#readerxeddiemunson

To say you hadn’t thought about running away and going to find Eddie, would be a lie. But you knew you couldn’t leave your family, especially not with the thought of Vecna coming back. You sometimes imagine what Eddie would say if he found out that they hadn’t actually defeated Vecna. The real killer who had murdered those innocent students was still on the loose while Eddie was on the run. 

Another long shift at the diner wasn’t what you wanted to be doing right now, but it was good at distracting you. The thought of spring and every flower and ray of sunshine that came with it was agonising. It reminded you of him and you hated it. After graduation, you couldn’t handle college and decided to get a job at the local diner. 

You slowly untied the knot that held your apron onto your dress and tore the white fabric from your body with an exhausted sigh. You hung it on its hook before pushing through the doors to the staff bathroom. You washed your hands and fixed your messy hair as best you could, before exiting toward the back entrance of the diner. 

The door shut itself behind you once you left. You’d usually flinch at the sound of it closing, but now you’d grown used to it. The dark alleyway did nothing to lighten up your mood, in fact, it only made the scene more depressing. You walked down the alleyway, taking your usual route and letting the moonlight guide you out towards your car. Before you could reach the brightness coming from the lamp posts on the street, the sound of shuffling and rumbling from behind the dumpsters startled you. You froze, unsure if your mind was playing tricks on you or not. 

Once again, the shuffling of trash bags and movement made your throat grow dry. You desperately wanted to believe it was only a rat, but somehow, that only made it scarier. You took a deep breath, forcing all of the fear out with the air, and slowly continued walking down the alleyway. 

The dumpster was further down, meaning you had to walk past it to get out of the alley. As you got closer and closer to the large bin and the smaller trash bags that crowded around it, your pace began to speed up, trying to get past it quickly. You reached the dumpster, forcing your legs to move quicker. Before you could get too far, a cold hand gripped at your wrist, pulling you backwards. 

You squealed, shutting your eyes tight as you felt your back collide with the wall. You jerked your head to the side, scrunching your face up to get it away from whatever was holding you down. You held your breath, waiting for the moment something would strike you. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s me,” A voice whispered. Your body was so caught in fear, that your ears couldn’t make out what the person was saying. Your lips parted as you let out a shakey breath, tears pricking at your eyes. 

“P–Please, don’t– don’t hurt me!” You shuddered, still not able to open your eyes. Your body trembled against the person, 

“Hey, look, look at me,” The voice said. As the voice became clearer, you began to recognise it. It was familiar. “Open your eyes, it’s just me.” You blinked rapidly, turning your face slowly as your eyes tried to focus on the person’s face. “It’s me, it’s me.” They said. The tears that welled in your eyes held themselves steady but your lips began to tremble and your head shook back and forth. You mumbled small whispers in disbelief as you scanned the person’s face, convinced that you were hallucinating. 

“Eddie?” You choked out, a tear falling down your cheek. 

“Yeah it’s me, baby, it’s me.” He whispered, lifting his hand to cup your face gently. You stared at him, confusion lingering across your face. His lips trembled as he stared back at you, his eyes glancing over every inch of your face; every inch he had missed so badly. 

“I don’t–” You started, not able to get any words out. 

“It’s okay, I’m here,” 

“You’re here.” You sighed, almost like a sigh of relief. He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into him as tears rolled down your face.

“I’m here, baby, I’m here,” He added, choking back his tears. He pressed his lips against the top of your head, kissing it gently as he held you. You cried into his chest, holding your arms firmly around his waist and not wanting to let go. You didn’t think you’d ever let go. Not until you felt his hands grab yours and unwrap them from his body.

“Baby, we have to go, we can’t stay here.” He said, glancing around the alleyway. You looked up at him, gripping his hand tightly. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” He pulled you away from the wall, heading toward the exit of the alley. He stopped, looking around to see if anyone was near, before dragging you out toward your car. He took you to the passenger side, forcing you in quickly. He dug his hand through your jean pocket, trying to find the keys to your car before heading to the driver’s side. 

“Wait, Eddie, I–” You tried to protest, turning to face him.

“You’re not driving right now.” He said, reaching over you to grab your seatbelt and securing it into its lock. “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” To be fair, you kind of had. Eddie was a ghost. Or at least, it felt that way. He had been gone for about a year now. After he had begged you not to go after him, suddenly he was outside of where you worked, waiting for you. 

Eddie reversed the car out of its park and began driving down the street. You sat looking forward, your lips parted and your eyebrows furrowed, as you tried to grasp the concept of his presence. His eyes glanced between you and the road as he drove.

“You good there?” He asked. He turned his head to get a better look at your face. “Hey, you still with me?” He gently placed his hand on your thigh, giving it a light squeeze and waking you from your trance. 

“I don’t understand,” You spoke softly, turning to scan his face. You were still unsure if it was him or not; still unsure if this was all some incredibly realistic hallucination that only proved you were going crazy. 

“I know, I know, look,” He started, placing his hand back onto the steering wheel. “I was on the run and I missed you, and–”

“You’re here because you missed me?” You shot back, raising your eyebrows in disbelief. “Eddie, someone could’ve seen you!”

“I know, I know,” He continued, pulling the car into your parent’s driveway. You turned to look toward the house.

“I don’t live here anymore, Eddie.” You said, resting your head back against the headrest with a sigh. 

“You moved?” 

“After graduation, I took my college fund and got a small place by the trailer park.” 

“Wait, what? Your college fund?” He repeated, glancing between you and the road once more as he pulled away from the driveway and back onto the street. “Why aren’t you in college?” 

“You think I could just go off to college after what happened?”

“Well yeah, Y/N, that was the plan.” Eddie argued, his voice getting louder and more annoyed. 

“I don’t care about the plan! The plan was to go to college with you!” You shouted, lifting your head and turning it towards Eddie.

“We both know that was never going to happen!” He yelled back.

“Oh, please!” You sneered, “It could’ve happened if you didn’t run!” With your words, Eddie lifted his hands from the steering wheel and slammed them back down, making you jump. 

“Do not go there. Don’t you fucking dare go there.” He warned, his voice getting quieter yet firmer. “You know why I had to leave, so don’t you dare fucking go there.”

“You could’ve let me come with you.” You added. Eddie scoffed and shook his head, keeping his eyes focused on the road. As the car headed through Hawkins, making its way toward the trailer park, a mutual feeling lingered throughout the car. You and Eddie were angry. Angry at the town, the people, and at each other. 

Once you were closer to the trailer park and your tiny house came into view, you leaned forward in your seat and pointed toward it. “It’s that one.” You said, turning to look at him. His eyes didn’t move; he couldn’t look at you right now. 

He pulled over and turned the car off, still avoiding your eyes. The two of you sat in uncomfortable silence; the only sound being both of your breaths growing slower as you calmed yourselves down. You shook your head slowly before throwing your head back against the headrest. 

Eddie’s head turned at the sound of your quiet sniffles and soft cries, but he couldn’t find the courage to say something. You couldn’t help but let the tears roll down your cheeks, biting your lip to stop yourself from sobbing loudly. But with every emotion racing through your body, you knew it wouldn’t be long before your teeth gave up and your trembling lip escaped its capturer. 

You were confused, hurt and angry. Your mind couldn’t process the amount of emotions that coursed through your body, so it forced all the built-up emotion out through your eyes and down your face. You were exhausted. Your body was exhausted. Your mind was exhausted.

Your desperate attempts to hold it all in began to turn into broken sobs, forcing you to cover your face with your hands in one last attempt to save yourself from the embarrassment of crying in front of him. But it wasn’t embarrassing. Not at all.

He gently pulled at your wrists, uncovering your face and forcing you to look at him. The hazed glow that came through the window from the lamp post outside, brightened the car just enough for him to see your puffy eyelids and darkened under eyes. He stared sympathetically at you for a moment. He had forgotten how this must have been for you. Of course, being forced to flee the town you’ve lived in since forever and being on the run for murder was bad, but it still would’ve been hard for the people who loved you. 

Without saying a word, he pulled you into him, wrapping his arms around your body and holding you tightly against his chest as you sobbed. He couldn’t help but let his tears fall from where they held themselves in his eyes as he gently rested his chin on the top of your head. 

The two of you stayed like that for a while, crying with each other, neither saying a word. You wanted to hold him and kiss him and never let go, but the other part of you wanted to yell and scream at him for leaving you like he did. But you didn’t really want to yell and scream at him. You wanted to yell at the town and at the world. You wanted to know who was responsible for choosing this path for you; who was responsible for letting you fall in love with a boy just to have him be ripped away from you. Whoever's fault it was – and it certainly could never be yours – you hated them. Or at least, you wanted to hate them. But if you were being honest, which is something you rarely found yourself being nowadays, you loved them. You were so grateful to even be a small part in Eddie’s life and even more grateful that he was a small part of yours. But Eddie Munson wasn’t a ‘small part’ in your life, he was your life.

Another moment passed before either of you could pull away, and you were the first to let go. You gently pulled back, signalling to Eddie that you wanted to pull away. He slowly unwrapped his arms, allowing you to pull yourself back to your original position in your seat. You sighed and lifted your hands to your face to wipe your eyes before taking a deep breath.

“I’m sorry.” He said softly. Your eyelashes flickered for a moment as you regained your composure before you turned to face him. 

“Eddie, you don’t–” You tried, tilting your head at him.

“No, I do, I’m sorry.” 

“You don’t have to be sorry, Eddie, I get it.” You reassured, lifting your hand to tuck the hair out of his face. Your hand slowly grazed against his cheek on its way back. He grabbed it with his hand and entwined your fingers.

“Y/N, I’m sorry for not saying goodbye,” He continued, gently pressing his other hand against your knee. “I’m sorry for getting wrapped up in all of this bullshit.”

“I don’t think you knew Chrissy Cunningham was going to get possessed and killed in your trailer when you invited her over.” You giggled, wiping a tear from your eye. 

“No, no, I uh– I didn’t know that was going to happen.” He responded, his lips curling into a smile at the sight of yours doing the same. “I invited her back to my trailer cause’ she wanted drugs, by the way.”

“I know, Eddie, I know.” You said, rolling your eyes playfully.

“Good, good. I just– you know,” He added, glancing around the car before looking down, “–didn’t want you thinking she was there for anything else.”

“Come on, babe, it’s Chrissy Cunningham.”

His head shot up. “What? What's that supposed to mean?”

“You know..” Your voice trailed as your eyebrows raised, signalling what you meant. 

“You don’t think I could pull Chrissy Cunningham?” Eddie gasped, jumping up to twist in his seat to look at you better. You shook your head, trying to hold in your laugh. His mouth dropped and his brows furrowed. “Shut up!” He joked, pushing at your shoulder slightly. Eddie’s smile only grew as you smacked your hand over your mouth, leaning forward slightly as you burst into laughter.

Coming back to Hawkins was risky, sure, but it was all worth it for that laugh. 

The two of you laughed in your car for a little longer, before making your way inside to laugh some more. It was weird. You had never in a million years imagined you’d be unlocking the door to your house with your boyfriend standing behind you waiting. You’d never imagined you’d get to sit in the passenger seat of your own car whilst your boyfriend drove you around like he always used to do. But here you were, with the one person you were sure you’d never see again. 

“You hungry?” You asked as you pushed the door open, sliding off your shoes by the door and heading toward the kitchen. 

“Starving.” He replied, hurrying after you while his eyes glanced around at your house. “Nice place.”

“Thanks. It’s small and gets lonely sometimes, but I like it here by myself.” You said, pulling out two plates from the cupboard. You noticed him standing awkwardly. “Go sit on the couch, Eds, I’ll heat up left-over pizza.”

He smiled at you before heading over to your couch and collapsing on top of it with a sigh. A moment of silence passed as you took the pizza from the fridge. Eddie looked around the room, searching for something to say.

“So, you got a new boyfriend?” He asked, looking at you.

“Yeah, Eddie, totally,” You replied sarcastically, failing to hold back a smile.

“Pff, yeah, me too.” He joked.

“Oh yeah? New boyfriend?”

“Shut up! That’s not what I meant.” He argued, turning to face you in the kitchen. You pulled the pizza from the microwave and placed two slices onto each plate before bringing it over to Eddie on the couch. He mumbled a thank you before quickly shoving it into his mouth. You sat beside him on the couch, crossing your legs underneath you and placing the plate on your lap. You stared down at the pizza – an uneasy feeling growing in your stomach.

Eddie looked at you and raised a brow, “You good?” He asked.

“Mhm,” You nodded, forcing a smile onto your face. Eddie dropped the pizza from his hand. 

“You don’t seem good, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Eddie, it’s just–” You reassured, but you both knew you were lying. “I’ve just had a hard time eating since you left, you know?” 

“Oh.”

“It’s not a big deal, really, I’m fine.”

“No, it is a big deal, Y/N.” He replied, placing his plate of food onto the coffee table and moving closer to you. “Is there anything I can do to help?” He asked.

“No, no, it’s fine. I’ve been working on it, I promise.” 

“Good.” He added, picking up his plate. He lifted a piece of pizza to his mouth and took a bite before turning to you and raising his eyebrows. “Eat, come on.” He nodded towards the plate of food in your lap. You rolled your eyes playfully before picking up the piece of pizza and taking a small bite. 

Eddie began explaining everything that happened while he’d been out of Hawkins and in return, you told him everything that happened in the town. You mentioned Steve Harrington, and how he confessed his love for Nancy Wheeler once more, only to be shut down again. You told him about Robin and Vickie, and all about a new guy called Argyle from California. 

Eddie told you how he’d lived off of beans for a while and how a random guy at a gas station almost recognised him as the satanic killer from Hawkins. Another thing he mentioned, was that he’d somehow managed to get out of Indiana and make it all the way to Pennsylvania. His uncle had a friend who lived there and gave him a place to stay. He managed to get in contact with his uncle, who had now moved to Pennsylvania to be near him. 

“So you’re staying in Pennsylvania?” You asked, biting your lip to stop it from trembling at the thought of him being so far. 

“Uh– yeah, I got a job and–” He paused, taking in a deep breath as he leaned forward. “I got a house, Y/N, my own house.” 

“No way!” You giggled, patting your hand gently on his shoulder. 

“It’s smaller than this but it’s not a trailer, so, it’s perfect.” He added, letting out a small laugh as he looked down. He shut his eyes, almost as if he was preparing himself for something, before turning toward you. “Come with me.” He said, softly.

Your mouth fell as you stared back at him, unsure of what to say. Your eyes glanced between the two of his rapidly as you searched for the right words. 

He gently placed his hand on your thigh, rubbing his thumb over your skin gently “Please,” He begged. “Please come with me, baby.” 

“Eddie–”

“I’m making money, sweetheart, I swear!” 

“Eddie, I–”

“Please, just– Just think about it.” He interrupted. A few moments of silence passed as you stared at him. His eyes searched your face desperately, begging for you to say something.

You gulped. “I thought you didn’t want me to go with you.” You spoke, furrowing your eyebrows slightly.

“I didn’t! And I know this is so selfish but– I need you.” He replied, his voice sounding more panicked; like it had only just hit him that you might say no. “I need you, love, I do.” He grabbed your hands and held them with his, “Come with me to Pennsylvania and I’ll give you everything you’ve ever wanted.” You looked down. “I can give you everything, I promise, baby.” He continued. His words rang through your ears and around your mind for what felt like an eternity. They were exactly what you wanted to hear. 

“Yes.” You finally answered, lifting your eyes to meet his.

“What?”

“Yes, Eddie, I’ll go with you.”

His chest heaved as he looked at you, taking in your words, before pulling you into a hug. He held you tightly – afraid that if he gave you room to speak, you might change your mind and say no. You pulled away from his chest and leaned towards his lips, pressing them against yours. He lifted his hands to cup your cheeks, deepening the kiss. Your arms reached around his neck as your mouths entwined and you pulled him closer to you. He broke the kiss through a smile as he pulled away to look at you. 

“I love you.” He cooed, kissing your lips gently once more. You bit your lip as you failed to hold back a smile. 

“I love you more.” You replied, your eyes flickering between his eyes and his mouth. 

"Earthquake? Really?" You laughed softly, trying desperately to hide your tears.

"I guess it's the only logical explanation, ya know," He chuckled. "Since other dimensions and monsters aren't supposed to be real."

"Yeah, I guess." You replied as you wrapped your arms around his stomach and held him closely. He stopped playing with your hair to snake his arm around your side and hold you. The two of you held each other in silence for a moment, embracing the comfort of each other. With your ear pressed against his chest, you could hear the sound of his heartbeat slowing as he relaxed. The silence the two of you had created was soon interrupted by the quiet sound of your soft cries into his chest.

"Baby," He cooed, tears pooling in his own eyes. "Don't cry, sweetheart." He bit his lip to stop it from trembling, not wanting to show his emotions in fear of making you even sadder. He wanted to seem brave and strong, like he wasn't afraid, but really he was. "I have to leave Hawkins, you know that." Your cries grew louder as he continued. You moved your head to position your face into his chest, crying into his shirt. He gently stroked the back of your head, trying his best to comfort you as you cried. "I'm sorry, love, I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry, Eddie, this isn't your fault." You managed to choke out, your soft and gentle voice cracking through the tears. You lifted your head off of his chest and turned to look at him. His eyes connected with yours, now showing him how devastated you looked. He gently pushed the hair away from your face and tucked it behind your ear. "Why can't I just come with you?" You asked, letting out another soft cry as you spoke. His soft demeanour quickly changed.

"No." He said firmly. 

"But, why–"

"No, Y/N. You're not coming with me." He huffed, not breaking eye contact. The tears in his eyes threatened to spill as he looked at you. You opened your mouth to say something, allowing yourself to breathe in air that quickly got caught in your throat. Your eyes flickered between his, not able to speak. "If you come with me, you could go down with me," His bottom lip trembled as he spoke. "I won't risk it. I won't let you risk your life for me again." He shook his head lightly as he gulped down the cry he so desperately wanted to let out. "You're going to stay away, okay?"

"No!" You cried, lifting yourself off of him and moving away. You sat up in the bed and covered your face with your hands as you sobbed. 

"I don't care what you say," He said firmly, sitting up straight in the bed. "I'm going to be on the run for–" He paused and took a deep breath, "–possibly the rest of my life." He kept his eyes locked on you but didn't move to come closer. He knew it would only make things worse now. He knew that he had to be stern about this. He couldn't let you come with him. He couldn't do that to you. "Or I could go to prison." He added. "So, this is it. Tomorrow, I'm leaving and I don't want to ever see you again." His voice trembled and cracked as a tear slid down his cheek. You let out a loud sob into your hands at his words. 

He felt bad for making you feel this way. He hated watching you cry. Neither of you spoke for a few moments, the room filled with the sound of your cries. He watched you breaking in front of him and he hated it. He wanted nothing more than to hold you and stay with you forever, but he couldn't. He gently moved towards you and slowly moved your hands away from your face, revealing your red cheeks and puffy eyes. You couldn't look at him, it was just too much. It all hurt too badly. You looked down as the tears continued falling from your eyes. 

He gently placed his finger under your chin and lifted your head to face him, forcing you to look at him. He gulped at the sadness in your eyes. Without saying anything, he pulled you into a hug and held you. After a few seconds, you wrapped your arms around him and cried into his shoulder, letting out all the loud cries you had been holding in for days. He wanted to be strong for you, but he just couldn't. He rested his head on your shoulder as he hugged you and allowed the burning tears to fall from his heavy eyes. 

You stayed like that for a few minutes, just crying and holding each other. Both of you knew this whole situation was unfair. But both of you knew there was nothing that either of you could do about it. After both of your cries turned to soft sniffles, you both pulled away and looked at each other. 

"I love you, and I'm really fucking sorry that you love me." He said, choking on his words. He gently placed his hand on your cheek and wiped the tears on your cheek away with his thumb. "I'm sorry that I got caught up in all this shit," He licked his bottom lip and tilted his head. "And I'm sorry I got you caught up in all of this shit too." He bit his lip to stop it from trembling as he looked into your eyes. "I'm really gonna fucking miss you." He sniffled. 

"I don't want to miss you, Eddie." You sobbed, tilting your head slightly to align with his.

"I know, sweetheart, I'm sorry." 

"I love you." You added softly. You leaned in to kiss him gently on his lips. You both pulled away and slowly opened your eyes, smiling through the tears at each other. He pulled you in for another hug and kissed you on the forehead before slowly pulling you backwards to lay back down on the bed. You gently rested your head on his chest again as you both held each other tightly. 

Silence filled the room once more as you both listened to the soft sounds of each other breathing. The quiet sound of the person you love the most being alive. Oh, how you could listen to it for hours. Your thoughts drifted to a happier moment of the two of you as you closed your eyes and slowly let the soft sound of his breaths guide you to sleep. 

When the sun awoke and its light shone gently through your window, your eyes slowly fluttered open and woke you from your slumber. You hugged the sheets tightly, not a single thought infiltrating your mind other than the fact that it was morning. There was a few seconds of peace. Just a few. They softly passed through your mind before allowing reality back in. Now that you were fully awake, you suddenly remembered what day it was and your hand quickly reached around to the other side of the bed.

Instead of being met with the warm body of your boyfriend, Eddie, your hand fell against the bed sheets. You quickly turned to see the empty part of the bed beside you. You looked around the room as you sat up, wondering where he was. You quickly pulled the sheets off of your body and jumped out of bed before making your way downstairs.

"Eddie?" You called. You walked toward the kitchen, assuming he was making breakfast or something, "Eddie?" You repeated. You looked around the kitchen that was empty. You shook your head out of confusion as you tried to think of where he could be. 

Suddenly, your eyes focused on a folded piece of paper on the kitchen table. Next to it was Eddie's necklace. You stood still for a moment, knowing exactly what it was. As much as you wanted to grab the paper, read it and then run after him, you couldn't move. You were frozen. Your breaths grew quick and panicked as the shock settled in and you raced to grab the piece of paper. You quickly unfolded it and began reading.

"Dear Y/N,

I'm sorry for leaving while you were sleeping. I just couldn't bring myself to wake you. I couldn't bear to see you cry and I knew you'd just try and stop me from leaving. So, you're right to be mad about that. But I know you can't stay mad at me for long :) Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me. I was so lost. So lost. And then I met you and you changed everything. You made me laugh, you made me smile, you made me happy. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. I love you, Y/N, I always have and I always will. It's gonna be okay. You're going to go on and live a beautiful life. Just without me in it. You've always had a future, Y/N. A future that will be wonderful with or without me. I know that.  Just know, leaving you was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I really wanted you to come with me but I knew that was selfish. You deserve to be alive and happy, and I won't let you go down with me. I can't promise we'll see each other again, but I do know that you will always be in my heart Y/N Y/L/N, just like I'll always be in yours.

Also, I stole some of your chips for the road, hope you don't mind >:)

- Eddie ♥

As your tears fell from your face to the paper in front of you, your panicked breathing turned to loud cries and sobs as you broke down. Your knees grew weaker and collapsed beneath you, forcing you to the ground as you sobbed. He was gone.

It had been a few weeks since Eddie left and the agonising sadness that filled your bones never faded. Not even slightly. Your skin craved his touch and your ears craved his voice. The pain was brutal and his absence hit harder than you had expected. It tore through your heart and stabbed you repeatedly over and over, not giving you a chance to breathe. 

Maybe you were dying. Maybe this is was death felt like. The pain of losing someone was greater than anyone could ever imagine. He was alive but you grieved as if he were dead. Because it was a sort of death. He was gone and he was never coming back. 

You would do anything to see him again. Anything to feel or hear him. You'd give anything just to say goodbye. Just to hear his voice cradle your aching heart one last time. It was utterly agonising when you realised just how far gone he was. The acceptance was difficult. Having to accept he was still out there and that you could go find him was the hardest part. It took you a while to understand it. You had so desperately wanted to go with him, to be with him forever and he unselfishly protected you from a life of running. If either one of you was going to make it out of this whole situation okay, it was going to be you.

Going back to school and graduating without him was hard. Hearing the students gossip and whisper about him, thinking cruel things, was painful. They didn't even dare to call his name at the graduation. But in their defence, they thought he was a murderer. But he wasn't. And you knew that. 

Maybe if they had gotten to know the real Eddie, they would've said his name. Because the real Eddie was kind and thoughtful and didn't let what anyone else think get to him. He sacrificed his life – even though he was still alive – for a town that thought he was a monster. A town that thought he was a freak before he was even a suspect. A town that hated him for just being himself. You could never forgive any of them for the things they said about him.

Every time you walked past the seat he sat in every lunch time, your eyes filled with tears. And every time his favourite band started playing on the radio, you immediately turned it off. Every time someone said his name you gasped quietly to yourself, wanting nothing more than to crawl into a ball and cry. 

For weeks after he left, you found yourself starring blankly at the wall, begging for the world to swallow you whole. And sometimes at night, you cry into your pillow and wish you never bothered talking to that boy in The Hellfire Club that constantly annoyed you with references to metal bands you never could remember the name of. 

"Leave me alone, Jason." You replied, clearly uninterested. He chuckled as he ran his tongue along his bottom lip. He looked back at his friends sitting down at the table before his eyes met yours once more. 

"Come on, pretty girl, let me show you what it's like to be with a real man." He added. You rolled your eyes again and attempted to push past him. He quickly grabbed onto your arm, forcing you to turn back around. You gasped as his grip on your arm grew tighter. "What? You think Eddie is good for you?" He scoffed and pulled you closer. "He's a freak, Y/N," 

"Hands off, Carver." A voice from behind you said calmly. When you turned to face the voice, you realised it was Eddie. Jason pulled you towards him and held onto your waist. 

"What are you gonna do about it, freak?" He taunted. You tried to wiggle out of his grip but you couldn't. Eddie watched his hands on your waist before slowly lifting his eyes back to Jason's. His hands clenched into fists as his brows furrowed. 

"I'm not going to ask you again," Eddie said firmly, keeping his cool. "Hands off." The blonde-haired boy laughed in response, clearly not feeling threatened. Jason's hand slipped from your waist, up to your stomach. He slowly began moving his hand further upwards as he taunted Eddie. Eddie waited a moment, keeping his eyes locked on Jason's hands, before taking a step toward the two of you and forcefully grabbing you away from Jason. He gently moved you to stand behind him as his hands lifted to push Jason backwards. Jason stumbled, not expecting the sudden movements. Once you were safely behind Eddie, he swung his fist directly at Jason's face, causing him to fall over. 

"Eddie!" You gasped. You moved to grab him, trying desperately to hold him back. His other arm pushed you gently away from him, trying his best not to get you hurt in the crossfire, as he continued to throw more punches at Jason. You had never seen Eddie fight anyone like this before. "Eddie! Stop!" You shouted again. The cafeteria erupted into cheering and shouting as one of Eddie's punches tore Jason to the ground. He got on top of him and continued to throw punches. Jason's hands flung up to cover his face as he yelled out desperately for help. 

Before you could rush to tear Eddie away from him, Mike and a few of the other boys had already grabbed him and moved him away from the injured boy. His face was bloody and bruised. Dustin moved towards you. 

"Are you alright, Y/N?" He asked, concern written all over his face. You looked around at the boy on the floor, and then at your boyfriend who was still trying to get to him. 

"I– I–" You started, trying to find any words to explain what you were feeling. You were shocked at what Eddie had done. You hadn't expected it. But another part of you was happy he had done it, considering Jason had just touched you without your consent. Dustin ushered you backwards to sit down on one of the chairs. 

"Are you okay?" He repeated. You looked at the ground, still not able to say anything. You were trying to fight the tears that swelled in your eyes. Dustin quickly ran over to the other boys who were holding off Eddie. "Eddie– Eddie!" He yelled. Eddie was too clouded by his anger to hear him. "Eddie! Y/N needs you!" As soon as he heard your name, he awoke from his trance, looking frantically around the cafeteria for you. Dustin pointed over to where you were sitting, and Eddie's face immediately dropped upon seeing you. He quickly pushed the boys off of him and ran over to you. He dropped down to his knees in front of you, trying to see your face.

"Y/N, hey, baby," He whispered, concerned. He began wiping the tears that fell from your eyes. "Hey, look at me," He placed his hands on your thighs as he looked up at you. Your eyes met and you could tell he felt bad. "I'm sorry, sweetheart." You took a deep breath before responding.

"No, no. It's not your fault, Eddie." You replied, shaking your head slowly. He lifted one of his hands to tuck your hair away from your face.

"I know, I know, but I shouldn't have punched him." 

"You were just angry, I get it." Your voice shook as well as your hands, and Eddie clearly noticed. He grabbed a hold of your shaking hands and kissed them. 

"I'm sorry he grabbed you like that, baby," He added. You moved one of your hands to lightly touch his hair, stroking the side of it as he spoke. "I won't let anyone hurt you again, I promise." You looked down at the floor. "Hey, I promise, baby." He lifted your chin gently to get you to look at him and you nodded. He pulled you into him and wrapped his arms around you, holding you close as you hugged. You let out a few soft cries into his shoulder as he held you. He gently ran the palm of his hand along the back of your hair. 

By the end of the day, Jason had been suspended for touching someone inappropriately and Eddie had been given a shorter suspension for violence. You hated that you got him suspended but he constantly assured you that it was Jason's fault, not yours. And he would do it again if he had to. You knew Eddie's suspension was unfair but there wasn't much you could do.