for inhairently

[thefreak]

( Everything happened so fast. And yet, it felt like the world had slowed down to half-speed so Eddie could watch it all unfold while paralyzed, unable to do anything to stop it. One moment, Eddie had cut the rope in the trailer, begging Dustin to stay up there while he bought Steve and the others more time, and the next, Eddie was cycling for his life, leading the bats on a merry chase through the Upside Down.

His last words to Steve were make him pay. They echo through his mind as he musters all the energy he can to keep going, almost getting thrown off by the sheer amount of demo bats chasing him, but he doesn't dare look behind him.

He's not sure how he wound up at the other portal site, the one where Fred must have died, the only one that Eddie had been lucky enough not to witness - if you can call that luck. It's not running, he tells himself. He did his part as bait. What a very unheroic thing it would be to choose not to live just because the world thinks him a murderer.

Besides, he thinks he bought them enough time. Now, he can only hope that Nancy blows the guy to smithereens.

And so, he breaks the portal membrane and hops through, stumbling through the other side and collapsing to the ground.

Bracing himself for whatever police presence might remain, he is surprised to find yellow caution tape cordoning it off, like Eddie's trailer, but not much else. Maybe they really are all out to search for him. Not sure where he'll even be safe with an angry mob still potentially out there, Eddie makes a beeline for the one place he thinks he can hide until it's all over.

Skull Rock. )

Comments

[inhairently]

( It's almost a full day before Steve sets out looking for Eddie. Not by choice — Nancy had basically been one step away from knocking Steve out and dragging him to the hospital if he didn't go of his own volition. The hospital staff had a lot of questions. A kid with road rash is worrying enough. A kid with road rash and mysterious animal bites? They were one step away from calling Hawkins PD.

Luckily Steve managed to talk his way out of it (read: snuck out the moment he had a chance) and headed out to find Eddie.

"Steve," Robin had said with wide, worried eyes. "Don't blame yourself if you can't find him, okay?"

It had annoyed him, and he'd left in a huff, but he knows she has a point. They don't even know if Eddie made it out of the Upside Down alive. If he did, he may have skipped town. It would definitely be the smart thing to do, given the circumstances.

Steve just has to be sure, is the thing.

He checks out the more accessible spots first — Reefer Rick's, the trailer park, etc — even though he doesn't expect Eddie to be there. He just wants to cover all his bases before he goes traipsing out into the woods. He doesn't know how likely it is that Eddie might go to Skull Rock again but that's where he's headed next.

Stealth isn't even on his mind as he stomps through the brush, and his loud, rustling footsteps announce his presence long before anything else. )

[thefreak]

( Maybe Eddie should have left town at the first opportunity, but he just couldn't. Not yet, anyway. Maybe once he has confirmation that everyone is okay.

And, okay, maybe a part of him needs to see Steve one last time. It doesn't sit right with him that his last words might have been make him pay when so much else was left unsaid.

Out of everyone to come find him at Skull Rock, he doesn't expect Steve. So when he hears the rustling of the footsteps, he half-expects it to be the group of kids or even just Dustin. He doesn't burst out of his hiding spot right away, just in case it's not someone from their group, but he'd recognize that head of hair anywhere. )

Steve? ( Not Harrington. After everything they've been through together, it seems too impersonal. ) Holy shit, Steve. ( He bursts out of his hiding spot and rushes forward. )

[inhairently]

Eddie!

( Steve dashes forward, pulling Eddie into a hug before he even realizes he's doing it. The bandages taped to his back pinch his skin in protest of the sudden movement as if to remind him that he's in no position to be hugging anyone right now, but he doesn't care. Eddie made it.

This is the last piece of the puzzle. Steve finally feels like he can relax for the first time since 1984.

They won. They actually won.

So yeah, he hugs Eddie and ignores the way his wounds protest and savors this sense of relief and happiness, no strings attached, no shadow hanging overhead. )

Goddamn, dude. I really thought we'd lost you.

[thefreak]

( Eddie melts into Steve's hug immediately, his arms draping around Steve's shoulders and pulling him in much tighter than he has any business hugging Steve, considering their current state. He doesn't care, and Steve doesn't seem to care, and Eddie isn't about to let go of Steve in case this is all in his head, and they really did die.

But no, Steve doesn't disappear from his grip. He feels solid beneath Eddie's clinging arms, which show no sign of letting up anytime soon. It's over, and they both made it out the other end. Maybe Eddie still has to deal with the cops, but what else is new there? For now, he will savor this. )

I thought I was as good as toast, man. I thought I'd never see you again.