( and so steve finds himself with something of a virmire situation on his hands (not that he knows, or will ever know, what that means) as he considers eddie's idea. he could stay behind at the trailer, make sure eddie and dustin make it out okay, but then what if nancy and robin don't? he couldn't live with himself if something happened to either of them, but he can't let anything happen to eddie or dustin either.
as he thinks about it he's overcome with a strange, terrible feeling. it's like his ribs are squeezing harder and harder, growing so tight it pushes the air right out of his lungs and threatens to stop the hammering of his heart completely.
he doesn't want eddie to know he's going through whatever this is, though, so he does his best to disguise his nervous, shallow breaths as normal ones, and tries to keep a steady hand as eddie laces their fingers together. )
Maybe we can change up the plan, ( he suggests, and his voice sounds strange and thick to his own ears. ) Like, I don't know, maybe you don't have to be the distraction, you know? We can figure it out.
( a beat, then: )
Nobody's going to die.
( he hopes he sounds like he believes it. he's not really sure that he does. )
( eddie senses that something is wrong. he knows steve well enough by now -- or at least he thinks he does -- that something feels off with steve. but what that something is, he cannot put a finger on.
maybe he's just as scared as eddie is, that this won't work out. that this is just another way for the captain to torture them. as if giving them a taste of their world, but reminding them that they'll never be fully free.
to which eddie says fuck that. he will find a way to defy the odds if it's the last thing he does.
the last time they did this, eddie was only worried about giving steve more time, and making sure dustin would make it out alive. now he has more reason than ever for everyone to live, himself included. )
You think Nance will go for that? You know her better than I do, but she seems pretty stubborn.
( still, if anyone could change her mind, he likes to think it's probably steve. )
What if -- ( eddie blinks as he struggles to remember the one thing he had hoped he never would have to remember - that feeling of being torn apart. being torn apart, and then suddenly...nothing. suddenly the bats all dropped dead. ) What if it's not the plan that needs to change, but the timing? I swear, I remember Dustin limping over to me and the bats just falling out of the air like something had killed them.
( steve's only sort of half-listening to eddie, caught up as he is in his own freak out, or whatever the hell is happening to him. he absentmindedly uses his free hand to toy with one of the pins on the vest he's wearing, wondering distantly if the others will think to grab him some actual clothes while they're in there.
he's a million miles away, until something eddie says catches his attention and drags him back to reality with a start. a light frown furrows his brow as he blinks, mouth flattening into a tight line. )
Timing? ( he echoes, thoughtful. eddie could really be onto something with that, but... god. steve feels as if he's been plunked down in the center of a maze in the dead of night, blindfolded. he doesn't know what happens next. he has no idea how a change in timing could or would apply to any of it.
it's still enough to make him feel — well, not good, but better. he feels less like his chest is caving in on itself, anyway. ) Okay. So, like... maybe we took too long at the house, right? If me and Robin and Nancy move a little faster... because if the bats died, Vecna probably did, too. Or we distracted him enough to make him, I don't know, forget about the hivemind or something.
( is that how a hivemind works? he has no idea. )
If whatever we did happens sooner, you and Dustin are home free.
( it's a damn shame eddie doesn't know what happened in that house. he feels like he's missing a piece of the puzzle. while it would have been nice for steve to have that information, he knows deep down he wouldn't change a thing about how this all worked out. if the price to pay for knowing he will live is a different steve who didn't experience what they both went through on the cruise ship...eddie is willing to take this risk, dammit. life just wouldn't be worth living without a steve who knows the hell he went through to get here.
he considers steve's ideas that he's spitballing. )
What if he knows we're coming? Maybe the problem is the hivemind. The distraction didn't work how we wanted it to, the bats started to come in, so Dustin and I aborted, right? But the bats were retreating, so the attention would return to you guys. Maybe...Henderson and I need to reinforce the van better so they can't get in through the vents. We keep all eyes off that house for as long as fucking possible so you guys can finish him off.
( it's probably the best plan they have without knowing all the pieces in play. without knowing what the fuck is going on in russia and california, it's their best chance at getting it right this time. )
( if steve sounds grim it's because he still doesn't love the idea of eddie and dustin being left in a vulnerable spot just waiting for history to repeat itself, but it really is the best they have to work with right now. if they can reinforce the trailer even just a fraction better than whatever they did last time then they might just have a chance at making it out of this shit alive.
the others have been inside long enough now that steve knows they're pushing their luck here. at any moment they'll be bursting back into the winnebago. he and eddie can't be caught holding hands and practically cuddling. even if the others somehow didn't freak out about the, uh, social implications... well, it would be impossible to explain how he and eddie got so close in the span of an hour. )
We should probably... ( he trails off as he shoots a quick glance at the door. when he turns back to eddie, it's with a wry, rueful twist of his lips. he doesn't want to go back up front. ) I mean, the other guys— they'll be back any minute.
( this plan is definitely not foolproof, but what choice do they have? convincing nancy of doing anything else will be impossible without explaining how they know what they know. all eddie can hope for at this point is that they get lucky that this somehow works.
in the meantime, though...
he pulls reluctantly away, a frown forming as he follows steve's gaze toward the door. )
Yeah. You'd better...
( he sighs as he rubs a hand across his face. this will work, he tells himself. and when it does and they're home free, then they can spend as much time together as they want. )
When this is all over, I expect to be wined and dined, Harrington, ( he adds, bouncing back with a cheesy grin. )
( that grin is enough to ease steve into a sort of calm, at least in the moment. his lips curve into a flirtatious smirk and for a moment he just looks like steve harrington, heartbreaker, and not steve harrington, survivor of horrors beyond your wildest imagination. )
Are you kidding me? I can't remember the last time I had a decent date in Hawkins. You'd better believe I'm pulling out all the stops, Munson. ( tick tock, yeah, he knows. he needs to head up front, like, five seconds ago. ) Just tell me what you want and I'll make damn sure it happens.
( eddie might have been on the receiving end of that smirk before, but there was something different about it this time. maybe it's the knowledge that this could be it for them. as much as he wants to be an optimist, this is their only chance, and they could very well blow it.
both of them could end up kicking the bucket, for all he knew. )
I haven't had a decent meal that wasn't cruise food in god knows how long. Hell, I'll even take diner food at this point. Just something so long as it's not... ( he trails off, gesturing wildly as if he expects steve to know what he means. )
Shit, I think they're back -- ( but that doesn't stop eddie from getting in one last kiss before gently nudging steve towards the front. ) Vamos!
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no subject
as he thinks about it he's overcome with a strange, terrible feeling. it's like his ribs are squeezing harder and harder, growing so tight it pushes the air right out of his lungs and threatens to stop the hammering of his heart completely.
he doesn't want eddie to know he's going through whatever this is, though, so he does his best to disguise his nervous, shallow breaths as normal ones, and tries to keep a steady hand as eddie laces their fingers together. )
Maybe we can change up the plan, ( he suggests, and his voice sounds strange and thick to his own ears. ) Like, I don't know, maybe you don't have to be the distraction, you know? We can figure it out.
( a beat, then: )
Nobody's going to die.
( he hopes he sounds like he believes it. he's not really sure that he does. )
no subject
maybe he's just as scared as eddie is, that this won't work out. that this is just another way for the captain to torture them. as if giving them a taste of their world, but reminding them that they'll never be fully free.
to which eddie says fuck that. he will find a way to defy the odds if it's the last thing he does.
the last time they did this, eddie was only worried about giving steve more time, and making sure dustin would make it out alive. now he has more reason than ever for everyone to live, himself included. )
You think Nance will go for that? You know her better than I do, but she seems pretty stubborn.
( still, if anyone could change her mind, he likes to think it's probably steve. )
What if -- ( eddie blinks as he struggles to remember the one thing he had hoped he never would have to remember - that feeling of being torn apart. being torn apart, and then suddenly...nothing. suddenly the bats all dropped dead. ) What if it's not the plan that needs to change, but the timing? I swear, I remember Dustin limping over to me and the bats just falling out of the air like something had killed them.
no subject
he's a million miles away, until something eddie says catches his attention and drags him back to reality with a start. a light frown furrows his brow as he blinks, mouth flattening into a tight line. )
Timing? ( he echoes, thoughtful. eddie could really be onto something with that, but... god. steve feels as if he's been plunked down in the center of a maze in the dead of night, blindfolded. he doesn't know what happens next. he has no idea how a change in timing could or would apply to any of it.
it's still enough to make him feel — well, not good, but better. he feels less like his chest is caving in on itself, anyway. ) Okay. So, like... maybe we took too long at the house, right? If me and Robin and Nancy move a little faster... because if the bats died, Vecna probably did, too. Or we distracted him enough to make him, I don't know, forget about the hivemind or something.
( is that how a hivemind works? he has no idea. )
If whatever we did happens sooner, you and Dustin are home free.
no subject
he considers steve's ideas that he's spitballing. )
What if he knows we're coming? Maybe the problem is the hivemind. The distraction didn't work how we wanted it to, the bats started to come in, so Dustin and I aborted, right? But the bats were retreating, so the attention would return to you guys. Maybe...Henderson and I need to reinforce the van better so they can't get in through the vents. We keep all eyes off that house for as long as fucking possible so you guys can finish him off.
( it's probably the best plan they have without knowing all the pieces in play. without knowing what the fuck is going on in russia and california, it's their best chance at getting it right this time. )
no subject
( if steve sounds grim it's because he still doesn't love the idea of eddie and dustin being left in a vulnerable spot just waiting for history to repeat itself, but it really is the best they have to work with right now. if they can reinforce the trailer even just a fraction better than whatever they did last time then they might just have a chance at making it out of this shit alive.
the others have been inside long enough now that steve knows they're pushing their luck here. at any moment they'll be bursting back into the winnebago. he and eddie can't be caught holding hands and practically cuddling. even if the others somehow didn't freak out about the, uh, social implications... well, it would be impossible to explain how he and eddie got so close in the span of an hour. )
We should probably... ( he trails off as he shoots a quick glance at the door. when he turns back to eddie, it's with a wry, rueful twist of his lips. he doesn't want to go back up front. ) I mean, the other guys— they'll be back any minute.
no subject
in the meantime, though...
he pulls reluctantly away, a frown forming as he follows steve's gaze toward the door. )
Yeah. You'd better...
( he sighs as he rubs a hand across his face. this will work, he tells himself. and when it does and they're home free, then they can spend as much time together as they want. )
When this is all over, I expect to be wined and dined, Harrington, ( he adds, bouncing back with a cheesy grin. )
no subject
Are you kidding me? I can't remember the last time I had a decent date in Hawkins. You'd better believe I'm pulling out all the stops, Munson. ( tick tock, yeah, he knows. he needs to head up front, like, five seconds ago. ) Just tell me what you want and I'll make damn sure it happens.
no subject
both of them could end up kicking the bucket, for all he knew. )
I haven't had a decent meal that wasn't cruise food in god knows how long. Hell, I'll even take diner food at this point. Just something so long as it's not... ( he trails off, gesturing wildly as if he expects steve to know what he means. )
Shit, I think they're back -- ( but that doesn't stop eddie from getting in one last kiss before gently nudging steve towards the front. ) Vamos!