"EDDIE!"
Dustin's shrill voice echoed throughout the Upside Down as he shuffled towards Eddie's lifeless body, his sprained ankle preventing him from running. When he got to the man, he saw just how bad everything was. "Oh god... Oh god, Eddie," he sobbed, pulling Eddie into his arms, looking down at him with panic. Blood was gushing out of the older boy's wounds, soaking into Dustin's battle apparel. He held onto Eddie tightly, warm tears already soaking his face.
"Dustin," Steve said from inside the Creel house, his head turning to the side as he caught the last of Dustin's yell. He'd just thrown his molotov cocktail at Vecna, who seemed to be pained by the fire that suddenly engulfed him. Nancy looked at Steve with a worried look. "Go," she mouthed, just as Robin threw the last bomb at the fiery creature in front of them.
He ran out of the house as quickly as possible, practically jumping down the vine-covered stairs that he was almost suffocated in moments before. If Dustin was in danger, he would never forgive himself if something happened to him. They had been best friends for years. The kid was practically his son at this point, and Dustin truly saw Steve as a father figure, even if he wouldn't admit it.
As he approached the RVs, he saw Dustin crouched down on the ground, holding something, though he couldn't tell what it was. "Henderson, what's wr-," Steve stopped in his tracks when he realized that it was Eddie's body that the younger boy was holding. "Oh shit...," he murmured as he stepped closer, dropping down next to Dustin and pulling Eddie from his arms.
"It's bad, huh?" Eddie mumbled, barely loud enough for the two to hear.
"No... No, you're fine," Steve quickly mumbled to Eddie, looking at him with soft, yet worried eyes. "We need to get him to a hospital, now," he said, turning his head towards Dustin. He knew how much Eddie meant to Dustin, and to the other kids, too. Eddie had brought a spark to the group that nobody else had.
The two stood up, lifting Eddie's bleeding body off of the ground. Together, they carried him back inside the trailer; dead demobats covered the floors. Dustin helped Steve carefully sling Eddie over his shoulder, then ran off in search of bedsheets for a new rope.
"I didn't run away this time, right?" Steve heard Eddie whisper from his shoulder, choking on his own blood now.
"No," He mumbled. "You didn't run." Guilt filled Steve's stomach, but he buried it as Dustin hobbled out of Eddie's bedroom with sheets and blankets tied together. He threw the makeshift rope through the gate in the ceiling, climbing through first so he could help Steve when he came through with Eddie.
Steve climbed as quickly, yet gently, as possible, trying his best not to move Eddie too much. Even though Steve was trying to be careful, every pull up the rope caused pain to course through Eddie's body. He would groan in pain; the sound of him choking on his own blood could be heard in Steve's ear.
Even though the fall through the gate hurt Eddie more than the bites from the demobats, Steve was underneath him to cushion his fall a little bit. It hurt like hell for Steve, though, since the mattress on the floor was long gone. Still, he stood up as if nothing had happened to him.
Dustin was right behind him as they ran out to the camper Eddie had stolen for them earlier that day. Steve gently laid Eddie down on the back seat, looking at Dustin. "I need you to hold him still and make sure he doesn't fall off, okay?" Dustin sat down next to Eddie and looked at him with worried eyes.
Panicked and scared out of his mind, Steve pushed the camper to go as fast as it could. Topping off around 70 mph and with no traffic on the roads, they reached the hospital within minutes. Steve parked as close to the entrance of the ER as he could, not caring whether or not it was illegal.
As soon as Eddie was in Steve's arms, he was out of the camper and running inside the hospital. When he burst in, everyone in the waiting room looked at him with horror and confusion. There, in front of their eyes, and soaked in blood and dirt, was Eddie Munson. People were definitely scared; Eddie Munson was the one person that everyone in town was afraid of right now. Without care, Steve rushed over to the help desk, an unconscious Eddie in his arms.
The nurses wasted no time in bringing a gurney out. "What caused this?" One of them asked Steve as Eddie was being wheeled to a surgical room.
"It was an um... animal attack," Steve said, unsure of what to tell the doctors. By the looks of Eddie, this was no regular 'animal' attack. He was worried the doctors wouldn't believe his very obvious lie.
The nurse looked at him in confusion but accepted Steve's lie as truth. He let out a sigh of relief, following her back to the help desk. "I need you to fill out his paperwork," the nurse said, handing Steve a pen and a clipboard that held several pages of paper. "Once he's stable, we'll let you know. Are you going to wait on him or would you like us to call you?"
Steve stayed silent for a few moments, staring down at the information sheet he was given. He didn't know anything about Eddie, besides his first and last name. He didn't even know if Eddie had health insurance.
"We'll stay until he's stable," Dustin said from behind Steve, causing a wave of relief to come over him. He wasn't sure if he could handle this situation alone. If he was, Steve was sure he would break down.
"Are you sure your mom isn't worried about you?" Steve said as the two walked over to the waiting area and sat down.
"I'm sure she is, but I could care less. Right now, I'm just worried about Eddie," Dustin replied.
"He's going to be fine," Steve said, giving Dustin a reassuring look. In reality, he was trying to convince himself that Eddie was going to be okay. He was so worried about him. Eddie getting hurt seemed like his fault.
Eddie had to go into surgery to repair the damage that the demobats did to his body. The doctors removed over a dozen teeth from the deep wounds on his sides. Each time one was uncovered, the surgeons were more and more confused. The teeth didn't match any animal that they knew of.
By the time Eddie was stable, it was almost morning. Steve could see the beginnings of a sunrise outside the windows of the emergency room. Dustin had fallen asleep on his arm hours ago, but Steve was unable to sleep. He was worried out of his mind. He didn't know why, but he just didn't seem to be ready to let Eddie die. Why did he care, though? He pushed away all of his thoughts when saw the nurse approaching him.
"Your friend is stable now. You can visit him if you'd like," the nurse said softly.
YOU ARE READING
Lost in Admiration | Steddie
Romance"Hey," Eddie said, a little upset. He was too dazed in the moment to recognize the person sitting next to him. "Steve," he mumbled when his eyes were able to focus, looking at Steve with a softened look, surprise written on his face. "Hey, Eddie,"...
