To Eddie Munson: My Knight in Shining Leather

The showdown

Steve, Robin, and Nancy exited the trailer immediately, and Dustin and Eddie followed. So much for talking to Steve before he left. You chose to linger in the trailer, distracted by the new -but somehow familiar- surroundings, trying to pinpoint the source of these feelings. The blue glow was both ominous and homely. Just as you felt you were putting your finger on it, the boys re-entered. "Here's the plan, now. I'm the oldest, so I'm in charge." Eddie said before anyone could argue, turning to face you and Dustin. He puffed his chest out as he spoke again. "Dustin and I are going to gather supplies so we can start making this place more of a war base than a trailer house."

"How?" you inquired.

"This place is stuck in 1983," Dustin said over his shoulder as he walked toward the door, "There's a ton of scrap metal and chain link just laying around outside, and I don't think anybody is going to miss it."

Eddie fished out a drill and a box of screws from the same closet you got the sheets from, grabbing Dustin by the shoulder and flinging him out the front door. After sending Dustin on his way, Eddie turned to you.

"I'm going to sound like a total prick when I say this, but please know I only have your safety in mind. I need you to stay inside," he said hesitantly.

You looked at him, your brow furrowed as you realized what he was saying. "You don't think I'm going to be any help out there, do you?"

Eddie's eyes widened, surprised at you piecing it together. "Look," he started, "I just... you haven't been in here before. It's too risky."

"And you have been in here once," you argued.

"I'm not arguing with you, sweetheart, we don't have the time. Now, I gotta get moving before Dustin comes in and chews us both out." He grabbed the back of your neck and pulled you in, kissing you longingly on the forehead before disappearing out the front door. The sound of his drill could be heard almost immediately. Dustin must have been gathering supplies while Eddie was talking with you. The windows darkened as they covered them, using the leftover panels that had been discarded outside. Chain link rattled, and you peeked out to see Eddie wrapping his small porch with it. You watched him work for a moment, admiring his strength.

I'll show him just how helpful I can really be, you thought. You found some plywood scraps that were stacked in the corner, and started planning how to reinforce the small openings that were left uncovered. Double reinforcement would never hurt. Since Eddie took the drill, all you had to work with was the rusty nails from the field and a hammer. It would work. It had to.

The sound of you hammering away was drowned out by the drill outside and the boys occasional chatter. After a moment of silence, they re-entered and walked with intention to Eddie's bedroom. At this time, you were on top of his kitchen counter, having found a small vent in the ceiling for the heat from the stove to escape. You weren't sure how big these bats were, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Eddie saw you before Dustin did, and he stopped in his tracks before reaching the hallway. Dustin ran smack into him, face first against his back. Luckily, Eddie got a new vest courtesy of his friends ransacking The War Zone, and it was quite padded. Dustin dressed himself in a ghillie suit, but wound up looking more like an Ewok because of his height and the way he wore his sweatshirt and headband together. He looked cute. Eddie cocked his head at you, and Dustin did the same when he saw where you were.

You glanced at the boys over your shoulder, pounding the last nail in before turning around and hopping off. You sauntered over to Eddie and jokingly tapped him on the shoulder with the hammer, saying, "Bet'cha didn't think of that one, did you?"

You prepared to walk past him, but he caught you and spun you around to face him. His eyes were wild, sparkling like crazy, too. "There's, uh, there's another one in my room. Would you mind?"