Chrissy was sure that her willpower was strong. She had spent years perfecting it to be the perfect daughter.
She was so, very, very wrong.
Three guesses as to how long her willpower in terms of Eddie Munson lasted? If you guessed a week, you'd be wrong. If you guessed five days, you'd also be out of the game. Oh, what's that, two days?
Ding, ding. We have a winner.
Two measly days. Hardly 48 hours before Chrissy was already breaking semi-promises to herself that it would be best if she didn't go too far out of her way to see Eddie.
But alas…when the chance presents itself…
On a rare occasion when Jason was tied up the whole weekend (he had a training camp to bond with the teammates and try to work through Patrick's death, and had tried to get out of it for 'Chrissy's sake') Chrissy had decided to reach out to her…well, to Cheryl.
She wasn't entirely sure how to categorize Cheryl anymore. They'd been best friends forever. Was she now a former best friend? She'd only visited once while Chrissy was in the coma, and she was a little bitter about that.
She wondered if they were just too different now. It had felt like a while coming. Cheryl had chosen not to go out for Cheerleading. Cheryl was in none of Chrissy's classes. Cheryl didn't really care about school, just boys.
Now that Chrissy was re-examining her relationship with Jason, and realizing that a lot of the reasons she'd stayed with him was a feeling of familiarity and comfort, she was wondering if that's why she and Cheryl stayed in contact at all anymore. That they just had years and years of memories, but that's all it was?
If she was cleaning out her life, no offense to Cheryl, wouldn't it be kinder to both of them to let the other go their separate ways?
So, she'd asked her mother if she could go to Cheryl's for a sleepover.
Her mother also remembered fond memories of the redheaded little girl who used to be attached to Chrissy's hip, and she commented how glad she was that Chrissy was getting out.
"You know school is coming up, and you need to get back in the zone," Her mother added, running what was almost a good moment, "So this is healthy. You're healing."
Not wanting to spoil this opportunity, Chrissy smiled and forced her scowl down.
The first hour with Cheryl was…awkward. A bit uncomfortable. Neither really knew what to say to the other. Eventually, Cheryl suggested that they put on Chrissy's favorite movie, The Breakfast Club.
Her mother would be horrified that Chrissy had seen an R-rated movie. She had snuck in with Cheryl when it came out last year. That was a more recent memory, wasn't it? She was mentally trying to tally in her mind the reasons why they should or should not be friends after tonight.
As she was watching the movie, glad to not have to talk much, she found her mind wandering. When she'd first seen the movie, and up until her coma, she'd always had a crush on the character of Andrew Clarke, seeing a lot of similarities to Jason. She'd found the overlap cute.
But now, she was far more surprised than she should have to find herself attracted to Bender. She saw him in a much more favorable, kinder light than she'd originally judged the character to be.
And this is what got her brain spinning with thoughts of Eddie, as she sat comparing the two.
Cheryl noticed. Chrissy was so distracted that when she asked Cheryl why she'd ejected the movie, Cheryl frowned.
"I did that…ten minutes ago, girl. You're so not here."
"No, I guess I'm not," Chrissy admitted, feeling guilty. How hard was it to watch a movie and not zone out?
"Are you…you know, okay?" Cheryl asked. They'd danced around the cast and the attack and everything. Chrissy was terrified to know where she stood on Eddie's innocence so it was better to just not ask.
"It's not that. It's, uhm, something else." Chrissy said.
"It's a boy, isn't it?" Cheryl blinked at her, and as Chrissy tried to stutter a defense, she just smiled, "C, it's fine. I won't tell. I know it's not Jason you're thinking of."
"He's my boyfriend. If I'm thinking of a boy, it's him," Chrissy said and winced. She would have to get way better at that if she were to continue dating him to keep Eddie safe. That sounded so devoid of any emotion. It was laughable.
"Right," Cheryl narrowed her eyes, "Chrissy…if it's not him, you know, that's okay?" She offered gently.
Chrissy frowned, "It…is?"
"I never liked him, you know," Cheryl said, her lip curling up. Chrissy frowned.
"You didn't?"
"Why do you think we stopped hanging out so much? I can't fucking stand him." Cheryl admitted, shaking her head, "Sorry, but god, it's true. He's so arrogant. And something about him makes me shiver, and not in a sexy way. I don't know if I believe that Eddie did anything to you or not, but the fact that Jason's pushing that narrative makes me less inclined to believe it."
Chrissy felt like an enormous weight was pulled off her shoulders; both of them. In one moment, she'd learned that other people saw Jason for the monster he was becoming, made a break-through about their friendship (one that she felt very bad for not noticing previously), and discovered that Cheryl didn't blame Eddie.
"Cheryl, why did you never tell me?" Chrissy asked, leaning over to hug her friend the best she could with her cast.
"You seemed…happy." Cheryl frowned, "I didn't think it was my place. But now…well, something is different. And I've dated around enough to know that smile. Did Jason go berserk when you broke up with him?"
Chrissy winced, "It's complicated." She expected a lecture but Cheryl raised an eyebrow.
"Why am I not surprised? I bet it's all him. Sucks; I'm sorry." She offered, "Worse for you. You don't have to tell me who," She added, "I just want to know…is it…mutual?"
"I think," Chrissy said, then thought of how his body had reacted to her, and blushed, "On second thought, yeah."
"You know," Cheryl said with a tilt of her head, "I would love nothing more than to really, really fuck Jason over. And you nearly died; you deserve to be happy. So…why are you here with me?"
Chrissy blinked at her, "Because…" She wasn't sure how honest she should be, "You're my best friend."
"Yeah, and what do best friends do for each other?" Cheryl asked. At Chrissy's blank stare, she laughed out loud, "We have each other's backs. Including lying about whereabouts. We've evaded hundreds of nosy parents, how hard can it be to fool can an eighteen-year-old boy who doesn't seem to be very smart, to begin with?"
Chrissy felt relief breaking like a damn inside of her, "Cheryl, oh gosh, I owe you! I owe you so much!"
"Yeah, yeah," Cheryl laughed, waving her off, "Just promise me we'll actually hang out, for real, and get to know each other again." She said.
"Definitely. Yes, of course," Chrissy said, looking at Cheryl in a new way for the second time, the first being that she was sure that Cheryl hated her and that's why they had stopped really hanging out, using 'best friend' by title only.
Cheryl jumped up, rummaging through her drawer for her keys, "Okay, where do you need me to drop you off?"
XX
She didn't tell Cheryl exactly.
It would have been far too obvious if she pulled up even to the edge of the trailer park. Everyone knew where Eddie lived now because of what had happened there that night.
So she instructed Cheryl to drop her a few blocks away. She had an inkling that maybe Cheryl had a guess because there wasn't a whole lot on this side of Hawkins. If she did, she kept it mum.
"Do you need a ride tomorrow?" She asked, "Back home?"
"No, well, yes. I'll come back to your house and you'll drop me off. My mom and Jason will be none the wiser." She said, beaming.
"Cool beans. Babe; do something crazy. Please. For yourself."
Chrissy gave a half-hearted laugh and Cheryl sighed, taking it to mean that Chrissy was going to do what she always did. But in reality, Chrissy wondered if she told Cheryl she was planning on getting high for the first time tonight if Cheryl would even believe her.
"Good luck, C!" Cheryl blew her a kiss and then made an illegal U-turn and Chrissy waited until the headlights had vanished to make her way to Eddie's. It was still sort of light out; she had maybe an hour before nightfall, which made the walk pleasant.
When she arrived at Eddie's door, she suddenly felt very, very stupid. What if Max hadn't seen him yet and hadn't given him the note? What if she had and he didn't care?
This was not a well-thought-out plan.
She was smarter than this, but Eddie made her brain act like it was made of jelly.
She was about to turn around and leave, and…well, she wasn't sure where she'd go, but she'd decided this was a bad idea… until the door swung open.
"Chrissy?" Eddie's confusion was evident, "I, well, the hair." Eddie made a motion to her ponytail, "I thought I was imaging things."
"You weren't. Had to pay the favor back, right?" She asked, trying to sound suave and sexy and a little cheeky.
"Wha…where…who…" Eddie began to cycle through the 'w' questions, unable to finish a single thought for any of them, "Get in here," He finally said, pulling her inside the trailer, "The longer you stay outside, the more people…talk. There's nothing middle-aged women who live in trailer parks love to do more."
"Thanks," Chrissy said, glancing around. It was much the same as the first time, "My friend dropped me off in the area. Jason's gone for the weekend. She's covering if anyone asks."
Eddie crossed his arms, "Do you trust her?" He asked in an even tone, and she noticed he was keeping a respectful handful of feet between them at all times. Chrissy moved forward; he moved back.
"I do," Chrissy said, relieved by the truth and how easily she was able to say that. As the dust settled, she realized that Cheryl was a good person to have in her corner, "And she doesn't know, not for sure. I think she's guessed?"
"Oh, good, she can join the club of 'People That Know Too Much Shit'." Eddie said with a sarcastic roll of his eyes, "Nancy and Dustin are far too excited to be co-leaders of that one. Steve is an eager acolyte of it."
"And Max," Chrissy added, "Uh, speaking of Max, did you…get my note?"
Eddie reached into his back pocket. Just one hand. A gesture that may have seemed innocuous, but from the way put his hand in one of the pockets and kept it there, as though protecting something, she had a feeling where it currently resided.
"Yeah."
"So, you know, I would never, ever ignore you or skip out on a meeting," Chrissy said, "I didn't know what to do."
Eddie nodded, but she could tell that he was unsure how much or what to say, what he was allowed to say about Jason.
"I, ah, well, have a solution I think," Eddie said, seemingly resolving himself to change the subject instead of focusing on Jason too long, "Wait on a second." He held up a finger and vanished into his bedroom.
Much like a moment that seemed so very long ago, when Chrissy was entirely a different person, he took far longer than she thought it should. The difference this time, though her heart was beating out of her chest, was that she actually made it into his bedroom.
"I like the posters," She said, announcing herself as saw him rifling through bags. It was messy, but there was something refreshing in the chaos, freedom she'd never had with her own bedroom. It was so organic; it actually felt like someone lived here. Chrissy often thought her bedroom looked like a Sears catalog.
Eddie spun, face flushed, "Ignore the…fuck, everything," He said, starting to haphazardly throw things into piles. His method of organization made little sense to her, but it wasn't her place.
"Eddie, it's fine. You don't have to clean up for me." She said, laughing.
"Naw, I mean, I've been meaning to clean for forever," Eddie said, though he did pause a bit, "Ah-ha! Here they are. Courtesy of Dustin."
He dumped something out of a bag onto his bed. Chrissy recognized them. Her brother had a pair.
"Walkie-Talkies."
"So you can be an official 'Party' member. I just got mine too." He held out a hand, "Do you know how to use one?" He asked.
"Yeah, I think," Chrissy said and started futzing with the dials. Eddie made a sound in the back of his throat.
"Just…wait. Here," He said, coming to stand behind her. Her fingers were on the buttons and dials so he placed one of his hands over hers, "This is what you press to turn it on. And this to talk. That one controls the volume. This is for the frequency; this one here…that's the Party. Anyone can hear you if you're talking on that frequency." He turned it a click to the left, "And that's…ours." The words spilled out fast, so fast she almost missed it, "If you ever need to cancel again for a super hot date."
"Eddie," Chrissy said, turning as she knit her eyebrows in frustration, "You know I would rather spend time with you." You're my 'super-hot-date'.
Eddie broke away, leaning against his door, "Keep saying things like that and you'll give me a terrible, dirigible-sized ego, Cunningham." He said, his tongue curling over her last name, saying it like it was a piece of candy he wanted to savor. It made her shiver.
"So…" She waved her hands around, "How does this work? What drugs are we using?" She hoped she sounded brave, more sure of herself than she internally felt.
"For sure weed. Everything else is for later. Much later. It's the beginner's drug of choice, besides vodka or some shit. Do you drink?" He asked, narrowing his eyes, the thought crossing his mind.
"It's alright," Chrissy shrugged, "Usually I have to watch Jason so I don't drink myself. Don't get the chance to try it, I guess."
"Huh," Eddie said, blinking, but didn't offer any further comments, "So, yeah, weed." He said, finding that bag with far more ease.
Chrissy took the contents and studied them. It looked like something she could mistake for garden variety herbs, though the smell wafting from the plastic bag told her it wasn't her mom's oregano.
"You said twenty for the half, right?" Chrissy said, fishing for her wallet. Eddie made a noise and she looked up as she found the crisp bill.
"No, god, don't pay me," He shook his head.
"Eddie, I'm a customer taking your weed. And perhaps a lot of it, it seems. Let me," She begged.
"It's different now," He muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose, "I know that the moment in the woods was only a month ago, but it's all…so fucking different." He sighed, "And I won't take it."
"Then I'll be forced to find places to hide in your room," Chrissy said teasingly, "Eddie. I'm paying you for this."
"Okay, okay. Fine. How about this; Friends and Family discount?" He offered. Chrissy nodded for him to go on, "One dollar."
She groaned, "If anything because we're friends now, you should be charging me more!" She argued.
"Chrissy, I don't mean to startle you, but what the fuck is that sort of logic? If you have any business that's charging you more and calling it a discount, I'm sorry to tell you, but you're getting ripped off."
Chrissy took a step towards him, As though remembering the last time when she'd kissed him, she was disappointed to see that he put space between them; an entire mattress, to be precise.
"Fifty percent. Let me give you at least ten dollars per half an ounce." She said, "Or I'll have to ask your friends what full price actually is and you'll just find money everywhere."
"Fine," Eddie said after a long moment, "Ten dollars. Pay me once we've gone through a full ounce, okay?" He said, "I'm not taking your money tonight. We don't even know if you'll-,"
"Go through with it? Eddie, we have tonight. And I…" She swallowed, "Vecna could be back at any moment. I want to be ready, used to it, so I don't stumble and I know what I'm doing."
"Damn, right, that's a valid point."
"So force me to if I chicken out," Chrissy said. Eddie gave a wheeze.
"That is not happening. Attempted homicide, then assault? You are bad for my police record, blondie."
"Sorry," She hid her face the best she could with her non-broken arm, "You know I'm trying to fix that."
"The best you can. Everyone at school thinks I brainwashed you or put a magic spell on you to…I dunno, be attached via Stolkhom Syndrom or something. I appreciate that you're trying to set the record straight but..." His eyes were soft, apologetic, "It may be doing more harm than good."
"I'm sorry that's happening, truly," Chrissy said, guilt bubbling up.
"I just stare at them. And tell them that I had the ability to be casting magical spells, trying to kill or bewitch the head cheerleader would so not be what I'd be doing. I'd like…be casting spells to figure out the next lottery number. For some reason, no one's liked my answer so far." Eddie said, overexaggerated scratching his head and sighing as though truly confused.
"Well," Chrissy huffed angrily, "Idiots don't like being confronted with logic."
There was a moment of sparks and electricity as Chrissy's anger washed over her like a wave and Eddie watched her get angry on his behalf. And for just a moment, it's like their brain was connected and Chrissy felt like she understood how Eddie was reacting to her and she wondered if he was feeling the same. The rolling, simmering want. The way it just crept over everything, how it made her desire him with everything he did.
"Mary Jane!" Eddie said abruptly, "Reefer. Devil's plant. Weed." He said at Chrissy's confused face, "Let's get high."
"Yes, please," Chrissy said, hoping she didn't sound too overeager to do something that would have her grounded until she died if her mother found out. Desperate; that's how she was sure she sounded.
"Okay, so, I'm going to roll us both a joint. I'm pretty used to it, so my high won't be like yours. So I can make sure it all goes okay."
"You're allowed to enjoy yourself too," Chrissy said, hating the feeling that she was holding him back from his night which she rudely interrupted to babysit her.
"Chrissy, I want to be doing this," Eddie said, "C'mon, lay down."
Though the words were not in connection to how she wanted to hear them, and she knew that there was probably a very non-sexual reason he was saying that, she couldn't help the hitch in her breath.
She crawled onto his bed, trying to memorize how soft his sheets were and the color of them exactly. She was so preoccupied she didn't notice Eddie rolling two joints.
"Okay, right, uhm," He scratched his neck, "It's been a long time since I smoked with someone who's new to it. So…gimme a second," He bit his lip, halfway closing his eye in thought, "Uhh…the taste will probably be bad to you at first. It can be pungent. And you'll want to cough, that's fine. Go slow; it won't be right away, but we don't want you to overdo it and over-jump your landing, you feel? Just a few puffs and that will probably get you there tonight." He nodded to himself, "What else? Time moves differently for some. That's normal. If you need something to focus on, look up," He said, pointing to a widely geometric tapestry he'd stapled to his ceiling, something she was noticing for the first time, "And just relax. Let yourself get lost in that. It'll keep you occupied if you're feeling detached from earth and not in a good way. You got all that?"
"Yes, sir," Chrissy giggled, enjoying 'teacher Eddie'. Eddie groaned, shaking his head.
"You're going to kill me, aren't you," He muttered, "Don't call me that unless…" he trailed off. Chrissy leaned forward, feeling bold.
"Unless…?" She prompted him to finish. He just smiled, almost bitterly.
"Okay, I'm going to light it. Hold it, here, like this," He said, setting it between her fingers, very specifically refusing to answer.
She felt her fingers start to shake and she hyper-focused. She narrowed in on the joint between her fingers, trying to be nowhere except here and the oasis that was Eddie's voice gently teaching her.
"Now, put it to your lips. But don't suck on it. You just want to inhale the smoke, so it like this. Inhale for two seconds and then pull the joint away, but don't stop inhaling. That will make it 'go down' easier."
Chrissy did what he said. It was awkward and she wasn't sure she did it right, especially because despite wanting to seem cool for Eddie, the type of girl that could handle her shit (the type she imagined Eddie wanted to be with) it all came out with a wheezing, rough hacking cough.
Eddie looked amused, "You tried to like…swallow the smoke, huh? Just let it out, easy. It won't hurt as much next time."
Chrissy managed a wry look.
Eddie slapped his legs, "Try again. Slowly. Breathing. Focus. Nirvana. Buddha. Chaturanga."
"Are you just saying yoga words at this point?"
"I've never been, but doing it high would be a hell of a ride. But seriously; slow. In and out." He mimicked the pace, "You like pepperoni pizza?" He asked.
"Sure, but, why?" She frowned.
"Uhm, you tend to get hungry when you're high. We call it munchies. I just wanna be prepared."
Chrissy felt her mother's sneer in the back of her head, ' He'll never want you if you're a portly pig. A pizza is so fatty. You should feel ashamed for even wanting it; that's the Devil inside of you, making you want unholy things. God does not want you fat. You'll only get into heaven if you look like the golden ideal of a woman. Do you want to make God cry?
"I'm not that hungry," She lied.
Eddie pointed to her before he popped away, "You say that now, but just wait. Inhale. Go." He said, commanding it, though nicely commanding it.
She took two more hits, and by the third, only spat up a bit of her lung as she released the vapors.
It took Eddie…some amount of time to make the pizza. She couldn't tell you how long, because by the time she returned, time was meaningless and life felt greener.
Her last semi-lucid thought was why the hell had she not done this sooner?
