Take Me Home Again (Eddie Munson X OC)

Chapter 8 - First Meetings Again

An earthquake, that's what the pounding in their head reminded them of. It felt like aftershock of an earthquake, constant pressure, like being underwater all at the same time. The fog clouding their mind was too thick to think, slowly pulling them self out of the comfy and warm bed and being greeted with a cold breeze. They shivered and dragged their feet as they willed themself into the kitchen. Searching each cabinet, high and low, for the small bottle they had to have. They found it sitting on the top shelf, close to the ceiling. Reaching up for it almost gave them vertigo, the bottle just out of their reach. They huffed and grabbed a butter knife from the drawer by their hip, using it to knock the bottle down into their hands, the pills shaking and echoing in their head. 

They opened it and pulled out three of the ibuprofen pills, swallowing them down thickly one at a time before grabbing a glass and getting a drink of water. The water seemed to clear the fog slightly, hearing a chuckle sounding from behind them. They glanced over their shoulder carefully, seeing it was just Eddie. They rolled their eyes and pushed the bottle back into place before gently pressing the cabinet door closed. "I can't ever find anything in there, you know that Munson?" They groaned and turned back to face him, noticing his bedhead and feeling the color return to their cheeks.

"That was impressive, shorty." He smirked at them, joining their side as they finished off the glass in their hand. "Fuck off you giant." They scowled slightly, the pounding only got worse with the noise the two made. It'd be at least ten minutes before the medicine kicked in. "You sleep okay last night?" His voice seemed to trigger the memories of the previous night, all flooding their mind. The party, the rain, their clothes, the bathroom, and then the confession. They nodded slightly. "Yea, yea. I slept fine. Did you?" 

"Yea, I slept great actually." He smiled as he started to rustle through the fridge. "Shit, we forgot to go shopping. And you obviously need food." Eddie closed the door and leaned back against the wall opposite of them. "You still get grouchy in the mornings."

"I'm not grouchy, I'm hungover and it makes me want to kill myself. Food would be nice." They gave him a sarcastic smile before pushing off the counter. "The diner down the road is open twenty four, seven. You remember that, right?"

Their eyes wandered to the floor, "They're still in business?" Eddie laughed, quietly as to not hurt their head more. "Yea, I'm in there almost everyday." Phoenix cracked a small, genuine smile and nodded. "That sounds perfect, but one problem. My clothes." They glanced down at their matching pajamas from the night before. "They should be dry now." He walked over to the bathroom and picked up the two heaps of clothing, cold to the touch. "They're cold, but they're dry at least." 

Phoenix took their heap from his hand and shivered instantly. "I can suffer for a bit if it means hot chocolate." They smiled and slipped into the bathroom, closing the door between the two of them. They slowly pulled the cold fabric over their already ice cold skin. They emerge at the same time as Eddie, both now dressed. They handed him the borrowed outfit with a small thank you mumbled between them, barely loud enough to hear. But Eddie always heard them, he had grown used to their mumbled thank you's and sorry's. He nodded and tossed the shirt and boxers onto his bed before gesturing for them to move ahead of him. They walked back into the living room and sat against the wall beside the door, pulling on their frozen shoes and lacing them up quickly.

Eddie chuckled, watching them shiver slightly. Phoenix could feel as the goosebumps spread from their feet and met the goosebumps already on their thighs. "Let's go please." They whined as they stood up, walking outside before he could react. He followed them out, finding them already half way into the van. That was probably smarter than walking, the chill hanging in the air from the cool rain in the early hours. They pulled off of the gravely path and onto the paved street, turning in the opposite direction of town. Phoenix often referred to the diner as their own little paradise, tucked away in the wood far from regular society. They enjoyed many a late night in the same booth, usually after having finished all their snacks early on in their movie nights or for lunch after a long morning of adventuring through the forest that surrounded them.