𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲

seven. JUST KIDS.

     

     IN RHYS' room, the two men laid side by side, staring off at the dark room's ceiling. "Eds?" Rhys softly whispers and Eddie hums softly. "Yeah, Rhys?" He whispers. "How old are your little friends?" He asked quietly and Eddie had to think. "Uh, Henderosn and his friend are fifteen... Buckley is eighteen, I think and Harrington is about my age." He shrugged softly and Rhys nods, glancing away.

"Why?" Eddie whispers quietly and Rhys just shrugs. "Just curious..." He mumbled quietly as he looked off to the side. "They're just kids." He said suddenly and turned to look at Eddie who was staring at him already. "Yeah." He says quietly before looking down and Rhys moves to lay onto his side, facing the brunette.

He raised his hand, brushing his fingers gently through Eddie's soft curls. "And you're..." He whispered softly then stopped when those doey puppy dog eyes glance up into his green eyes. "I'm what?" Eddie whispers back and Rhys just leaned over, kissing him gently.

"You deserve so much better than all of this." Rhys says when he pulled back and Eddie raised his hands, cupping Rhys' face as he leaned in for another kiss. There was something about Rhys that kept pulling in Eddie more and more. It was either his green eyes. Perfect blond hair. His talent at drumming. His touch. The way he knows how to make Eddie feel. The way he kisses Eddie. Those pink soft lips. Whatever it was, Eddie feels like he falls for Rhys more and more ever day.

He could admittedly say that, yes, he is in love with Rhys, but never to the blond's face, no. He feels as if he ever said that, Rhys Campbell would just laugh in his face. It'd be a pretty sight to see but shatter Eddie's heart into a million pieces. "Eds," Rhys pulls back, his eyes are still closed and Eddie really wanted to see those beautiful green eyes of his.

"What?" Eddie tilts his head to the side a bit and Rhys finally opens his eyes, moving away a bit. "What exactly is the plan? With the others, I mean..." He asked and Eddie just shrugs softly. "Um, Henderson said he was gonna tap into Hawkins PD radios using his Cerebro, whatever that means and they'll be back in the morning, with Honeycomb cereal and chocolate milk like I wanted." He says and Rhys just chuckled softly, of course that's his priority.

"I don't even eat any of that shit, but somehow I'm all out..." Rhys shrugs and Eddie chuckled, leaning closer. "It's because everytime you're all tired out, about to pass out in bed or on the couch, I raid your kitchen." He says, scrunching up his face and Rhys mocks his face. "Oh, okay. Nice to know why I'm all out of good food." He says and the brunette smiled big. "I have a really big appetite, you know that." He says and Rhys just pokes his sides. "Yeah, no shit." He ends up tickling Eddie who's flailing around and trying to make him stop.

"Stop! I can't breathe!" Eddie exclaimed and Rhys stopped, leaning over Eddie as he chuckled softly, stopping when he realized how adorable the brunette looks. "Rhys..." The Munson said quietly, holding his hands over the Campbell's shoulders. "Eds." The blond then laid down onto his side, beside Eddie.

"I really appreciate all that you do for me..."

Rhys thinks back to when they were in school, when they first met. Rhys was seventeen and Eddie was fifteen when the Munson first came to him, asking if he can sell for him. At first, Rhys denied because of how young Eddie was and looked, but it was just about the age he was when he first started selling.

So he sort of gave in. And then slowly over time, they became friends. Eddie would be over at his place a lot, saying he was alone most of the time at his trailer park home, that his uncle would work himself hard at the plant and it'd be lonely most nights. And then one night, it sort of... happened. It was Eddie's Senior year, three years after they met, also three years since Rhys graduated from high school, Eddie had arrived to Rhys' with the news of the fact he failed his Senior year.

Rhys had been so disappointed, enough to yell at Eddie. "You're smarter than this! Can't you just focus on schoolwork and less on D&D or whatever shit you do in your free time?" Rhys had raised his voice, without meaning to and the eighteen year old only stared at him with glossy eyes and a quivering lip.

"Do--don't give me that... I already got enough shit from my uncle, okay?" Eddie said, his voice wavering as he spoke. "Yeah, because this is so stupid! You know better! You're smarter than this!" Rhys shouted and he felt angry not only at Eddie but himself for reacting this way. "Don't yell at me!" Eddie shouted back.

"I--I just don't want to..." Eddie stopped to sniffle softly, glancing away. "I don't want to graduate and leave to some shitty college for some shitty job. And leave my uncle, or... or you." He said as he turned towards Rhys who just stared at him blankly. "So, what? You're just gonna stay in Hawkins forever? Why would you want that?" He asked as he stood up.

"Because of you! I mean, you have the perfect life here, you live on your own, you have that nice ass fucking car, you work at the gas station, you--you..." Eddie paused and stared at Rhys who was confused why he was saying all of this. So the Munson just stopped and stepped forward to Rhys, connecting their lips.

At first, Rhys thought nothing of it, but looking back now, he realized how much Eddie actually... felt for him. But he's always shrugged it off, said that they were friends. For the past two years they meet in private, hook up and kiss or do whatever the hell it was that Rhys and Eddie do. But now Rhys is hit with realization as he glanced up into Eddie's puppy dog eyes staring straight back into his.

"Yeah, no problem... what friends are for, right?" Was all he said and Eddie felt his heart break but smiled. "Yeah, exactly." He chuckled softly and Rhys smiles, looking away. He can't let him in. No. He can't. He knows what that will mean for them both. To be emotionally involved then just physically. It was a little too late for that anyway, the way Eddie looks at him with disappointment and Rhys glanced over at him, his heart breaking at the sight of how sad Eddie looks by what Rhys had just said.

"Eddie." Rhys moved to lay onto his side, facing the brunette completely. "I'm tired. Can you just play some music?" Eddie whispered quietly, moving to lay onto his back. "Yeah, of course..." Rhys whispers, getting up, he continued off where they'd last played one of Rhys' tapes, laying back in bed by Eddie.

authors note bad habits by steve lacy makes me cry and think of steddie