The thought of you

Ch. 5

"And you don't know where this kid is?" Hopper asked, looking around at the scattered mess.
"Uh, no. He just called and asked if I knew anything about how to get rid of it. He wants to come out from hiding, but it won't be safe. He asked if I knew anyone government status." Steve explained.

"Okay, well. We're going to call." He said as he grabbed the phone.

"Yes. The kid is here." Hopper said while handing Steve the phone.

"And you said you want to speak to a higher up?" The woman on the other side of the phone clarified.
"Yes." He heard the line go quiet for a while, hopper was standing beside him.

-

Eddie made his way down the stairs, trying to be as slow as possible, so that he didn't hurt himself.

Steve noticed him and put the phone down immediately to go help him. He sat Eddie on the couch and brought some water over to him along with a sandwich he had already made.

"Who's that?" Hopper asked loud enough for both boys to hear.
"Uh, this is...This is Eddie." Steve introduced.
"This the kid?" He asked.

"Yeah. But like I said, it's related." Steve said again.

Eddie was terrified. He didn't want to go to prison. He didn't want to get hurt anymore either.

Steve gave Eddie a warm smile and walked back over to the phone.
He and Hopper switched places. Hopper started talking to Eddie.

-

"Relax kid, I'm not here to arrest you or anything. I'm dead too." He joked.
"Yeah, I remember your picture in the paper. You...you believe me right? That I didn't do what they say I did?"
"Of course. I've seen with my own eyes, what those things can do." He spoke grimly.

Eddie nodded.

-

Steve was taken off of hold and on the phone with someone. He was a doctor.
"They said this was important?" The man asked.
"You'd bet your ass it is." Steve snipped.

Hopper jumped up and went to the phone.
"Is the Dr. Warjaowski?" Hopper spoke into the phone.
"Who wants to know?"

"Hopper. I have a bone to pick. You're gonna want to listen too." He said.
"Why would I listen to a dead man?"He asked cockily.

"Because I have things that could ruin you. Pictures, living creatures, living people...they could ruin you and the entirety of our government." Hopper said. Which seemingly got his attention.

"What do you want?" He asked.
"I need you to get rid of a charge. Not just have it say 'not guilty' no. I want it expunged. His whole record. This man will be 100 percent clean of all previous charges too." Hopper said with a dark hint of his voice.

"Why would I do that!?"
"Because I know about your little funding. For your experiments. I know more than most of your people do."
"I'll have you killed!"
"I have a select few that know too. You can't kill all of us." He let out in an evil tone.

"Who is it?" The man asked.
He looked at Steve and mouthed 'name?'
Steve grabbed a piece of paper and wrote Eddie's name down.

"Edward C. Munson. And I don't just want it cleared on the computer. I want one of you to come down here and announce publicly that you have investigated and determined he was innocent. Understood?" He demanded.
The man on the other side of the phone mumbled something.
"I said do you understand!?" Hopper yelled.

"Yes! I'll have someone there talk to the mayor and arrange a town meeting. I've got someone down there already, with the earthquake, but I'll have him announce it." He surrendered.
"Good, and if you don't have this done in the next 2 days, I have connections to the major news lines." Hopper said before hanging the phone up.

"2 Days. If it's not done by then, I'll talk to Nancy. Have it all put out there." Hopper shrugged.
Steve couldn't contain himself, he gave Hopper a hug.

-

"So, why was he over here?" Eddie asked after Steve walked the ex cop out.

"2 days." Steve said.
"Until..?"
"You're free. Your name is being cleared. Hell all of your record is being expunged. You won't have anything on it." Steve said excitedly.

Eddie blinked a couple times, not sure wether to believe what he was told.
"uh, How?" He asked Steve.
"We told you everything that went down, but we have connections to government as a perk from all that."

Eddie gave Steve a smile and felt like he could cry.

"Thank you."
"Of course. You're my friend. That's what friends do." Steve hesitated. He had been feeling odd toward Eddie.
It was almost what he felt with Nancy, but the thought scared him, the thought of him liking another man. He knew you could, he was dumb, not stupid, he knew there was a sexuality where you liked both, he just hadn't ever found himself feeling this way. Sure, he had long stares in the locker rooms when he played on the high school basketball team, but the locker room was an odd place for anyone. And sure, there were a few boys he thought their girlfriends were lucky to have got, but everyone thinks like that. Right?

Eddie didn't feel like the boys in the locker room, or the guys he saw on the street, he felt real. He knew there was no way in hell that, if he was bisexual, that he had a chance with anyone on the basketball team. Not that he thought he had a chance with Eddie anyways. He was certain that Eddie was way out of his league. Hell, he's in a band.

Little did he know, Eddie thought the same about Steve. Steve was out of his league and was truly only his friend.