Take Me Home Again (Eddie Munson X OC)

Chapter 3 - Passing Glances

Phoenix dragged themself out of bed and walked into the kitchen, their hair flying in all different kinds of ways. It was Friday, exactly a week since they had gotten back to the small town and they were settling in fairly well, in their opinion. They noticed Dustin already sitting with a bowl of cereal and an extra bowl waiting for Phoenix to fill. They slumped into the chair beside him and started to assemble their breakfast.

"Soooo, Phoenix, I was hoping mayyyybe I could take you to the video store today and introduce you to Robin! And Steve." Dustin mumbled his name, judging that they didn't exactly like the guy when they last interacted with him. Phoenix groaned as they took a bit of the crunchy cereal, smiling as the vaguely familiar taste hit their brain. "Why do you want me to meet him so bad?"

"It's not so much about him as I just want you to meet all my friends that you can right now. Maybe make some of your own." He tried his best to convince them, even giving them the puppy dog eyes, which always worked on Phoenix. They whined and huffed, but ultimately agreed. 

Dustin cheered and went to get dressed, leaving Phoenix to finish their cereal in silence. Once the bowl was empty, they returned to their domain and changed into something new, tossing their pajamas to the end of their bed. They had chosen another pair of black shorts, this one sporting a few small distressed spots that Phoenix made one of the days previously, and a plain dark green v-neck tee tucked into the front of their shorts. They pulled on some knee high black socks with two white stripes at the top and their newly broken in converse. Lacing them up, they caught a glimpse in the mirror and decided to tie their hair into a ponytail after brushing it. 

They turned to their new array of jewelry and accessories and pulled a black and silver belt through the loops of their shorts, a few necklaces dangling from their neck, and a pair of silver stud  earrings. They wanted to be casual, but nice seeing as they were meeting new people. Glancing back at the small array of makeup their aunt had given them, they landed on the black eyeliner pencil and shrugged, messily throwing some on. They scribbled and smudged until they thought it was halfway decent before putting the pencil away and grabbing their flip book and pen. When they moved into the living room, Dustin was already standing on the porch with his bike. 

Dustin smiled at them before pulling the bike down to the driveway and patting the seat. "You sure about this kid? I don't think you should pull both of us on this thing."

"It's fine, I've carried a few people around on here. One time Lucas dared me to fit Mike and Will on here and then, when I did, he jumped on and we all rode on the same bike. It's fine." He sat down, making room for Phoenix on the seat. They cautiously climbed on and arranged their feet onto the bar out of the way of the wheel. With a nod from Phoenix, they were off to the video store near the middle of town.

As they arrived, Phoenix was quick to get off and quietly muttered about getting a skateboard for themself. The grumbling sparked an idea in Dustin's head, leading Phoenix into the store. Robin was restocking a shelf and Steve was busy flirting with a customer from behind the counter. Robin glanced up as the bell above the door rang, signalling a new customer. Just as she was about to rattle off the overly practiced greeting, her eyes locked onto Phoenix. A blush crept up her neck as she slowly slunk back to the counter. Phoenix came up to the counter as the young woman being subjected to Steve's torture left. "A swing and a miss, Harrington."

Phoenix laughed as Steve did a double take. "Do I know you, and what are you doing with Henderson?" His eyes glanced between the two figures standing before him.

"Can I use the phone in the back?" Dustin ignored his question entirely.

"Y-Yea that's fine Dustin," Robin spoke as she came to stand beside Steve, the redness never leaving her pale skin.