( Every muscle in Steve's body tenses more and more with each word out of Eddie's mouth. First because Eddie's being a little too real, but then that confession blindsides Steve and he doesn't know what to say. He's almost as dumbfounded as the day Robin came out to him.

But he doesn't recoil, and he doesn't let go of Eddie's hand. )

Eddie... ( He begins gently, but the sentence trails off when he realizes he doesn't know how to finish it. "I'm not gay" is the defense that springs instinctively to his lips, but it doesn't feel right. In this moment it seems cruel, even. )

Don't start talking like that, alright? I told you, we're both getting out of here. ( He says it like he means it. Firm, direct, and with the slightest quiver that betrays how he really feels. He has to clear his throat before he can continue. ) We'll get patched up and we'll fix this bullshit with you and the cops, and you can find someone who wasn't a total douchebag to you and your friends in high school.

( He doesn't know why, but imagining Eddie parting ways to run off with someone else unearths the same bitter sort of sadness he'd felt when he'd seen Nancy and Jonathan together that first time and realized what it meant for them, and what it meant for him and Nancy. Why should he feel that way now? He's just trying to let the poor guy down gently while keeping him bolstered enough to keep fighting.

Steve's fingers tighten their grip around Eddie's again, but he doesn't seem to notice. )