Master of Puppets [ EddiexReader | Stranger Things ]

For Whom the Bell Tolls

After lunch you had a free period, normally you would take the time to study but felt like you needed a breath of fresh air. You decided to take a small walk in the woods behind the school. You had a it of anxiety couldn't shake the a heavy feeling that was like a pit in your stomach.

You came across a dilapidated picnic table that looked like it hadn't been used in years. The sunlight dappled through the trees and it felt serene although it looked a little bit like a scene from a horror movie. Leave it to you to find comfort in the weirdest spots. You grabbed your walkman out of bag and adjusted the headphones to fit over your ears before turning it on and hitting play. Metallica drifted through the small speakers and you climbed on top of the table, sitting cross legged and closing your eyes. Relishing in the deep breath you could take, not feeling like you had to be anyone.

You felt like someone was watching you and you opened your eyes to of course see the one and only Eddie Munson staring at you.

"Listen princess, if you wanted my attention so badly you could have just talked to me. You don't have to come to my secret spot, blast Metallica and sit atop the picnic table like your a five course meal" if you weren't starting at him you knew you would be able to hear the smirk in his words.

"Shit, sorry. I didn't mean to impose, just needed a bit of breather I guess?"

"No worries, just don't get the whole basketball team to hunt me down again yeah?" He said with a tinge of annoyance.

"I-uh I'm so fucking sorry about that. I really didn't say anything to Jason. I didn't think he would do something like that over literally nothing"

"It's no problem, I've had worse. Didn't really think it was your fault anyway. They're always looking for an excuse to fight"

"Yeah well you tend to make it fairly easy" you chuckled mimicking the devil face he made earlier in the day.

"Hey, if they want a freak I'll happily oblige" the smirk on his face widened to a genuine smile and you felt your stomach flip flop.

You were suddenly aware how close he was to you. You were sitting on the edge of the picnic table and he had come up in front of you, placing a hand on either side of your knees. At this close proximity you could smell him. Musky with a hint of cologne and stale cigarettes. It was intoxicating and you honestly felt like you could drown. For the first time in months you felt all your anxiety for the future, college, the cheer squad - everything just melt away. You realized this was probably the closest you had ever been to him and you were thankful you were sitting as your we're confident your knees would have given out.

Breathe, get a grip on yourself. You're literally just sitting down.. in front of a boy.. who you literally masturbated to less than a week ago.

You felt your face flush at your thoughts and he chuckled again.

You're not normally such a 'deer in the headlights' kind of girl. You've had your fair share of boyfriends, dates, flings etc but none of them managed to turn you into a babbling mess as Eddie fucking Munson managed to. He hadn't even so much as touched you and you were ready to throw in the towel.

You jumped as branch cracked somewhere behind you "shit" you hissed in fright.

"Language princess, you wouldn't want to hurt your chances of getting that prom queen title"

"I don't want to be the fucki-" your words were cut off by a small "sorry to interrupt" behind you.

You and Eddie both looked behind to see Chrissy approaching cautiously towards the picnic table.

"Sorry, again - I don't mean to interrupt anything thats-"

"Nothing's going on Chrissy, it's okay" you said before turning around fully towards her.

She bobbed her head and gave you a slight smile. As made to get up you realized you were still slightly trapped by Eddies arms on either side of you. You glanced back into his eyes and you could swear he seemed disappointed before he bounced up a little "business as usual" he said to you with another wink.

You got up and looked at Chrissy, she gave you a pleading look that you could tell was a 'please don't tell anyone - especially Jason that you saw me here' Chrissy was always sweet and you genuinely liked her despite her shallow interests and bad taste in men. You gave her a reassuring smile that her secret was safe before you turned and made your way back to school.

It wasn't until you made it back to the double doors you started to wonder what she was out there for. Was it for Eddie? It was probably drugs. You knew Eddie dealed on the side and there was more than a couple of cheerleaders and jocks alike who occasionally indulged in weed or more - yourself included. But you didn't think Chrissy was into those kinds of things. You hoped everything was alright but that heavy feeling in your stomach was back.