"Okay, so," Steve began, a little hesitantly, "we're gonna have to figure out this whole blood situation."

They hadn't really broached the topic at all… it seemed that between the two of them, they'd mastered the subtle art at avoiding important conversations at any and all costs. Eddie sighed, perching his chin on his hand, nodding absently. In truth, Eddie's mind was lost in thought about the kids' theories. It was crazy, yes, but he couldn't deny that unfortunately… it seemed plausible. Why was any of this happening to him?

Steve continued. "I was thinking we could try to keep a regular schedule - "

Was the creature in his dreams real?

"- even ration it out a little. We'll want to stretch it out as much -"

Were there actually other vampires in Hawkins? If so, where were they?

"- don't want you losing control -"

What was going to happen? What was going to happen to him ? Was he-

"Eddie." Steve sighed, breaking him from the trance he'd inadvertently slipped into.

He blinked several times and sat up straight. "Hm?"

"Are you even listening?"

"Yeah, yeah. Totally." He lied, nodding profusely, definitely overdoing it. Harrington rolled his eyes and rubbed his face with a groan.

"I don't know why you're not taking this as seriously as you should. This is all about you and how to fix your situation."

"I am taking this seriously!" Eddie whined. He slumped back in his chair and sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "'Kay, so… I wasn't listening. I'm a little distracted by the fact that I might not be the only monster in Hawkins anymore. Sue me."

Steve's brows furrowed. Eddie had never referred to himself as monster before, and it certainly wasn't how Steve saw him. He wasn't completely human anymore, no, but that didn't mean he wasn't the same Eddie they'd practically gone to war with. The same one who DM'd the kid's campaigns, hated Steve's music, made them laugh when things got tense, and made everything dramatic to a fault. The same Eddie that fascinated Steve Harrington. He was not a monster, no matter how much he said it.

"Is that how you see yourself? A monster?"

Eddie's expression flickered for a moment. He should have been more measured with his words, this was not the time for a therapy session. "No, I-" he sighed, "forget it."

"Eddie -" Steve tried, but Munson waved him off.

"Come on, tell me about the blood thing or whatever." His tone was final. Steve pressed his lips together, but conceded. Eddie didn't want to talk about it, fine. He couldn't force it. Steve almost thought against it, but then decided fuck it, and reached out to take Eddie's hand. When their fingers interlaced, Eddie's expression softened as he glanced up at the boy in front of him.

"I know it's a lot to think about." Steve spoke quietly, full of sincerity. "I'm on your side, just know that. We all are." Despite Eddie brushing him off, he was still understanding. Frankly, it pissed Eddie off. Why was he so damn sweet and kind all the time? Did he ever take a day off?

Eddie sighed and nodded. "Right." After a moment, he pulled his hand away. It felt good to hold Steve's hand. He would have held it for hours if he could, but he couldn't stop feeling like everything he did was too much, like Steve would say 'Enough already' and get tired of him. The last thing he wanted to do was to come across as clingy. It wasn't as if they were dating, of course. They'd just kissed. That was all it was… a lapse of control. Even though Steve had assured him it wasn't just because of the bite, Eddie couldn't help but think it was entirely to do with it.

After they discussed what to do about Eddie's blood consumption ad nauseum , they finally came up with a solution. Since he could go a few days without blood - a week if he was really pushing it - Steve would let Eddie feed from him every three days. That gave him enough time to replenish his supply, as Eddie had put it, and then recover for the next feeding.

Using words like drinking, feeding, bleeding, draining, etc. honesty felt extremely morbid, and at the very least, downright strange. Not to mention that Eddie's bite not only helped him stay in control, it also made Steve Harrington horny. A fact that they were going to have to get used to every time day three rolled around, and something they intended to keep a well hidden secret. The only other person who knew about it was Robin Buckley and she had sworn herself to secrecy. Dustin made the suggestion that the group take rotations helping Eddie feed, to which he and Steve responded with a resounding absolutely fucking not.

A week went by with this new routine. To both of their collective shock, it actually seemed to work surprisingly well. Eddie was much less on edge and seemed healthier than he had in weeks. He rarely had bags under his eyes anymore, his skin was full of color, and his sleep had even gotten better. Instead of waking up every night with a night terror, it was much more rare, only when it had been a few days since the last feeding. It also had to do with the fact that he no longer woke up alone.

They'd actually slept in Steve's bed every night since the first time. More often than not, they'd wake up to discover that one of them had spooned or crawled over the other like a spider monkey. Steve always woke up with a warm feeling in his chest and a big, stupid smile that he couldn't get rid of. Meanwhile, Eddie would silently curse his sleeping self and peel away from him, blushing like a madman. Get a grip, Munson, he'd think.

This morning, after unlatching from a routine cuddle puddle and drinking their coffee, Steve took a seat on the stairs and readied a towel. "Are you ready?" He asked as he threw it over his shoulder. Eddie knelt down next to him and nodded. They usually did this later in the day, but after a particularly nasty nightmare and a pounding headache on Eddie's part, they figured the earlier, the better. Steve tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck as Eddie pulled him closer, extending his fangs.

Besides the obvious benefits of feeling like a god when he drank Steve's blood, he also often got rewarded with an exceptionally affectionate Steve Harrington. The floppy haired jock would get these sleepy, day-dreamy eyes and drape himself over Munson like a horny cardigan. Eddie would be lying if he said he didn't absolutely love this version of Steve, with his loopy, corny lines and particularly grabby hands. Despite this, his heart ached ever so slightly at the thought that he was making Steve act like this. That if he hadn't bit him, Steve would never have looked his way.

Eddie's lips hovered over Steve's skin, his warm breath eliciting shudders from Steve. He couldn't help but grin at how shivery Steve Harrington got when something felt good. It sent a thrill through Munson every time he achieved that reaction, so he tried to push a little more each time. After all, anything goes when it's feeding time, so he wanted to see exactly what he could get away with.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Eddie bit into the skin and let the salty, lovely red hit his tongue. Steve shuddered out a breath as Eddie wrapped an arm around his back to keep him upright. He often got a little wobbly during these feedings, but Eddie always kept him steady. Without fail, the ravenous hunger would pass, the burning in his throat soothed away, and he was in complete control as his headache faded into nothing. Steve's blood was like a miracle drug that had Eddie coming back for more and more.

Steve groaned and gripped the back of Eddie's head, pulling him closer, as if that were even possible. Blood ran down his neck, ruining the perfect white of the towel and staining it with scarlet. It was so wrong but in all the best ways. Eddie slid a hand down Steve's thigh, gripping it with his fingers. Steve jolted a little in surprise, but found his hips shifting at the sensation as he shivered all over.

Oh. Eddie thought. Now this is new.

As he pondered this, a curious idea entered his mind. Steve might kill him for this, and maybe he was going a bit too far… but this was for science. Yeah, that's how he'd rationalize it. Eddie unlatched his fangs and licked over the marks, but instead of pulling away, he bared them again and bit into another spot on his neck, opening yet another wound. Steve's jaw dropped as he felt pleasure shooting through his spine. He arched his back and gripped Eddie's shirt for dear life, suppressing all the embarrassing moans he almost let slip.

"Eddie - " He gasped, eyes fluttering closed as he shivered. "What are you - fuck -"

Eddie chuckled into his neck as he unlatched and licked the wound a final time. He kissed the spot gently as an apology and wrapped his arms around Harrington. "Sorry, sorry." He was really trying to hide his shit eating grin.

Steve nearly collapsed into Eddie as he tried to come down from that. He shook his head, gripping his shirt for support. "Were you trying to kill me or something?" He breathed, completely dazed. "Jesus…"

Eddie snickered as he pat the man's back. "Just testing something out, my bad." He moved Steve's hair from his eyes while also forcing him to look up at him. "Looks like it was a hit."

Steve scoffed and slapped his hand away. "Oh, fuck you."

Before Eddie could respond, a knock came from the front door. Their gazes shot up, suddenly realizing that - to their horror - they were in full view of the porch window. Mercifully, it was Robin who waved to them, but stopped when she noted the blood on the towel, the blood smeared on Eddie's chin, the sleepy looking Steve, and the arm around Steve's lower back. She made no attempt to hide her disgust and shielded her eyes as if she'd just seen them naked.

"Jesus Christ, you two, in broad daylight?"

Eddie snorted. "Come on, Buckley, you act like you've never seen two boys drink each other's blood before!" He stood, letting Steve catch himself on the stairs and unlocked the door for her. She stepped in, giving him a glare, before looking down at Steve, expression turning worried when she saw he was flushed and a little wobbly.

"Hey, you okay? He didn't take too much did he- Oh my god." Robin whipped around and pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to compose herself.

Why? Because she just saw her best friend, Steve Harrington, hard as a rock in his sweatpants. He looked down and quickly dropped his hands, covering the issue (read: giant, embarrassingly prominent erection), somehow even more bright red than before. Eddie's eyebrows shot up behind his bangs as he stifled a laugh, turning a little pink himself. He'd certainly never gotten that reaction before.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't just see that." She gritted out.

Eddie clapped a hand on her shoulder and guided her to the living room. He smirked back at Steve and cocked his head upstairs, to where Harrington retreated. "Robin! So good to see you. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

She threw a sidelong glare at him. "You forgot didn't you?"

Eddie bit his lip and squinted, trying to summon up whatever it was he was supposed to have done. He only drew a blank. "Uh, no… but go ahead and remind me."

Robin rolled her eyes. "You're both unbelievable." She turned around to face him. "It's Nancy's birthday today. We're going to the lake. We've had this planned for, what, three weeks? "

His eyes widened and he smacked a hand over his mouth. "Oh shit. We're going to hell."

"Uh-huh."

"We didn't get her anything."

"Oh, that's fine." She waved her hand in the air, dismissively. "She said she didn't want any gifts. Just a fun day that doesn't involve the apocalypse, or Vecna, or anything to do with the Upside Down."

Eddie sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Damn it. If I'd have known, I wouldn't have bitten Steve until after the party. He's gonna be down for the count today."

"Like… completely dead to the world 'down for the count'?"

"Just about."

Robin sighed, but nodded. "Great. Well… I think she'll be disappointed but I'm sure she'll understand. Go tell him."

Eddie shot a thumbs up her way before trotting upstairs. When he entered the room, he found Steve curled up on the bed, clearly dozing off. He sighed and knelt down beside him, giving him a gentle shake.

"Steve." He whispered. The other man cracked open an eye and grunted sleepily. He looked up at Eddie, blinking away the drowsiness. "We kinda fucked up."

"Hm?" Steve hummed, letting his eyes fall closed again.

"It's Nancy's birthday." Eddie winced. "We forgot."

At this, Steve's eyes shot open."Shit."

"I know."

"We're going to hell."

"That's what I said!"

Steve sat up, then suddenly looked at Munson. "We didn't get her anything."

Eddie held up his hands. "I know, I know, it's okay. She said she didn't want anything."

"People always want something, that's just something they say to be nice." He groaned and covered his face. After a moment, he sat up and threw off the covers. "Lemme grab my swimsuit."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Eddie quickly pushed his shoulders back down onto the bed. "I just drained you, Steve, you can't be jumping into lakes and shit."

"What? Come on, I feel fine."

"Robin said Nancy will understand if you don't go. Seriously, just stay in today -"

Steve just ignored him and got up anyway, rifling through his drawer. "I'm not missing Nancy's birthday, Eddie. Come on, you can wear these." He tossed the little red lifeguard shorts at him.

Eddie caught them and looked up at Steve, unamused. "Oh, you'd love that, wouldn't you?"

Steve looked back at him and smirked before grabbing his swim trunks. He stood up, but the sudden motion dizzied him almost immediately. Steve's knees buckled a little as he gripped the dresser for support. Eddie quickly ran over and grabbed an arm to steady him.

"Hey, hey. Careful." He groaned. "See? Look, I really don't think it's a good idea. I shouldn't even go, what if someone sees me?"

When Steve finally got his bearings, he sat down on the bed and gave Eddie a firm look. "Eddie, it's fine. I don't even have to get in the water, I can sit on the shore the whole time. Also, the lake is in the middle of nowhere, literally no one will be there but us."

"How do you know that?" Eddie grumbled. To his surprise, Steve leaned in and kissed him on the lips.

When he pulled away, Steve smirked. "It's. Fine . Okay? Since when are you the worrier type, Munson?"

"I am not the worrier type." He hissed, but his features softened slightly and he bit his lip. "Can I have another kiss? Just for the road."

Steve grinned but rolled his eyes like it was an enormous request. "Jeez, Munson, you're bleeding me dry, here. What, do you think these things grow on trees?"

Eddie scoffed and shoved Steve a little, moving away from him. "Oh my god, forget it." A laugh bubbled from Steve's chest as he pulled him back.

"No no no no, come back!"

Eddie tried to fight it, he really did, but Steve twisted him around and stole a kiss anyway. Eddie pushed him off and wiped his lips as if he were disgusted, but in reality, he was charmed to the core . It felt like he was blushing all over.

"Just get your trunks on, Harrington." Eddie shot him a playful glare and yanked the red lifeguard shorts from their spot on the bed. He moved to the bathroom to change and shut the door behind him, sinking his back against it.

God. The things Steve Harrington does to him. He actually couldn't help the big, dumb grin he had on his face as he changed into the swimsuit, thankful he had the privacy to fangirl like an idiot in peace.

Robin was surprised when Steve came downstairs to join them, but secretly, she was really happy he was coming along. She knew Nancy would appreciate him being there just as much as she would enjoy finally getting a chance to spend time with her best friend again. Ever since the day Eddie came back into Hawkins, she'd rarely gotten to just hang out with Steve beyond work.

Not that she wasn't happy to see Munson again - despite his innate thirst for blood and the fact that he was using Steve as a bonafide meal replacer - but as much as she hated to admit it… she kinda missed her best friend.

When they finally pulled up onto the lakeshore, everyone else was already there. Jonathan and Will were wrestling in the water while Lucas, Mike, and Eleven played Marco Polo. Of course, that eventually devolved into Lucas complaining about Eleven's mind powers, stating that she was just going to win every time. He wasn't wrong, but Mike often looked the other way to make his girl happy. She would just smirk and pretend she didn't know what Lucas was even talking about.

Dustin was over by the grill with Argyle, who showed him how to properly cook a burger patty, skipping over all the actual instructions and telling him to just 'feel when the patty is done in your soul, my dude'. Eddie and Robin hoisted the cooler out of the trunk while Steve grabbed their bags. He'd offered to help, but Eddie had insisted he sit his ass down.

"You realize I'm not dying, right?" Steve grumbled as he walked next to them.

"Not another word Harrington." Eddie replied. "When you aren't missing a liter of blood, you can carry all the coolers you want."

Robin looked a little green at that. "Can we please stop talking about blood? I'm gonna hurl."

"Guys! You made it!"

Their attention turned to the shore to find Nancy walking over, beer in hand. She smiled brightly as she tossed off her coverup to reveal a maroon bikini underneath. Robin's hands slipped from the cooler handle, sending her side slamming into the sand. Eddie cursed loudly, nearly losing his balance.

"What the - Buckley!"

Robin stammered her apologies and picked it back up, beet red in the face. She grinned nervously at Nancy as they brought the cooler to the grills. Nancy walked over to Steve and gave him a hug.

"I'm glad you guys could come! I was starting to get worried." She chuckled. Steve smiled as they made their way to the others.

"Sorry, had to take care of some things first."

Nancy glanced at his neck, not missing the fresh bite marks that peppered the skin. She knew what he meant. "Right…" She muttered. "Is it… weird? Having to give him blood, I mean?"

Steve thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, I mean, why would it be weird? He needs it, right?"

"I know, I just meant since, you know…" She chuckled awkwardly. "Since you're both guys, I mean."

Steve hesitated. He wasn't sure why this question made him so nervous, or why he thought Nancy Wheeler of all people would be uncomfortable with his answer. They'd dated, and things hadn't worked out in the end, but she never once made Steve feel bad about who he was. After a minute of gathering his thoughts, he stopped walking, "No, it's not weird. It probably should be, but…" He bit his lip. "I actually… There's sort of something I need to tell you."

She inclined her head, brows furrowing with concern. "Okay."

He didn't know if his heart had stopped or if it was beating too fast to tell. Steve glanced over at Eddie who had begun helping Argyle at the grill. He was all smiles, all radiant glow under the sun. Eddie's joy was utterly infectious. Despite his nerves, Steve couldn't help but smile as well.

"I think…" He began, swallowing down his fear. "I think I'm bisexual."

There it was. The second it was out, it felt like time had stopped. Now it was real. He'd told someone. Nancy didn't speak for a moment. She stared up at him with an expression that, to Steve, either meant she was about to cry, scream, or spit on him. He swallowed and opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, Nancy wrapped her arms around him in the tightest hug she'd ever given in her life.

Face buried in Steve's shoulder, she mumbled something he couldn't quite hear. He held her back tightly and lowered his head so that he could listen. "Hm?"

Nancy looked up at him, eyes a little watery and smiled. She laughed and wiped her tears. "Steve… I think I am too."

He grinned wide and crushed her back into the hug. She laughed when he picked her up and spun her around, giving her a huge kiss on the head. After their mini celebration and promises to definitely talk more later, they headed towards the shore to join the rest of the group. Eddie smiled at them as they approached and spread his arms wide. "Finally! Welcome back to your own party, Wheeler. You guys look awfully chipper."

Steve and Nancy exchanged looks and chuckled. "Just having a good day." Steve said. Though Eddie knew there was more to the story, he elected to ask later. His favorite activity was prying. "I'll definitely snag a beer, though." Steve walked around Eddie to reach into the cooler, placing a hand on his lower back as he scooted past. The act was imperceptible, tiny, but it wasn't a meaningless gesture and Eddie knew it. He wondered if this was how Steve flirted with girls to get their attention, if this is how he reeled them in time and time again. When he grabbed his drink and straightened again, Steve clinked his can against Eddie's, flashing him a grin and a wink before he walked to join the others. Oh, he was good.

Eddie scoffed. That son of a bitch… He wasn't going to let Harrington have all the fun. Eddie Munson could play ball too.