spellbound.

I’m in love with you.

That’s what Eddie had said. The words were ones you never thought you would hear. You started to think you had feelings for Eddie back when the two of you were just in middle school, but the risk of ruining your friendship wasn’t worth it.

So you stayed quiet. You said nothing. Did nothing. It was difficult, especially when Eddie would talk to you about the girls he had a crush on. There weren’t a ton of them, thankfully, but the few that did exist always bothered you.

​

But now he was standing in front of you, not only saying he liked you. No. He was in love with you.

​

“For how long?” You asked in almost a breathless tone. It felt as if every word spoken took gallons of energy from you.

​

“What?” Eddie asked, not so much confused as he was just wondering where all of this was coming from.

​

A drop of water splashed on your shoulder. Then another on your head. One hit Eddie right on the forehead. Rain. The clouds were closing in around the two of you as rain began to fall, slowly at first. Almost matching the movement of the conversation.

​

“How long have you been in love with me?” You asked with a louder voice as the rain fell faster. Harder. Eddie’s eyes danced around yours, his curls starting to stick to his forehead the more wet they became from the worsening weather.

​

“For as long as I can remember.” Eddie finally spoke, almost so soft you could barely hear it. You were both drenched now, the rain soaking the two of you as it came down harder and harder. The clouds covered the area to the point that it almost felt like nighttime now.

​

Eddie took exactly three steps before his hands grabbed your face. He pulled you into a kiss that had been building up for years. You felt his tongue sliding into your mouth as your body started to press into his.

​

You felt Eddie pull you tighter to him, like the two of you didn’t want to leave one another. You had been inseparable since you became friends, but this? This felt like a gap that was finally closing after years of being open.

​

Eddie pushed you back a bit, pressing you until your back was up against a tree. Even through every movement, your lips never parted. The kiss was passionate and everlasting, or at least it felt so in that moment.

​

“I’ve spent years dreaming of this.” Eddie husked into your mouth as he pulled his jacket off. He reached for your shirt next, sliding his hand under the damp material as he grazed his fingers across your abdomen. He moved up to your breasts, squeezing over the bra as a groan slipped from his lips to yours.

​

Years.

​

Eddie had been dreaming of doing this to you for years. The thought alone was enough to pull a long moan from your own lips. You let your hand trace down to his pants as you fumbled with his buckle. You couldn’t move fast enough. Neither of you could. Years of waiting for this, and the clothes couldn’t seem to come off fast enough.

​

Your shirt finally pulled off, tossed to the side in the pouring rain. The tree you were standing under shaded the two of you a bit, but not enough to stop the two of you from being drenched. That feeling only somehow made the moment that much more sensual. The feeling of wet hands sliding so easily over damp skin.

​

“I need you, Eddie.” You whispered into his mouth as your bra was tossed to the side with your already forgotten shirt. You managed to pull Eddie’s shirt off as well, both of you just down to your underwear. Eddie leaned back just a touch so that he could take you in.

​

His eyes roamed over your body as he scanned it as if he had never really seen you before. He took in every crevice, every curve. He noticed even the smallest of imperfections on your body, the ones that he had spent years yearning to see.

​

As he stared at you, you let your eyes stare back at him. You noticed the scars on his chest from the attack in the upside-down. You noticed his chest rising and falling from each heavy breath as the rain continued to pour down around the two of you.

​

Your hand reached up, slowly and carefully. You took your pointer finger and ever so gently pressed it against the scar. You followed it down, across his chest, and towards his abdomen. You remembered the moment you cleaned this wound, how you stitched together the part on the side that was too widely opened.

​

Eddie placed his own hand over yours as you reached the bottom of the scar. He held it there, taking a step closer to you so that your back was fully up against the tree behind you now. You tilted your head, leaning back to stare up at him as his eyes danced around yours with a desire so deep you could practically taste it on your tongue.

​

“You have me.”

​

That was the last thing you remember hearing from Eddie before he smashed his lips to yours once more. He cupped your face again, holding it just for a second before he traced all down your body. He let his hands slip into the band of your panties, pulling them off quickly as you did the same with his boxers. You broke the kiss for a second to look down as Eddie’s length pointed right at you. It was bigger than you had imagined, especially for someone as thin as Eddie. He wasn’t weak, not at all, but he was more lean than most his age.

​

Eddie let you look for just a moment before he wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you up. Your legs instantly wrapped around him as your arms went behind his neck. Your hand ran through the ends of his hair while you both continued the kiss. Eddie turned around and carried you to where his jacket lay on the ground. He placed you on top of it, careful not to hurt you but forceful enough for you to let out a small moan at the swift movement.

​

“Is this okay?” Eddie asked as he managed to move his lips to your neck. You moaned, nodding ever so softly as your legs stayed wrapped around him while your fingers dug into his back. You could feel yourself getting more and more soaked by the second, and not just from the rain.

​

“More than okay…” You whimpered out, needing him more than you needed air right now. Eddie kissed your neck, sucking and biting and leaving marks. Marks that he would smirk at the next time he saw you. Marks that Steve would tease the two of you about, and Robin would groan in annoyance when she saw them, saying Thank god you two fucked it was about time.

​

Eddie let his hand tease down between your legs. He brushed his fingers against your inner thigh, causing the breath to hitch in your throat as you waited for more. The anticipation. The build-up. How was he so fucking good at this?

​

“Tell me you want this,” Eddie whispered into your neck as he left more marks. Your fingers dug deeper into his back as he moved his own fingers closer to your inner thigh. He moved them up at such a slow rate that you were ready to beg for more.

​

“I want this. I need this.” You said through a heavy breath. Eddie pulled away from your neck only to kiss your chest. He moved down to your breasts, letting his tongue map out every single little inch of you.

​

“Say it again.” He said in a more demanding voice than you had ever heard before. Eddie himself wasn’t even sure where it was coming from, this dominance that was starting to take over. Perhaps it was all the years of waiting to do this to you, all the years of him watching other guys make their moves on you. Guys that didn’t even deserve a second of your breath in Eddie’s eyes.

​

You let your hands reach down to cup Eddie’s face as he moved away from your nipples. You gently pulled his face up, letting your eyes lock onto his as your lips stayed just centimeters away from one another.

​

“I. Want. You.” You finally said, each word coming out between heavy breaths. Eddie stared for just one second before he moved his fingers up to your warmed center. He found your swollen bud, circling over it as your mouth opened wider for more moans to come out. Eddie couldn’t take it anymore. The sight of you so vulnerable to him was driving him insane. He grabbed his length, pumping just a few times before he slid it in.

​

The second he pushed inside of you, it felt as if all was suddenly right in the world. The upside down. Vecna. The corrupted government. None of it mattered right now. The only thing that seemed important was the two of you sharing this intimate moment together.

​

Eddie started to thrust, slow at first as your legs opened a bit wider. God, he could go deep. You felt it. Your back arched as he pushed a bit faster, and you felt a small bit of pain mixing with the pleasure. It was incredible.

​

“Fuck! Eddie please…don’t stop…” You begged, pleading for more. Eddie pressed his lips to yours, kissing you a few times before pulling back, but letting his forehead stay against your own.

​

“Wouldn’t dream of it, love…” He whispered as he pushed deeper into you. This was everything you had been dreaming of. Everything you had been waiting for. And it was better than you ever could have fucking imagined.

​

Eddie let his arms go behind your back as he cradled you against him. Your forehead stayed pressed on his, the rain still coating the two of you as he thrusted harder and harder. He let out groans; the pleasure he felt from you was painted all over his face.

​

“You feel…so…fucking…incredible.” He said between thrusts as he let his lips kiss in different areas. Your own lips. Your neck. Your collarbone. He couldn’t get enough of you. If he were an illness, you were the cure he had spent years waiting for. You were like a drug in his veins in the best possible way. He was feeling you in the most pleasurable way one person could feel another. And he couldn’t get enough.

​

“Faster…please, Eddie…I need it…” You whispered as he continued to hold you. He did just as you asked, going faster while his dampened curls moved around his face. Your heart raced, feeling the pleasure starting to wash over you.

​

“Scream for me. I want to hear you as you finish–” Eddie said as he watched your eyes start to roll back. He sat up just enough so that he could pull your leg up higher, allowing him to go even deeper. Your hands reached for his forearms as you held on tightly.

​

“Fuck! Just like that!” You screamed out, feeling the orgasm start to hit hard. Juices flowed from you to Eddie’s length, hard enough to push him out. He pulled back only to stare down at what he had accomplished.

​

You were a mess. A beautiful fucking mess. And Eddie had never felt prouder. He slowly let your leg down as you tried to catch your breath. But he wasn’t even giving you a second to process what had just happened before he was lowering himself between your legs. He needed it. He needed to taste you on his tongue. He wrapped his hands around your thighs as he pulled your legs apart and pushed his tongue between your already soaked slit.

​

“Eddie, wait! It’s s-sensitive!” You muttered, but he wasn’t listening. He pushed his tongue deeper against you, moving it slowly at first as your body twitched. Your back arched a bit before you settled back down. Eddie never took his eyes off you. Not once.

​

His tongue moved faster while he groaned at the insane taste of you. It was the best thing he had ever had on his tongue by fucking far. He flicked his tongue faster, watching as your body curled and writhed with more and more pleasure.

​

“How-how are you so good at this?” You breathed out, not really wanting to know. Your hands reached up, pushing back some of his hair as you bucked your hips a bit. You pushed deeper into his face as his tongue moved in ways you couldn’t even imagine.

​

It was long before a second orgasm was hitting. Eddie kept his tongue on you until your body was flesh against his jacket once more, laid out from exhaustion. He crawled back up over you, staring at the face he found so damn beautiful.

​

“You taste incredible.” He whispered before he leaned down to kiss you. You lazily let your arms wrap around his neck once more as your legs fell open. Eddie managed to push himself into you without even really trying. It was like his body just knew where to find yours. Like the two of you were just made perfectly for one another.

​

The sex had moved from passionate to slow. Romantic. Eddie wasn’t going hard or fast, but each movement still felt like the best thing you had ever experienced. The two of you stayed wrapped up in one another as the pleasure continued to grow.

​

“I could do this with you forever…” Eddie whispered as he moved inside of you. You felt your smile grow a bit, staring up at him with doe eyes as you watched the pleasure grow on his face as well.

​

“So do it. Forever…” You whispered back while Eddie’s smile grew now. He leaned down, kissing you in a soft and longing way. His hands held your waist as you arched a bit. He lifted you from the arch, thrusting just a bit faster now. He was close. Extremely close. And as much as he wanted to fill you up, he didn’t want to overstep any boundaries. He laid you back down and pulled out, stroking just a few times until his seed was coated all over your stomach.

​

Once he finished, he let his head fall back just a bit, and the rain hit against his face while his eyes shut tight. This moment. Right here. This was the best moment of his life so far.

​

After the pleasure washed over him, he reached for his undershirt and used it to clean both of you up. You both managed to find your clothes, as soaked as they were, and threw them back on. Eddie kept his arm around you as the two of you rushed back to his house in the never-ending rain that continued to pour.

​

“Want to borrow some clothes?” Eddie asked once you were back in his trailer. You nodded while he flashed you a small closed-mouth smile. He grabbed some spare clothes, and the two of you changed.

​

You fell into the bed together, dry and warm, finally. Eddie wrapped his arms around you as he pulled you close to him in his bed. You pulled the blanket up over the two of you as you stared at one another with smiles that never seemed to go away.

​

“You never said it back, you know?” Eddie said in that soft voice of his. The one that you only heard late at night, usually when he was exhausted but still wanted to talk to you. You scrunched your face up, causing Eddie to let out a small laugh.

​

“Say what back?” You asked with confusion. Eddie reached up, brushing back a piece of your hair that was already starting to dry. He let his hand trace down it, letting the end of your hair twirl around his finger a bit.

​

“That you love me.” He finally whispered. The tone almost held a bit of fear. As if even after everything the two of you just did, you still didn’t feel the same way. You let one hand curl up to his cheek as your thumb carefully grazes against his skin.

​

Your eyes sparkled at him, making sure he knew that what you were about to say wasn’t something to be afraid of. If anything, what you were about to say was something Eddie had been waiting years to hear.

​

“I love you too, Eddie.” You said softly, feeling your smile grow as the words slipped out. Eddie smiled instantly. Any bit of fear he felt was gone the second those words moved from your lips to his ears.

​

He pulled you into a tight hug, causing you to giggle as he rolled you a bit in the bed. He finally let go, rolling onto his back as he stared up at the ceiling and let out the longest sigh.

“You have no idea how badly I needed to hear that.” He said through laughs as you moved to his chest. You laid both hands on his chest while your chin rested on top of your hands. Eddie finally let his gaze move to you, his eyes sparkling now as well.

​

“Do you really think I’d have sex with you in the rain if I didn’t feel the same way, loser?” You said, teasing a word that the two of you always teased one another. Eddie laughed, that kind of laugh that filled the room and sent goosebumps over your arms.

​

“Hey! Maybe you just wanted sex!” He said through laughs. You rolled your eyes, shaking your head a bit as you let out a few more giggles. Both of your laughs died down to sighs as a feeling of comfort and closeness washed over the two of you.

​

“Yes, I wanted sex, but more than that, I just wanted you, Eddie. I love you. You’re all I need in this crazy world we live in.” You said in a soft tone. It was enough to practically melt Eddie’s heart. He had spent almost his entire life just wanting someone to love him. Someone to care about him. All he wanted was to feel loved. And with you, he finally felt it.

​

Eddie pulled you back into his arms as the two of you lay on your sides. He stared at you, rubbing his hand carefully up and down your back. This was it. Eddie knew it. No matter what happened in life, this was going to be the moment that he always looked back on when he wanted to remember what pure and true happiness felt like.

​

He leaned in, giving you one more soft and longing kiss before pulling back. Then, he said something that would stick with you for the rest of your life. He said something that the two of you would repeat back to one another through every difficult thing you would ever experience in life together.

​

It had been a month since you all failed to stop Vecna from opening the four gates. Hawkins was a mess, to say the least. The government had taken over and quickly at that. It was a different world now. A strange and unusual one that no one was prepared for. Well, no one but perhaps you and the gang. Even then, it was still strange and unusual for you.

​

Eddie was feeling better. The wounds healed fairly quickly. Now it was just trying to figure out this new life, this sheltered life. There were curfews in place and limitations on what you could do in the town now. Your own parents were wary of even letting you leave the house. You had to practically beg them to go to the town memorial for those lost in the earthquake.

​

Earthquake.

​

That’s what everyone was calling it. That’s what the town thought had happened. Some weird and random earthquake in the middle of Indiana that fractured the town to pieces. It just went to show that the people liked living with the curtains closed, placing their trust in a government even if it was corrupt.

​

“Got everything we need?” You asked as you and Eddie climbed the hill that overlooked Hawkins. He flashed that cheesy grin of his as he held up the little cooler he was carrying.

​

“Beer. Beer. Oh, and more beer!” He said, peeking into the cooler. You playfully rolled your eyes before stopping just at the top of the hill.

​

“Well. This is it.” You said softly, taking the blanket you had under your arm and waving it out. You placed it down before you, and Eddie sat on the blanket together. He cracked open a beer, handing one to you before taking one for himself.

​

This had become a habit for the two of you. You would climb to the top of the hill, sit on a blanket, and drink. You would drink as you stared out at the town you once knew. The town that seemed so foreign to you now.

​

“To those who we lost in the battle.” You said as you held up your beer. Eddie looked at you, eyes locking together as he held his beer can close to yours.

​

“To Max.” He said quietly.

​

Max.

​

You hadn’t ever really talked to her. You only knew of her through Lucas, and that was only when he showed up to DnD nights, which wasn’t often before everything happened. But you knew what had happened to her. You knew that Lucas was sitting at her hospital bedside every day since Vecna practically killed her. And so when you and Eddie would sit at this hill, thinking of all the people lost from the battle you tried to stop, you always toasted to Max. Always.

​

“Robin said they’re going to go visit her this weekend. Should we go with?” You asked after taking a nice long sip of the beer. You weren’t ever really a big fan of it. Honestly? You hated beer. But it was one of the few things Eddie could get. So you didn’t complain.

​

“I don’t know…” Eddie said, his voice trailing off.

​

Eddie didn’t care for hospitals. Not after he spent so much time in them when he was younger, back when his mother was sick. It reminded him too much of how he lost her. It reminded him of how he had to watch her slowly lose herself.

​

“I know you aren’t a fan of hospitals, but I think it would mean a lot to Lucas if you went. We don’t have to stay for long.” You said in an encouraging tone.

​

Eddie’s eyes stayed on the horizon of the town. The fences that now blocked the city view were lined with barbed wire running across the top. He glanced at the many guard towers, where men with large guns paced back and forth.

​

Everything felt so military now. It felt so reformed. Controlled. Eddie hated control. He let his feet rest on the blanket with his knees up, his arms hanging off his knees as his beer can lazily swayed in his hand a bit. His eyes slightly squinted at the setting sun as he continued to stare towards the town.

​

“I know. I’ll go. Soon. I promise.” He said in a quieter tone than you were used to. You took the moment to watch his side profile. You always admired the kind of beauty Eddie held. It wasn’t conventional in any sense. But it was there. The way he had smile lines in his eyes. The shape of his jaw. The way his curls would carefully blow against his cheek in the wind.

​

“Whenever you’re ready. though it should be sooner rather than later.” You finally replied back. Eddie finished off the beer can, crushing it in his hands before tossing it to the side. He grabbed another one and forced an awkward laugh, cutting into the tension that was building around the two of you.

​

“Gonna go through these quick today, aren’t we?” He asked through that same awkward laugh. He was hiding in his feelings again. You could see it. Feel it. Hear it. Your eyes studied him as he started to throw back another beer.

​

“Eddie…” You started to say, but he quickly cut you off.

“Don’t.” He said. Firm. Concise. There was a deepness in his voice you had only really heard when he was being serious.

​

“I know you’re scared–” You started to say, but Eddie cut you off once more.

“I said don’t.” He said with that deepness once more, but this time in a louder tone. His voice rumbled as he spoke, sending chills all over you. You had seen Eddie angry before. But this. This was different. This wasn’t just anger. This was fear manifesting itself as anger. In some ways, this was scarier.

​

“You can’t avoid the hospital forever. Lucas is your friend, Eddie. You should be there for him.” You repeated your words, which was a dangerous choice. Other people called Eddie a freak. Some were terrified of him. Some thought that he was the devil himself. But you knew different. You knew that Eddie’s rage, that this dangerous side of him, it wasn’t the devil or any kind of freak nature. It was the fear he had of himself. The fear he had of being what everyone thought he was.

​

“And you can’t tell me what to do. What because you saved my life you think you can boss me around?” Eddie snapped, words he would almost instantly regret even if he didn’t show it.

​

The words caused you to shift a bit. You felt the wind blow past you, moving your hair a bit as your eyes locked on his. He was lashing out at you. You didn’t deserve this. Not in the least.

​

“I never said anything like that. Do not put those words in my mouth.” You said in a louder voice. Eddie stood up, and you instantly followed him.

​

“What do you want of me? Hm? You–you want me to go to the hospital? To sit there with Max and remind myself that we failed? Is that what you want? To know that Lucas probably hates me because we didn’t do what we were supposed to do?” He asked as he stood closer to you.

​

“You didn’t fail, Eddie; we all failed! We did the best we could, but Vecna–” Eddie didn’t even give you a chance before he was ranting again.

​

“Vecna accomplished what he wanted because we didn’t do shit. Because I failed. I let my friends down. I let–” He cut himself off this time, trying to catch his breath as his fists rested on his hips.

​

“I let–” He couldn’t say it. He couldn’t get the words out. They suddenly felt impossible to say, even if they were words he had been thinking since you pulled him out of the upside down to fix his wounds.

​

“You what? Say it.” You said in a softer tone. There were just inches between the two of you after you took a step toward him, closing the gap even more. Eddie’s hands fell to his side as his eyes danced around yours.

​

You searched his eyes, trying to see if he was going to say what you thought he would say. If he was, you knew it was a damn lie. Because there was no way what Eddie was about to say could ever be true.

​

“Say. It.” You said once more, slowing your words and putting emphasis on them . Eddie seemed as if he had a lump in his throat. He let his lips part, ready to speak but…nothing.

​

He stared down at you as if anything he could say would be hopeless. He pushed his lips together once more before turning around and walking away from you. The distance of each step felt like a string breaking from your heart.

​

“Where are you going?” You asked, starting to storm off after him. He could run all he wanted, but you would always be there to follow. Always.

​

“Just stop. Let me go home.” He said as he started the long walk down the hill. You followed behind, moving as fast as you could to catch up to him.

​

“Go home. But I’m following you until you tell me what you were going to say.” You stubbornly announced. This wasn’t the first time you and Eddie had an argument of some sort, and it probably wouldn’t be the last time either.

​

“You’re being stubborn,” Eddie immediately called out your actions, “just go home.”

​

“No. Not until you tell me.” Your words were sharp, quick. You could see Eddie getting more and more frustrated. His chain on his pants swung harder with each heavier step he took.

​

“You know what I was going to say. Otherwise you wouldn’t be following me.” Eddie snapped in that sarcastic tone of his. You could hear his voice getting higher, more agitated.

​

“But I want you to say it. I want to hear you say it.” You said in that same stubborn tone. Eddie finally stopped, spinning around as his eyes faced yours with a darkness so deep it scared you.

​

“I let you down! I let you down, and you matter more than anyone.” Eddie finally said, and you felt your heart racing.

​

This was it.

​

This was your moment to finally push for the real feelings. To finally understand this feeling you had been fighting for years. Both of you.

​

“Why?” You asked, forcing Eddie to give you a confused look.

​

“Why? What–what do you mean why?” He asked through a soft breath. You felt the tips of your fingers twitching, wanting to reach out to him.

​

“Why do I matter more than anyone?” You asked, quietly and demanding answers.

​

Eddie answered with hesitation, “Because you’re my best friend.”

You shook your head, unable to accept such an answer. There had to be more. There just had to. You felt it. You had felt it for some time. Eddie had to feel it too. You felt that twitching feeling in your fingers once more.

​

“Why? Why do I matter more than anyone?” You repeated once more, and it seemed to be clicking to Eddie what you were saying as his eyes widened just a touch.

​

“Because–”

​

A pause.

​

A hesitation.

​

A moment where everything felt still. The Earth had stopped moving. The clouds were frozen in the sky.

​

When Eddie finally spoke, you were almost worried he would hide it again. Worried he would continue to fight those feelings as he pushed everything down until he felt no more. But he didn’t do that. In fact, he did the exact opposite.

​

The world felt as if it were falling apart. In fact, it was falling apart. Hawkins had cracked. A gaping hole tore through the town. Ash fell from the sky, snow-like but with a darkness to it. The town shook with earthquakes as buildings fell. Everything in that moment felt hopeless. Vecna had succeeded in opening the four gates.

You. You had failed.

​

You stood just outside of the trailer you had crawled back through, seeing the town start to tear apart. Your eyes shifted up to the person beside you. Eddie. He was badly injured by some demobats, almost didn’t make it out, but you managed to stop the bleeding long enough to get him out of there.

“We…we didn’t make it. We didn’t stop him.” You said in a whisper, your voice shaking as Eddie held an arm across his stomach. There was something about the intensity of the situation that almost made you forget this man, this man who had been your best friend since you were preschool-aged; this man almost died.

​

Eddie finally looked down at you with the smallest bit of tears building up in his eyes. He had tried. He had tried so damn hard to protect this town. For some stupid reason, he was trying to save the town who ultimately hated him.

​

“What now?” Eddie asked in a whisper so soft you almost didn’t hear it. You glanced back at the crack. The upside down was now connected to the real world. You had no idea what would happen now. Whatever it was, it felt devastating. Horrendous. And final. Everything suddenly felt bleak and hopeless.

​

“We find everyone else,” Dustin replied as he stood off to the side. He had returned to the trailer with you after Eddie had been injured. The three of you stood together, watching as the town you had grown up in was becoming something foreign and strange and terrifying.

​

Dustin went to his house first to make sure his mom was okay, while you took Eddie into the trailer to fix him up. He was able to take exactly four steps into the home before he fell onto the couch with heavy breaths.

​

“We need to get these clothes off.” You said as you helped him sit up a bit, pulling the jacket off before carefully pulling off his shirt. He lay back, wincing as you glanced over the cuts he had. Deep ones too. There were so many. You had made some makeshift bandages on a few with his bandana and the bottom half of your shirt. But they were both soaked now with blood.

​

“Is it bad? Lie to me.” Eddie said, that stupid sense of humor he had still seemed to work just fine. You felt the tiniest curl on the corner of your lip as you started to peel back the blood-soaked pieces of cloth.

​

“Barely even a scratch. I think you’ll be fully healed by tomorrow.” You lied, trying to hide the obvious worry that was in your voice. You reached over for the nearest bottle of liquor that sat on the table, something his uncle had always left out. “This is going to sting.”

​

You poured the bottle over the cuts, and Eddie screamed out in pain, along with a few curse words. You hated seeing him like this. You hated seeing the pain you had caused him. He threw his arm up across his forehead as he closed his eyes for a moment.

​

“Sorry…” You whispered as you went to pour a little more. Eddie groaned some more, and his body writhed from the pain. You closed your eyes this time, squinting them as if that would make all of this go away. But it didn’t. Nothing would.

​

You heard sirens in the distance as you dug through the medicine cabinet. Bottles and bottles and bottles of pills. You finally found painkillers along with some needle and thread. It was at least something that could hold off…for now.

​

“Here. Take these.” You said, handing Eddie the pills. He didn’t even hesitate before popping them in his mouth and dry swallowing them. He let out a sigh as his body rested more into the couch.

​

“You didn’t have to do all this. You could’ve just left me there to die, you know?” Eddie mumbled out as you started to carefully stitch him back together. He spoke through winces, though they seemed to be getting smaller as the medicine kicked in.

​

“Why on Earth would I leave you there to die?” You asked with a concentrated tone. You pulled the thread back, watching as the skin slowly started to pull back together just a bit. Eddie let out the smallest little sigh, his head turning to the side so he could watch you.

​

“Because maybe that’s what I was meant to do.” He finally said, and the words alone made you stop what you were doing. You hated those words. Why would he ever be meant to die in the upside down? To you, it made no sense. To Eddie, it was the sacrifice he thought he had to make to protect this town.

​

“You’re delirious with pain. Stop talking.” You finally said after a moment as you went back to cleaning him up. After getting all of the wounds cleaned and stitched, you placed some large bandages and wraps over them.

​

“Am I clean and saved now?” Eddie asked as you grabbed a blanket and tossed it over him. You sat on the floor beside the couch, tilting your head at him as you pulled your knees up to your chest.

​

You and Eddie met as kids and immediately clicked. The two of you would ride tricycles together through the trailer park. You were nearly inseparable. Even when your mother remarried to an insurance salesman, and you moved to the suburbs, you still hung out every single day after school. Your friendship was unmatched.

​

“Here to stay for another 30 years. Minimum.” You teased softly as Eddie turned his head to let his dark eyes meet yours. The smallest smile crawled across his face as his color slowly started to return.

​

“Woohoo.” He said in the most sarcastic and quiet tone. You let out the tiniest laugh as you let your head tilt back just a bit. For a world that was falling apart, this moment felt like nothing but calm.

​

The door opened, and Eddie’s uncle stumbled in. His eyes were wide as he seemed to be wanting to catch his breath. Eddie sat up a bit, a groan coming out from moving too quickly.

​

“Thank God you’re okay,” Wayne said as he walked towards the two of you. He glanced down at Eddie’s injuries before looking at you. His eyes went between the two as he tried to take everything in.

​

“Are you alright? What happened?” He asked, and you quickly stumbled to your feet.

​

Fuck. Think of something. Quick.

​

“He’s fine. Or, well, he will be. We were outside near the playground. It collapsed during the earthquake, and Eddie got hurt, but I helped him.” You managed to say as Wayne’s eyes shot back to Eddie, who just nodded his head.

​

“Yeah. Exactly that.” He said in agreement. Wayne nodded, letting out a breath he seemed to have been holding. He glanced around as the sirens started to get louder in the distance.

​

“I’m going to go check on the neighbors. Stay here.” He said, pointing to the two of us. Thankfully, Wayne was never really one for questioning us. He walked out of the trailer and left us alone inside.

​

You stared for a moment longer before sitting back down beside Eddie. Your eyes went to his once more as he settled into the couch. He let his head roll to the side as his curls followed him. One thing you always liked: those damned curls.

​

“You don’t have to stay here all night, you know?” Eddie said in that soft voice he only ever seemed to use when he was around you. You let out a small laugh, pulling your knees to your chest once more.

​

“Where else would I go? I mean, Hotel Munson is pretty hard to give up.” You teased as Eddie let out the smallest laugh under his breath. You could tell his eyes were getting heavy, the adrenaline of everything starting to crash as his body relaxed from the pain medicine.

​

“Then stay. At least until I fall asleep.” He whispered as his eyes started to close. If you stayed until he fell asleep, you’d be gone in five minutes. You smiled just a bit as you reached up and pushed back one of his curls.

​

“Goodnight, big hair.” You whispered, teasing that nickname you had called him since he was just a small kid with a mop of curls on his head.

​

"You drive me insane." Steve husked against your neck as his lips pressed harder to the skin. What started as a kiss has quickly turned into an intense make-out. The kisses into your neck were turning into bites, something you would see the results of tomorrow morning.

"I can do more than just drive you insane, Harrington." You grumbled back as you let out soft moans. His hands roamed under your shirt and went straight for your breasts. The firm grip, the squeeze. It was enough to send a heat through your entire body.

Your shirt was swiftly pulled off of you with what seemed like one hand motion. Steve Harrington definitely knew what he was doing. You let out another moan as Steve's hands moved to your hips, quickly picking you up and carrying you until your back slammed against the wall. You let your nails dig into his bare back, his shirt off well before yours.

Steve pulled back from the kiss just for a moment as he was now eye-level with you. You both let out heavy breaths, feeling the heat around you as Steve leaned in and pressed his forehead to yours, "Prove it."

Those two words were all you needed. You unwrapped your legs and Steve let you fall from the wall. You kissed his neck. His collarbone. His pecs. His chest. His abdomen. You trailed your kisses until you were on your knees with your hands going for his zipper.

"Whatever you want, Harrington." You whispered in that oh so seductive voice of yours. Steve's pants pulled down easily as his length popped directly to your face. You grabbed the base, keeping your eyes on his as you ran your tongue all down the side of it. Steve let out a long and deep groan. He was in pleasure before the show even started.

You let your lips finally wrap around the head before sliding down the entire length. As he hit the back of your throat, tears started to swell in your eyes and stream down your cheeks. Steve's hand went to the back of your head as he pushed you further.

"You're right. You're doing way more than driving me insane." He growled as he started to throat fuck you harder, rougher. You went until his seed was falling down your throat, coating the soreness you felt. The second the two of you were done, Steven immediately switched to the most kind and considerate man. As the two of you lay in bed together, he reached up and brushed your hair back before letting out the softest whisper.