Stranger Things one shots

Scars (Eddie Munson x Reader)

request: Could we have Eddie seeing your scars for the first time?

word count:  1.2k

warnings: angst [trauma; events of volume 2; insecurities about body; isolation] mention of deep scarring with vague descriptions. Short mention of blood. a lot of comfort

A lot had happened that night in the Upside Down that none of you wanted to talk about. Horrible, terrible, dark things. As the weeks, and months, went by, you all tried to move on, pretending like it was just some far away and nasty dream that happened to have occurred to all of you.

But some things, no matter how hard you tried, were unforgettable.

Eddie would never forget any of it. Hell, he had been the one to carry you out of the demon dimension himself. Covered in your blood, crying out to you, hoping you could still hear all his reassuring words. It will be ok, you hear me? I'm gonna get you help. As much as he wanted to forget everything that happened there, he would never let himself forget how you saved his life.

When he brought you into the hospital, there was no time for questions. The only priority was to get you back to him. He screamed at the nurses and doctors, begging for help. Some of them tried to get to him, as he was covered in bite marks himself, but he didn't care whether he lived or died. He needed you to be ok.

So, time went on and life went back to as normal as it could be. You went to classes, graduated with Eddie, and had the whole summer ahead of you. What more could you ask for?

Well, for one, some shittier weather. The sun beamed up above you, layering sweat over your skin, making it unbearable to wear the smallest amounts of clothing, something you were not too eager to do. You didn't feel like showing off your souvenir from the Upside Down to the rest of town; to your friends– who were trying to forget all of that just as much as you were. There was no need to remind them of it.

But it was difficult to hide them in weather conditions such as these. Long sleeves were not an option unless you were eager to get a heatstroke. So, since you could not hide it, you could hide entirely from everyone else. The first few weeks of the summer, you spend hiding out in your room, picking up the phone just to quickly come up with excuses why you couldn't meet your friends at the pool.

It seemed to be going smoothly, your little hermit-summer plan, until one afternoon, you heard the doorbell ring. Your window was just at the wrong angle to see who was standing at the door, but you could hear your brother talking to him– Eddie. What the hell was he doing here?

You could hear the footsteps come up the stairs, nearing your bedroom. The soft knock on the door followed by his voice— god, you had missed that voice.

'y/n?'

Maybe if you didn't answer, he would go away.

'Can we please talk? I– we're all worried sick about you.'

'I'm fine. I just want to be alone, ok.' You were scrambling around your room, trying to find something to cover up with, in case he would walk in. You had just been wearing some shorts and a tank top, very much not hiding what you needed to have covered up.

'Please, can I just see you–' you had to understand, for the past few weeks, Eddie had been a mess. You used to spend all your days together, not one would go by where you had not talked and now– radio silence. For weeks. He was scared, but he had wanted to give you space, everyone else told him thats the best thing to do. If you didn't want to see anyone, he couldn't just go and barge into your room– but he had had enough. His anxieties were getting too much, so, when you didn't answer, he took it upon himself to push the door open.

'I'm sorry ok, but–' What he saw not only shut him up, closed up his throat entirely, but it broke his heart. You were standing in front of him, in the middle of your room, trying to wrap a cardigan around yourself. But even then, he could see the dark red skin of your legs, your shoulder.

'Go away, please.' You were ready to cry. He couldn't see you like this.

'y/n,' he whispered. Was this why you didn't want him to see you? Because of the scars?

'Please,' the tears streaked down your face. But he didn't move. His hand was on the door handle, and he only let it go to walk towards you and pull you in the tightest hug you had ever felt. It was the first time anyone had touched you in weeks, and it was like a hot shower poured over you. You could feel the care and love he had in him for you.

Not knowing what else to do, you just started crying against his chest. He let you without hesitation, stroking your hair gently, swaying your bodies from side to side. 'It's ok,' he repeated.

When you pulled away, he wiped away your tears with a kind smile, rubbing his thumbs over your cheeks, pulling at them to insinuate a grin out of you.

'I'm sorry for being so distant,' you said weakly, not that he even thought you needed to apologise. 'I just feel so embarrassed, they're so big and ugly–'

'Hey, don't, ok?' He sat down on your bed, pulling you along to sit next to him. 'You are still beautiful. Always have been, always will be. No matter what. And these fuckers–' he poked at your thigh, where one particularly large scar had grown, 'these just show how strong you are. You think anyone's gonna mess with you if they see these? Ha, they'lll run away from you, the Mighty y/n!'

'Thanks,' you wiped at your cheek with your sleeve. Silence filled the room.

Then Eddie looked over at you.

'You wanna see mine?'

'What?' You were confused.

'My scars,' he pulled his shirt up to reveal his ribs, where a very similar red scar had settled. 'We basically match, huh?'

You were speechless as Eddie kept on going. He showed you the scar on his neck, which was smaller and had actually faded. Than a smaller one on his knee, which had nothing to do with the Upside Down or Demo-bats. He had gotten it when he fell out of a tree when he was seven.

'And this badboy,' he showed you his palm, where a long thin line interrupted the natural ones, 'cut myself in metal shop. Blood was everywhere. Mr Franklin nearly fainted.'

'Really?' you listened to all his stories. Most of these scars you had noticed on him, but never really wondered about where they had come from. They had just always been there, they had always been a part of him. They were a part of his history and what made Eddie Eddie. Just like your scars made you you.