Be My Escape

Chapter One

"I love you too."

Those were the last words Eddie Munson heard before he slipped away....or so he thought. The blood loss and searing pain had caused him to faint, laying there in his own blood and grime for a long while, he wasn't sure how long. Could have been hours, could have been mere minutes. All he knew when he woke up, was he was alone. Dustin was gone, Nancy and Steve and Robin were nowhere to be found. They had left him there, just like they had left him in the boat.

"Fuck!" He yelled, the tears coming back. He was hurt, scared, dying. He didn't want to be alone anymore. He wanted to be back in the trailer, with his Uncle Wayne. He wanted to be back in Reefer Rick's shed, with the guys bringing him back cereal and yoohoo. He wanted to be back in school, with the Hellfire Club, playing the campaign he worked on for weeks, the Cult of Vecna, with Mike and Dustin and Sinclair's sassy sister. What was her name? He could only remember her character's name, Lady Applejack. But most of all, he just wanted to be around people. Anyone.

"Hello?" A voice in the distance. Did one of the guys come back for him?

"Henderson?" Eddie called, "Harrington? I knew you'd come back for me! I knew you wouldn't leave me in this hellscape!" But as the figure grew closer, so did Eddie's fear. It wasn't Dustin, or Steve, or even one of the girls. Eddie had no idea who this guy was.

A man, dirty blonde, white tank top covered in what appeared to be dried blood, grime caked in his facial hair, was crouching next to him now. "How the hell did you get in here, amigo?"

"Please don't hurt me," Eddie pleaded, planting his heels in the ground to try to push himself away, but he was still dizzy from the intense pain of the bites. Was he becoming delusional? "Please!"

"Woah," the man said, voice a little gruff, though sounded like honey to Eddie's ears. He held his hand out as if to mean no harm. "I'm not gonna hurt you. My name is Billy. Tell me how you got here."

"They left me here. They fucking left me in here!" Eddie gasped, the blood in his mouth choking him as he tried to steady his breathing.

"I know, I know," Billy mumbled, trying to calm down the scared, dying man. "I got left here too."

"Those bastards!" Eddie continued, voice breaking, "I caused a distraction so they can get past the demobats and defeat Vecna and they end up leaving me to die! That's the thanks I get." He paused, sniffling. "They better give me a nice memorial up there."

Billy let out a soft chuckle, not understanding most of what the man was talking about. "You were the one who played the guitar? I heard it, it was so metal." He shook his head, smiling. "Honestly, you gotta start a band or something."

It was Eddie's turn to laugh, coming out a weak, wet cough, the blood spattering Billy's already dirty shirt. "I did, actually. It's nice to meet a fan," he joked, "Too bad I'm going to die in here before I can make it to another practice."

Billy shook his head. "No way, pretty boy. I may not know how to get out of here, but I'm going to make sure you don't die. You're the first living person I've seen in an entire year. I'm not going to let that go."

Eddie couldn't help but to blush at the pet name. "Well, sweetheart," he replied, "I happen to know where several gates are. The closest one being in my trailer. I just need help getting to it, considering I'm incredibly woozy right now."

Billy's eyes widened, his tone growing serious. "You can get me out of here? What are we waiting for?" He stood, offering a hand to Eddie.

Eddie reached for it, their fingers brushing against each other, sending a spark between them. His arm dropped immediately, and he sighed. "I'm too weak, Billy. I'm sorry."