove in silence for a while, his legs beginning to cramp from the bags and his guitar. 

He calmed down as she rolled into her driveway, her parents had gone out. Leaving them alone together, as they wondered upstairs. Both of them are thinking over the incident at the caravan, sitting on her bed staring at the floor. He thought about all the people it could be, giving Jason more morals than he deserved.

“You okay?” Her voice brought him back to reality, his eyes glossy as they met. She sighed sitting down next to him, their fingers touched loosely. 

“ Yeah just a bit shaken up” he laughed nervously, his eyes didn’t share his amusement. 

“Why don’t you have a shower? Then we can go for a walk or something, I’d like to ask you those questions” she smiled at him warmly, squeezing his fingers with hers. 

He nodded, getting up and letting her instruct him on how it worked. She left him alone upstairs, deciding to make them both coffee in a flask she found in the back of the cupboards. 

As she poured the coffee into the flask, she turned around humming along to the stereo. As she danced to herself in the kitchen, she had not noticed that Eddie was leaning against the door frame, his arms crossed as he watched her with amusement. Smiling to himself as her eyes looked up, noticing that he was there her cheeks flushed red. 

“Eddie!” She squealed with fright and embarrassment covering her face with her hands in shock, she began to laugh with embarrassment and made him chuckle to himself. 

Laughing it off together, she grabbed the coffee flask in her hand and walked towards her. His eyes made her nervous as they burnt into her, he let his arms relax by his side as she walked ahead of him. Her skirt moved as she walked, her boots clicking lightly against the floor. 

They walked out of the estates, past other suburban houses together. She had her notebook in her bag that was messily flung round her shoulder. Their hands knocked together as the pavement narrowed, she directed them off a beaten track into the woods. 

The sun bounced off the trees, the leaves crunching with every footstep. He could see his breath in front of her, she shivered gently as the air grew cooler from the shade of the trees. 

Finally stopping as they reached an opening, there were broken logs scattered across the flooding. She walked to the left in front of green hedgegrove and placed the coffee flask on the floor. 

Turning to face him with that innocent smile, his hands now in his pockets as he slowly walked closer to her. Staring at the birds in front of them, their shoulder grazing. There was silence for a few moments before she opened up her bag and read her notebook. 

Perching herself on the cold damp log, crossing her leg over her thigh she blinked up at him with a pure look.

She asked him questions about his relationship with Chrissy, his situation at home, his role in D&D and background information about the game. She scribbled the answers down in her notebook furiously, he chuckled to himself as he peered closer to her notes. 

His hand crinkled a blunt in his pocket, placing it in his mouth. Her attention changed from her notebook to the light that brightened up his features, she felt mesmerised as he took in the smoke and exhaled it hard in front of him. 

Tilting his head to look at her, she quickly moved her eyes to stare at her notebook making him smirk as he waved the blunt in front of her eyeline. She met his eyes as she took it from him, placing it into her mouth his hand met her mouth and flicked the lighter on. Leaning forward her face illuminating from the lighter, she coughed as she took the smoke into her lungs. Laughing, she covered her mouth before shoving it into Eddie’s direction. He laughed with her and took the blunt off her, after exhaling it himself she stopped coughing. 

“Want me to show you?” his body moved towards her, she nodded as he made his way to the spare space next to her on the log. 

Their faces were inches apart, he inhaled a big toke of the blunt. He closed his fingers over each other to form a tunnel, the end of his fingers met her mouth. Keeping his eyes on her as he exhales the smoke into her mouth, she inhales it and leant back. Closing her eyes as she held it in her lungs before exhaling, her breath shaking as the noise ‘ooff’ escaped her mouth. 

They continued this way until they smoked all of the blunt, the coffee was half empty and still hot as they wandered back. She felt all giggly and light as she tiptoed on the leaves below, her arms spread out between jumps. Eddie watched her, walking closely behind her as they entered back onto the main road. 

Side by side they wandered back to her parents house, her silliness had calmed down by the time they arrived back inside. Mrs Wheeler had returned from her errands, noisily placing her groceries away as they sat watching rubbish on television. Eddie’s arm was resting over the top of the couch, Nancy’s head touched it lightly.