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madaboutmunson · 1 year

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Cryptic Cupid - Part 6 (Eddie's POV)

Part 1 | Part 5 | Part 7

Sequel to Raspberry Riddle So this is set in a government-operated hospital after the events of season 4 but everyone is alive.

Each part has a different POV, Robin, Steve, or Eddie.

Tag List: @marivictal

Apologies for the delay in posting fic updates, some not good stuff happened and I couldn't write for a while

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Eddie pockets the paper, waits until he hears the other door close, and then opens his own for the psychologist, who takes her regular seat. She clicks her pen, Eddie’s brain registers it as a starting gunshot, and he begins pacing backwards and forwards in front of her, looking between her and where he is walking intermittently.

“Did you hear about this morning? I think he’s trying to kill me, man.” Eddie says in desperation, “You gotta help me.”

"By he, you mean…."

"Who-who do I mean?" Eddie says in disbelief and gestures wildly at his now closed door to the hallway, which is still being swamped with pop music, but the Psychologist simply looks over the rims of her glasses at him, making him sigh and sit down, "Steve, my only fucking neighbour, that's who I mean." He says in a much calmer, resigned tone.

"You feel that Steve is a threat to you?" She says very seriously, looking at Eddie intently.

"A threat?! To my life? Undetermined. To heterosexuality? Yes!" Eddie runs a ringed hand down the side of his face, exasperated, "If the clothes clinging onto him within a thread of their existence were not enough. He is shimmering. Or extra shiny or something. Guys don't naturally glisten, ok?! He's doing this on purpose, and-and that smell when I opened the door. What even was that ok? Some weird pheromone potion thing?"

"Why would Steve do those things on purpose, do you think?" She says, scribbling away on her pad. Eddie bets she's just fucking doodling because she's already written off Eddie as insane, and honestly, he wouldn't blame her. He felt insane. One minute he's into Steve and wants him as close as possible the next, he wants nothing to do with him, to never speak to him again, remove him from Eddie's reality.

"Well, I don't know, do I? I don't know what to compel a guy to slather himself in some ungodly lotion…to make his muscles look bigger or more defined, maybe? I don't fucking know," he says with a groan as he kicks his legs over the arm of the chair.

"Well, let's start there, then. What benefit would Steve have in making his muscles appear bigger and more defined?"

Eddie reclines over the back of the other arm of the chair, so he almost looks like a letter 'm' draped over it, pinching the bridge of his nose, "So people look at him more, I guess?"

"Did you look at him more because of it?" She says, crossing one leg over the other like Steve does when he knows he’s right about something. Oh, gods! Stop thinking about that prick. Nope, especially not that, do not think about his prick. NO! NO! Ok. La-la-la-la. Eddie quickly sits up in his chair again with a huff and rubs his face with his hands.

“Yes, regretfully, I did look at him more because of it, but it wasn't on purpose, you know?” He laughs awkwardly, looking at the psychologist, “It was a lot like I couldn't help it. Like my eyes kept going back there, and I didn't want them to, right? No way!” Eddie says, waving his hand in front of him.

“Ok, let's talk about that. Do you feel out of control of yourself, Eddie?” She asks, flipping a page of her notebook, making Eddie's eyes dart towards it.

“I’m not sure what you're getting at”, Eddie says nervously. The last thing he wants is to be sent to Pennhurst on top of everything else. He didn't feel like anything else was controlling him. He just wished he didn't have the longing for Steve that he did. The kind that feels like a demonic hand reaching into your body, pulling at your insides like a visceral web of puppet strings, Whilst Crazy On You by Heart plays in the background. Dragging you into the gravitational pull of the only celestial body that your brain will permit you to think about, despite your kicking and screaming because you know all this can result in is doom and heartbreak. And in this case, that neutron star was Steve Fucking Harrington.

“You say you didn't want your eyes to look at Steve, but they did. That sounded to me like perhaps you felt out of control. Am I wrong in that assumption? You can be honest here, Eddie.” She gives him a small smile of reassurance. Eddie is at odds with himself with what he wants to say. Of course, he could lie, but then what is even the point of this shrink here? If he tells the truth, he has to admit things to himself again that he felt like he’d just started to get over. Though today would indicate, apparently, he had not. At all. She flicks back and forth through the pages of her notes and looks up at Eddie again, “If you feel uncomfortable or want to talk about something else, we can. I’m taking your lead here.”

Come on, Eddie, time to put your big boy pants on. This woman can help, and she’s the only unbiased person you can talk to because everyone else seems to have fallen in love with King Fucking Steve too!

Eddie squeezes his eyes tight and screws up his face, he doesn't want to do this, but he has to figure it out. Finally, he releases and takes a deep breath, “Ok, so. I liked him, no,” he shakes his head, “I like him, in a non-platonic way. I’m usually pretty good at this, you know, having feelings for people that I know don't like me that way back. It's happened hundreds of times. I can accept that it is unrequited, push it down, and be a bit morose about it, you know? Then bounce back and move on with my life. This ain’t my first rodeo.” He laces his fingers together and grips his hands together tightly, “But this is different, and I don’t know if this is because it's Steve, or because we are both trapped in this place, or because I know he was pretty instrumental in saving my life. I can’t seem to get to acceptance; it keeps feeling possible. Still, after I tore into him like that…” Eddie looks out of the window for divine assistance with the next thing, as he can hear her scribbling away, and to not fall apart when he says it. “because of this.” Eddie just about keeps the crack in his voice at bay as he gestures to the scars on his face, “How could someone that fucking scintillates find someone as damaged as me attractive, let alone any feeling bigger than that? By damaged, I mean, let's face it mentally, I'm obviously fucked up, but physically speaking, I wasn't a work of art, but I had a shot at being kinda cute, I guess.” he says with a shrug.

“Is that what you are looking for? Something more than attraction?” She asks with her pen poised.

Eddie shrugs, “Yeah. But, I mean, isn’t that what everyone wants? To be loved for who they are?”

She gives him a half smile, “Let's take everyone out of the equation and let us take out what you think you should want and deserve out of it. What, in a world where anything you want is possible, would you want from a non-platonic relationship?”

Eddie folds his arms and leans back in his chair, thinking for a while, “I guess where I could be myself…Entirely!!" He emphasises loudly he didn't want to be a watered-down Eddie. The person that loved him would allow Eddie to be the weird, nerdy, loud, feral, romantic, furious, kind, disgusting, thoughtful, annoying, and tender guy he was. That's not to say they should accept it all, but that they didn't give him a hard time about it. Maybe Eddie might even balance out a little more or have the time to learn the tells when he was doing one too much. Someone that loved him enough, so he had time with them, time to learn, more than a few secret dates, or a quick affair in the woods or his van, "And so could they, and we’d still love one another, plus, you know, the other stuff” Eddie smirks shyly and then quickly tries to hide it with a cough.

She frowns at him a little, “Without knowing exactly what you mean by other stuff. Though I think I might be able to hazard a guess. The first part of what you said isn't an unreasonable request. In fact, it's actually a very healthy thing to aim for. Well, provided that the personalities in question don't hurt one another.”

Eddie sighs and runs a hand through his hair, “Yeah, well, I already did that, didn't I?” She says nothing and simply looks at Eddie, waiting. He's out of his seat again, slapping his hands on his knees as he gets up to walk around the room. "I said mean things because I thought his advances were out of pity, and if seeing my new face wasn't enough to break me, that thought sure was" he grips the back of the chair and leans over it to look directly at her, his weight shifting to his stronger leg. He knows where the next thing he says will take this conversation, right down apology avenue, then making a right onto self-hatred boulevard. "I know what I did was wrong, and I am sorry about it, but I can't bring myself to talk to him because now I know all those times he was staring at my face, it wasn't because he liked me too. It was…". Eddie feels the tears threaten to rush forth. He fights them back by shutting his eyes, biting his lips together and taking a deep breath. It was no good crying about this. It wasn't going to change his face. It wasn't going to magic away the past. All it would do was make him mad at himself for not being able to finish a sentence talking about his new permanent face feature. "It was because of these marks from those monsters". Eddie finishes looking at her intensely. Not because he has bad feelings towards her but because he is focusing on the now. He is trying to stay in the moment.

She shifts in her seat, and for a second, a look of pity flashes on her face but disappears before Eddie can call her out on it. She flicks back through her book. Her eyes scan the pages until she finds what she's looking for, "Now, by all means, we don't have to talk about this, but you mentioned in one of our early sessions about what happened at the ice cream store. That you…felt there was something there but didn't get a chance to pursue it?"

Eddie shakes his head. What didn't she understand about this, "That was before the Upside Down happened. So you know, less to be put off by then", he tries to cover it up with a laugh.

She flicks back to the present area of her notebook, "Ok, what is it about Steve that makes you think he's so superficial?"

"Er…well, that's easy", Eddie scoffs, "He was super popular at school and still kind of is. He focuses on his appearance a lot, so looks are important to him."

"Is appearance not important to you too?" She asks quickly, pulling a rushed answer from Eddie.

"No. I couldn't give a shit…I mean, other than my current problem making me feel hideous," Eddie wraps his arms around himself as she raises an eyebrow at him, "Well, ok, that's not true. I like to wear certain things and look a certain way. I guess" Before he's even decided if he's finished his sentence, she's asking another question.

"Right, so if you had come out of the upside down unscarred and Steve had the scars you had, you'd find him repulsive too, right?" She asks with no emotion, just like she was asking him what size shirt he wore or something mundane like that, but it still makes Eddie feel uncomfortable, almost sad, imagining his scars on Steve's face.

"No, of course not", Eddie volleys back, a little annoyed.

"Oh, but you'd pity him, stop liking him, but pretend you still did?" She says to him like she's stating the obvious.

"Of course, I would feel sorry for him, but he'd be alive, so ultimately...No it wouldn't matter to me," Eddie says, folding his arms and frowning.

"But it would matter to Steve, wouldn't it?" She says finally, and Eddie realises he's walked right into this one.

"Ok, ok. I get it. But I don't think you understand the difference between the two of us. Steve could have, like, anyone, you know? Everyone likes him. He's easy to get on with and normal," Eddie says with a smile.

She crosses her arms over her notebook and leans towards him, "Eddie. Do you think you are a better person than Steve? Or maybe you wouldn't be so kind and thoughtful if you were as popular as Steve?"

The question almost floors Eddie, "No. I'm not better than Steve. He's a good dude. Most popular people seem like bulldozers, you know? Take out anything in their path to get where they are going and don't care about the destruction in their wake. Steve isn't like that. He's good" Eddie goes to say something else, but the music from the hallway seeps into his room. He'd been blocking it out for most of the session, but the soft piano intro steals his words. He knows this one. His Mama used to sing it to him. Obviously, amending some of the lyrics to fit his own appearance, as she danced with him around the kitchen when his Dad was out.

Why do birds suddenly appear

Every time you are near?

Just like me, they long to be

Close to you…

Oh god, that punches him right in the gut, and he swallows hard, shaking it out of his head.

"Everything ok, Eddie?" She says, getting out of her seat to move towards him.

"Yeah, just the song got me, is all," He says, forcing a smile, "He's been playing stuff all morning."

"Do you want me to ask him to turn it down?" She asks kindly. Eddie almost nods silently for a second so someone can finally stop Steve and this weird mission he seems to be on, but Eddie is as curious as he was impulsive, was this just a mistake or was Steve trying to say something? Eddie shakes the ridiculous idea out of his head. It's just a song that doesn't mean anything.

"No, that's…I mean, it's fine." Eddie gives a small reluctant smile, "So yeah, It's not that I think I'm better than him. I just think he's out of my league" She narrows her eyes at Eddie.

"And yet you went back every day for an ice cream that you didn't eat, pretended you needed his help to be close to him, and learned to sign to encourage him to do the same because Steve is losing his hearing?" She asks much more softly, the gentle music a backdrop to a quick flick through Eddie's fonder memories with Steve.

"I guess I was so enraptured I just went for it. Well, more like nudged to see what he'd do. I couldn't help it. When someone gets a scent of a maybe from someone they've entirely lost the plot for, they might look past all the things that would usually tell them not even to try.”

"Someone like you?" She asks, and he nods a little sadly.

"Someone like Steve?" She asks, trying to catch his eye, and Eddie straightens up and looks at the closed door between them, and instead of trying to block him out entirely for the first time in a long time, he wonders what he's doing on the other side of it. Could he? Unlikely, but what of anything they'd been through had been likely. None of it. Even his closest confidantes liked Steve. They hadn't said as much, but if Steve was trying to be mean to Eddie, the people he loved, that loved him unconditionally, his brothers in music, and his Uncle wouldn't like him. Eddie pulls the paper out of his pocket and uncurls its scrolled-up edges to read it.

Beautiful homes and ruins (8 letters)

"What's that?" She asks, leaning forward, trying to get a better look at the paper.

Eddie gives a shrug of a smile, remembering better times, "It's a crossword clue, you know, the cryptic kind. Sometimes Steve would ask me for help with them, though I figure he already knew the answers for most of them."

"I've never understood those," She says with a sweet laugh, "Want to talk me through one?"

Eddie's smile broadens at the prospect of being helpful rather than hurtful or doing something stupid. He crouches down next to her and unfurls the paper again.

"So immediately what jumps out at me is the word ruins, which makes it likely this might be an anagram. That leaves us with the three words left over. There is no anagram of and that means beautiful homes, so there must be an anagram of homes and that means beautiful, right? So this one is…" and Eddie freezes when the answer illuminates in neon lights in his head, "it's er…um…handsome. Yeah, the answer is handsome," he says quietly as a blush races across his face.

"Oh, the way you explained it made it seem quite straightforward. Maybe I'll attempt the cryptic ones in tomorrow's paper?" She smiles kindly at Eddie, who is still staring at the paper in his hands, slowly stepping back to his chair before he slumps down into it with a thud.

"Yeah," he says softly, but his brain is being anything but gentle, rifling through his memory banks, the answer to clue the last time he sat with Steve had been adorable. Eddie wonders if these clues had never been part of his puzzles, much like his riddles had never been written on the bubblegum wrappers. Things were starting to stack in favour of maybe he did stand a chance with Steve, perhaps he'd been looking for an excuse to self-sabotage, and the shock of the scars had given him that in spades. Eddie's stomach flips as the maybe glows brightly in the distance, in the middle of a barren wasteland, where his insecurities lay in wait in the shadows that littered the path to his iridescent possibility.

His heart thumps deeply in his chest. He knows that apologising is the first step. He turns his attention back to the psychologist, "If nothing else, I'd like to apologise to Steve but, cards on the table, I am terrified of it being thrown back in my face." He says with a hard swallow, "So I guess maybe what I'm asking is what is the best way I can do that? Bearing in mind the last time I spoke to him, I was a total asshole, but I was hurting, and I know that doesn't excuse it, but under normal circumstances, I would never speak to him like that. Never." Eddie knows she sits in there with Steve, too, she has insider information, though it's all confidential, but maybe she could throw him a fucking bone here.

"Well, I would say the most important part of an apology is that it is genuine. So you aren't apologising to be forgiven, but rather apologising because you are sorry for hurting the other person. So no matter what happens, be kind, be calm, and above all else, tell the truth." Eddie gives her a smile of thanks. "Is there anything else you wanted to talk about today, Eddie?"

Eddie's eyes go to the ceiling, "Well, just in case this goes well…what are the rules around, um, fraternising with other, um, patients?"

"You know, I don't think I've read any, to be honest," She says, closing her notebook, and Eddie has to press his lips together to hide the enormous grin that almost erupted onto his face.

"Ok, great. Then yeah, I'm all done for today. Thank you," Eddie says, getting to his feet and opening the door to let her out, and as he does, he hears a new song fill his room.

You're everything I hoped for

You're everything I need

You are so beautiful

To me

He peers around the door to see the lonely boom box in the hallway but no Steve, just a closed door. He excitedly crosses the hall and presses his ear to the door in case Stevel has company, but all he hears is the sound of occasionally muffled sobs. Eddie's heart sinks at the thought of Steve crying over something he's done. A simple sorry was not going to cover this; he had to think of something grander. He turns on his heel to walk back to his room to begin brainstorming and rehearsing, but a step in that direction and the tape stops with an audible click indicating it has finished. He hears the door behind him open and immediately starts to panic, and is about to lunge towards his own door when a sequence of sounds that seems to weld him to the spot meets his ears. A soft gasp, joined with a sniffle, and finally, a frail utterance of his own name leaves Steve's mouth, "Eddie?" and even with the fear creeping up his spine, not a single atom of Eddie can leave Steve this way.

#steddie #steddie fan fiction #eddie munson x steve harrington #steddie fan fic #steddiefanfiction #steddiefanfic #madaboutmunson #madaboutmunsoncrypticcupid #eddie munson #steve harrington

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madaboutmunson · 1 year

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Cryptic Cupid - Part 7 ( Steve's POV)

Part 1 | Part 6

Sequel to Raspberry Riddle So this is set in a government-operated hospital after the events of season 4 but everyone is alive

I figure this is the last part unless any readers think otherwise :)

Tag List: @marivictal @spectrum-spectre

Standing in his doorway, Steve can see the back of Eddie, and though every impulsive part of Steve wants to reach out and pull him to himself, he realises that might not be why Eddie is here. Steve wipes his eyes quickly with his sweater sleeve and simply says his name. Well, at least that is what he tried to do, but it came out tangled in sadness with a single cupcake sprinkle of hope. This time something that for the longest time had seemed impossible happens. Eddie turns towards him, his eyes don't meet Steve's, but it is better than nothing. Maybe Robin was right; absence makes the heart grow fonder because Eddie never looked more radiant.

Eddie rubs at the back of his neck nervously, and they stand in silence for a moment, and Steve can see him do that shift of weight he sometimes does when he's anxious and doesn't that just stab Steve right in the guts. Of all the places, Eddie should be worried it shouldn't be within reach of Steve. He should feel safe here. Then Eddie makes a fist, raises it to his chest, and moves it around in a circle, and the next breath Steve takes feels like it is full of charged energy. He bends down to try to get into Eddie's eye line and signs the same thing back frantically, repeatedly, like his fist might wear a hole in his own sweatshirt. He signs back sorry, just as Eddie had done, and as if it had broken the spell, Eddie's eyes lift to his, and Eddie reaches out and stays Steve's hand, "Let's not start a fire, huh?" He says with a weak laugh, letting go of Steve, who can finally get out of this awkward position, and stands up and matches the half smile on Eddie's face.

"I'm sorry I acted like an asshole, Steve. I was hurting and wanted other people to feel it too, which was not cool. I-I didn't mean what I said, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry for upsetting you. That was so shitty of me to do that. I'm not here for forgiveness. That's not why I'm apologising. I'm apologising because what I did was such a fucking bullshit thing to do. You didn't deserve that. You will never deserve someone to speak to you like that, Steve. Never." Eddie says earnestly, his eyes locked onto Steve's as he babbles.

Steve processes Eddie's words for a few seconds and tries to formulate a response, but he pauses to ensure this time, he only speaks with thought. Finally, he sighs and puts one hand on his hip, the other in use to animate his words. "Look, I understand why you might have been so angry, but you've gotta understand, Eddie, I didn't hide it from you. I know the scars matter to you, and if they were on my face, I'd feel the same as you, but I was just so happy you were alive, Eddie. I was so happy you were alive and moving around and talking that I didn't see them as important, and I'm sorry I didn't think more about it from your point of view. I was just so wrapped up in being around you again, and I didn't know they were easing you into it. If I had, I would never have helped you with walking like that" Steve is standing, but he may as well be on his knees begging, and unlike Eddie, Steve was hoping for forgiveness. Eddie interrupts him.

"What do you mean like that?" Eddie asks cautiously. A new expression fills his face, not a nervous worry, something more like dread.

"I mean basically leading you to the bathroom, you know, to the mirror. I don't regret helping you. Just where it ultimately lead, that's all," Steve tried to clarify quickly, shifting Eddie's expression to one of relief.

Eddie twists his rings around his fingers for a few seconds, just looking at Steve, and then tilts his head, "You got changed" a heat rushes to Steve's cheeks, remembering his brazen display earlier. Again, Eddie tilts his head to the other side, but this time a big closed-mouth smile spreads across his face. Like he knows he has Steve, all flustered.

"Yeah, well, I needed a shower after nearly ten minutes on this." Steve points to the bar above his head.

Eddie's eyes trail over Steve and then very quickly shoot up to the bar, "Can't be that hard if you can do it for ten minutes, Steve." Eddie says with a scoff stepping towards the doorway, and Steve knows he should step back, but he'll take his chances. "You do make it look so…easy," Eddie says smoothly, and before Steve can reply, Eddie has leapt up onto the bar, his hands gripped tightly around it, leaving Steve's eye line at Eddie's collarbone due to the height of the doorway, "So I guess…I just pull myself up now?" Eddie says with effort, making Steve laugh.

"Yeah, that's kind of the idea, honey," Steve says without thinking and mentally facepalms himself that his mouth appears to have no quality control department right now. He screws his eyes up, expecting the worst. For Eddie to let go and just march back into his room. But no sound of feet hitting the floor happens, no slamming of a door, no yelling, just a grunt of effort. Steve cautiously opens one eye, and he's now at eye level with the middle of Eddie's torso, and he looks up to see Eddie's grimacing but smug face hovering above the bar.

"Ha! Did it! See easy," Eddie manages to force out before letting go of the bar, and Steve immediately catches him before his legs take the brunt of the drop.

"Eddie! You need to be more careful with yourself. I know you've been making progress, but you can’t just make your legs take the brunt of everything. What if you got a strain, or worse, something broke?!" Steve blurts out like he is reprimanding one of the kids as he gently lowers him to the ground. Now it seems like it's Eddie's turn to get a little flushed in the cheeks and bothered. Eddie seems to want to say something, but nothing happens for a second, as if he has stalled. Instead, he slowly blinks at him, and Eddie may as well have hit him with an uppercut with how dazed Steve feels right now. Eddie bites his bottom lip, searches Steve's face with those Bambi-like eyes of his, and says with a smirk, "Sorry, babe, it's too tempting to get reckless when a hero's around to save me."

Steve realises his arms are still around Eddie, and he probably should let him go. Still, he also doesn't want Eddie to think he let him go because of what he said, because if anything, calling Steve a hero only made him wanna pull Eddie in closer, keep him safe forever from everything. Steve's heart whomps fiercely in its bony prison. One half of him is very much in camp do not rush this and screw everything up again, but another part of him has its foot over the accelerator, ready to head to camp I can't wait any longer to kiss this man. He takes a deep breath and goes with the very unromantic option, the truth. "Eddie," he says with a hard gulp, "I am very aware of the current, um, well, er, sort of, hold we are in, yeah hold, that's it. I don't want to make you uncomfortable, so I'm letting you know whatever you answer is absolutely ok" he swallows again, "Do you…er…um…want me to let you go?"

Eddie's eyes are opened so wide Steve can see the whites of them all the way around his dark pools of brown in the centre, but one corner of his mouth hoists up. His hands appear, as if from out of nowhere, on the outside of Steve's arms, running his thumb over them through the soft sweatshirt material, making Steve hate it for simply getting in between his body and Eddie's hands, "Well, Steve. Here is the thing. It's a yes and no, see." Eddie's eyes move over Steve leisurely, "On one hand, I really am enjoying the…er…accommodations here, but on the other hand, I am desperate to use the bathroom." His eyes move back to Steve’s, and their wild wideness has swapped for a softer look, his eyelids hooding over those deep pools of the most decadent dark chocolate irises, “So to compromise, do you maybe wanna hang out a little, once I’m, um, back? I solved your crossword clue, by the way.” He says with a small dopey smile and tucks a piece of paper into Steve’s pocket without looking away, “But I’ve got one of my own that has been troubling me recently, and I wonder if you’d help me with it?” Steve tries his best to listen, but it is really tricky when Eddie’s face is so close to his own. Suddenly struck with the inability to speak, Steve simply nods softly. Eddie's smile broadens, “Well, alright then, meet you back here in five,” he says, and Steve releases him from his arms and watches Eddie walk across the hall. As soon as he walks through the door on the other side, Steve rushes into his room, speed tidying the place frantically, spraying the room, so it smells nice, then he runs to the mirror and checks himself over. His eyes were still a little puffy from getting upset earlier, so he quickly splashes his face with cold water in the hope it would help. Then quickly runs a comb through his hair, moving the occasional strand, before adjusting his outfit, spritzing himself and finally fluffing the pillows on his bed.

“Steve?” He hears Eddie's amused voice behind him. Damn, this fucking hearing loss. He used to be able to hear Eddie jingling a mile away, but now he was like some silent ninja or something. Steve spins around and tries to play it off like he wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary with an awkward laugh.

“Just making it more suited for company”, he nervously half smiles. Eddie rocks back on his heels, looking like the cat who got the cream.

“Huh, is that why it smells like a department store perfume counter in here? For company?” Eddie teases gently, and the purr in his voice makes Steve tug at the neck of his collar.

“Are you warm in here? It feels kinda warm, doesn’t it?” Steve walks towards the window and, on arrival, remembers that this thing has never opened and feels like an absolute idiot, so he decides to commit to the bit and takes off his sweatshirt, only then remembering he only has a vest underneath because it was so warm today, but he wanted the comfort of the long sleeves earlier. Steve feels he is digging his own cringe-filled grave and can only imagine the ribbing that would be waiting for him when he finally has to look Eddie in the face again, but he is nothing if not committed. So he folds up his sweater and turns back to Eddie with a big smile, hoping it would cover this embarrassing sequence of events and gestures at a chair. Eddie looks at the chair and hops on the bed, shuffling back into the newly fluffed pillows, making himself comfortable by wiggling from side to side.

"No, I'm not warm at all, kinda chilly, actually. You coming down with a fever or something, Steve?" Eddie looks deadpan serious at Steve, and Steve tosses him his sweatshirt. Eddie catches it, pulling it to his chest, but instead of putting it on, he folds it up in his lap and gently puts it on the chair next to the bed, "Thanks, but, um, I really gotta be in the mood for fabric like that, and honestly, I'm sure I'll warm up soon enough" he says tucking his knees up towards himself, linking his hands around them and looking expectantly at Steve, who is unfortunately in a dilemma. He looks at the space on the bed next to Eddie. That's where he wants to sit, snuggle up next to him and use the heat Eddie has inspired in him to keep its muse warm. His eyes move to the chair next to the bed. That's the gentlemanly thing to do. That's their usual arrangement in Eddie's room. Still deciding, Steve goes to find another integral part of them hanging out, his crossword book and pencil. He can feel Eddie watching him around the room. He is taking too long to decide, and Steve knows he's making this more awkward every second that ticks by, even though he's trying his absolute damnedest to make this all look natural. Then something hits him, and it was a simple thing, this was Steve's room. Eddie didn't hold dominion here. Steve circles back around and hops up onto the bed with a jump, jostling Eddie a little. There is space for two, just about, maybe an inch or two between them at the shoulders, more space, the further down between their bodies he looked.

"What book are you reading today, then?" Steve asks as he pretends to look for a crossword, but everything on the pages might as well be in Martian the way he couldn't concentrate on any of it right now.

"Oh, I'm not reading today. Wayne got me one of those books like you have," Eddie says, and though Steve isn't looking at him yet, he can hear the grin in his voice. Next, Eddie stretches out his long legs, and his hand plants firmly between their hips, which is enough for Steve to turn and look at him. Eddie has rolled onto his side towards Steve, fishing something out of his back pocket, but with Steve now turned to him, they are directly opposite one another, maybe an inch between the tips of their noses, and that tribal beat starts up again in Steve's chest, get ever louder. He wonders if Eddie can hear it, but it seems Eddie is having problems of his own the soft gaze that Steve first met as he turned has morphed into one of annoyance as he tugs on the book in his back pocket that won't budge. Steve doesn't miss the small smattering of pink that dusts Eddie's cheeks, making him chuckle softly.

"Here, let me," Steve says as he turns and reaches over Eddie to grasp at the book, tries to tug it from its denim prison, and realises it's the lip of the pocket itself holding it prisoner. Steve concentrates hard. His tongue presses against his lip as he uses his finger to push the fabric back where it should be retrieves the book, and places it in Eddie's hand before leaning back where he was. "Maybe invest in a looser pair of jeans, Eddie", Steve says, repressing a laugh.

"Or maybe not," Eddie says with a fake cough covering a giggle. Steve closes his eyes slowly, realising it is a set-up, and he'd been drawn in hook, line and sinker. It was a good move. He had to give Eddie his due. Eddie turns back, so he's sitting up on the bed, back against the pillows beside Steve. Eddie opens his book, pulls a pen from behind his ear, taps it against the paper a few times, and clears his throat, "You know, I asked Wayne to get me one of these because I, er, I enjoyed solving the ones you gave me. The clues aren't nearly as fun to solve as the ones in your book, though. Yours were, uh, much more fun to answer. Must be a different publisher, right?"

Steve nods and pretends to fill in a few answers on the page, and he heats up again, realising that he's been rumbled, and Eddie knows that those clues weren't from his book at all, "Very different yeah, probably independent or something" Steve adds.

"You got any more you need help with?" Eddie asks in a leading way. Steve tries to remember the ones he wrote down. He'd find the scrap of paper, but Eddie is right next to him.

"Yeah, there is one. The artisan hides compassion five letters," Steve says, as Eddie flicks to the back of his book, scribbles it down and pauses to think for a few seconds. In no time at all, his beautiful beaming face swings around to look at Steve, making his waves bounce about his face.

"Heart!" Then his excited expression melts a little into unsurety, "The answer is heart, right?" Steve pretends to fill it in.

"I mean, we'll see how the rest of the puzzle fits around it, but it's a good start. It fits just right so far," Steve says with a fond smile, setting Eddie's expression back to an excited one, "Did you say you had one you needed help with?"

Steve sees Eddie gulp, "Er yeah I did, it's er, yeah it's not as interesting a puzzle as yours, but I thought if I asked you, you might know the answer. The correct answer, you know? I thought I had the answer a few times, but I think I needed confirmation that it was right before filling it in" Steve laughs at Eddie's odd over-the-top introduction to a question.

"You could just use a pencil, you know. Then you can always erase it if you make a mistake?" Steve shakes his head with a smile turning to Eddie.

Almost too gently, he replies, "I guess I'm just not a pencil kinda guy. No regrets, right?" Steve looks at his pencil and thinks maybe it makes him look too indecisive, but Eddie quickly interrupts his thoughts, "Nothing wrong with a pencil, though, you know. It's much smarter, actually, and gives you room to make a mistake without ruining the whole puzzle, right?" He smiles at Steve, and his eyes sparkle in the light streaming through the window.

"Right" Steve smiles back and slowly turns his gaze back to his book for fear of getting totally dumbfounded looking into Eddie's eyes. Taking his attention from Eddie was short-lived, though. He feels the texture of his rings brush against his arm as Eddie rubs his own arms as if to keep warm. It was curious, those big silver rings Steve had always thought would be cold to the touch, and they were colder than Steve felt, but they would probably feel pleasantly warm to an average person, who wasn't a raging inferno for the guy next to them, "Still cold?" Steve asks, and Eddie nods a little, "I have other sweaters, you know, totally different fabrics. You could try them to see if one suited you better?" Steve worriedly asks as he goes to get up, and Eddie's hand reaches out to him, making him resume his position.

"No, I, er, I was thinking more…um.." Eddie huffs a laugh and wiggles over to Steve so their arms and legs touch, "this kind of thing?" Eddie looks at him through his eyelashes, and Steve would love to answer, but any language he knows has just left his person, so he wiggles back towards Eddie, whose chest expands as a toothy grin explodes onto his face. "Well, ok then. Cool"

"Yeah, cool, but, er, warmer, right?" Steve tries a lame joke making himself wince, but Eddie laughs all the same. It was possibly not because the joke was funny but because Steve had the audacity to say it out loud. Steve knows he's shaking his head in disbelief because now he's this close, his hair is resting on Steve's shoulder, and it feels incredibly soft. It takes all his resolve not to reach over and touch it or move it a little, so Eddie's handsome side profile wouldn't be obscured.

He feels Eddie's leg shift next to his and thinks, what the hell, they're touching already, right? No time to be a pencil. So Steve lets his impulses win and gently tucks Eddie's hair behind his ear so that he can see his handsome face and heroic scars. He never really understood the whole Chicks dig scars thing until he saw Eddie's, but these were personal. Eddie only got these trying to save Dustin, keeping the gate clear, and maybe even giving himself, Nancy and Robin extra time. He was Steve's hero, no matter how much he played it down. Eddie stays very still and looks from the corner of his eye at Steve, "I couldn't see you" Steve says quietly and hopes it's enough. That sweet light dusting of pink litters Eddie's upper cheek, and that's when something occurs to Steve.

Eddie can make the big moves, he can flirt and make innuendos, and none of that phases him, doesn't make him embarrassed at all, but when Steve is kind to him or does something sweet like this or worries about him, Eddie can't handle it. So he tests the theory and tries out a lovely move he previously only used on the shyest of girls, even though Steve thought Eddie was the furthest thing from shy anyone could be. He puts his pencil behind his ear and lowers his hand, so the back of it brushes Eddie's, and although Eddie doesn't turn to him when he looks, the pink on his cheeks deepens. Then Steve does it, he crosses his pinky finger over Eddie's, and he watches the flush on Eddie's cheekbones flood his cheeks and parts of his jaw. Gotcha, Munson. Then like nothing had happened, Steve asks, "Did you say you wanted my help with something?" Steve sees Eddie blow out an exhale.

"I did", he croaks out before clearing his throat, "I did, yeah" he puts down his book and reaches into his pocket for a torn piece of notepad, and Steve can see his fingertips are shaking around it. Eddie clears his throat again, but this time he straightens his posture to read the note like it was a performance, "Florida city whose name has three pairs of doubled letters, nine letters" Eddie bites his lips together but doesn't turn towards Steve. Maybe he shouldn't have embarrassed Eddie so much. The hair tuck was enough for a while. "Well?" Eddie asks, and he sounds a little impatient, and Steve is sure he's fucked something up now.

Steve runs the clue around in his head for a few seconds, but he's entirely distracted by trying to read Eddie right now, "I think it's Kissimmee", Steve spells it in his mind and counts the pairs of double letters, "Yeah Kissimmee" he says quickly. Then Eddie turns to him, his eyes even darker than usual. His pupils have expanded to an unnatural diameter, like a cat before it pounces.

"You sure about that, Steve?" Eddie rasps and shifts his weight onto the hand between them, turning himself to face Steve again, his eyebrows raised a little expectantly, "One hundred per cent certain that's your answer?" Steve is confused, but Eddie's attention on him like this was frying all the cognitive circuits he had left. Then something Steve had basically trained himself into spotting happens. Eddie's eyes glance down at Steve's mouth. Oh shit. Of course, Kissimmee…Kiss I me...Kiss me. Jesus Christ, this is happening. It's happening. Do not freak out. You've got this, Steve. Eddie must acknowledge the realisation on Steve's face as he nods with a low chuckle.

Steve shuffles closer and, in a whisper, confirms, "Yeah, the answer is definitely, one hundred per cent, absolutely, without a doubt, Kissimmee". All Steve can see right now is Eddie's beautiful face, but he feels a hand on his shoulder. Slowly it slides up his neck to rest, holding one side of his face, the thumb gently caressing his cheek. He feels the fingers of his other hand become interwoven with Eddie's. Eddie leans in but stops just short of contact. Steve is sure a well-timed shudder could bridge the gap but tries to remain patient as the tribal drum beat in his chest pounds fast and wild for Eddie. They must be sleepily looking into one another's eyes for seconds, but it feels like an eternity. Steve squeezes Eddie's hand in silent impatience, making Eddie smile. "Hold your horses, stud. It's too nice a job to rush", Steve feels his face flush with heat, "Gotcha." Eddie purrs with a Cheshire cat-sized smile before pulling Steve's face to his, destroying the space between them and creating their first earth-rocking kiss.

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