#christ I have got to figure out a better organizational system for these

[laundrybiscuits]

(Untitled Steve POV: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4)

Steve pays extra close attention, but Eddie acts completely normal around him, afterwards. Steve had been a little worried that maybe things would be too weird, but now he’s worried that things aren’t weird enough. Something should be different, right? He’s not totally sure what or how, but it feels like something should be different.

With Nancy, Steve had felt the silver tug of a life ahead. He could see everything so clearly: dating, a proposal, a wedding with a suit and a white dress, a house with a TV room, kids, grandkids. His whole life laid out in one shining road so flat he could see all the way to the end in the distance. 

With Eddie, Steve doesn’t even really know what a real date would look like, not if either of them wants any kind of future with the rest of the world. It feels like he’s been taking a multiple-choice test and turns the page and suddenly he has to write a whole essay from scratch. 

The sex stuff is simple. He’s a pretty simple guy. He likes sex, and Eddie’s hot. It actually hadn’t been that big of a revelation.

It’s the other stuff that he’s tied up in knots about. He’s opened this door, practically took a crowbar to the lock, and now he doesn’t know where it leads. 

But it’s fine, because all he thinks about now is Eddie, Eddie, Eddie. He thinks Eddie is the kind of guy who it’s easy to get obsessed with. Eddie cares about so many things, and he cares with his whole body. Every single thing he does is turned all the way up, like it’s too big to fit in his skin. Steve doesn’t think he’s cared about anything he’s ever done in his life the way Eddie cares about the stuff he does.

Steve would give a hell of a lot to be something that Eddie cares about. 

“Of course he cares about you, dingus,” says Robin. “He only has like six friends who aren’t literal children, and you’re definitely in the top five. Maybe top four.”

“Wait, who do you think is his best friend?” asks Steve, because apparently he’s at a middle school sleepover, emotionally speaking; Robin pelts him with Jolly Ranchers until he stops asking.

———

Dustin’s been bugging Eddie more lately about dating and stuff. Honestly, Steve thinks things might not be going great with Suzie, but Dustin won’t talk about it no matter how many hints Steve drops. Instead, Dustin has been splitting his attention between convincing Steve to date Robin and convincing Eddie to date literally any girl who breathes in his direction. 

“I think that waitress really liked you,” he’s saying, though he doesn’t sound totally convinced himself. “When she gave you the fries, there was a moment. Back me up, Steve.”

“Absolutely not, Henderson,” Steve says, stealing a fry. Eddie bats him away half-heartedly. “Stop bothering people at work. They just want to get through their day, they’re not thinking about getting a date.”

“Oh my god, you hypocrite,” yells Robin, loud enough that Eddie kind of jumps in his seat, clutching at Steve’s arm. “You constantly hit on girls at work!” 

Steve gives her a look like stop fucking me over, Buckley, and she makes panicked, apologetic eyes back. “I mean, you used to. Past tense. You have hit on, uh, people, at work. In the distant, distant past. Not anymore!”

Robin is the worst wingwoman in the entire world. Steve kind of wants to slap duct-tape over her mouth until she can be normal around Eddie, who’s sporting a sly grin. 

“Yeah, Harrington. I seem to recall something about you striking out a lot, lately?”

Steve’s hit on exactly one person in the last few months, and in his opinion it went pretty well. He can’t say that, though, so he just elbows Eddie, glaring. “Shut up, I’m—I’m doing fine.”

“Su-u-ure you are, big boy,” laughs Eddie. 

It all works out, though, because on the way out of the diner, Eddie leans over and murmurs, “Just in case you’re not actually doing fine…I happen to have a free afternoon.” 

It takes Steve a second to remember how to walk again, and he has to jog to catch up. 

He obviously isn’t planning on dropping Eddie off first, but Mike says, “Hey, that’s the turn-off to Eddie’s,” loud enough that Steve can’t pretend to miss it, and he can’t think of a good excuse not to turn. Eddie doesn’t seem to be bothered at all, just hops out of the car with a jaunty little wave. 

It takes way too fucking long to drop Robin and the kids off, and Steve is practically vibrating out of his skin by the time Dustin’s front door swings shut. He doesn’t go tearing back to Eddie’s immediately, though. Even if he wants to. He needs to get his shit under control first, make sure he doesn’t come off as too desperate. 

Steve heads home and splashes some water on his face. He looks normal, in the mirror. Not like someone who’s planning to go over to Eddie Munson’s place for homosexual reasons. He’s not sure what that kind of person would look like, but he looks normal. 

He thinks about changing his clothes, but that seems too obvious. In the end, he just fixes up his hair a little and heads back out without changing anything at all. 

(Snippet directory)

#steddie #christ I have got to figure out a better organizational system for these #this is just a transitional bit really. I've been writing a lot of stuff for this & other snippet wips #yes including the hanahaki au #but unfortunately the other stuff I've been writing is all missing SOMETHING that I can't quite figure out #so! I am chewing the cud of Steve's voice and character development via this verse yet again #fic: come alive in the neon light