Against all odds || Stranger Things 4 | Hellcheer

Chapter 1

Chrissy makes sure nobody is watching her way before leaving the gymnasium. She crosses the parking lot toward a van parked just at the edge of the cone of light under a streetlight. Eddie Munson is leaning against the bumper, smoking a cigarette, his foot beating a rhythm no one else can hear.

She pulls at the sleeves of her jacket and ups the pace. He stands up to greet her with a smirk. "I wasn't sure you were going to show up." She understands he means the party that's being held out to celebrate the championship the school's basketball team just won.

In any other circumstances, she would have been happy to stand by Jason and enjoy it with everyone else, but her nightmares are getting worse. She's terrified of having another vision like the one she had in the forest with that old clock and the spiders. What would the others think of her if she freaks out in the middle of a dance, pointing at things that aren't there?

Instead, she lied to her boyfriend so she could meet up with another boy and buy drugs... She's not proud of herself, but she's running out of options. The school counselor has been trying to help her, with little effects. The headaches won't stop, she's even having nosebleeds on top of the recurring bad dreams about her mother and now there's this monster... She can't stand it anymore!

It was her friend Anna who gave her the idea of the drugs, although not on purpose. Anna likes to complain about her stoned brother and his disgusting friends, but she's nosy enough to know who they buy their drugs from. Outside of marijuana, Chrissy knows nothing about them, but Eddie seems to be the man of the situation.

She still hesitates a second when he opens the door of his van for her. A remnant of the unfair reputation that surrounds Eddie. A reputation she chose to believe herself, just because he doesn't fit their codes. She was so scared when she slipped that note into his locker, asking for a meeting.

But if anything good might come out of this weird day, is that she got to know him. The real him. A kind and funny boy around whom she felt comfortable enough to open up a little bit. And now she realizes he waited for her even though he thought she was going to stand him up. She knows someone who could learn from that...

Eddie bows dramatically, holding out his hand. "If your Highness wouldn't mind." She chuckles and climbs in, taking his hand. Hoping he doesn't notice her flush. As he closes the door, he smiles at her again. She wonders if he knows how disarming those can be.

*

When Eddie starts the car, Chrissy jumps at the loud music that bursts out of the speakers. He lowers the volume a little, glances at her with a smirk – "Hang on!" – and hits the throttle. This is such a pinch me moment! He's bringing home the queen of Hawkins herself! If she didn't seem so lost and scared, he would have told everybody about it. But after what he saw in the forest, it felt like a betrayal.

He's not even sure about the drugs anymore... He has tried to hide his own demons in them for long enough to know it's not the best way to deal with your shit. It feels great on the way up, but it sure as hell doesn't solve anything. Maybe it's not his business, though. She wants her moment of oblivion, he's just here to provide and take the money.

He glances at her. She's twisting her hands on her knees. He can feel the same anxiety radiating from her as he felt in the woods and decides to act about it the same way. "So your boyfriend won the championship, uh?"

Her face lights up as she cheers, "Yes! Go tigers!" She plays her cheerleader part well, because she adds with the same enthusiasm: "It was such an exciting game. The winning point was actually earned by one of our youngest recruits. Lucas Sinclair."

"Sinclair? Really?"

"Yes! You know him?"

"If I know him? We've bled together!"

She stiffens on her seat. He remembers the article he was reading during the lunch break, about DnD turning people into satanic cultists and murderers. "Uh, metaphorically, I mean. We play that game – DnD? – where we go on a quest to slay monsters and rescue helpless villagers. It's, uh... just a silly game, I guess."

"So that's what Hellfire club is about?"

"Yeah! We actually had a party this evening. A pretty wild one! Sinclair's sister took his place, and, man, she's something!"

Before he can stop himself, and because Chrissy seems curious about it, Eddie recounts the whole campaign. He enjoys more than he should the way she squeals at the scary parts and giggles when he pushes his goofiness, the way she leans progressively toward his seat and won't take her eyes off of him.

"This sounds really fun", she says and, boy, does it send butterflies in his belly.

"Well, you're welcome to come to our next party if you want to!"

"Oh, I wouldn't know how to play."

"I can teach you, it's not that complicated. You'd love it! We have pretty dices that look like gems!"

"Really?" she giggles. There's something about that sound that makes him want to make her happy so that she won't stop laughing.

"But first, we need to forge your character."

He explains what he means by that and enumerates her options, she gets very excited. She jokes she wants to be a fat frog-like creature while he tries to convince her she'd be a perfect druid.

"What is yours?" she asks.

"A bard, of course!"

"Right, of course! Can I be a bard too, then? Like an apprentice or something?"

His heart skips a beat. Despite himself, he feels his face heating up. She has a boyfriend, and Eddie might not be perfect, but he's not that type of guy. Besides, she'd never date a freak like him even if she was single.

"You can be anything you like," he grins, pushing the feelings away before improvising an epic verse about two bards riding in the night that makes her laugh so hard she has to hold her sides. He rarely felt so proud.