April 23rd, 1986

Three days later, Tom declared Eddie well. Or well enough. There was no more he could do. His parting words before heading out the door with his duffle bag were:

"Eat. Drink. Rest. And stay away from fucking bats."

Hopper walked him out the door, leaving Steve and Eddie in the cabin alone. Joyce had returned to the Wheelers again, where she and her boys now occupied the guest bedroom. According to Dustin, the younger boys spent most of the time in the basement, and Jonathan spent most of his time in Nancy's room.

"And Hopper spends most of his time with Joyce." Steve explained.

Eddie was watching him from the sofa, as usual. With Dustin begrudgingly at school, the two of them were alone. Steve wanted to talk about all the things they went through, but Eddie didn't remember their brief but intense friendship. So he was filling him in on the current state of things.

"How's…I mean…where's Wayne?" Eddie looked at him with a guarded expression, but Steve could see the genuine concern there.

"I'm not sure. Dustin saw him a few days after everything happened. At the school. He told him about you." Steve glanced from Eddie to his hands. "Gave him your guitar pick chain thing."

Eddie nodded, his expression pained. His hand instinctively went to his throat, to touch the ghost of what was no longer there.

"The trailer was destroyed when the gates opened. During the 'earthquake' as they keep calling it. A lot of people left town after that. We haven't seen Wayne since the school."

Eddie sighed and looked toward the front window, where sunlight filtered through the boards that were still nailed up to cover the broken glass. "I guess that means I'm homeless?"

Steve nodded. "But you can stay here for a while. It's kind of our safe house."

"Safe house?" A hint of a smile ghosted across Eddie's face. "You guys have really gone full James-Bond-Conspiracy-Theory."

Steve raised an eyebrow. "The government tried to use El to assassinate Russians. And she opened a gate to another dimension. I think we're beyond 'conspiracy theory.' If you remembered what we went through, you'd agree."

Eddie tipped his head to the side. "Point taken. Which one is El again?"

"You haven't actually met her. She was in California for the past nine months. With Joyce and Will and Jonathan."

Eddie shook his head. "If I find out that you're making all this shit up, Harrington…as some kind of jock prank…"

Steve tried to laugh, but it stuck in his throat. Instead, he said quietly, "You saw what happened to Chrissy…"

Eddie sobered. "Yeah…"

"I think Hopper has government connections now. He spent eight months in a Russian prison. Maybe he can get you a new identity. Let you start a new life or whatever."

Eddie looked thoughtful. "A new life…starting over. It sounds great until you try it."

Steve studied his face, trying to understand his meaning.

How long has Eddie been in Hawkins? Where are his parents?

The questions came hard and fast, and Steve was once again reminded how little attention he paid to anyone other than himself. Before Junior year. Before Will Byers vanished. He was considering asking more questions when Eddie changed the subject.

"So…whose clothes am I wearing?"

Steve looked him over and laughed. "Those would be Jonathan's. Joyce brought over a bag of stuff. She's gone full mom the past couple weeks."

"Clearly. I never thought Batshit Byers would care if I lived or died."

Steve frowned. "I bet she never imagined Eddie-the-Freak would be wearing her son's clothes."

They faced off over the coffee table.

"Point taken."

There was a heavy silence.

Eddie eventually rubbed his hands over his face. "Does this creepy, safe-house cabin have a shower?"

Steve stared at him. Eddie was still shockingly pale and at least fifteen pounds thinner. It made his dark eyes stand out even more. But his hair hung limp and he had a dark shadow across his face from not shaving for so long.

"Um, yeah, actually. It's one of the few things that hasn't been repeatedly destroyed. It's old, but it works."

Eddie tried to stand up but was quickly overcome by dizziness. "Shit. Blood is so much more important that you realize."

Steve smirked. "Yeah, it's always been pretty important, man."

It took about twenty minutes for him to help Eddie into the bathroom. Steve had to almost carry him. Then, they realized there was no safe way for Eddie to stand in the ancient, clawfoot tub without becoming an immediate fall risk. So they settled for using the bathtub as it was intended. Steve dug all the human cleaning products he could find out of the chipped cabinet and set them next to the tub. He also managed to find some clean towels in the bedroom.

Now, he was sitting outside the bathroom door, listening to make sure Eddie didn't pass out and drown.

"You know," Steve spoke towards the partially open door, "This is definitely not what I imagined I'd be doing after high school."

"What?" Eddie called back. "Helping another dude take a bath? That wasn't on your top-ten list?"

Steve chuckled. "A thousand percent no."

"Sorry you drew the short straw, Harrington."

Steve's tone softened. "It's okay. I owe you one. For keeping Henderson safe. For giving me your jacket. For saving my life."

There was a long pause with just the sound of splashing water breaking the silence.

"You're not what I expected, King Steve. Not at all."

He smiled to himself. "Feeling's mutual, Munson, And you've already told me that once."

"I guess I meant it, then?"

Steve couldn't argue with the logic.

When Eddie was sufficiently clean and had managed to do a passable job shaving with a disposable razor, Steve helped him back to the sofa. Eddie's wet hair now smelled like Joyce's strawberry shampoo and he had a towel tied precariously around his waist.

How the hell did I become everyone's mom? Steve asked himself for the hundredth time. Then something inside him twisted. It didn't bother him, being the kids' surrogate parent. But something about being Eddie Munson's "mom" didn't sit right. This felt…different.

"Steve?" Eddie was staring at him from the sofa. His eyes were tired, but he broke into a wide, dimpled smile. "Can I have clothes?"

Steve cleared his throat. "Uh…sure."

He rummaged around and tossed Eddie sweats and a t-shirt from the stuff Joyce brought. Then he turned his attention to straightening the bathroom.

"Who's been changing my clothes until now?" Eddie suddenly called out.

Steve chuckled. "Which answer bothers you more? Joyce or Hopper?"

"I'm going with option three. You ."

Steve laughed harder. "Then you'll be glad to know I did what any friend would do and stayed far away from your naked ass. It was Joyce."

"Guess I'm not looking her in the face for a while."

Cautiously returning to the living room to find Eddie dressed, Steve replied, "I don't think she cares, man. With the shit she's seen over the past couple of years? Nudity would be the least terrifying thing."

Sensing Steve's change in tone, Eddie's eyes grew serious. "I wish I remembered it. I mean, the way Henderson looks when he talks about…what we did. I want to remember it."

Steve swallowed hard. "I think you will. Eventually."

Eddie nodded in solidarity.

April 25th, 1986

"If you play that shit again, I will kill you. I mean it. With my hands."

It was Friday, and Eddie was staring Steve down, his face serious, but with a hint of mirth in his eyes.

"I like Elton John. And Springstein. And Bowie. They're iconic. What's wrong with their music, man?"

Steve had dug through the rest of Hopper's album collection and found several others he liked. He also stopped by his parents' mostly-empty house and retrieved both their albums and his cassette collection, as well as his tape deck. He knew Eddie liked music, and this was all the music he could put his hands on easily. Steve had been playing through different selections each day as he cleaned, made food, or just to break the silence in the cabin. But he was partial to the self-titled Elton John album with the black cover. Eddie was not.

"It has no soul," Eddie argued. "Listening to it is like drinking lukewarm water."

"At least it has words you can understand! Who wants to listen to some dude scream for seven minutes?" Steve threw back.

Eddie looked wildly offended. "Metal music has words! So many words! It's got some of the best lyrics ever written!"

Steve looked skeptical. After a thick silence, Eddie softly sang:

Welcome to where time stands still
No one leaves and no one will
Moon is full, never seems to change
Just labeled mentally deranged

Dream the same thing every night
I see our freedom in my sigh
No locked doors, no windows barred
No things to make my brain seem scarred

Steve was taken aback. The song didn't require a lot of range, but Eddie was good. His voice was rich and deep, a rockstar baritone with a haunted quality. Somewhere along the way, Steve forgot that Eddie was a musician. That he'd formed and led a band for years. Dustin raved about "the most metal moment ever" in the Upside Down, but his compliments about the actual performance were tempered by the loss of Eddie. And Steve couldn't name anyone else who'd ever seen or heard Eddie perform.

Something in him twisted strangely when Eddie went on:

Sleep my friend, and you will see
The dream is my reality
They keep me locked up in this cage
Can't they see it's why my brain says rage?

Steve wanted him to keep going, felt strangely hooked, but he shook it off. Instead, he broke the silence with, "I guess those are pretty decent lyrics. When they're not set to…noise."

Eddie stared back at him, deadpan expression on his face. Then, without a word, he turned on the sofa and punched Steve in the arm. He wasn't strong enough yet to do any real damage, but Steve was still shocked.

"Metallica isn't noise." Eddie's tone was serious, but didn't seem to contain any real malice.

Steve crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, Elton John isn't soulless."

Eddie's mouth quirked up at the corner just before he wrapped Steve in a fairly benign headlock and pulled him nearly into his lap. After a few moments, he let go, his chest heaving as he struggled to breathe from the effort.

Pushing Steve away, Eddie said, "If I had all my blood back, Harrington…"

Steve chuckled. He could tell it wasn't a real threat. He was understanding more and more that this tendency to roughhouse, to grab and hold and wrestle, even inflict pain, was Eddie's way of expressing affection. It was foreign to Steve, but not necessarily offensive. He found himself wishing he was that free. That he could just reach out and touch, to take the affection he longed for from his aloof and indifferent parents. From all the girls who lost interest too soon.

It's bullshit. It's all bullshit.

You don't love me?

It's bullshit.

Nancy had accidentally revealed in that moment how vulnerable he really was. How every charming smile and toss of his legendary hair was just another desperate cry for affection from a touch-starved boy who simply wanted someone to stay.

Eddie gave him another playful shove, and Steve was shocked at the sudden, visceral desire for him so stay close.

Shaking it off, Steve stood from the sofa. He rummaged through the box of tapes he brought and pulled out Eddie's bandana. Crossing back to the sofa, he held it out and said, "I almost forgot. I managed to save this. Everything else was pretty well destroyed."

Eddie looked genuinely surprised. He took the black and white piece of cloth and stared at it as though he couldn't believe it was real. "Wow. Never thought I'd see this again."

"Couldn't save the Hellfire shirt. Sorry man."

Eddie shook his head. "It's okay. This…is actually more important."

Steve cocked his head. He wanted to ask why, but Eddie stuffed the bandana in his pocket and didn't seem to want to explain.

Instead, he said, "Bring me the box of tapes, Harrington. Maybe I can find something that doesn't suck."

April 26th, 1986

The next day, Steve raided his parents' house again. They gave him until the house was sold to move his stuff out, and he figured their absence meant whatever they left was now "his stuff." So he took the smaller television out of his bedroom and the brand-new VCR they gave him last Christmas. It was definitely a bribe to try and get him to come work for his father. And it definitely didn't work. They would be horrified to see him taking it into the rundown cabin, but he just didn't give a single fuck.

After hooking it up, Steve explained, "I'll bring some movies for you to watch later. Any requests?"

Eddie smiled. "Anything you would hate?"

Steve squared off in front of him. "Very funny. But if you make no requests, I can bring an endless stack of children's classics and bargain bin nightmares."

"Would you, now?" Eddie looked thoughtful. "Honestly, my happy childhood has not included a lot of opportunities to watch movies. So, surprise me?"

Steve's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"We can't all grow up in a mansion, eating gold and riding ponies."

"Why would you think…? There were no ponies. And we don't eat…you really want me to pick the movies?" Steve huffed.

"As long as you're not choosing music, it's all good."

Steve rolled his eyes and headed back out of the cabin.

From there, he headed to the video store. It had yet to reopen, but Steve used his key borrow some tapes and left a note for the owner promising their return. Then he drove to the Wheelers' because he promised to pick up Dustin before dropping off dinner and the videos for Eddie.

When he arrived, however, he was unceremoniously ushered to the basement by Robin. There, he found himself staring down Mike, Will, Lucas, and El on the couch, and Jonathan and Nancy standing nearby. Robin led him to a chair and forced him to sit facing the others.

Standing next to the raggedy sofa, Robin stated, "Steve Harrington, we've all gathered here today because we care about you very much."

He looked around at the faces he knew so well.

"And because we care about you, we're concerned–"

"Wait," Steve cut Robin off. "Is this an intervention?"

Robin shook her head. "No. Yes. Maybe? They picked me to start this thing, but you know how terrible I am at–"

El raised her hand like they were in class. "What is intervention?"

Steve shook his head. "Do you guys think I'm on drugs?"

"No!" Nancy spoke up suddenly. "We think you're hiding something. You and Joyce and Hopper. And we agreed after…everything. No more secrets. So…spill it."

Steve glanced at Dustin, who sat in the chair furthest away and was staring at his hands like they were the most interesting things he'd ever seen. Steve considered just leaving. Or hunting down Joyce and Hopper and dragging them into this conversation. But he was old enough to know they wouldn't have any better answers than he did. Just because they were the official adults didn't mean they knew what to do with a supposedly dead fugitive. Hopper could make Eddie disappear. Probably. But Eddie hadn't seemed thrilled at that idea, and they couldn't hide him from the others forever.

"Come on, Steve." Robin's eyes were pools of worry. "No more secrets?"

"Friends. Don't. Lie." El's face was steely.

With a sigh, Steve said, "Okay. I want to tell you what's going on. Just…can you give me five minutes?"

They all glanced around at each other. "Sure…?" Robin offered hesitantly.

"Great." Steve headed back up the stairs and all the way to the second floor. Ducking into Nancy's room, he picked up her phone and dialed the cabin. Right now, only Hopper, Joyce, and he had the number. He let it ring twice, then hung up. Then he called back.

"Radio Shack. Bob speaking." Eddie answered as instructed with the code that meant everything was okay. Joyce chose it. A small tribute to the man who would always have a little piece of her heart.

"Hey" They'd also agreed to never use their name's on the cabin phone line. "The rest of the people here have figured out something's up. I don't think I can hide this from them anymore. Are you ready to see them?"

There was a moment of silence.

Eddie finally said, "A hunted man sometimes wearies of distrust and longs for friendship ."

"What?"

Eddie laughed. "You should really read more."

"Does this have something to do with Mordor?"

Eddie laughed harder. "Just bring on the hobbits."

Still confused, Steve agreed and hung up the phone.

For the drive over to the cabin, they all piled into the Wheelers' station wagon. They didn't really all fit, but the kids squeezed together in the back seats. About a week ago, Argyle was forced to make the trek back to California with the van. Jonathan was bummed to see his friend go, and Steve wondered if his obvious preference for the west coast was part of the tension between him and Nancy.

As they drove, twilight fell over Hawkins. The sky was streaked with fair-weather clouds that turned rosy orange and even purple in the fading light. The late spring evening was warm as the sun continued to chase away the remnants of winter. Once they left the town proper and headed into the woods toward the cabin, the evidence of all the recent destruction faded away. As he steered the car, Steve wished it was that simple. That they could leave it all behind. That they could stay in the beauty of twilight and forever avoid the night.

Mike shattered the silence. "I don't see why you can't just tell us at the house. Why do we have to drive all the way out here?"

"Because I don't know that we should talk about this at the house. And I'd rather just deal with the shock once." Steve explained wearily.

The rest of the ride was made in heavy silence.

"Eddie?"

Robin's voice was very small. She stood in front of the sofa in the cabin with the others, whose expressions were shades of shock.

"But…how?"

Eddie looked up at her. "I don't know. All I remember is the field. Where Harrington found me."

Robin turned on Steve and demanded, "How could you not tell us?"

With wisdom beyond his years, Dustin spoke up. "Because we've all had enough awful shit to deal with. And Hopper didn't think it was safe to get everyone involved if Eddie was…gone mentally."

For another moment, Robin looked like she wanted to scream. Or maybe hit something. She spent days with Eddie. Watched as he and Dustin walked away into the final battle. She was there when they pulled him off Eddie's body. So she held onto her anger for another minute. Then the dam broke and the tears fell. She dropped onto the couch and wrapped Eddie in a hug. Nancy, for all her stoic strength, sank onto the couch and grabbed from the other side. Mike sat down on the coffee table and tried to wipe away tears before anyone saw them fall. The others, who hadn't really known Eddie but understood what he did, watched with empathy.

From the sofa, Eddie locked eyes with Steve. The unspoken question was obvious.

Do we tell them I don't remember?

Eddie knew what happened. Steve and Dustin had told the story so many times now every detail was familiar. He knew what part everyone played. But was that enough? Still watching, Steve started to speak. But Eddie stopped him with a subtle shake of his head. Once again, Steve understood.

This is enough for tonight.

Steve smiled to himself. For two guys, they were getting very good at this nonverbal communication.

The reunion went on uninterrupted.

After several tearful minutes, El crossed the room and sat next to Mike on the rickety table. Steve made a mental note that they really needed more chairs. Or pillows. Or something. Eddie's attention turned to the young woman in front of him. Brooding brown eyes met brooding brown eyes.

Eddie smiled. "You must be the superhero."

El smiled sweetly and Mike gripped her hand tightly. "She's my superhero."

She held out her other hand toward Eddie. "I'm Eleven. But you may call me El."

Eddie shook her hand. "My name's Edward. But you may call me Eddie."

El broke into a broad smile, which broke the tension, and they all became teenagers again. Nancy and Robin wiped away their tears and Mike began a long-awaited D&D-related discussion with both Eddie and Will about Vecna, both real and fictional. Lucas hung to the side, no doubt thinking about Max in her hospital bed. Jonathan, always the older brother, came and stood with him. Solidarity without words. Dustin dug out snacks and laughed his infectious laugh while devouring a bag of Cheetos. They recounted their victory. They made Eddie show them his scars and they compared battle wounds. They did what soldiers do in the time between.

After a while, someone noticed the stack of videos Steve had picked up earlier. Shuffling through them, the kids started campaigning for a movie marathon. For the night, their safe house was turning into a club house, and Steve didn't have the heart to stop it. He would gladly explain it to Joyce and Hopper. Take the heat if needed. Because they all needed this. They needed to be kids again. They needed to celebrate Eddie's life and focus on something other than what new horrors the future might hold for them. There would be time for the hard questions later. For analyzing and planning and strategizing for what might come next.

But not tonight.

Instead, Steve and Jonathan made a run for pizza and popcorn. When they got back, they found everyone halfway through Short Circuit, Dustin's choice. As they ate, Nancy and Robin demanded to pick next, and the boys conceded to Top Gun without much arguing. Finally, while Steve made way too much popcorn, they put in Nightmare on Elm Street .

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Robin asked, and Steve loved her for being the one to ask. To give any of the kids an out if they wanted it. If tormented teenagers were too much to see right now.

But they all wanted to watch. To huddle together and know that the horrors on the screen weren't real.

Steve settled on the couch with Eddie, watching him to see if he seemed too tired. If the kids were too much. That parenting streak was cropping up in him again. Or maybe it was just a feeling of responsibility for Eddie. Steve was drawn to him like opposing poles on a magnet, and he chalked it up to being war buddies, like Tom and Hopper. Robin curled up with them on the sofa as well, chattering on about how blood never looks real in scary movies.

They kept the lights low, because it was still a safe house, after all.

As the movie played, a spring thunderstorm began to pelt the cabin with fat, heavy raindrops. Periodically, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled in the distance. It wasn't a bad storm, but it added to the ominous feeling in the cabin as Freddy Krueger stalked children on the screen.

Just as one of the characters let out a scream, the door to the cabin burst open. A tall figure stepped in, backlit by the lightning outside. Eddie's head whipped around. In a second, he threw his arms toward the figure. They flew backward, landing on the porch with a thud. Eddie collapsed against Steve as the room erupted in collective gasps and shrieks.

Nancy jumped up and turned on the lights.

"Hopper!" El cried, rushing toward the open front door.

Glancing over, Steve could see that it was him who came through the door. He was now laying on the porch. The others clamored to their feet and followed El. Steve breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Hopper stir and start to come around.

Dustin looked at El. "Why'd you do that?"

"He scared her!" Mike quickly defended.

El shook her head, her eyes wide. "I didn't."

"What do you mean?" Will asked.

"I didn't throw him," El explained. "I didn't even see him."

"He must've fallen," Nancy offered.

"No." Will shook his head. "He flew backward. In the air."

Slowly, all of them turned back toward the sofa. Eddie was still limp in Steve's arms. His eyes fluttered much like when he first came to the cabin.

There was a long, palpable silence.

Hopper groaned and pulled himself up against the porch railing. "What the hell is going on?" He mumbled.

Wide eyed, Lucas asked, "Did Eddie…do that?"

Thunder clapped in the distance, and no one answered.

This story is truly a slow burn, but I have quite the plans. I hope you'll hang in here and share your thoughts. Much Love.

The lyrics used are from "Welcome Home Sanitarium" by Metallica.