𝚒 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚒𝚗' 𝚢𝚘𝚞 | eddie munson

vii | shot in the dark

JULY 3RD 1985

"Honey, can you take the car to the shop today for an oil change if you're going to borrow it?" Claudia asked her daughter as she put away some groceries in the fridge.
"Sure thing, mom," Heather said, grabbing the car keys from her mom's purse.
"Are you taking Dustin with you?" Claudia asked.
"Yeah, he wants to say hi to Steve," Heather nodded, "Dustin! We gotta go!"

"Coming!" Dustin called out, exiting his bedroom in a rush and running down the hallway.
He came bounding down the stairs, wearing a grey shirt with light blue sleeves and dark grey shorts along with his Camp Know Where cap and a dark blue backpack.

Heather had been planning to visit Eddie during his lunch break at his part-time job and Dustin had asked her to drop him off at the mall, so he could go see Steve. It was perfect because Starcourt was on the way to Thatcher Tire: Heather could have Steve entertain Dustin while she visited Eddie and she could also ask him to change the oil to her mom's car. Very convenient having a part-time mechanic for a boyfriend—actually, she better not get ahead of herself; they haven't even gone on their first date yet. Tomorrow had never felt so far away.
Still, she felt giddy at the thought of finally getting to call Eddie her boyfriend. No sneaking around for secret meetings and no more stuttering through an explanation as to why she was seeing a boy, who is not her boyfriend, so late at night. She could not wait.

• • •

After dropping off Dustin at the Starcourt Mall, Heather drove down to Thatcher Tire with one of the mixtapes Eddie had given her, playing loudly through the car's speakers.

Ozzy Osbourne's singing was cut off as Heather switched the engine off. She had finally reached Eddie's workplace and parked right outside the first garage on the very left since that was where Eddie was usually stationed. She grabbed the paper bag, containing the takeout food she had bought on the way for her and Eddie's lunch.
There was usually only four other workers besides Eddie and Mr. Thatcher, the owner. Today, however, there was only Brad and Eddie present in the garage.
"Hey, Brad," Heather greeted the boy. Brad was a fellow senior at Hawkins High, but all Heather knew about him was that he was in the baseball team and he worked at the garage on weeknights if there was school and everyday except on Sundays during summer. The only reason she knew his shift schedule was because it was the same as Eddie's.
"Slow day today?" she asked him, motioning to the empty garage.
"Yup," Brad replied, popping the 'p'. He was currently sitting on one of the chairs at the very back of the space with an open magazine in his hands.
"Where's Eddie?" Heather asked looking around for her messy-haired lover.
"He's in the office," Brad said, tilting his head to the direction of the small office in the back left corner of the garage.
Heather sent him grateful smile before knocking on the office door. The door opened to reveal Eddie and, God, he looked good. His long hair was tied up in a messy ponytail, his bangs and short layers framing his face which has a little bit of grease smudged on it—a little streak on his left cheek and forehead. He was wearing a Black Sabbath shirt with his jumpsuit half-off, the sleeves tied around his waist. Heather learned the strength of her self-control that day.

A smile immediately appeared on Eddie's face as he opened the door and saw who was on the other side. His smile got even bigger as Heather held up the Taco Bell bag to show it off.
"You're late," Eddie teased, "But because you're cute, I'll let it slide."
Heather preened at that.
Eddie stepped aside and motioned for her to enter. Inside, the room was quite small; it had a dark blue carpet and white walls, a desk near the back of the room with two chairs for the customers, and two filing cabinets and a bookshelf lined the wall. Mr. Thatcher could be usually found in this office when he comes in, but it also doubled as a small breakroom for any workers that needed space to rest. Eddie had been trying to convince Mr. Thatcher to add a couch in the room, joking that he needed it to nap during his breaks. It was still a work-in-progress.
"I had to drop Dustin off at the mall, so he could say hi to Steve," Heather explained as she walked in and perched herself on the edge of the desk, setting down the bag beside her, "He's stealing my best friend from me, that little shit."
Closing the door behind him, Eddie snickered at the girl's pout.
"If that makes you spend more time with me, then I'm gonna have to take your brother's side on this one," he said.
Heather rolled her eyes, "I hate boys."
"That's unfortunate," Eddie said then looked at her with fake sadness as he stood in front her, "Does this mean you don't wanna go on that date with me?"
"Are you kidding me?" Heather asked him, she clapped her hands on his shoulders, "How can I turn down free popcorn and a free trip to the Fun Fair?"
Eddie snorted, "You don't even like popcorn."
"Hey!" Heather said, faking offense, "I never said I didn't like popcorn, I just said the texture feels weird sometimes."
Eddie nodded, "That's me with bananas—they make my tongue feel weird."
"Ironic," Heather snickered.
Eddie laughed in response, "Shut up."