bitchin'

Chapter 48

The trio arrives at Family Video, the newest workplace for Robin and Steve. Dustin bursts through the doors.

"Hey! Steve!"

"You see this?" he asks, pointing towards a TV, where they are watching the current newscast of the murder.

"How many phones do you have?" Dustin asks, ignoring Steve.

"Someone was murdered," Steve continues.

"How many phones do you have?" the boy exclaims again.

"Two, why?"

"Technically three, if you count Keith's," Robin adds. Dustin and Max look at each other.

"Yeah, three works," she says. Dustin takes off his backpack and shoves it across the counter, taking a pile of VHS tapes with it.

"My pile!" Robin exclaims.

"What are you—-" Steve exclaims as Dustin hops onto the counter and swings his legs over, taking more tapes, "no, no, no! My tapes! Dude!"

He sits down at the computer behind the counter, "what are you doing, man?"

"Setting up base of operations here," he answers.

"Base of operations?" Lindsay looks at Max with wide eyes and a smile at Dustin's little stunt.

"You are not hopping over that counter," Max sternly says to her 5'10" girlfriend, who then pouts.

"How come he gets to do it?!"

"He is not in a leg brace, Z, are you crazy?" the redhead exclaims, "Actually, don't answer that. Let's go."

"Ugh," the Harrington girl groans before walking around to the back.

"Seriously, you guys, maybe on a Monday you can play around like a bunch of toddlers, but it's Saturday!" Robin exclaims, picking up the tapes Dustin knocked over, "it's our busiest day!"

"Hey, I didn't make that mess!" Lindsay defends.

"Robin, I empathize, but this cannot wait," Dustin explains.

"Calling Eddie's friends is an emergency?" she asks.

"Correct!"

"Want me to strangle him or you want to?" Steve mutters behind the trio.

"We could take turns," the older girl suggests.

"Can you fill them in while I do this?" Dustin turns to Lindsay and Max.

"Fill us in on what?" Robin asks.

"You may want to sit down for this..." Lindsay suggests from behind her girlfriend.

***

"Have you seen or heard from Eddie recently?" Dustin asks.

"Eddie Munson," Max says on a different call.

"When's the last time you talked to him?" he asks.

"Seen him?"

"Okay, sorry to bother you," Dustin ends the call.

"Know anyone who'd know where he is?" she asks still on the phone.

"I really don't think he's at the arcade," Robin says on the third phone, "yep, I'm pretty sure."

"Reefer Rick? No. Does this Reefer Rick have a last name? I mean, it's kind of..." Max continues.

"All right, Doctor Zhivago," Steve says, helping a customer, "It's a double VHS, it's long. But that's because it's filled with action and romance, and a little bit of suspense."