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reactionimagesdaily · 7 months
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sandskillart · 2 years
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when u spend a months worth of funding on making ur mech's cockpit bigger just to have alone time with ur bf
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sorry for getting addicted to my own silly jayvik mecha au
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puwumats · 2 years
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REALLY super glad i keep a lot of my incoherent rambling and thirsting to private dms with friends, bc i constantly forget that aabria just like. has an account on this hellsite, and also actively uses it lmao
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ive been genuinely distressed about how bad my adhd has been this past month
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candied-cae · 11 months
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And Who Are We At The End Of The World? - The Best Welcome Party
Chapter 14/? - - - Read it on AO3
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]
Word Count: 11,681
Summary: With Eddie conscious for the first time since "the earthquake," a lot has to happen. Notably, he needs to be questioned by the Hawkins Police. But, of course, there may just be a little bit to check on before they deal with that responsibility...
More ST Fics
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At Steve’s house, everyone was still milling around after he and Lucas left. Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair still had a lot of stuff they needed to wrap their head around, and Nancy and Robin were feeling a little stir-crazy in the busy house, so they got an idea. They could run back to their houses, take showers, get changed, and then take off to ask the drama and band directors for their statements on Eddie.
Which would both get them out of the stressful atmosphere of Steve’s living room and give them something to do. And having something to do about how hopeless everything felt seemed to be the only way to get through it.
So, the two of them stuck around just long enough to make Hop sit down with them and agree to be a source. And to grab a couple of quotes so it’d sound like his words, and if anyone bugged him about it he knew what to say. A little bit here about “All kids find their own outlets for rebellion, I’ve pulled over almost every student who’s gone through that high school at least once since I’ve been here.” A line to specify “But Eddie Munson’s never been a very big thorn in my side. Can’t see him having done all this without a good motive. Which nobody’s been able to find.” And then they just rounded it out with a note about circumstantial evidence and there not being enough of anything to make sense to pin it on him. All according to a guy who used to be the city's chief of police.
Then they were able to drive off for their next steps, Nancy obviously the one behind the wheel and dropping Robin off before she went back to her place.
When Nancy got back to her house her dad was, thankfully, back at work. So it was just Holly and Amber sitting around a plastic tea set in the living room while Amber’s mom watched the news. She was able to head right on upstairs without much fuss.
But, while it didn’t take long for Nancy to take care of her own business, Robin had a bit more of a headache to deal with.
Her mom was again not happy she ran off, but it was easier to settle her down when Robin had her call Steve’s house and a parent answered. Joyce had confirmed that there had been chaperones there all night, and there were a whole bunch of them over, not just Steve and Robin alone. As if that would’ve meant anything anyway. But one phone call later and she was able to slip away and clean up so she could get to her plans with Nancy.
When she climbed out of the shower, however, she was interrupted by her mother calling for her.
“Robin!”
The girl was squeezing a towel around the ends of her hair to pull the water out - she hadn’t washed her hair, but the ends got damp anyway - and she yelled back,“ Uh, yeah?”
“You’ve got a call!”
Robin considered trying to run to the wall phone half-dressed or letting her mom try to stall with small talk as she pulled on her jeans. She decided she didn’t really like either option,“ Just tell Nancy I’ll be ready for pickup whenever she gets here!”
“It’s not a Nancy!” Theresa said from the kitchen as Robin reached for her shirt,“ It’s a Vickie!”
And all at once, she felt her heart jump to her throat. She threw on the shirt, haphazardly yelling,“ I’ll be right there!”
Once she got the article over her head, she yanked it down and barreled out of the bathroom. Quickly stealing the phone from her mother’s hands and turning the corner away to be further away from her mother’s listening ears.
“Heeyyy…” She started. But, no way, that sounded so awkward. She coughed and tried again,” I mean, hey. Hey, Vickie. How are- How are you?”
“Hi, hi, and hi to you too, Robin,” she said with a light fluttery giggle that made Robin’s heart seize again,” I’m good. And you are?”
“Good! I am good also.”
Robin was failing at this, right? She was failing at their first phone call. She was all jumpy, and too excited, and not saying words in the right order, and she had to sound so ridiculous-
But she pushed through it anyway. Digging her nails into her palm to try and keep herself from getting all high-pitched from the nerves, she said,” So, uh, how’d you… track me down?”
“Looked you up in the phone book. There aren’t any other Buckleys in town, you know.” Vickie said it like it was obvious.
Because it kind of was. It was how Robin would’ve found Vickie’s number if she had felt so bold. Maybe if she and Steve had been able to find an hour alone, he would’ve built her up to it. But receiving the phone call felt pretty great too.
“Yeah, yeah.” Robin confirmed the very normal behavior,” So, did you need anything or- or what had you calling little ol’ me today?”
“I, um, sorta thought we could hang out? It was fun spending time with you at the high school the other day, and I’d like to do it some more. Unless you didn’t think it was fun and, instead, I’m just the kind of girl who’s nice for company when there’s literally no one else to talk to, and in that case, I’ll just hang up, and we don’t have to talk about this-”
“No!” Robin leaped in to correct Vickie’s unfounded concern,“ No, no, no, I do not think that. I would like to hang out. With you. Too. I had fun on Saturday too. So, yeah, I’d really like to make some plans to spend time together again.”
And there was Vickie’s cute little fluttery giggle again,“ Cool. Um, I know things are still sort of crazy in town, but my parents would give me the keys to the car if you wanted to come up with an errand to run or something, and we could get some lunch after?”
“Yeah, that sounds great. I’d love to- like to do that-”
Calm down, Robin, don’t freak her out.
And, just as Robin was taming her excitement, she remembered she was already expecting a girl to come by,” Oh, yeah... I kind of had plans to help Nance with something…”
Vickie got a little quieter,“ Oh, well, we can raincheck if you want to-”
“No! I, um… actually, if you wanted to help, we were going to talk to Mr. Thompson.”
“The band director?” the girl asked.
“Well, him and Ms. Reynolds. We wanted to get, like, a statement on Eddie’s character from them. See if they had anything nice to say for an article about how he didn’t do it.”
“Oh,” Vickie said it like she was trying to understand the idea. And that made sense. She wasn’t on the inside team, so she didn’t know everything they did. Didn’t know Eddie that well. She’s just been knee-deep in rumors the whole time.
So Robin supplied,“ Which, by the way, he didn’t. It’s a long story, but we were with him pretty much the whole time, and it was actually Jason! Not Eddie, and-”
“Jason? Jason Carver?”
“Yeah. Like I said, it’s a long story, and I can tell you some more about it later, but Eddie really is innocent. I swear. Thing is, even when he wakes up and can explain everything to get the police to drop the charges, a lot of people probably won’t believe it. They’ll say stuff about how he got away with it and make his life a living... nightmare," she barely caught herself from saying 'hell'. A mistake she usually didn't have much trouble avoiding, but she was just so focused on Vickie that she almost missed it," Anyway, Nancy wanted to write something for the school paper to help show people he’s a good guy.
“And he is? A good guy, I mean.” Vickie still asked, though she was beginning to sound like she believed it.
“Yeah. He is.” Robin asserted,” And, since we’re both in band, if you wanted to come, we could probably divide and conquer faster. We can check with Mr. Thompson, and she can go to Ms. Reynolds. So that could be our errand and then get some lunch after.”
“Then, yeah, I’d love to help. You sure Nancy will be okay with me just kinda hijacking you at the last minute?”
“Oh yeah! Definitely. I’ll just let her know what’s going on, and we can all meet up after to share notes.”
“Sounds good. You want to get together now, or do you want me to head over later?”
“Now’s fine. I just got done getting ready to head out with her anyway, so I am all good to go. I can give you the address-”
“It’s in the yellow pages right below the phone number.”
Robin nodded to herself,“ Yes, of course, it is, duh. Then I will see you in a few.”
“See you then, Robin.”
“Bye, Vickie.”
Robin bit into her bottom lip under her wide grin as she hung up the phone. It took everything in her to not stomp around her feet to get all the joyous energy out. Her cheeks were probably bright pink, and her hair had to be a mess, and she’d have to be sneaky to throw on some mascara and her favorite rings before she got out the door if she wanted to look even a little put together.
But it was Vickie. It was Vickie inviting her out for the day. It almost actually sounded like a date. And Robin dared to consider that Vickie’s voice and tone seemed like she knew how it sounded...
Which was insane. She still never thought the chance was real. Even after they volunteered together, and Steve tried so hard to hype her up, she was half-convinced that nothing would come of it besides his false hope. But it was real. And now she had something to work for.
And it was still scary.
But she tried to focus on what Steve told her between all his insisting that Vickie really liked her.
“Be yourself, and all that junk.”
Robin’s own advice thrown back at her. So Robin was just going to have to try to focus on being herself. And all that junk.
Worst-case scenario, she’ll at least be able to tease Steve about the fact that his idea was ridiculous and didn’t work. Which felt like a security blanket, honestly. At the end of the day, if the whole thing went horribly, she'd still find some way to laugh about it with her best friend...
“What was it?” her mother asked from around the corner where she had been reading the newspaper and sipping a cup of coffee that they both knew was mostly creamer.
Robin poked her head over to look at her and attempted to settle herself to answer casually,“ Oh! Vickie’s just gonna help me and Nance with something! We’re going to head out in a bit and ask the band teacher a few questions.”
“The band teacher? Mr. Thompson?” Theresa asked folding and setting down the paper on the kitchen table as she leaned back in the chair.
But even Robin could tell her mother must have done everything she could to eavesdrop. Probably sat so still that the chair didn’t squeak, didn’t drink from her mug so she could listen, and held the paper in loose fingers so it didn’t crinkle the whole time... So she already knew all about what she was asking about. Why they needed to play around it, Robin never understood, but they did. It’s what they did. If they didn’t - if Robin tried to skip the unnecessary explanation - it would turn into a conversation about her manners.
So, instead, Robin confirmed,“ Yeah, Mr. Thompson,” and waited for the next question.
“What do you girls need him for?”
“Well, Eddie was in the school band for a few years. Didn’t do pep band or anything, but Mr. Thompson should still know him.” she clarified,” So we wanted to see if he had anything nice to say about him for an article on Eddie’s innocence. Make sure he doesn’t get mounted on a stake in the town square the minute the police unlock his cuffs.”
Her mother nodded along and took another sip of her coffee,“ Alright. Make sure you’re home tonight or tell me ahead of time if something changes. Before it gets dark out so I know I don’t need to worry.”
“I will, Mom.”
Her mother began to pick back up her newspaper and held out an open hand. The signal Robin always returned by blowing a kiss that she’d pretend to snap her hand around and pat into her chest. Which was another comfort. That was also their thing. Besides any tenseness or misunderstandings, once things settled Robin’s mother would always silently ask for a kiss. And Robin would always send one her way.
And just as Robin was bounding back to the bathroom to brush out her hair and try to doll herself up, at least a little bit, the doorbell rang.
“Wow, Vickie must’ve been pretty close,” Theresa commented from her newspaper.
But when Robin opened the door, it wasn’t Vickie on her front doorstep, but Nancy.
Nancy lit up when she was met with the other girl, a light bounce on her feet that had her curls spring on her shoulders,“ Ready to go?”
“Oh, Nance….” Robin said as she realized she didn’t even have time to try and call ahead to let her know about the change in plans.
“Yes?” Nancy’s eyes brows quirked, and her smile went a little nervous,” Should I be hurt by that reaction?”
“No! Um, I just got a call from Vickie,” she began to explain.
Though, just that on its own didn’t mean much to Nancy.
“Vickie?”
“Yeah! She wanted to help out with the teachers.”
“She did?” Nancy asked.
She found that a little hard to believe, considering the two of them only just got the idea the night before themselves. How did Vickie Nelson hear about it, and why does she care all that much? Clearing Eddie’s name was their business. Not hers.
But Robin just simply smiled back,“ Yeah! So I thought it’d be faster if we split up! She and I could scope out the band director - since he already knows us so well - and you can take care of Ms. Reynolds with no problem. And then we can share the info later and see how useful any of it might be.”
“Oh.”
“That okay?”
Nancy wasn’t trying to seem sour about it. She wasn’t trying to guilt trip her or make a big deal out of it. Robin had seemed all cheery about the idea, Nancy didn’t want to rain on her parade. So she pulled herself together and snapped out of whatever funk she slipped into a moment ago.
“Uh, yeah, yeah. It’s fine. Just- here, take the questions we drew up last night. I’ll write myself a new copy, and we can get together later,” Nancy tore out a sheet of paper from her notebook and handed it over.
“Yeah, I’ll just be one walkie-away if anything comes up!” Robin nodded, accepting it with her easy-going grin still splayed across her face.
“Well, have fun,” Nancy wished her well as she began to turn back to her car.
“Thanks. You too!” Robin threw over her shoulder as she closed the door and was gone.
Okay. That stung.
The whole interaction stung.
Which was weird. Shouldn’t have really stung that much. Nancy and Robin were just new friends. Robin had other friends. It was fine. Maybe Nancy was just kind of put off since they made plans together, and now Robin was dropping them off for someone else. Yeah, anyone would be annoyed by that.
Yeah.
But either way, Nancy packed herself back into her car and breathed for a minute. Got her new notes jotted down. Then she saw Vickie park across the street. The other girl stepped out of the car. Looked around and sort of shook out her arms. Like she was nervous or something. But then she set her eyes on Robin’s front door and walked forward with a kind of determination Nancy supposed she’s worn when she was chasing a good story. Vickie made it up the steps and rang the doorbell, turned around, and shook out her arms again when she locked eyes with Nancy.
She froze. Her eyes were wide, her arms hanging off her a little awkwardly as she just stared back at Nancy in her station wagon. Like she’d been caught doing something wrong.
Nancy pulled her expression into a tightlipped smile. Something simple and polite but not exactly totally friendly. She was still a little annoyed about getting dumped- more like bailed on. Yeah, bailed on. But she gave a little wave anyway, and Vickie unfroze to wave back, wearing her own nervous smile.
And then the door opened, and Vickie spun around without hesitation. So Nancy started the car and drove off before she got a good look at Robin in her doorway again.
She had work to get to.
Robin and Vickie would climb into the Nelson’s hatchback and find Mr. Thompson, while Nancy picked up Jonathan to go with her for Ms. Reynolds.
The pair of girls took off for their director’s house and found themselves gigging a lot to the radio. Their music taste didn’t perfectly match up, but there was some notable overlap that they found entertaining for the drive. Vickie complimented Robin's jewelry, she did end up having just enough time to slip some on along with a coat of mascara before her doorbell rang again. Robin absolutely blushed and complimented Vickie. Said she liked the pale teal spirals she wore before, but the dangling green diamonds were great too.
When the drive was done, and they'd actually arrived to talk to Mr. Thompson, he had good things to say. Which was a real relief to Robin.
Turned out Eddie’s not only been in band since middle school, but he’d even stay after school for extra lessons when he was picking up guitar. Mr. Thompson had liked the kid. He was the kind of music student that every teacher wants to teach. The kind that loved it and had a knack for the ability. From piano to guitar, Eddie loved music with an intensity that most people never did. Loved it through his first senior year. He ended up not coming back in ‘84, even though he was still at the high school. Thompson had tried reaching out, but Eddie seemed different when he did.
Just said he had too much on his plate - his own band and trying to make money to help his uncle - and walked away.
Mr. Thompson let it go. He had other students to worry about.
But Eddie Munson, that was a good kid who loved music, even if he liked to find ways to play that weren’t entirely classical or conventional. Mr. Thompson remarked about some combative behavior sometimes. But it was more usually aimed at the other students when Eddie felt like they weren’t trying at all or didn’t care, less so at the director himself. At the end of the day, Mr. Thompson wondered what had happened to him when he stopped seeing Eddie loiter in the band hall, but he was never very sold on the idea that he had turned into a killer after less than two short years since they last spoke.
And the statements helped Vickie see Eddie as the good guy who was thrown into a bad situation that Robin knew he was.
The other pair were having a less fun time. Nancy was still wound up, and she wasn’t really sure why. Which only pissed her off more. Jonathan had something to say but didn’t want to spring it on her while she was in a bad mood. Not that it was the kind of news that should be used to ruin a good mood either…
Jonathan was in trouble. Really, really in trouble. He couldn't procrastinate for a few months again, but it was so much harder to say something when he was actually sitting next to her.
It was a quiet drive on their end.
Then they met with the teacher. Who also had pretty good stuff to say about Eddie. Turns out drama teachers usually couldn’t care less about “conventional”. Ms. Reynolds said she was always partial to more experimental fine arts anyway. And Eddie was loud and passionate in classes, that’s the sort of stuff that thrived in drama departments and drove creativity. He had presence and theatrics and was always paling around with Jeff in the back of her classroom. It was also apparently Eddie that had roped Gareth into helping out with set construction for the musical they just put on. And Josie was in the orchestra pit while Bruce helped with lights. Seemed all of Corroded Coffin had come together in her department at one point or another.
Which is how it had been so easy to convince her to sign off on letting them use the drama room for their Hellfire meetings anyway.
Their little crew was still a little divisive with some of the other drama kids. Their dark clothes and leather and metal set them apart. But Ms. Reynolds always liked them. Always appreciated the way they were willing to do whatever to help. And Eddie was the core, or leader, of that.
She had a few good things to say about the kid. He was weird, but unapologetically himself. And she was happy to go on the record that, as wild as he was, she believed that he didn’t do it.
All in all, Robin and Nancy’s mission could be considered a success.
Even if they didn’t do it together.
Now, Eddie himself was in a state of confusion.
He was still sort of reeling from the fact that Steve had been there at all. Steve Harrington had been there. Sat in the chair at his hospital bedside wearing stupid, boring jeans and a dusty, red sweatshirt like it was the most casual thing. The chair didn’t even look very comfortable. But Steve sat in it, more than once he sat there for a few hours and- that’s so weird.
Eddie wasn’t making it up, right?
He wasn’t going crazy from demobat rabies, right?
Steve had been there.
Right?
It was… it was just so weird.
Freaky, one could even say.
Yeah, they’d gotten mixed up in the same problem recently. But to come back for him, to sit at his bedside while he lay unconscious… It wasn't “right.” Didn’t make sense in the world Eddie Munson came from, even if he was starting to accept that place was long gone.
Steve… Steve Harrington was an enigma. For all four of Eddie’s years that they shared at high school together,
Steve Harrington was an enigma.
Even in Steve’s freshman year, he was the talk of the town. Good looking kid, with passable grades that were more easily accepted when everyone saw how he did in competitive sports. He was doing it all. Basketball, Baseball, Swim Team. And on top of that, his folks had crazy money and this big house he could sometimes swing parties at. He was adopted into the top dogs faster than anyone had ever seen.
In his sophomore year, he found his footing. Started to know exactly how he was fitting into things and how to take charge even though he was still an underclassman to most. Started to solidify the group of kids he hung out with along the upper crust. Started getting swarmed by girls. A whole slew of rumors were buzzing around after that about all the babes he was shmoozing between classes.
Though, his junior year might've been the height of it. He seemed like he was soaring in those days. Just basking in the awesomeness of everything in his life going right for him. And then he bagged little miss perfect. And then something happened to him before winter break. And he fell out with most of his old buddies. Focused a little harder on his classes. Fell into place wherever Nancy was.
And then his senior year was like watching him get snuffed out. All at once, he’d lost pretty much everything, except for his girlfriend. And then more shit happened just before winter break… and Steve Harrington didn’t even have that anymore. So he coasted by until he was out. Just sort of kept his head down and managed his social standing without some of the… previous assholery he was a part of. Even if Eddie didn’t believe it at the time. Kept trying to be a big man on campus, but most of his moves fell flat until he quietly graduated. And that was that.
And then… next time Eddie saw Steve up close, he was pushing him against the wall of his dealer's boat house. Trying to come to terms with all the truly insane stuff Henderson was telling him, Steve just nodded along. Then Eddie was fighting for his life alongside him, a fight he was pretty sure he’d lost. But he didn't. And Steve stuck around.
Freaky.
And that’s coming from “The Freak.”
But Eddie didn’t have much longer to dwell on it, because a slightly timid voice spoke from his doorway,“ Eddie…”
And looking over to see - instead of a nurse - one of his own little Hellions, his mouth open up into a wide smile instantly,“ Lucas! How’d you get here so fast? Harrington just left.”
Lucas took his bright expression as a sign to come on further in, so he took steps forward as he made his way to the chair Steve had previously occupied,“ I was just across the hall. I’ve been spending time with Max whenever I can.”
“Ahhhh…” Eddie nodded sagely, as if he wasn’t still playing catch up on what exactly those two had going on,” So, what’re you doing over here on my side then?”
“Wanted to see you up,” Lucas answered simply as he took his seat.
“Wish I could give you a show. I’d do a flip for you if it weren’t for these beauties.” Eddie teased with a jingle of his cuffs against the bed rail.
And then Lucas’s face went something sadder as he carefully asked,“ … so you’re really okay?"
Eddie shrugged, hoping it’d ease the kid a little. He looked kind of nervous for some reason,“ Yeah, man. I guess. I’m a little tender all over, but I’ll be fine. Not planning to abandon you kids any time soon. You’d all make a mess of my club if I didn’t finish up business myself before graduation.”
Eddie ended his line with a light chuckle, but Lucas didn’t respond. He looked a little gone, like his mind was elsewhere. And maybe Eddie should’ve assumed he was thinking about Max next door, but for some reason, he just had this nagging feeling that it was something else.
“Hey, you alright, Sinclair?” he wondered, letting his tone dip a little softer than he usually used it.
“Yeah. Yeah. It’s nothing.” Lucas tried to shake his expression off, but Eddie saw it. And then it clicked.
Oh.
Hellfire.
One of the last things Eddie did before his whole world changed, was exclude Lucas from Hellfire. And things have been so unbelievably crazy the entire time since that day that… he completely forgot.
Shit.
He was a bad friend on Friday, and he hasn’t said anything to Lucas about it.
“I’m sorry, Lucas.”
And Lucas flinched back into himself. So surprised by the out of nowhere apology he had to sit up and try to joke,“ For being in a coma? I know you didn’t do it on purpose-”
“No. For Hellfire,” Eddie corrected,” I’m sorry you weren’t at the last game.”
“Oh,” Lucas seemed to be struggling to figure out what to do with the words that he just moved to brush them away,” I… it’s fine. I was busy at the championship-“
Eddie stopped him from acting like it wasn’t a big deal,“ Lucas. Would you just let me apologize to you?”
And Lucas was tense and quiet for a minute. But eventually, he let out a breath and sat back deeper into the chair,“ Okay.”
“I’m sorry.”
Eddie started it seriously. Let the words sit on their own for a second before he tried to explain himself.
“It feels silly now to think about how worked up I was on Friday. Okay? Like, there are way bigger things than me just wanting stuff to go the way I planned. And… at the end of the day, I wanted you to be there. I know you’ve been juggling Hellfire with basketball, and we usually made it work, but then Hawkins unexpectedly qualified for the big tournament, or whatever, and… I don’t know. I got pissed. I've always hated the basketball guys. Felt like you were different from them- and you are, for the record. You’re different than them in all the best ways. But I got disappointed when I thought about you being with the cool crowd instead of the freaks. Made me feel like you were rejecting us, or leaving us behind for popularity…”
Lucas was shaking his head,“ That’s not-“
“I know,” Eddie told him anyway,” I know that’s not something you’d do, Sinclair. I was just making myself mad when I could’ve been going about it another way. I’ve got a few faults, and quick to anger is one of ‘em. It was cool and all meeting the littler Sinclair - don’t get me wrong - but I do wish you’d been with us for the end of the campaign. And most of the reason you couldn’t be was my fault because I was being stubborn. So I’m sorry. Really.”
And Lucas looked so much lighter in that chair after Eddie was done. Like some secret fear he’d been harboring since Friday that Eddie hated him was just run off. He even looked a little misty-eyed as he brought back his smile.
“I forgive you,” he said, though after a moment. It took him a bit to realize Eddie was waiting for it.
And then Eddie smiled back at him,“ Thanks. Was it a good game at least?”
Well. That astounded the boy.
“You want to hear about my game? You? Eddie Munson? A basketball game?”
Eddie tossed his head side to side like he was mulling it over,“ Well, maybe skip all the boring sporty bits and just tell me the highlights. Final score and stuff. But yeah, tell me about it.”
“Well, um,” Lucas shifted a little closer as he tried to remember how it all happened now that it felt like forever ago,” We’d been kinda neck-in-neck with the last team all night, the Falcons. They’d score, we’d score, we’d score some more, they’d even it right out. It was back and forth the whole game. And then Adam got knocked down… so they pulled me off the bench.”
“Wait a minute, you're saying you actually made it on the floor?” Eddie noticed, which made Lucas light up a little brighter. Now more confident that Eddie was actually interested in listening to him talk about his game.
“Yeah.”
“Ain’t that the first time that’s happened all year?”
He let out a soft chuckle,“ Yeah. It was.”
“You’re kidding…” Eddie leaned back and shook his head, remembering all the times his freshman would complain to each other at the lunch table about Lucas not getting to do anything worth watching.
“Well, if you’re impressed by that, how do you feel about hearing that I made the buzzer beater that won the whole thing?” he tempted.
And then Eddie’s attention shot back up to him,“ What?”
“We were down by one point, just the one, and there were ten seconds left on the clock. Jason tried to make the shot, but the ball hit the rim and bounced off. And I was the one who caught it. I just- It was just in my hands, and I dove out of the huddle, and… there wasn’t any time to think about it. So I took the shot. And it spun around the rim, jumped back out, and hit the backboard, but then it sunk. We won. We beat ‘em, 70 to 69.”
“That’s… that’s incredible, Lucas.” Eddie sounded dumbfounded. He really wasn’t a sporty guy, but even he could picture it. He wasn’t dumbfounded out of confusion, he was just that amazed.
Lucas got a little bashful,“ It was just-“
“No. No, that’s really cool, man,” and then the realization hit,” And we stole your sister so she couldn’t cheer you on…”
“Yeah… I was a little mad about that,” he admitted.
“I’m sorry about that too. You shoulda had someone there.”
“I wasn’t alone. The team practically paraded me around. And Steve was there in the audience. Robin was with the band. Even Nancy was there for the school paper. They cheered pretty loud when it happened.”
He sighed a little wistfully,“ I wish I saw it too.”
And, well, Lucas knew Eddie was trying to make up for everything, but that had to have been an outright lie.
“You hate basketball.”
“Yeah, I do. But I like you, kid. You’re one of my little freaks, and it would have been nice to see you do something that cool. Watch the whole school cheer you on even though you’re a nerd like the rest of us in Hellfire.”
And that…
‘You’re one of my little freaks’
It did a lot for Lucas. He’d honestly been a little scared the whole time that the game would be the final straw. The thing that set him away from Hellfire completely. Until the club became something only Dustin and Mike got to be a part of. But Eddie still thought Lucas was one of his.
He wasn’t getting thrown away.
“Thanks, Eddie,” he finally said when he didn’t think his voice was going to crack.
“Thank you for letting me in on a little of it. Even though I was a dick on Friday.”
The boy tried to walk that back,“ I wouldn’t say-”
“You can say it. One-time free pass since I’m admitting my shortcomings and humbling myself right now.”
And so, through a warm laugh, Lucas agreed,“ Okay, yeah, you were kind of a dick.”
“Thank you,” Eddie laughed a little with him,“ Now, tell me something about this plan Harrington mentioned. Wanna make sure I’ll be able to play my part well.”
Lucas ran over the bare bones with him. Just spent enough time on it that Eddie would know what to say, and then he called a nurse in. Eddie played like he was a little loopy for a few minutes to pass as him off as having just woken up. She checked his vitals and then called in a doctor who told that same nurse to get on the phone with the police department and Eddie’s uncle.
That was when they kicked Lucas out and sent him back across the hall. To make sure the cops wouldn’t have any arguments about the honesty of his interrogation. They really underestimated this Party, if only they knew.
By the end of it, people were on the way and Eddie was getting worn out. Turned out it was hard work waking up from a coma and socializing. He’d fallen back asleep before anyone new arrived at the hospital, but the next time he woke up someone had arrived.
It was Wayne. His wrinkled uncle Wayne. Uncle Wayne, who just looked so exhausted with his eyebrows pinching together, carefully watching Eddie’s hand held within his. Wet eyes that didn't move or blink as he waited to see his boy come back to him.
So Eddie squeezed it and groaned out,“ Hey, old man.”
And the familiar sound of Wayne’s worn and lovingly gruff chuckle was like the sun after such a god-awful week. He took back one of his own hands to wipe under his eyes for a moment before putting it back and smiling at him,” There he is. The man of the hour.”
“Here I am.” Eddie smiled back at Wayne from under sleepy eyes.
His uncle squeezed his hand tighter,“ I got real scared there. Thought I wouldn’t ever see you again.”
“Aw, Wayne, you know you can’t get rid of me that easy. I’m still your problem just like I’ve always been.”
“No, never been a problem,” he corrected.
“Now, I know you’re getting too sappy and lying to me. I am nothing if not a headache.”
Wayne cracked a deeper smile and leaned in closer to brush his hand gently over Eddie’s dark curtain of hair.
“I’ll take the headache, kid.” He told him as he rested his thumb on his nephew’s cheek.
Which was such a Wayne thing to do and say. He was a man’s man. Working with his hands and watching westerns on his days off. That's the kind of classic man he was. They didn’t get all mushy on one another very often. It was an unspoken but entirely understood thing, that they loved each other.
But that line was such a Wayne way to say it.
And then Wayne mentioned,“ You know, you didn’t didn’t get to tell me how the story went.”
“The story?” Eddie wondered for a moment.
“The one you were finishin’ up on Friday. With the big twist surprise you were settin’ up for those kiddos.”
“Oh.”
Because, of course, Wayne would bring up his DnD campaign.
Eddie told him about every single one.
He never bothered with giving him stats or explaining the different dice rolls and how that all worked, but he would practice the story with him. He’d share the bits he’d assume Hellfire would work through during that week’s session while he got all his notes prepared, and - usually the next day Wayne was able - they’d sit down over breakfast, and he’d tell his uncle all about how the party actually played through it.
Wayne loved it. It was like listening to his own private movie told by his nephew. He’d get version one with how it was supposed to work, and then he’d get version two with all meandering and funny jabs from the characters and how they came around the problem. And Eddie would always light up while he talked about it.
But he never got to see Eddie after Friday night, after what was supposed to be the big finale.
“So, how’d it go?” he asked again.
And maybe it would’ve been wise of Eddie to spend the time with his uncle telling him what sort of week he’s just had. Answering all the questions and explaining how serious he was when he talked about monsters this time. But, strangely, it seemed so much more important to talk about the session.
“Well, those rugrats… they really pulled out all the stops.” Eddie told him, shifting around as he continued,” You see, Lucas has this big game come up suddenly. He couldn’t be there. And it would have meant they couldn’t play through the end of the campaign that night. So Dustin and Mike were running all over school trying to find someone to sub in for him. And then they showed up at Hellfire with Lucas’s kid sister! I’m not kidding! This little middle schooler named Erica struts in. And I’m looking at her, thinking there’s no way she’s hardcore enough. She’s practically a baby- and she probably doesn’t even know how DnD works- and she’s all pretty ‘n pink- so there’s just no way! She doesn’t have the metal for it, end of story. I was sure of it. But she busts in any way with this little monologue about just how hardcore she is… And it honestly blew me away a little. So we initiate her as an unofficial member and then we all sat down to start the game…”
And they just talked. Talked and talked about the game. Every second of it made Wayne feel a hundred times better. The longer Eddie spoke about one of his greatest passions, the more Wayne could be sure he wasn’t going to crumble to pieces in his hands.
After that was when Eddie knew he had to tell him about all the shit he’s been through. He couldn’t even imagine not telling his Wayne how crazy it really was. Not explaining why he came home Saturday morning to a body in their trailer. Not explaining why he so absolutely couldn’t go back to his uncle to ask for help. Not explaining that he climbed into hell and almost died in there for a chance at ending some great evil.
That just wasn’t something he could keep from him. Wayne would know he was bottling something up. He was always good at making him talk.
So he talked.
When they got through it all, Wayne just huffed and told him,“ You really did scare me, you know? I wasn’t sure if I’d get a call to identify a body, or if you’d just run away from everything here and I’d never know any better-”
“Sorry…”
“No. Don’t you say you're sorry. You didn’t do nothing wrong. We’re going to make sure they know that.”
Eddie rolled his eyes,“ I don’t think they’ll just take your word for it.”
And then, from the door came the phrase,“ It’s not just his word.”
And it was Dustin Henderson, his mother standing right behind him.
“Henderson,” Eddie’s relief swelled to see the kid alright, then he added,“ And Mrs. Henderson.”
Officer Callahan had been hot on their heels showing up behind them as he started saying something about them not being allowed to see Eddie until they questioned him, how they had been instructed to go wait in Max’s room with the others. So the others were there too. But the two of them walked in anyway, completely ignoring the officer. Claudia took Eddie’s free hand, similarly to how she had Steve’s just the other morning.
And Eddie was just shocked that someone who was effectively a stranger was looking at him with kind eyes. He hadn’t expected to get that kind of treatment.
“My Dusty-bun tells me you stuck with him through the… earthquake. Made sure he was okay, and stayed safe even though the goddamn world was falling to pieces. Is that true?” she asked him, already very sure of the answer but wanting to hear him say it himself.
And something was flickering in the way she said it. ‘The… earthquake.’ So she knew it wasn’t really an earthquake. Which - as he thought about it - he remembered hearing Steve mutter about some parents finding out.
So Eddie gripped the bedrail and pushed himself to sit up in his bed, trying to be just a little awestruck, and answered.
“Yes ma’am,” like how Wayne always wanted him to say to adults. He usually bucked against the whole respecting your elders and authority figures thing, but for Dustin’s mother, he’d make an exception.
Her sweet smile pressed further into her plush cheeks, and she reached up to gently pat his hair with her hand, so very similar to how Wayne had,” Thank you. I will never be able to thank you enough for helping watch out for my baby-”
“Mom-” the kid groaned as if he could possibly still be surprised by the way his mother coddled him.
“So if you ever need anything, you can always reach out to us. Don’t even bother asking first, just take what you need.”
“That’s…”
Ridiculous. It was ridiculous to receive an offer like that from some little suburban mom. Even if she shared Dustin’s DNA and contributed to the weirdness of the little guy, she was still… just some mom. Not his.
But she pressed on,“ You saved me from my greatest fear. So whatever you need. And all of us are going to make sure everyone knows what really happened, as much as we can-”
“Okay,” Callahan tried to step in,” You can’t talk about the investigation before we’ve been able to question him-”
But then Ms. Henderson raised her finger to silence him while she turned back to Eddie,“ Do you feel up for their questions, honey?”
And that stunned him a second time. To watch Claudia Henderson shut up a policeman with a single finger and wait for Eddie’s cue before she was going to let anything happen. It was just stunning.
“Uh- yeah. Yeah, sure,” he croaked out when words came back to him.
“Alright,” she looked back at the man in blue,” Then ask him your questions so you can uncuff him and leave the poor boy alone.”
Callahan was readying to tell her about how that’s not exactly how it works,“ Ma’am-”
When Powell entered the room and interrupted him with a warning tone,“ Callahan.”
“They-” he began sputtering and motioning his hands at the pair who weren’t supposed to be in the room.
But before he could really argue, the Chief spoke to the mother,“ Ms. Henderson, you know you were supposed to go across the hall-”
“Well, we got over here just fine.” she innocently shrugged.
Chief Powell looked back at the officer with a disappointed glare as Callahan attempted to excuse himself,“ I tried-”
But Ms. Henderson was absolutely not allowing the two of them to waste time on it,“ Are you going to question him and get it over with?”
“Yes. Okay? If we could have everyone clear the room now? He’s not a minor; he can do this on his own.”
And then Claudia Henderson had the gall to look back at Eddie and wait for his blessing. Again. Like she was really willing to put her foot down and argue some more with the cops. Which- okay- maybe that was pretty badass. Way more than he was expecting from some prim and proper suburban mom. So Eddie gave her the nod she was looking for, and she placed her hands around Dustin’s shoulders to steer him into the other room.
Wayne gave his hand another tight squeeze and said,” You just holler and I’ll knock that door down, you hear?”
“I’ll be fine. Get outta here already,” Eddie squeezed his hand back.
Then Wayne let him go, and it was the first time he wasn’t being held since he arrived. His palm felt a little cold now. But he was okay. He was going to be okay.
Wayne left the room and followed the rest into the Max’s. They hadn’t all arrived yet. So far it was Steve, Nancy, Jonathan, Lucas, Erica, Mike, and now Dustin. They are also accompanied by Karen, The Sinclairs, Susan, and now Claudia and Wayne.
Hop and Joyce were on their way with Will, El, and Argyle. Murray said he’d stay behind “strategizing”. And Vickie was supposed to be dropping Robin off any minute. Apparently, they had just sat down to eat an early lunch together when Steve reached out to everyone. Which had been news to him. So he’d been waiting with a very specific kind of impatience ever since. If he didn’t get to squeeze every ounce of information about her first date - because he was absolutely calling this a date - by the end of the night, he was going to go crazy.
In the meantime, everyone mingled the best they could. Wayne thanked Claudia for her ferocity for his boy, she thanked him for raising such a good one. Mike was on the walkie asking for updates on how close the Hopper-Byers car was to the hospital every few minutes, going on and on about how excited he was for El and Will to meet Eddie. Nancy seemed tense but told everyone they had used the morning to make some progress in cleaning things up. And Dustin was talking to Lucas and Erica about how Eddie looked before he and his mother were kicked out.
The questioning went well.
At least, it felt like it did.
Eddie didn’t really have anything to compare it to, seeing as he’d always kept himself out of too much trouble before. But it seemed like it wasn’t awful. There wasn’t any yelling, and while they asked him to be more specific or clarify what he was saying, they hadn't argued against his claims. So maybe Steve was right when he said they were leaning his way. And maybe Robin and Nancy would be able to turn it all around for him somehow.
But he reminded himself not to get carried away and hope for too much while Chief Powell finished up.
“We’ve taken your statement, and will be going over it with the evidence and the other testimonies we have collected. We don’t have an answer for you now, but we’ll be back tomorrow with the final decision on how the Hawkins Police Department will be proceeding with the charges.”
“Okay.”
“In the meantime, the cuffs stay on. And the visitors can come back in, but we’ll be posting an officer to keep an eye on you-”
And that was when the door swung open. Seemed like the people around there really didn’t care about following the rules. Chief Powell’s face twitched as he braced himself to tear into whoever just barged in when he found himself looking at a dead man.
“Chief…?”
It was the only word that came to him after referring to the man by the title for so many years. He looked different now, but he was still so unmistakably Jim Hopper.
He stepped into the room and motioned,“ From what I hear, that’s your job now, Cal.”
“You… you’re… how are you…” he sputtered, Callahan next to him just standing in silent shock with a hand over his mouth.
“Long story. One I don’t really want to go over. How about we call it a kidnapping and move on?”
“Kidnapping?” Powell asked,” But you- eight months, Chie- Hop… Hop, it’s been eight months since… you ‘died’ in the mall fire. Did they all lie about you being there, or-”
“No, I was there. Don’t try to take away my Hero of Hawkins medal now. It was the dying part that just didn’t stick.” Hopper corrected.
Then Callahan found his voice,“ But what’re you…?”
Hop shrugged and looked at Eddie for a second, which was weird because they’d never really spoken, but now the guy was on his side, technically,“ Was listening by the door and thought I could ask about possibly forgoing some of that procedure.”
“What?”
“Look, the kid’s clearly been through hell enough already, Cal-”
“Hop…” Powell shook his head,” This case is already messy enough as is. Everything needs to be by the book from this point on-”
“Come on. Call it calling in a favor?” he tried.
Which pulled a small smile to the other’s face because it was just so much like him to ask,“ You have no favors to call in.”
“You’re right, I never stocked any up. But… what about it anyway?”
“Look… as soon as the choice has been made, you’ll know. We aren’t dragging our feet on this, but we can’t be caught making mistakes. I’ll assume you’ve seen the news?”
“Yes, I’ve seen the-”
“Then you know, this has to be done right. There are too many eyes on it, and too much has gone off the rails already.” He emphasized. Then he spared a glance back at Eddie, and the kid did seem kind of pathetic.
“But we can loosen the cuffs a notch. Looks like Daniels put ‘em on a little tight.” He gave, stepping up to unlock them and clicking them back in place more comfortably.
Hop came in close behind him to ask,“ Who’ll be assigned the babysitting duty?”
“I was going to give it to Nichols,” Powell answered.
“Okay…” Jim considered,” Yeah, Nichols is good…”
“Alright then. Go on and invite everyone else in and tell them the protocol. We have work to do back at the station.”
“Calvin?” he asked as the officers headed for the door.
“Jim?”
“Thank you.” He said,” Nichols is…”
“Nichols is good. I know. He’s good at his job and not an ass like some of them, so he shouldn’t make this next day of waiting too difficult on him.” Which was a phrase that made Eddie feel a whole lot better about the guy,” And even if you don’t want to explain where the hell you’ve been the last two-thirds of the year, least you could do is bring a cup of coffee by my new office and tell me what the hell you’re doing now.”
“Yeah. Least I could do.” Jim agreed.
Then Powell nodded and left. Just like that, Eddie had officially done all he could to clear up the mess, and then it was out of his hands. It felt weird, to be on the other side of the fear. He had been dreading it the entire time since he saw Chrissy die right in front of him. “How do I get out of this?” played over and over in his head whenever the world was too quiet. And now he faced it. And he just has to lie there and wait until there’s news.
But before he could stew in it any longer, there were all his kids - plus a few new faces - packed in the door of his room. The adults excused themselves, some heading off to pick up some food from the diner in town for everyone to eat for lunch while the rest just headed on home themselves. Each of them decided to let the youngsters reunite on their own for a little bit.
As soon as Eddie saw Michael Wheeler coming in, he broke out an excited,“ Hey! It’s Little Wheeler! Where have you been all week? Didn’t you hear we were all hanging out?”
Mike, who was just a moment ago beaming to see his DM awake, let his expression instantly drop at the nickname.
“Little Wheeler?” he questioned.
Eddie explained,“ Well, yeah, I can’t call you and your sister both ‘Wheeler’ after all.”
Mike argued,“ I should be the original ‘Wheeler’!”
“I’m not calling Nance ‘Big Wheeler’, dude.” Eddie rolled his eyes,“ Plus she’s cool. Way too cool to not be the standalone ‘Wheeler’. You know?”
Nancy was wearing a pretty smug look when Mike turned on her,“ You stole my DM.”
“What?”
“You stole my DM!” he repeated,” I leave for one week, and suddenly I’m ‘Little Wheeler’?”
She shrugged her shoulders at her brother,“ That’s not my fault. Stop being ‘Little Wheeler’ material.”
“I’m the taller one!”
Eddie reached out his hand to try and get in between them,“ Wheelers, Wheelers, you're both pretty. No need to fight for the affections of my heart-”
But Mike wasn’t even listening,“ Give it back!”
“Give it back?” she quoted back to him.
“Give it back!”
“I’m not ‘giving it back’, Mike. It’s a nickname. Earn a better one if you’re going to be so worked up about it. How about we give ‘Little Shit’ a try?” she offered.
They kept bickering between themselves as someone new stepped in a little closer to Eddie’s bedside.
He recognized her from the empty space in his head they’d met a few days ago, but he still didn’t really know her yet.
And then she looked at him with bashful eyes and began speaking,“ I like your hair. It’s… pretty.”
Eddie’s hair reminded her of her own before she woke up in that bed at the NINA project to see they'd cut it all off. She really liked having long hair. It was something that she was able to look at the mirror and say “It’s been so long since I was trapped there that now my hair goes past my shoulders.” She can’t say that anymore.
Because they caught her again.
And maybe she walked right into it but… she liked her long hair.
Missed it now.
And Eddie said, with a flourish,“ Why thank you, m’lady. Not exactly the style of flattery I usually aim for, but I am more than happy to accept it regardless.”
That’s right. Mike had said that Eddie was pretty “metal.” So maybe there was another word that fit him better.
“It’s also really… bitchin’.”
And Eddie just lit up. His eyes and smile widened at the soft-spoken girl,“ Oh my god, you’re my favorite now. Please, come closer, you little angel!”
He beckoned her with his hand as much as he could while still being restrained, and El’s own smile grew with her giggle as she stepped up to his bedside with more confidence. Her brother was just behind her, and Eddie had been about to greet him when two of the kids he already knew well enough yelled at him.
“Hey!” Mike and Dustin protested in unison. Both of them were clearly mad about the fact that he just called El his favorite, and he didn’t even know her name yet.
“Hey yourselves!” Eddie shot back,” This cutie saved my life and just gave me the greatest compliment I’ve ever received!”
“But that’s- That’s not-” Dustin sputtered before turning to one of the other older boys in the room,” STEVE!”
“What do you want me to do about it? I can’t magically make you his favorite again-“
To which Mike took offense,“ Hey!”
“Please, Mike, do you really think you were Eddie’s favorite?” Dustin asked him with that same tone Steve kept saying he’d do something about, yet hasn't,” It was obviously me. And it’s obviously going to be me again, once I retake my throne from this thief!”
El scrunched her eyebrows together at him,“ I did not steal it.”
“Yes, you did! With magic powers and sweet words!”
Eddie chimed in,“ Don’t forget the cute face.”
“And your cute face!” he added with an accusatory finger, though it just made El laugh again.
Lucas shrugged and sided,“ I’m on El’s team. You can’t not like her. I tried. Didn’t get very far.”
She gave him a courteous nod,” Thank you.”
However, Mike seethed “Traitor!” in the other boy's direction.
“So, El’s the name of the darling I owe my life to?” Eddie asked her, ignoring the boy’s play fighting.
“Yes. Short for Eleven.” She answered.
“Eleven?”
“There’s a lot we didn’t have time to explain fully the first time around,” Steve told him.
“I wasn’t even here when Eddie’s life went to shit! I think that means I get bonus points.” Mike got louder as he tried to argue.
Lucas was the one to disagree,“ That doesn’t make any sense. None of us screwed him over.”
“If anything, you weren’t even here to try and help him out of it. I think that means we deserve bonus points.” Dustin added.
“They are so immature.” Erica rolled her eyes and said to Steve.
“I know they are.” he agreed,” At least you behave when you aren’t too busy blackmailing us-”
“Eddie! You’re really awake!” Robin rushed in, finally arriving with the rest of them.
“Last one in, Robin?” Eddie asked.
“I was…” She spared a glance at Steve, who was already looking at her pretty intently, before she put her focus back on the one in the bed,” looking into something. For you!”
Erica leaned in closer to Steve and whispered while Robin rambled about her meeting with Mr. Thompson,“ It is not blackmailing when I am just insisting on the return of the goods and services that were pledged to me-”
“It’s a little blackmail-y, or like, at least blackmail-adjacent the way you do it,” Steve whispered back.
“And yet, I didn’t even need to apply the pressure for five minutes before you broke. Seems like you just knew I was right.”
Steve deadpanned at her,“ Okay, I take it back. You don’t behave. No one in The Party behaves.”
“Oh, that’s the truth.” Robin hastily agreed when she caught the back half of what he said.
“Oh, so this is The Party?” Eddie asked with a motion to the room.
Mike pipped up,“ Yeah. We’re The Party.”
Nancy gave a light shove to his head,“ It’s what they’ve been calling themselves since the day Dustin moved into town. And once we all got mixed up in everything together, we all kind of adopted it.”
"We're still the originals, though," Mike mentioned with a motion between the four boys.
“So that’s what the little angel meant. Not celebrating.” Eddie figured, finally connecting the dots. But should he really have expected the person he confused with God to be using fantasy terms that way? Can’t blame the guy for assuming she’d meant it by the normie definition.
“No, she was not referring to an actual party.” Will joked beside her.
“Good, because I was going to be pissed if you were all just having fun while I was dying.” He huffed.
Steve stepped forward,“ You weren’t dying-”
“Oh no, he absolutely was.” Robin interrupted him,” You heard El, she had to keep him together enough to even make it to the hospital-”
“What?”
And there was Wayne at the door, along with the other parents all holding to-go bags of food for everyone. Thus started the third - and hopefully last - explanation of what was actually going on. They couldn’t really pretend like everything was normal since Eddie had already told Wayne most of what happened to him. So they just explained it further. Went over the bits that Eddie didn’t know anything about or didn’t understand fully. They had the discussion over burgers and fries, and vending machine sodas and candies. Which made all the information go down a little bit easier.
Eddie learned why a child would be named Eleven.
Wayne learned that his boy’s innocence rests on the integrity of a mountain of lies.
Which was really scary to think about.
So they tried not to.
They all started getting to know one another a little better, seeing as how they’d be putting together more plans to fight off the end of the world. Wayne and Hopper noticed a few similar mannerisms between them. Eddie was more properly introduced to El and Will. And Jonathan and Argyle. And Joyce. Those were all the new faces he was getting a real conversation with. According to everyone, there was some guy who didn’t feel like coming in, two more on the way, and the other parents had headed off back to their homes until visiting hours were over. They didn't want to overwhelm Eddie and thought the kids should get to spend some time with him. Which was pretty sweet, considering he was a wanted man who had been on the run just a few days before.
It was about then that they were suddenly interrupted by a distressed woman in a pantsuit and sunglasses at their door.
But before she even got a word in, Nancy was standing up from her seat and very sharply telling her,” Out.”
The woman peeled off her sunglasses and responded through a clenched jaw,” I see you found our missing persons… and then some.”
She added that last bit while eyeing Jim.
“Get out.” Nancy insisted.
“Ms. Wheeler-”
“I said ‘Get out’. So get out of this room.”
“Nancy…?” Joyce asked, concerned. Nancy had never revisited her grudge against this particular government agent any of the times they ran over things.
The woman pushed,“ We have to talk about what happened.”
“I’m not saying a goddamn word to you people. Since we can’t trust you not to make it worse.”
Then it was Hopper trying to calm her down,“ Kid-”
“They handed her back to him.” Nancy said firmly, making strides around Eddie’s bed to put herself between the woman and the rest of the room, tucking El right behind her,” So no. They don’t get to get close to her again.”
“However you feel about things, we still need to get on the same page if we have any hope of cleaning things up around here.”
“It’s not happening. Not here, not today, and not anywhere near El. I don’t care what you say, it’s not.”
The woman seemed exacerbated,“ We have to-”
Finally, Nancy let out the yell she had been fighting back all day,“ Get out!”
Which was a sight. For everyone. To see her lose her cool like that.
It was different than the way she fought monsters.
It was… something else.
“Ms. Wheeler-”
“Tomorrow then? We all get together and discuss things tomorrow?” Joyce offered the compromise, still making up her mind on how exactly she felt about the situation but sure about wanting to get it taken care of.
Hopper answered for their guest in his own gruff voice,“ We’ll talk tomorrow.”
After a moment of silence, the agent decided to take the deal on the table,“ I’ll leave my card. There’s a number on it. Call and make plans for the meeting, or I’ll show up unannounced again. With backup.”
Nancy was gearing up to walk closer when Steve grabbed her shoulder,“ Get out-”
“I’m leaving. Make sure you call.” She said, pressing the slip on top of the light fixture by the door.
And then she was gone.
“You know… I was going to give this welcoming committee a five-star review in the paper until she showed up. Really soured the mood, you know?” Eddie joked, trying to relieve some tension.
Nancy huffed and returned to her seat,” Sorry. The news must’ve aired footage of the police arriving for questioning and were probably still running the cameras when everyone showed up, so…”
“We weren’t even thinking about that when we got here…” Jonathan muttered beside her.
“It’s okay. Still a pretty rockin’ day from my end. Being not dead and all.”
“That’s it, man. We just gotta focus on the positives.” Argyle smiled back at him.
“What’s the plan for the meeting?” Robin asked nervously.
“El’s not coming.” Nancy set the condition sternly.
“Agreed.” Hop nodded and crossed his arms.
“But-” the girl tried to argue.
“No. We have to assume she won’t be alone, and while Sam might’ve been on your side, we don’t know what they’re doing now on their own. We need to know how everything stands. If there are people who aren’t our allies, we aren’t giving them an opportunity to get ahold of you again.”
“We can’t just leave her alone, Hop,” Joyce noted.
“So, you don’t.” Wayne thought,” You bring her here on the way to the meeting. There are all the cameras at the entrance, an officer will be posted by the room, and this hospital is still full of people. If someone tried to break her out of her against her will, they wouldn’t get very far without drawing a lot of attention.”
Jim nodded some more,” Yes. Yes, that’s a good idea. El can stay here until we finish.”
“More time to hang out with my guardian angel? Sounds good to me.” Eddie agreed with a smile, hoping El wouldn’t be nervous about the idea.
“So then, tomorrow morning. Most of the rest of us. Some place public. Get this dealt with so we can figure out the next move.” Jim concluded.
And no one else said anything, but they all agreed. That was the plan.
There wasn’t much more to say the evening, so when four o’clock arrived and a nurse was kicking everyone besides Wayne out and introducing Officer Nichols, they all went their separate ways. Most of the kids' parents were pulled up by the hospital entrance for pickup. Except for Robin who Steve whisked away so they could spend a few hours doing some much-needed checking in. Robin just had her first date after all, so there was so much to talk about before he needed to drop her off at home.
She told him everything. All about the phone call and Vickie's new earrings. About all the ways Vickie made her laugh and how she could swear she’d noticed Vickie’s eyes lingering on her when she would get lost in her rambles. About the way that Vickie sat right next to her while they talked to Mr. Thompson on his front porch. About the way that Vickie leaned against her and touched her shoulder and seemed to be so close sometimes that Robin swore her head was spinning.
She talked about it all with Steve.
Because telling her best friend about her amazing day made it so much more real.
And that was the moment Steve decided Robin wasn’t coming with them to the meeting. He had already been pretty sure about it but watching her bursting with excitement about her first real chance at loving a girl made him certain.
There was probably going to be nothing major that happened. It would be stupid of the Feds to try and take out something like a dozen people in a small town where everyone knows each other. But he wasn’t going to risk it. Just couldn’t imagine risking Robin disappearing before she got to kiss Vickie for the first time and feel loved in that sweet special way that romance can hold.
With everything Steve knew about love and everything he didn’t, he knew that Robin deserved to have her chance to find out about it.
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space5reporter · 3 months
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Oooh sorry for the delay. i've been busy drawing again .
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siookie · 9 months
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WAIT SHUT THE FUCK UP THEY HAVE GOATS
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nikolaispet · 11 months
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MY TUMBLR WAS LIKE BROKEN FOR A WHILE FOR SOME REASON💔💔
IM GOOD AND I MISSED YOU TOO 🫶🫶🫶
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MINE WAS LIKE THAT TOO PLEASE BUT EVERYTHING IS OK NOW RIGHT?
jouno no.
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raychromatic · 1 year
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some things i made last night while staying up way too late watching @robbydude‘s twitch stream
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luckymadarame · 2 years
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Runs to Ikkaku's room. "Oi, we have an emergency!" Stomps to his bestie, showing him an empty bottle of the glue he uses to glue on his feathers every day. "You know anything about this?! Somebody used all of it while I was gone!"
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A very long long long day not only training himself but also training and recruiting some of the members of the squadron and couldn't avoid training newbies that recently joined the division.
Ah, a deserved shower and why not? A long long long nap. The sound of the door slamming the wall made him jump from his slumber and basically punch the floor as response, even on mind he was fightning unknown figures and stuffs.
"Damnit!" He snarled, then a hand covering his face.
"Yumichika, I told you to not wake me up if I'm tired! What KIND of emergency is that? You have dozens of bottles in your closet, go and pick another! Not a big deal!"
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miserye · 2 years
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My least favorite delivery company is doordash highly DONT recommend
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midwrites · 7 months
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mmmMMMM. collins/tartnell, modern au + meetcute? :3
The new bloke Graham has brought with him looks broader than Magnus in the cold morning light, droplets of mist and dew catching in his very dark hair.
“Henry hasn’t played football since our Uni days, but I’m sure he’ll be a great addition to the team while Armitage recovers from his injury,” Graham says jovially. He is the only one on the team that calls Tommy ‘Armitage’, and Tom himself thinks it is for the best that Tommy is not sitting in the cold today, back pressed against the worn plastic chairs, crochet hook swishing swiftly in between his hands, no need for him to see the beast of a guy that’s gonna be guarding the goal in his place.
Tom has been the one entrusted with passing him Tommy’s old gloves, worn and haggard, he can hardly believe that they fit the hands of two men of so different in size. He takes his chance when Graham finishes introducing everyone and their usual routine, just as Dundy and Magnus have begun to pull the footballs out of the shed where they are allowed to keep them over the week.
“You are Tom, right? Like the one who’s missing,” Henry asks, his voice gentler than Tom had imagined, his hands folding carefully around the gloves as if they were made of a finer material, something delicate, worth cherishing.
“Aye, Hartnell,” Tom nods, realising that that same care his hands demonstrate has transferred into his eyes. “Tom Jopson used to play here too before he went off with his partner, a gaggle of Toms we were, like,” he smiles awkwardly, too aware of how strange a conversation starter bringing up the overabundance of one’s own name must make.
But Henry laughs, big and hearty, the vibrations of it rippling through the air in a way that makes Tom wonder how it must feel to press oneself to such a broad chest and feel their thrum.
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deciessomnia · 7 months
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all right, gonna tap out for the night and get some sleep. night night~
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philosimy · 2 months
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Sul sul!
It's time to get nostalgic.
With this update of my Sims (2000) world, you can revisit every lot and every household from the Sims 1 in an open world experience in the Sims 3! This addition adds the Magic Town and Vacation Island area's, making this a complete Sims 1 world, that includes every Sims 1 neighborhood.
I apologize for the long delay in releases this update for this Sims 3 world. My real life has gotten very hectic, so it's been hard to make time for this project. I hope it was worth the wait and that you'll enjoy reliving the Sims 1 in this Sims 3 world.
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Special thanks to @bunnybananasims @virtual-hugs @madraynesims @melisanne19 @thesims1master @ohrudi on Tumblr and @OhBeeel and @Andr3sL0K0 on Twitter for helping me with beta testing! And Martine and Simsimillian at MTS for providing lovely terrain paints <3
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Get the world + save file here: SFS download
If you enjoy my work, you can support me on Ko-fi <3 Thanks!
This world was made with every Sims 3 expansion pack (except for Into The Future), in addition the the High End Loft and Town Life stuff packs. You can install the world even if you do not own all of these packs. But the save file (which includes all of the premade sims, ghosts and some fixes) can only be played if you have all of these packs installed.
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To everyone who has installed and played the previous version of my Sims (2000) world: to install this version, you'll need to uninstall the old one. If you have an active save file with the previous (1st) version of this world, please backup any households and builds you want to save to your library. Because that save file will probably become unplayable after installing the updated world file.
I have one little request… If you know any other long time simmers, please share this project with them. I would love it if as many people as possible get a chance to enjoy this nostalgic experience <3
Also, if you enjoy setting up high quality screenshots, I'd love to see them and use them to promote this world.
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qqueenofhades · 3 months
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Hi! This question has been noodling in my head for a few weeks, and I’ve been really curious to hear your opinion. I’ve appreciated your very thoughtful commentary on the ways the online left in particular have hurt the real and concerted efforts that have been made to navigate through the Gaza war in support of Palestine. I’ve seen a lot of outrage online about Biden bypassing congress in order to make another emergency weapons sale to Israel, which does indeed read as counter to helping to the Palestinians facing endless and indiscriminate violence. I understand that you might not want to answer this ask, because the work that you already do in your life offline and the work that you do here on tumblr to respond to and explain these issues is exhausting enough. Thanks so much for your time and your thoughtful contributions! It’s always really helped me remember to slow down and think critically about the media I consume.
Because you have asked this thoughtfully and in good faith, I will return the favor and give you a careful and extensive answer to the best of my ability. However, obligatory top-of-post disclaimer that I will disable reblogs at the first hint of any wankery in the notes and I will not answer any follow-ups or secondary asks at this time (unless I decide to do so, but I engage with this topic sparingly, judiciously, and only in small doses, so don't count on it).
First, let me say that the moment, I disagree with substantial portions of how Biden is handling the two main foreign-policy crises (Ukraine and Gaza). In regard to Ukraine, I think he's backed off, taken his foot off the gas, and otherwise given Republicans ammunition to keep delaying or watering down a new aid bill, is refusing to disburse military aid packages from the $4 billion of funding remaining that was previously approved by Congress, hasn't sent long-range ATACMS and other critical military hardware that might bring the war to an end sooner, and is not (as of the moment, though recent reporting suggests this might change) pushing hard enough for frozen Russian assets to be transferred to Ukraine for military and/or humanitarian financial assistance. However, I am also aware (unlike, it seems, much of the left-leaning internet) that I am basing these judgments only on my personal impressions, on what is reported (or not reported) in the media (which has plenty of its own problems) and otherwise what is formed in my role as an ordinary American citizen without any kind of special, classified, high-level, or government access. I know nothing more than any of you, and I also know that a lot of what goes on behind closed doors does not appear on Political Twitter and/or the Washington Post or the Guardian or Daily Kos or whatever other aggregate sources of information I or any left-leaning person typically consumes. So it's highly possible (and this is my cautious academic instinct speaking) that I do not, in fact, have a full picture of events. There are also contributing factors that Biden cannot simply handwave aside, even if he did, say, dip back into the $4 billion pot in the meantime. Congress will need to pass a new funding bill for Ukraine aid and the MAGA Republicans have been enthusiastically blocking it to the point where Putin's cronies on Russian state TV praise them effusively for it. We all know about the Republicans and Russia's mutual love affair. So.
The same goes for Gaza, and even more because we have already had reporting about how the Biden administration is walking a behind-the-scenes tightrope in a number of seemingly impossible tasks: keeping the war from spreading to a larger theater, pressuring Netanyahu to dial down, y'know, the rampant genocide (when Netanyahu notoriously doesn't like Biden, was very close with Trump, and would be happy to keep the war going in order to boost Trump's chances of being re-elected and save Netanyahu himself from his own criminal prosecutions), and pursuing a complex policy toward the state of Israel that does not follow the antisemitic Western Online Left's fever dream of "Israel suddenly disappears overnight and falls into the ocean and all Jews die or disappear." We have had multiple credibly sourced reports about this. Blinken is back in the Middle East right now trying to keep the war from spreading. The US under Biden has criticized Israel's essentially empty policy document for post-war Gaza as not being remotely feasible (because it's so vague) and gone so far as to voice support for a two-state solution with Palestinian self-determination (which is itself quite radically different from previous administrations). However, they have also vetoed UN ceasefire resolutions and other essentially meaningless political theater (the UN as a whole has been ruthlessly exposed in the last few years for being completely useless) that are easy to gin up outrage about, and that's what the internet focuses on, rather than any of the other complicated actions taking place.
All of this is to say that no, in fact, I don't blindly support everything the Biden administration is doing in regard to either Ukraine or Israel right now, but I actually have a sense of real-world perspective about it and understand that there are certain immutable realities that we are working with and which will not be erased by some absolute jackasses yelling at Biden in a historically black church at the commemoration of an anti-black terrorist attack. Likewise, as I've said it before and I'll say it again, and as plenty of other people have noticed and pointed out, the Western left is using this as an orgy of pseudo-revolutionary fervor that focuses on using Hamas as a proxy for their own fantasies of violent uprising against their own governments. Because while yes, anti-zionism and antisemitism are two distinct things and represent different aims and goals, it's become more or less irrelevant in allegedly pro-Palestine Western leftist spaces. It's just increasingly rabid, accelerationist, and nihilistic antisemitism all the time, or the obvious usage of "Zionist" to mean "Jew." It's not good. There is no concept of actual restorative justice for Palestinians or other people, such as Ukrainians, Syrians, Uyghurs, Taiwanese, etc, either undergoing genocide or facing the threat of it, because Western leftists have latched onto this cause solely as a stick to beat the Democratic Party with and have no actual moral interest or concern in stopping genocide elsewhere in the world or repudiating it as a method overall. They just want the state of Israel (which they characterize as a "proxy state for white western colonialism" despite the many, many things historically, religiously, and politically wrong with that statement, because it means it now Contains the Right Buzzwords to Oppose It) to be destroyed altogether in the name of "opposing colonialism," but it really seems to be all about opposing Jews. Hmm.
Simply put, Biden is not ever going to pursue a policy of "let's totally abandon Israel tomorrow, never sell it any weapons or allow it to defend its own civilians, and agree that Hamas is actually a good representation or advocate for the Palestinian people" in the way a number of Western Online Leftists seem to think he should do. There is still the fact that Israeli civilians do exist and that Hamas has continued to launch missiles at them daily, inconvenient as that fact might be for the Hamas fanboys (and fangirls) who now populate much of what passes for Western leftist discourse spaces. (Either that or they don't care, because in their view, Israeli civilians are fully acceptable collateral damage by virtue of simply living in Israel in the first place, which -- yikes. Fucking yikes. That is all.) The number of people professing to be lifelong leftists who are Just Shocked at all the antisemitism, or thinking that any and all antisemitism is just artificially introduced into leftist spaces by bad-faith right-wing/Nazi psyops either has not spent any actual time around leftists, or (more likely) simply does not listen to what they openly say. The antisemitism is virulent, constant, and only getting worse. On the most basic level, regardless of the other difficulties around the founding of Israel as a state in 1948 and the fact that doing so on some of the most bitterly religiously, politically, ethnically, and culturally contested territory in the world for over two thousand years was always going to be a massive clusterfuck, the fact of its immediate post-Holocaust creation simply cannot be ignored the way many Online Leftists do. Israel exists because of the worst antisemitic mass murder in recorded history (and that's a high bar). That fact must be incorporated into any actual discussions about its right either to exist or to protect its own civilians. But this gets turned into "Israel exists only as a puppet state of white western colonialists" which is just bad on so, so many levels.
The collective Western Online Leftist feeling seems to be that Hamas are innocent and wronged freedom fighters who are begging for a ceasefire and the cruel Israelis aren't granting them one. This is not true. Hamas has rejected multiple ceasefire opportunities, and continued to launch missiles and retaliatory attacks, because they are terrorists and they do not want or represent any serious opportunity to negotiate in the framework of western liberal democracy. They are treated as helpless woobified blorbos by much of the Western leftist-leaning internet. They are not. In that case, Biden bypassing Congress to sell Israel weapons (which was just something like 100 million of artillery shells, which is not nothing but still not a huge systematic thing like, say, Reagan's Iran-Contra scandal) is not great. I do not support anything Israel is doing to Gaza. It is abhorrent. However, there are reasons for Biden to provide some limited amount of weapons to Israel without congressional approval that do not automatically and mindlessly equate to BIDEN SUPPORTS TOTAL GENOCIDE IN GAZA!!!!!!1 Especially when as I've said, the Online Leftists only care about stopping genocide when it fits their political self-righteousness, and absolutely not at all the rest of the time.
This is representative of the fact that Western Online Leftism has now completed its all-out descent into blind Noam Chomskyism. Chomsky has never met a "leftist" or "anti-Western" genocide he couldn't deny, excuse, or openly cheerlead (going all the way back to the 1970s and Pol Pot/the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and going up to the minute with Russia/Ukraine and Israel/Palestine). Noam Chomsky is the leftist Henry Kissinger. His ethics and morals are equally abhorrent, he's just as willing to justify total genocide in the name of advancing his preferred political ideology, and while there were (justifiably) celebrations and gloating memes across Tumblr when Kissinger finally bit the dust, Chomsky's beliefs are replicated with slavish adoration in many other Tumblr spaces and spread in some form or another to the rest of the website, which now takes them as leftist gospel (and let's not even talk about Twitter). This represents my absolute frustration with the fact that Western Online Leftism has devolved to such a degraded, mindless, useless, and malevolent level that "cheerlead for any anti-western/Leftist TM terrorist group or state" is taken to be the be-all and end-all of their moral philosophy. Someone remarked that ISIS peaked too early; if they were still at the height of their powers today, they would have a legion of devoted white so-called progressive Twitter users shilling earnestly and angrily for them, and Christ, isn't that the fucking truth.
I know we live in a hard, frightening, complex, and difficult world, and it's hard to sort out what our moral responsibility and action should be at any given time, especially since the answer is always so frustratingly partial and incomplete. Nobody of basic good sense and decency wants to see Gaza leveled while the Israeli state continues to apply a number of violently cruel collective punishments even outside the actual daily bombing of civilians. But for the love of god, let's get rid of the idea that the continued mindless violence doesn't benefit Hamas (because it does; unsurprisingly, sympathy for their cause has soared in Gaza) as much as it does Israel, or that Hamas is some kind of benevolent peacemaker that is being thwarted by the cruel imperialist US/West. And going back to the incident that prompted you to send me this ask: white leftists have often and repeatedly demonstrated their withering disdain for black people, Democratic voters, "mainstream" Americans, and anyone else doesn't buy into the twisted tankie fantasy land where getting rid of Biden would somehow be a massive coup for social justice (by getting Trump, now openly announcing at every turn that he will be a dictator, back into office! Very praxis, much justice. Wow.)
In short: if you, a white person, stand up in Mother Emanuel AME -- one of the most sacred sites for Black churchgoers, who are indeed often heavily Democratic voters -- in the middle of a remembrance service for victims of white supremacist terrorism, after the Black pastor has asked you not to protest inside the church out of respect for the Black community coming together to relive its trauma -- just so you can heckle Biden and feel good about yourself, then Jesus Christ. You don't care about restorative justice for people of color, or literally any justice at all, much less "stopping genocide." You just want to use them as props for your Chomsky cosplay revolutionary fantasies and your sense of self-righteous superiority over literally everyone else, regardless of the real-world consequences. So I have no hesitation whatsoever in telling those people to get fucked. Often and repeatedly.
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cheritzteam · 4 months
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[The Ssum] December Update - Harry Ending & Video Call Support and Season 2 Update Schedule
Hello, dear lab participant.
We’re announcing the updated schedule for <The Ssum>‘s December update.
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Harry Day 201 to Ending (71 days) + Full Video Call Support => December 20, 2023
June Season 2 (Half Season) + New Ssumone Season 1 (Half Season) => Q1 2024
*Please note that the original schedule for June’s Season 2 update, previously set for December this year as per November and in-app notices, is now shifted to early 2024. In December, we’ll introduce the update for Season 1 Ssumone Harry’s ending and exciting video call support. We apologize for the delay of Season 2’s new stories that many lab participants anticipated by the end of this year.
On top of Day 201 to his ending (71 days), exciting video call features will be added, thanks to the support from those who cherished Harry.
December 20, 2023
Experience a refreshed encounter with Season 1’s captivating Ssumone, Harry!
We deeply regret the delay for researchers awaiting June’s Season 2 and the new Ssumone. We are committed to meeting you as soon as possible in 2024.
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Through Cheritz and The Ssum’s official social media, we plan to provide weekly updates leading up to the release. You can easily stay informed by subscribing via the following links:
Cheritz Official Tumblr : Follow this blog now! Cheritz Official X(Twitter) : Link The Ssum Official Instagram : Link
We are committed to preparing the best possible content in the remaining time to deliver a more enjoyable experience.
Your continued support is greatly appreciated.
*We would like to inform you in advance that AI will be utilized in the December update content. It will be used in some of the video call backgrounds, leveraging outcomes from an AI tool that employs copyrighted sources as basic materials before completion. There will be no AI involvement in the characters, posters, or art for other games, and there are no future plans for such involvement. Please note that any claims of AI being used in characters are not accurate. For more details regarding AI usage, please refer here. This decision aims to provide faster updates to you. However, as it’s a sensitive issue for some, we ask for your understanding and careful consideration🙇‍♀️
Thank you.
Cheritz
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