It had been a long time since they had visited Hawkins. After Wayne's death, Eddie saw no reason to go back. The kids were all grown up and had moved far away. Robin lived in LA nearby, and Steve didn't talk to his parents anymore. So, there was no point in returning to their hometown full of bad memories. Sunny California was much better for their peace of mind. It was an ordinary day when Eddie remembered the time capsule, and once he told Steve that they had to go back to see if it was still there.
"What do you think?" Steve asked as he pulled up in Forest Hill's Trailer Park.
Eddie was too busy remembering his old neighborhood—for lack of a better word—to respond. His heart ached when he saw Wayne's old trailer, different now that somebody new lived there. He smiled when Steve reached over to squeeze his thigh. "Let's hope nobody dug it up."
When they were moving away, Eddie had suggested the time capsule as a way of remembering how things used to be. It was buried in the forest, a good walk from the trailer park, but it felt like minutes before they stood in front of the gnarled tree they had chosen so many years ago. Eddie glanced at Steve, smiling when he was handed a shover, and they got to work.
Ten minutes later, Steve hit the metal container with a thud and dropped to his knees to brush away the dirt, revealing their prize. "Still here."
Eddie held him out of the hole, and they sat beneath the tree, staring at the box. "You want to do the honors?"
Steve opened the lid, and they stared at the contents in awe. Eddie was the first to move, and he picked up an old Polaroid, the first one they had taken together, faces smushed close to be in the frame.
He smiled, showing it to Steve. "We look so young."
"No grey hairs."
"I dunno, I like yours. Very hot."
Steve laughed but accepted Eddie's kiss. "Alright, Casanova, save it for later. Oh, I forgot about this!" He picked up the figure that was his DnD character, something Eddie had spent hours designing and painting. "Can't believe you let me put this in here."
"I think it was a trade." Because Eddie had put in one of his old band tees that used to drive Steve wild, he laughed, holding up the threadbare shirt. "I think I was wearing this the first time we kissed!"
Steve stared at it, expression softening. "I remember. You were working at The Hideout that night. Soon as your shift ended we went outside to smoke and I didn't want to wait anymore."
Eddie remembered, too, mostly his surprise when Steve kissed him and then the overwhelming joy he felt at having something so real. He looked at Steve, older now but no less in love with him, feelings Eddie returned just as deeply. "Should've done it sooner."
"I think we've still got a few more years to make up for it." Steve kissed him and then rummaged in the box again. "What else did we leave?"
Old dice, the designs for Steve's first tattoo, their first mixtape, and an old cassette tape. They scrambled back to the car where a player was waiting, and Steve carefully slid the tape inside and pressed play.
"Is it on, Eddie?"
"I think so."
"Awesome. So," Steve cleared his throat, and Eddie could almost see them, twenty-five years old, crouching in front of the tree, grinning and stupidly in love. "We're leaving Hawkins, finally. It's, uh, September 20th, 1993, and it's time to go. We got a place in LA-"
"-And I got a gig! California, here we come!"
"Yeah, yeah, you're gonna be a big rockstar. Hey, when we come back for this in like, twenty years, do you think we'll be married?"
"Even if it's still illegal."
Steve laughed, lifting Eddie's hand to kiss the golden band on his ring finger.
"And we're gonna have six little nuggets."
"Shut up, Eddie."
"You love me really."
"Yeah, I do. Um, I guess this is goodbye then. Goodbye Hawkins, goodbye Upside Down. This is the Babysitter and the Jester, signing off."
"See ya in twenty years!"
"Holy shit," Eddie whispered as the tape ended, and when he looked up, Steve was already one step ahead, hands cradling Eddie's face to pull him in for a kiss. "Mmm, I love you, Steve."
"I love you, too. Let's go home."
Home sounded perfect.
