Two cups of coffee sat on the bedside table, but once again, they'd gone untouched and turned cold. Eddie had picked out a faded Hot Springs, Colorado mug that had a cartoon bear soaking in a spring for Steve, and decided on the Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree mug again for himself. That was now his mug. Steve had picked it out for him, after all. Somehow, he thought it made the coffee taste better.

Steve held the back of Eddie's neck as he straddled him, chests pressed together, legs interlocked. He felt like he was thirteen again, not being able to keep his hands off a girlfriend for one second, the moment his parents left the room. Eddie wrapped his arms around Steve's midsection as they kissed, humming affectionately into his mouth. It was all so tame and… sweet. Sickeningly sweet. Eddie was in danger of getting a cavity. It blew his mind a little to see Steve like this. Trepidatious, nervous to hold hands for god's sake.

Steve was known as a heartbreaker at Hawkins High. His confidence was unwavering and everyone knew it. Steve had girls figured out completely, knew how to make them blush, knew just what to say to wrap them around his pretty little finger… but boys? Boys were new territory. Boys made Steve Harrington's brain short circuit in a way he was wholly unfamiliar with. It should be easy: just apply what you know about how to flirt with girls to guys, right? Not so! It didn't help that Hawkins, Indiana wasn't exactly the most diverse or open-minded town… The thought of diving into something like this was, frankly, terrifying. Not to mention if his parents ever found out…

"Something on your mind?" Eddie mumbled beneath his lips.

Steve pulled away just a bit, back to reality. "Hm?"

"You got all rigid, seemed kinda far away." Eddie chuckled and moved some of Steve's hair to see him better. "Am I that bad at this?"

"No, no." Steve said quickly. He kissed him again before rolling off and grabbing the coffee mug. "Sorry. Just tired." Steve took a small sip, frowning at the temperature. "Hm."

"Cold?" Eddie asked as he snuggled into Steve's chest. Steve wrapped an arm around him and scratched his scalp softly, earning him a happy grumble.

"A little, but it's still good. You've got all the ratios down."

"Two sugars and a splash of cream." Eddie mumbled.

Steve wasn't sure anyone had ever remembered how he liked his coffee. It made his chest feel warm, even as the cool drink went down.

"Bingo." He took another sip. "How are the girls? They awake yet?"

Jonathan had graciously brought them all home last night, promising to be back over in the morning with donuts and plenty of ibuprofen. Robin and Nancy were gone to the world when they finally pulled back up, so Eddie helped carry them inside. Steve was honestly so glad they were able to have a good time. He could have sworn he'd caught a glimpse of a drunken kiss in the corner of his eye, but he wasn't sure. He'd have to bother Robin about it later.

"Oh, still very much passed out. I put trash cans by the bed just in case."

Steve chuckled. "Good call."

"I know, it's like I'm smart or something." Eddie smirked, gaining a pinch to his side. He slapped Steve's hand away with a laugh, finally pushing off to drink his own coffee.

Eddie enjoyed moments like this. He liked waking up next to Steve, drinking coffee with him, enjoying the sleepy morning sun. It was so comfortable and domestic, and it was with Steve fucking Harrington. Not a boyfriend or a partner or anything like that. Just Steve. It was slow and it was new, and it was lovely.

"Hey," Steve began, a hint of nervousness in his voice, "I sort of… uh, have something for you."

Eddie blinked but cracked a smile. "You do?"

"Yeah, uh, it's not anything crazy, I don't want you to get overly excited or anything. Super simple, nothing special - "

Eddie snorted. "You're really hyping this gift up, Harrington, I'm on the edge of my seat here."

Steve sighed and nodded, realizing that he was clarifying before he even brought out the damn thing. He always felt the need to clarify every little action. "Right. Just… wait here."

Steve climbed out of bed and made his way to his dresser. He rifled through for a moment, and Eddie briefly wondered if it was going to be something… let's just say risqué… before Steve shut it and turned around. He brought over a small, book-sized box and held it out sheepishly, biting his lip.

Eddie kicked his feet up on the bed and gasped dramatically, hand daintily on his heart. "For me?"

Steve snorted. "Just take it, Munson."

Eddie snatched it and undid the ribbon. "I have to say, Steve, I am morbidly curious~" He mused as he opened the package. When he looked down, however, his brows furrowed. Inside, sitting atop an envelope, was a small velvet pouch tied with a string at the top. Eddie picked it up, revealing a familiar plastic clacking sound coming from within.

"No way... did you get me dice?" He asked with a curious grin.

"Yeah." Steve cleared his throat. "I know you lost pretty much all your D&D stuff when the 'end of the world' happened, so… I thought this might be a start to getting it all back. I had to get the kids to help me pick them out - I didn't even know there were so many kinds of dice."

Eddie emptied the bag and let them fall into his palm. They were black with red, misty marbling throughout and embossed scarlet letters. He couldn't help but grin as he jangled them around. "Oh, these are bitchin'!"

Steve's smile grew a little wider. "There's more, actually. Under the note."

Eddie raised the envelope and turned it over curiously, before looking down into the box. His jaw dropped. "Steve. No fucking way." Steve bit his lip and grinned as Eddie picked up a cassette and studied the graphic intensely. "How did you - this is the new Iron Maiden album! How the fuck do you know about Iron Maiden?"

"Excuse you , I can be cool every once in a while."

"You didn't even know who Ozzy Osbourne was." Eddie deadpanned.

Steve opened his mouth to respond but Eddie just raised an eyebrow as if to say 'go on…'. Instead, Steve snorted. "Okay, yeah, Dustin told me you liked them."

"There it is." Eddie chuckled. He looked at the cassette again and his smile grew wide again. Steve had never seen him so giddy. "Dude! I can't wait to listen to this." He looked up at Steve again and raised an eyebrow. "Can I ask what I did to deserve these lovely gifts?"

"Well, you missed a birthday while you were gone and-" Eddie was about to protest, but Steve held up a hand, '-dude, just let me finish. I know you don't ever celebrate them and I just - I hate the idea that no one's ever gotten you a birthday gift before. I know it's not much, but… um… happy birthday, Eddie."

Eddie stared up at him, brows furrowed. He looked down at the set of dice and the cassette, and couldn't help but smile, swallowing thickly. "Well, shit. That's…" He shook his head, utterly touched.

"You can tell me if you hate it."

Eddie laughed. "Oh my god, shut up. C'mere already." Eddie opened his arms and brought Steve in for a hug, grateful for the distraction. He wasn't about to get tears and snot all over Steve's comforter. He kissed his cheek, "I love 'em, Stevie. Thank you." Eddie drew back and moved to pick up the envelope.

"Oh! Uh, wait." Steve said quickly. "Actually, I was hoping you could save that. Read it later, I mean."

"Later?"

"Yeah. It's lame, I know, but just - don't open it yet."

Eddie smirked, pretending he was going to tear it open. "Come on, how long am I gonna have to wait?"

Steve snatched it and put it inside his bedside drawer, shutting it away. "Don't even think about it."

"Why write me a note and then tell me not to read it?"

"You can read it, just not yet."

Eddie rolled his eyes and snorted. " Fine." He laced their fingers together, pulling Steve closer. "I guess I'm gonna need another gift in the meantime to make up for the letter, then."

Steve smirked. "What, the dice and the album weren't good enough for you?" He slid onto Eddie's lap and cupped his chin. "That's kind of greedy."

Eddie hovered over his lips with a grin. "You have no idea..."

"Steeeeve!" A voice called from the other side of the house. The boys parted with a sigh. "Where's your bathroom?"

Steve gave Eddie an annoyed look and called back. "Last door on the left!"

He went to lean back in, but Robin shouted again. "Also you're not allowed to be mad, okay?"

Pulling back again, Steve pinched the bridge of his nose. "Robin, what did you do?"

"Okay it wasn't me! Nancy may or may not have thrown up by the bed."

Eddie threw his hands up. "I put trash cans there for a reason!"

"She missed, I don't know!"

Steve groaned and peeled himself off of Eddie. There went the peaceful morning they'd been hoping for. It was nice while it lasted.

Eddie helped both girls into the bathroom while Steve cleaned up the mess Nancy had made. It wasn't easy - scrubbing puke off of the outlandishly expensive rug that sat beside his parents' bed was proving to be much more difficult than he expected. As he sprayed the fabric with carpet cleaner for the fourth time, he decided that Nancy Wheeler owed him herlife.

Eddie stuck his head in the door frame. "Psst." Steve glanced up at him. "More coffee, big boy?"

Steve's cheeks heated up a little. He still hadn't recovered from the first time Eddie had called him that in the van. "Uh… Yeah - Yes please." He cleared his throat and returned his attention to the rug.

"Coming right up. Also, I'm making breakfast. Robin somehow wants eggs right now." He gave Steve a disgusted expression and shook his head, before ducking out of the room again. Steve just chuckled and turned to continue his work. When he was finally convinced that he had cleaned to the best of his abilities (which frankly, as a kid who never once had to do any chores, were quite lacking) he made his way over to the bathroom. Robin brushed her teeth groggily while Nancy was firmly stationed over the toilet. Eddie had set them up with two giant cups of water and an Alka-Seltzer to pair.

"Morning ladies." Steve leaned against the counter while Nancy relinquished what little food she'd had yesterday into the toilet bowl.

Robin winced and gave Steve a sympathetic look. "Sorry about the carpet."

"Sorry 'bout the carpet." Nancy managed.

Steve waved that off and shrugged. "Nah, it's fine, don't worry about it. I think they were thinking about getting rid of it anyway." He lied. "Kind of clashes with the wallpaper." His parents were absolutely going to kill him, but at this point, who cares? He'd gotten way worse for less. Steve suddenly blinked. "Wait, who's toothbrush is that?"

"Yours." Robin said casually.

"Robin! Gross!"

"Oh, come on, I'd let you use my toothbrush."

Steve scrunched up his nose. "I don't want to use your toothbrush."

"But I'd let you!"

He rolled his eyes. "For the love of… Look, Eddie's making eggs. Just come down when you're ready." Hearing this, Nancy's face screwed up in disgust as she fought the urge to gag. The fact that Robin could even stomach the texture of eggs while in the throes of a hangover bewildered Steve to no end, but Robin Buckley often eluded logic and explanation.

He made his way downstairs just as Eddie flipped over an omelet, humming a tune Steve didn't recognize. Steve listened quietly for a moment as Eddie bobbed his head a bit to the music he was making. He actually sounded, to Steve's surprise, really good. He hit all the high notes and added a flair of falsetto here and there, not performing or showing off, just singing for himself. Steve looked over his shoulder to make sure the girls were still upstairs and then walked up behind Eddie, wrapping his arms around his waist.

"You sound good, Munson." He chuckled when Eddie jumped.

"Jesus, you scared me." Eddie pinched Harrington's side affectionately. "I didn't hear you walk in."

"Sorry." Steve smirked. He rested his chin on Eddie's shoulder. "I didn't know you could sing."

Eddie plated the omelet and turned off the oven. "I don't know about that ." He chuckled. "I was in a band, though."

"Really?"

"Mhm." He turned around so that he could face Steve and smiled when the man pulled him closer. "Corroded Coffin."

" Corroded Coffin? Really?"

"What?" Eddie gawked. "It's cool."

"It's definitely not." He tried to go in for a kiss, but Eddie veered away and scoffed.

"You insult my very cool band and then think I'm gonna give you a kiss, Harrington? You're out of your mind."

Steve pouted, but Eddie wasn't having any of that. He rolled his eyes and turned back to clean up the mess from the stove. Steve stole a quick kiss on his neck before Eddie could squirm away and chuckled when he was swatted away. "I'm sorry, okay. Your band is very cool. What were you humming?"

Eddie sighed. "You've definitely never heard of it. It's Neon Knights by Black Sabbath."

"Nope, but it sounds cool. You should show me sometime."

"Hmm, maybe I will." He hummed thoughtfully. "... Only if you tell me your favorite song."

Steve pulled back with a snort. "You barely even tried to figure it out."

"You said I'd never be able to guess it. Come on, tell me."

Steve sighed and smirked. "Fine. It's Annie's Song. "Eddie stared at him. "You know, John Denver?"

"Ah, that's why. No idea who that is."

"You don't know - Dude, John Denver! 'Sunshine On My Shoulders'? 'Take Me Home, Country Roads?'"

Eddie made a face. "Oh, god. Don't tell me you're into country music."

"What? No, it's not - god, forget it. You are so pretentious."

"How about this," Eddie turned around and poked Steve's chest with the fork, "I'll show you Neon Knights if you'll show me Andy's, Anne's, whatever it is -"

"Annie's Song."

"That one! Deal?"

Steve sighed but chuckled as he snatched the fork from him. "Deal."

Robin finally walked in, rubbing her eyes with a yawn. Steve jumped back from Eddie like he had the plague and busied himself with pouring himself some coffee.

"Ugh, my head is killing me." She groaned.

Eddie frowned at Steve's reaction as the familiar smell of copper swelled in his senses. Steve was nervous, maybe even… scared? Of Robin seeing them? What the hell was that?

Not to mention that for some reason, the scent of Steve's blood clouded his mind, and he felt his throat constrict. As if someone put a magnifying lens to Steve's heartbeat.

"This for me?" She motioned to the omelet.

Eddie blinked, shaken out of his thoughts. "Uh, yeah. All yours."

Robin clasped her hands together before plopping down on the kitchen chair. "I am forever in your debt, Munson, lord of omelets."

Normally he would chuckle and crack a joke in response, but all of his senses were heightened, screaming at him. He could barely focus as Robin talked about her plans for the day, how yesterday went, etc. because the slight rush of Steve's blood was making his head spin. He was certain he'd never felt off like this before.

Steve listened to Robin as he distractedly reached into the drawer for a spoon to stir his coffee. Eddie could feel his own heart beating in his ears. Something was wrong. He was about to excuse himself from the conversation, to get away, when Steve suddenly hissed in pain. Eddie's eyes shot up as he watched blood bead and dribble down Steve's finger.

"Shit." Steve muttered, reaching for a towel.

"What happened?" Robin worried. She got up to inspect his finger.

"It's fine, I accidentally grabbed a knife." He winced when she uncovered the towel to see it.

"Oh shit, that's deep." Robin cringed. "Eddie, can you go grab - … Eddie…?"

Steve looked at her in confusion, then up at Eddie. Eddie's eyes were fixed on Steve's finger as blood soaked through the towel, the deep red of his irises somehow looked brighter, transfixed as his jaw went lax and he licked over his fangs.

"Whoa, Eddie." He muttered, trying to hide his finger behind his other hand. "What's wrong?"

Eddie couldn't think straight. His mind felt clouded, like the sane part of himself that was telling him to get a grip was getting fainter and fainter. He'd seen Steve bleed before, he'd even drank from him, there was no reason a tiny bit of blood should be doing this to him. He gripped his own shirt with white knuckles and backed himself against the counter just to ground himself. Get a goddamned grip, Munson.

"What's going on?" Robin asked, a slight tremor in her voice as she looked at Steve. "Is he okay?"

Robin's heart was beating faster now. Eddie could smell it. He could hear it. Fuck fuck fuck.

Steve watched as Eddie's eyes shifted to Robin. Feral hunger lapped at his features, something he'd seen only once before. "Eddie, hey." He said quickly. "Come on, talk to me." Steve put his arm in front of Robin, beckoning her to move behind him. When she did, Eddie's eyes locked into his again.

"Steve." He managed to grit out.

"I'm here, what's going on? What can I do?"

Eddie squeezed his eyes shut as his claws began ripping at the fabric of his shirt. "I don't… I don't know - I… Steve?" He looked up, his eyes catching the light the way a wolf's eyes would in headlights. "Can I just have a little bit?" It was like he was in a trance now. He pushed himself from the counter, causing the other two to flinch.

"Whoa, whoa, stay right there, okay?" Steve said quickly, but it was as if Eddie hadn't heard him.

"I'm just… really thirsty, Steve. Just a little." Eddie begged, continuing forward. This wasn't the Eddie that Steve recognized. This Eddie was desperate, feral. "Don't be fucking selfish, okay?" He snarled.

Steve flinched. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. Eddie would never act like this in any normal situation. He glanced at the doorway and swallowed. It was a gamble. If he could make it there, maybe Eddie would follow him, he'd be able to lead him away from Robin, but he wasn't even sure he could make it there. Eddie was fast, especially when he was out of control.

"Eddie, listen to me. You're not thinking right now." Steve quietly put Robin's hand over the knife and took a step backwards. She gripped it with shaking hands and hid it behind her back. "You can have some blood, okay? I'll give it to you. Just calm down."

Eddie watched Steve slowly move towards the door. Was he trying to leave? No, no, that couldn't happen. Didn't he know he was starving? Silly, stupid human.

Eddie bared his fangs at Steve, recognition slowly slipping from his mind. Prey. He was prey. He was cattle and he needed to be slaughtered. The logical part of his brain was beginning to go completely dormant. G od, Eddie was hungry.

Steve made one last attempt to reason with him, but it was clear Eddie wasn't listening anymore. His eyes were transfixed on the blood seeping from his finger. Steve had no other choice. In one sudden move, Steve forced his legs to spring into action as he bolted towards the door. Eddie hissed viciously and leapt after him. Steve barely made it four steps before Eddie had him pinned to the floor. Robin screamed and backed into the counter as Steve tried to push him off, but Eddie was a solid wall. His arms held Harrington down with a force that threatened to split his ribs.

Steve cried out at the pressure and shakily pushed at Eddie's chest. "Eddie!" He gasped. "S-Stop!" Eddie practically snarled as he bit down into Steve's neck and drank, blood instantly dripping from the messy puncture.

Nancy ran downstairs, half in a daze, but now filled with adrenaline as screaming rang throughout the house. "What's going on?" She shouted. Robin was frantically trying to dig through drawers to find anything better than a knife to stop him. Steve cried out from the pain, tears stinging his eyes.

"I don't know what's wrong with him! He just snapped!" Robin whimpered.

Eddie's claws dug into the hardwood floor as he bit harder, completely taken by the feeling Steve's blood was sending coursing through his veins. This wasn't like the other bites, this one hurt, just like it had in the storage room. It made Steve's veins feel like they were on fire as the sensation of blood being drained made him grit his teeth.

"E-Eddie - " He managed, though it came out like a sob. "Please. Hurts." He found the strength to reach up and cup the back of Eddie's neck. He squeezed it and wrapped his other arm around his back. Despite the frantic hunger, a flicker of recognition tickled the back of Eddie's mind. The blood soothed his mind for just a moment as he heard Steve say, "Eddie, listen to me. Please." He slowed the drinking just slightly, and Steve felt like he could finally breathe again.

"Get off of him! Now!" Nancy shouted, holding up the knife Robin had discarded. "Eddie!" He barely heard her. She raised the hilt to strike, but Steve held up a hand.

"N - No, don't!" He gritted out. Steve swallowed and gripped the back of Eddie's neck again. "You need to stop ." He was getting lightheaded. His bones felt heavy and his stomach was in knots from the nausea. Eddie's brows furrowed and he closed his eyes. What… What am I doing? This is… This is Steve. I'm hurting Steve. "Eddie, it's me. It's Steve. I know it's h-hard, but you have to… you have to stop."

Steve. It's Steve.

Eddie unlatched his fangs with a shuddering breath.

What was he doing? What was he doing?

He pulled back and looked down at Steve with wide, panicked eyes, reality suddenly flooding over him as he caught his breath. "S-Steve?" He rasped. He covered his mouth in horror.

Steve was pale, he had dried tears rolling down his cheeks, and he was visibly shaking. His face was twisted in pain as he looked back at Eddie. "There he is…" He mumbled, dazed. Blood was still seeping from the wound. Eddie quickly licked the holes he forgot to close and cupped Steve's cheek with a shaking hand.

"Fuck, Steve, I - I -" He looked down at the mess he caused, blood was smeared all over Steve's neck and his hands were covered in it. "I don't - I don't know what happened." He said, shakily. Steve shook his head slightly and opened his mouth to say something, but he was starting to lose consciousness. His hand slipped from the back of Eddie's neck as his eyes fluttered closed. "Steve?"

Nancy quickly knelt down and felt for a pulse. It took a moment, but she finally found one. "He's still breathing, I found a pulse but it's faint. Eddie, you have to move." He hardly registered what she said as he shook Steve, trying to wake him. "Eddie!" She ordered. "Move!" He flinched and scrambled to get off as Nancy had Robin help her carry him onto the table.

"Does he need to go to a hospital?" Robin whimpered.

"He might." Nancy answered. She pursed her lips and then cursed under her breath. "What are we even going to say?"

"I don't know, animal attack?"

"He doesn't have enough wounds for that to make sense." She looked over Steve, trying to come up with an excuse. After a moment, she shook her head. "We can't explain the blood loss. I'll call Hopper, he can get us some medical supplies. Keep an eye on Eddie."

Robin glanced over at him as he sat shell-shocked on the floor. Despite the fresh blood, he was pale, wide eyed, and visibly shaken. "You think he's safe?" She whispered.

"… I don't know." Nancy admitted. "I won't be long. You okay?"

Robin nodded and swallowed. Nancy reached up and squeezed her arm. It's gonna be okay. Her eyes said it all. Even though Robin was scared of losing Steve, scared of Eddie, just scared of it all - when Nancy said that everything was going to be okay, she couldn't help but believe her. She had to.


Hopper was over in less than an hour with fluids, IVs, and blood packs. Thankfully he still had connections at the hospital from his police chief days, so when he showed up to demand supplies, they handed it over, no questions asked. He was a town hero, no one was going to say no to Jim fucking Hopper.

It had taken a while, but Nancy managed to clean most of the blood up and get Steve stable. Steve had lost a lot of blood, but he'd gotten past the worst of it. Now the only thing left to do was to wait for him to recover.

Eddie stood in the bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror. His mouth and chin were still covered in smeared blood, dried and clotted now. The person staring back at him was flush with color, healthy, eyes sparkling.

He hated it.

He couldn't stand that he was practically glowing because of what he'd done. Rewarded for almost killing one of his best friends. Over what? A cut on the finger? A spike in his heart rate? It didn't make any sense. He should have been in control. He'd drank from Steve the day before, there was no reason he should have lost it like that.

Eddie swallowed and turned on the water, wetting a rag to wipe his face. He didn't want to lick it clean, to not let anything go to waste. The thought of drinking any more of Steve's blood right now made his stomach turn. He wiped the remainder of the mess from his face and stared at himself when it was finally clean. He looked great, honestly, the best he'd looked in a while.

Eddie clenched his jaw and screwed his eyes shut. He pushed himself from the sink and stood there a moment, before he exploded in a fit of rage and kicked the side of the bathtub, causing the ceramic to shatter. He kicked it once more, yelling in frustration as his foot made another hole and pieces of the tub splintered in all directions.

He staggered backwards against the sink as he caught his breath. Eddie's rage faded as he sobered and looked at the damage he'd just caused. The bathtub was utterly ruined. The side was almost completely shattered and crumbling as bits of ceramic dust swirled in the air. He looked down at his boot to find that it was nearly shredded, the leather bent all out of shape from the force.

He knew he was much stronger and faster now but this… this was something different. He'd never exhibited this kind of strength before. And when Steve had run… he vaguely remembered blinking and then suddenly he was on top of him. Like it had barely taken a second to cross the kitchen. What the hell was happening to him?

A knock on the bathroom door startled him from his thoughts.

"Eddie?" Robin. She sounded worried. "Are you okay? We heard a crash."

He stared down at the destruction and tried to speak but found the words dying in his throat. After a moment of silence, Robin called again from the other side of the door. "I'm coming in. Don't… Don't move, okay?" She opened the door cautiously and peered inside. Eddie didn't miss the knife she was carrying. Just in case. He couldn't really blame her either. When she saw the state of the tub, her eyebrows shot up and she looked at Eddie. "Whoa."

Eddie hesitantly met her eyes. "I didn't… I didn't mean…" He looked down at the tub again, shaking his head. "It just…"

"Are you okay?" She muttered, eyes wide and concerned. He didn't actually know if he was okay. This morning had started out so perfect. Steve had gotten him a birthday present, the first birthday present of his life. They'd talked and kissed all morning, made breakfast, and drank cold coffee. Now Steve was on the kitchen table, weak and battered, because Eddie had lost control. He'd lost it for no reason.

"I don't…" His brows furrowed as he bit his lip.

Robin swallowed. "He'll be okay. You know that, right? It... It wasn't your fault, you weren't you."

He couldn't talk about this. Not with Robin, or anyone. Not now. "I need to go." He muttered. His heart was starting to hurt with how much it was beating.

"Eddie..." She said, cautiously. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"I don't care." He mumbled quietly.

"Eddie, you need to - "

"I don't care!" He hissed. Actually hissed. Like it was a natural response, something completely feral.

Robin flinched and backed away, stunned. She covered her mouth and tried in vain to stop the tears that welled in her eyes, but her expression was full of horror and worry for her friend. It sobered him up almost immediately. Eddie's brows furrowed as he realized what he'd just done. He hadn't meant to make Buckley cry, or to... to hiss at her.

He was losing it. Eddie shoved past her and made his way to Steve's room, muttering a quiet, inadequate apology. He couldn't think. He couldn't breathe. Eddie slammed the door behind him, as Robin flinched again and slid to the floor, choking on a sob. She covered her face and tried to get her tears under control.

All her fears were starting to bubble up to the surface. What was happening to him?