Chapter One: Opposites Attract
Having landed his first gig in quite some time enthralled Eddie. Between DMing D&D sessions and studying for his finals, he found he had no time at all to focus on his love for music. SilverBall Club in Boston had received an audition tape from him and really dug his style. "Master of Puppets" was the first song he recorded. Every time a venue listened to it, they seemed to want to book him almost immediately after. Both music and D&D were escapes for Eddie. Life was pretty good now, but wasn't always that way. Nowadays they were both well-loved hobbies he enjoyed sharing with other people.
It was Friday night and the club was packed. Members of his D&D party were in attendance cheering him on, along with some of the other friends he had made since moving to Boston. Through some networking, he had become roommates with a fellow law student named Daniel. Together, they rented a modest two bedroom apartment. It wasn't large, nor was it in the fanciest area, but it felt like home to Eddie. He had an entire bedroom that wasn't closet sized in a trailer. The apartment didn't smell like musk, and there weren't beer bottles strewn about. His bedspread was no longer ratty and stained.
Normalcy was unfamiliar for Eddie. For years, his life had been quiet. All the chaos tapered off over the past couple of years. People of Hawkins were apologetic towards him more than anything. They understood his was falsely accused and felt guilty for the witch hunt they led against him. It was a small town, so someone else eventually became the town sensation. What Eddie could not predict was that his life once again was going to be going on a trajectory that would surprise him. It was better to never get too comfortable.
Following his set, where his final song was a cover of "Poison" from Alice Cooper, he joined his friends who had come to support his band. Back home, his band was called Corroded Coffin. He loved playing with the guys whenever they reunited, but he couldn't go without playing while in Boston. Here he formed a band called Indiana Panic. It was his way of paying homage to his home, while poking fun at the Satanic Panic that led to the temporary derailment of his life.
A couple of girls almost immediately after Eddie had joined his friends, two girls came clambering towards him. They clearly were excited to see him and had consumed a couple of alcoholic beverages. They looked like they were just old enough to be in a club. One was platinum blonde with a high ponytail, while the other was a light brunette with bangs and her hair looked like she sprayed an entire can of Aquanet in it. Bigger may not have been better in this case.
"Wow, you are so talented," the blonde slurred out with a hiccup.
Eddie politely smiled at the twosome. He knew it was always better to be gracious whenever someone approached him. The last thing he needed was to have a sullied reputation again. "Thank you ladies, truly." He gratefully clasped his hands together. "I am here to entertain, after all. What was your favorite song from the set?"
The brunette straightened her shoulders and inclined her chin as though she was going to say something groundbreaking. "Oh, I know! My favorite was the Cannibals song – She Dines Me Crazy! Isn't it funny that they so proudly flaunt their cannibalism?!"
With each word the girl uttered, Eddie felt the corners of his lips fighting to downturn. She dines me crazy, and the song was just by Cannibals? Robin and Steve would have had a field day with this one. They probably would have referenced The Hills Have Eyes to test this girl's knowledge of cannibalistic tendencies. Other groupie-wannabes had approached him before, but sometimes they actually knew the music with was impressive. Once the brunette's attempt(?) processed, he went to respond. Before he could get the words out, he heard howling laughter from over his right shoulder.
With his eyebrow quirked, Eddie looked over his shoulder. His downturned mouth opened to a full gaping jaw. The girl who stood came into view was easily one of the most stunning girls he had ever laid eyes on. Coming from a small town, that wasn't necessarily hard, but he was still taken by her beauty. Not wanting to be impolite, he ceremoniously bowed to the fans who had approached him. "If you'd excuse me ladies, I have just spotted a familiar face. We will have to catch up later." Both lies, of course. He was taken by this newcomer and needed to speak to her.
Caramel layers of hair framed her heart-shaped face. The stranger's lips were full. She wore a red dress that made her look like an absolute vixen. It danced just above the knee of her long, slender legs. Matching, strappy sandals completed the look on her feet. Being a man, he was able to observe her look quickly before crossing the space that led him to her.
"Your hair looks like a Milky Way," Eddie boldly commented before he could contain himself. As soon as the words were uttered, he shyly grabbed his own locks and shielded his mouth with them. Now he was embarrassed. With all the openers, he had to go with that one?
Surprise danced across her features as her cerulean eyes focused on him. "I beg your pardon? The Milky Way?" Her nose wrinkled as she questioned him incredulity.
Lips pressed together, he dropped his hair from his fingers, revealing his mouth. Another band had now started so he had to raise his voice. "No, not THE Milky Way. I meant like the candy…" he trailed off, feeling as though he had put his foot in his mouth some more.
Thin arms crossed over her chest as she learned back against the nearby wall. Whether it was amusement gracing her face, or annoyance, the young man couldn't tell. "So, are you saying my hair looks sticky, Eddie?" She inquired, looking at him expectantly.
Without a doubt, he was managing to make this worse for himself. Just mere moments ago, he had been unfairly judging an excited club-goer for verbalizing something incorrectly and now here he was doing the exact same. It was almost as though karma was rapidly coming back to bite him.
"No, not sticky. I just meant the color." He gestured to her curled hair. "The swirls of blonde with your brown hair. It reminds me of caramel." He paused, then cocked his head to the side. "Wait, how do you know my name? I never introduced myself to you."
"Batting 0-0 tonight, aren't you?" The confident brunette teased. "You introduced yourself at the beginning of your set. I happened to listen to more than just your music, if you must know."
The pair were both speaking in louder tones to hear each other. They weren't yelling, but it certainly was more difficult to converse in this environment.
Pushing herself off the wall, the mystery girl learned forward. Her small hand rested on his shoulder as she spoke in his ear. "Listen, I would love to stay and chat about the Cannibals with you, but I should get going. Maybe you'll see me again and you can try a lame ass line on me then." With an almost sympathetic pat, she moved away from Eddie and the wall, her shoulder grazing him as she passed.
Now feeling self-conscious about the encounter, blush creeped across his cheeks. At every turn, he felt as though he was striking out. It was as thought he had allowed his elation from such a great show to cloud his intelligence. His eyes remained transfixed on the mystery woman as she exited the club. One thing was for certain: he wanted another chance to speak and show how cool and collected he could be. Another thing was certain, too, unfortunately: Boston was a large city. Finding a girl like that, as beautiful as she was, would be tricky.
