Wrapped Around Your Finger - Eddie Munson

Chapter Three: The Mall

It was Saturday. Chrissy and I planned on taking a trip to the new mall that was built after the old one burned down. She said Contempo Casuals had released a new clothing line that "looked like Cyndi Lauper and Madonna had a baby".

We walked around the mall, pointing out things we saw in the windows of shops we could never afford. Chrissy bought a few things from Contempo's and forced me to try on a pleated skirt she swore I pulled off. After a couple hours of shopping, well more like Chrissy shopping while I help her pick between options, we headed to the food court.

We sat and ate and talked about all the things that two best friends would need to catch up on. She told me about Jason's basketball game and the afterparty they had at his house while his parents are out of town and I told her about my night with Eddie.

"Oh my god he took you down to Lovers Lake?" She asked excitedly, eyes wide like a little kid.

"What?" I questioned.

"Lovers lake, that's what everyone calls it! You only go down there if you're looking for a little action." She exclaimed, wiggling her shoulders and giggling.

"Well for your information, no action took place. This was a PG movie." I declared, taking a bite out of my food.

"He was probably shy. Come on, Hannah! He brought you flowers, took you to the arcade, and then took you to Lovers Lake! If there wasn't any action then, the sequels about to be R rated for sure." She nudged me excitedly.

"I don't know, Chrissy. I mean, maybe? It was definitely sweet, but if he was gonna make a move, wouldn't he have made it already when he had the chance?"

"Like I said, he's probably nervous! He's not exactly Mr. Popular around here. Then all of a sudden the female version of him shows up in Hawkins and just walks into his little nerd club, he's probably just as freaked as you are." She smiled, getting a laugh from me when she called the Hellfire Club his little nerd club.

"So what am I supposed to do now? Just wait for him to actually make a move?"

"You make the move!" She suggested..

"Absolutely not." I scoffed.

"Oh come on, its so obvious he's into you. Just go for it!" She insisted.

"I think I'll pass."

"What's the worst that-"

"Hey baby." Fuck. Jason walked up to us, goons in tow. Chrissy squealed and got up to hug him. He scooped her up, glaring at me over her shoulder. I held his stare until he looked away.

"Jason I didn't know you were here!" Chrissy beamed.

"The boys and I were out and I thought I'd stop by to surprise my girl." He answered, wrapping his arm around her waist as she giggled and buried her face in his neck.

"Hey Chrissy, I'm gonna head out." I called over Jason's shoulder, she gave me a muffled goodbye and a wave as she wrapped arms around Jason.

Finally, Monday was over. The clock hit 1:55, the school bell rang and suddenly the halls were packed with students rushing to get home. I made my way down to the auditorium storage room, ready for another DnD session. We all sat around the table, dice clattering and laughter echoing throughout the room.

Goren had to save Mike's rogue a few times from dying, which he was very grateful for. Two hours pass and our session for the day is over. The freshmen of the group pack up their things and head home, leaving us seniors alone. We sat in silence for a couple seconds before Garreth suggested a jam session at his garage.

"You guys play?" I asked.

"Uh yeah, we're in a band, dude." Jake replied.

"It's called... Corroded Coffin." Eddie said, exaggerating the name in a theatrical manner.

"Metal as fuck." Jeff chimed in.

"Would it be cool if I came and watched?" I asked, looking around at the guys.

"You're welcome anytime, our fearless Goren!" Eddie said, bowing to me as we all left the storage room.

We pulled up to Garreth's house and piled into the garage. Jake flipped a switch to open the door as Eddie pulled the covers off their instruments. He plugged his guitar into the amp and adjusted the tuning. One of the guys suggested a song of theirs to play, which was currently called "Song Number 3".

I sat back and listened to them play, headbanging along with the rest of them as they jammed out. They played a few songs before setting the instruments down and taking a seat on the grass with me. They talked about the show they were playing tomorrow at The Hideout.

"Hannah you should totally come." Jeff said, excitedly pointing at the other guys to get them to chime in. They all agreed, saying it would be fun and I wouldn't have to worry about running into any douchey jocks.

"I could give you a lift there and back." Eddie offered, saying it like he was trying to sweeten the deal.

"Hell yeah, sounds like it'll be sick. I'm in." I said, getting the guys to all cheer and playfully punch my arms. After a few more hours of hanging out and watching the guys practice, Eddie drove me home from Garreth's.

"The shows at 6pm tomorrow, little bit after Hellfire Club ends." Eddie said as he walked me to my door. "You sure you wanna go?"

"In the words of a wise man, I wouldn't miss it for the world." Eddie smiled as I said that.

"Look at me, I've got myself a groupie already." He said, his voice low and smooth, almost bringing me to my knees. He smiled smugly at me as I felt my cheeks clearly heat up, knowing for a fact he could see it too.

"That depends, how close do you have to be to be more than just a groupie?" I said, my voice barely above as whisper as I tried to steady myself under the alluring gaze of Eddie Munson. He leaned closer, huffed out a laugh, and dropped his gaze.

"I'll see you tomorrow." He spoke and then he was gone.