your lips on my red cheeks

finding the freak

You stood between two shelves within Family Video, your index finger dragging across the VHS tapes. Finally, you arrived at one of your favorite movies and slid it out of its spot.

"What you got there, loser?" A familiar voice said behind you.

"You know, if you're trying to get girls: use less cologne, maybe?" You quipped back, looking upwards at the one and only Steve Harrington, who rolled his eyes at your reply. "Also, it's E.T."

You show the older boy the VHS tape and walk towards the counter. You recently decided to indulge in simple activities, trying to forget what happened a while ago. Plus, everyone seemed to move on...

Steve hummed, taking the tape from your hands. That's when the sky seemed to crash down on both of you. Robin arrived behind the counter, the T.V. remote in hand, looking at the both of you with a shocked look in her eyes. "Did you guys hear? Someone fucking died."

She turned on the device, raising the volume. The newscaster's voice boomed around the store, informing the three of you about the murder at the trailer park. Your jaw dropped, recalling where Max lived.

"Fuck, doesn't Max live there?" You mentioned, a hint of worry evident in your voice. "I'm going to go check on her."

You started backing up to leave, turning as you reached the door. Only to be smacked in the nose by it. "Ah, fuck!"

You held onto your nose with both hands, feeling a twinge of pain but not the worst you've felt. You hear a voice whisper your name, accompanied by soft hands grabbing onto your shoulders.

"Shit, I did not see you there." The person said. You knew exactly who it was. How could you not? You've been crushing on her for over a year, give or take a few months.

"Yeah," you reply with a voice higher than usual. "Yeah, not the worst I've gotten."

You remove your hands from your face, wiping the water that got into your eyes from the injury. You then give her a grin, extremely aware of the redness blossoming on your face. Max was right there, the closest you two have been together in a while.

Max was aware of the effect she had on you, which honestly brought a small smile onto her face whenever she heard you stutter, accidentally injure yourself, or blush around her. Heck, she thinks everyone around the two of you knew but didn't want to say anything. She patted you on the cheek and smiled at you, remembering the task at hand and joining Dustin at the counter. So, like a lost puppy, you followed her.

"What are you two in here for?" Steve questioned, only to be hit in the shoulder by Robin.

"What are we? In jail?" She criticized him. Nonetheless, her attention was returned to the three younger teens in front of her. "But, he's right. You guys should really stay home. A murder just happened."

"That's exactly why we're here. Someone , not to say any names," Dustin began, making an exaggerated look towards Max, which invoked her to flip him off. "Thinks that Eddie Munson killed the victim."

Your eyes widened, and your back straightened. Eddie Munson? You knew him, and he wouldn't do that. He may be a bit off, but he would never kill someone. "You think Eddie killed someone? He wouldn't do that." You immediately defended him to Max.

You suppose no one else knew about your relationship with Eddie except Max. He was like your older brother, guided you through school, and was there when you needed him. Max sighed, holding her forehead as if thinking about what to say. "What do you want me to say? I know what I saw. Chrissy was with Eddie last night." She replied, her voice tired and angry at not being believed. The air between the two of you became tense. Robin's eyes switched between the both of you with an amused look.