January 21st, 1984

Eddie Munson filed into the locker room with the rest of his classmates at Hawkins High. It was a particularly cold day, so he was grateful to be inside, even if the locker room smelled like five thousand sweaty socks got shoved down a garbage disposal. There was no air conditioning either, so despite the frigid weather, it was always somehow humid.

This was one of the many reasons Eddie hated gym with a burning passion. He preferred to avoid physical activity as much as possible, and the hazing from the rest of the boys was difficult to ignore. It didn't do him any favors that he enjoyed getting under their skin just as much as they enjoyed getting under his.

He took off his shirt and used it to dab away the sweat on his face. The Hawkins gym uniform was definitely something that didn't match his metal loving, hard rock aesthetic. Tiny green shorts with a white, nearly cropped shirt that - creatively - just said "GYM". He had his hair pulled back into a loose ponytail and was forced to take off his rings, thanks to the coach insisting upon it. Luckily, no one had said anything about the black nail polish, so it still felt like he had a piece of his signature identity, along with his tattoos.

Eddie started folding his shirt and putting away his shoes. When he glanced up, his attention was instantly captured by a few boys changing clothes across the room. It was by complete accident, he hadn't meant to look up and see them, but his brain turned to static the moment he did. The way their abs curved down leading to their shorts, the subtle flex of their shoulder blades as they moved. He felt his cheeks flush.

"Munson." A voice barked, breaking him out of his daze. He hadn't realized he was staring. "You should take a picture, it'll last longer."

Jason Carver. Ugh.

He was truly the definition of a prick. He and his gang of thick headed jocks had, had a target on Eddie's back since middle school. Eddie always bit back, so he wasn't sure why they kept it up. Maybe it was because they relished torturing the one closeted gay kid in school.

"Damn, I left my camera at home. Good idea, Jason." Eddie sneered. He turned around and shut the locker door, only to be shoved back into it.

"Creep."

Snickering sounded throughout the locker room. Eddie looked back at them with a glare, about to snap back, when a voice came from the other side of the room.

"Hey. Knock it off, Carver."

He looked up to find Steve Harrington standing by the door. Steve gave Jason a look that was clearly a warning, shaking his head. The jock looked back at Eddie, scoffed, and walked off.

Steve had always had power in the school. He was pretty much the authority on most things and it was by the sheer grace of god he decided to use his powers for good. At least according to Eddie.

Eddie rolled his eyes as they walked off and went to thank Harrington. Only when he turned around, Steve wasn't standing there.

Chrissy Cunningham was.

Her eyes were gone, replaced by gaping holes that left blood dripping down her cheeks. Her head hung limply to the side. He stared at her in horror and opened his mouth to scream, but it came out muffled, as if he were under water.

Chrissy raised her arm very slowly, pointing directly at Eddie. Before he could react, her finger cracked to the side, then her arm, and her legs. All bending at impossible, horrible angles.

To Eddie's terror, Chrissy began to lift off the ground. He covered his mouth and backed himself against the wall, tears brimming at his eyes.

Then, with a sickening crack, her jaw broke to the side.

Eddie's eyes shot open and he cried out, jolting up on the couch of Hopper and Joyce's living room. He looked all around him, breathing heavily, drenched in sweat.

It was a dream. Just a dream.

He ran a shaking hand through his hair and tried to steady his breathing. His heart was pounding with rapid, irregular beats. Suddenly Eddie felt a hand on his shoulder and nearly leapt out of his skin at the touch. Steve held up a hand, worry strewn across his face.

"Hey, hey. It's Steve. It's me."

Eddie stared up at him, wide eyed, still unable to control his breathing.

Then the nausea took over. He covered his mouth and shuddered as he peeled himself out of the covers.

"Eddie?" Steve whispered, trying not to wake the others. He followed as Eddie threw open the sliding door and ran outside. He only made it to the stairs before his knees buckled and he dry heaved, leaning against the railing for support.

Steve cursed under his breath and quickly helped Eddie slide down to a sitting position. He pat his back as the man shuddered. "Shit, Eddie, that must have been a crazy nightmare."

"It…" Eddie managed, "It was Chrissy… it's always Chrissy."

He balled his hands into fists and swallowed. His breathing slowly, steadily returned to normal as Steve cupped the back of his neck. Eddie never got anything up when he had these nights terrors. It was always over as quick as it began, but it knocked the wind out of him every time.

They sat in silence for a good while as Eddie regained his composure. After a few moments, Steve looked over at him.

"You have that dream a lot, huh?" He asked softly.

Eddie nodded a bit. "Yeah." He muttered. "Ever since that night. I'm uh… sorry you had to see that."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sorry you have to deal with that." Steve said. He squeezed the back of Eddie's neck softly.

Eddie looked up at him in soft surprise. Most guys wouldn't be caught dead being so touchy with their friends. Especially Eddie, since he was teased for liking boys since he was young. It was comforting, nice even. Something he wasn't used to at all.

And Steve looked so… so handsome. The way his brows were furrowed with worry over Eddie, how soft his skin looked, how full his lips were. Eddie's heart fluttered for a moment.

Then reality washed over him. Steve Harrington was untouchable. He'd almost forgotten. Eddie looked away, his heart sinking a little.

"It's fine." He muttered. "Thanks for checking on me. You didn't have to." He shifted from Steve's touch and stood up. "I'm going to go for a walk. I won't be able to sleep for the rest of the night anyway."

"You sure you'll be okay?" Steve asked.

"Who can say? I might get eaten by some animal… or maybe I'll eat them." Eddie flashed his fangs and gave himself devil horns with his fingers.

Steve snorted, relieved to see him joking. "Just be careful."

"You got it, darling." Eddie gave him a wink and then trotted down the steps towards the tree line. His grin dropped almost the moment he turned around. He didn't need Steve Harrington getting inside his head, worrying over him. Eddie had been down that road, letting a boy get him excited, thinking they had something.

It only lead to a broken heart.