#mixtapemadness

It looked like they were sleeping? Maybe someone just seeking shelter from the cold?

Steve scooted between the seats and kneeled on the bench seat, leaning over the back to get a better look. The person was curled up, Eddie’s blanket covering their whole body. Just from the shape, Steve assumed it was a guy.

“Hey, man. You okay?” Steve reached over slowly, not wanting to scare the person, and nudged them softly. The person didn’t move. Something wasn’t right. Steve watched the blanket for a few long moments. They weren’t moving at all.

Everything inside Steve slowed down, his breathing deepened, his muscles warmed, and his focus narrowed down to the body in front of him, in the back of Eddie’s van. He pulled the blanket back, took a long look, and flipped it back over.

“Okay,” he said slowly, “alright. That’s a dead body. Yep.”

He nodded and crept back out of the van the way he came. He shut the door and walked back to the front door like a normal person who did not just find a dead person in the back of a friend’s van.

It was warm inside. Feeling returned to his fingertips as he stood inside the door.

Eddie popped his head out of his room, wild hair falling around his shoulders, eyeing Steve’s stillness. “Didn’t find it out there? Well, that sucks. We could do something else?”

Eddie walked into the living room and Steve took a deep breath. This was just another thing to handle. He could do it.

“Was there something else you wanted me to find in the van? Anything in the back?” Steve just needed to be sure.

“Uh, no? Why? Did raccoons get in there again? I did put a board over that hole! But they’re wily little things. You know they have thumbs? Like people!” He wiggled his thumbs at Steve.

Steve really wanted to laugh at that. He loved silly Eddie. Especially, after the last year he’d had. The bat bites. The almost dying. The rehab. Most of the town moving on except for a few die hard assholes who still went out of their way to try to get Eddie thrown in jail for real.

“Okay,” Steve breathed out. That’s what happened. Obviously, the town assholes killed someone and are trying to pin it on Eddie. Which means cops will probably show up soon. But no body, no crime. Steve nodded.

“What’s okay? Steve? You’re kinda freaking me out here, man.”

Steve looked over at him, maybe the first time he’d moved since returning to the house, took a deep breath and nodded again, hands going to his hips. “There’s a dead body in your van. I’m gonna carry it into the woods. Dump it down the bank toward the creek. You’ll be fine. Stay here.”

Steve turned and went out the door, before doubling back and leaning back inside the door, “Oh right, can you put a six pack outside the back door? It’s a good temp for it.”

Eddie stood frozen, his mouth open, eyes wide in confusion and fear – the exact expression Steve didn’t ever want to see on his face again.

“I’ve got this.” He tapped the door with his knuckles and swung the door shut, twirling in place to face the van.

Getting the body out was more difficult than he thought it’d be. His plan was to just fireman carry him out, but the body was too frozen to drape over his shoulders. He grabbed a plastic sled from the front of the house, put it on the ground behind the van, and rolled the body out. It landed right on the sled with a dull thud.

He picked up the cord and walked around the small house. Fortunately, the ground was frozen and there was no snow. He shivered – probably should’ve grabbed a coat, but he’d warm back up when get got back.

The body wibble wobbled back and forth on the sled as he pulled it through the woods that ran behind the neighborhood. The little gorge wasn’t far. The kids had installed a small bridge and a Tarzan rope to cross it when the Munsons moved in.

He pulled the sled up along the edge and untangled Eddie’s van blanket from around the body. He looked around, saw no other living person, and nudged the body with his foot. It tumbled right over without a sound. He nodded to a job well done, picked up the sled, and walked back to Eddie’s.

Blue and red lights lit up the main road just as Steve leaned the sled against the back of the house.

The road ran perpendicular along the woods, but they’d have to make another turn before reaching Eddie’s street. He went through the back door – they only had a few minutes.

He wadded up the blanket and tossed it into the dirty clothes pile by the washing machine and walked into the living room.

Eddie was freaking out – hands in his hair, pacing around, looking out the window, muttering to himself. Steve stepped into his path. “Hey, hey, you’re okay.”

“What? No. Steve, they’re coming.” Steve had never seen him so scared, even when he was actively dying. He put his hands on Eddie’s shoulders, pulling him in close, moving a hand to cup his scarred cheek. Eddie shook, body shivering, eyes round, barely holding back tears – he blinked, shaking his head back and forth. “They’re gonna take me away, Steve. I’ll never see Wayne again. I’ll never see the kids, the band, you- we’ll never- I wanted to-”

Steve cupped both of Eddie’s cheeks, pulling him in, resting his forehead against Eddie’s. The lights turned onto their street. “No body, no crime, baby. It’ll be okay. Can you go to your room and put on some loud music? Try to calm yourself? I’ll get the door.”

Eddie trembled, but nodded. Steve brushed away the tear tracks on Eddie’s cheeks and kissed the tip of his nose, whispering softly, “Go on.”

Eddie went back to his room and a second later the house vibrated with rumbling bass. Steve brushed his hands down his clothes, through his hair, and checked the wall mirror for anything amiss on his face. His cheeks were still a little red, but it’d be fine.

He grabbed a beer from the fridge – they would’ve been colder if they’d been outside, but oh well. He sat down at the kitchen table to wait for the knock.