Overkill // Joseph Quinn

21- heart

Matt Duffer: Great! We need you more than you think, Eden. See you soon.

I reread the message over and over, even as I'm walking through the airport.

My flight was scheduled three days after Sara convinced me to message him. I didn't realize how nervous I was until Sara had left the next day. I insisted she stayed with me and return back with her class the next day. She's really flipped my life around with the few hours we spent together, and I'm both grateful and worried.

I haven't heard from or seen Jo or Joseph. I'm more worried about how things are going to be with Jo more than anything. Hopefully Jamie isn't going to ignore me like they are, I'm not even that close with anyone else. Maybe I'll just stick to being up Maya's ass and the rest of the kids and hope for the best.

I boarded my plane and still went back to the message from Matt a few times. Do they actually need me more than I think or are they just saying that? I'm sure they could find someone else to fill my spot, especially since they haven't filmed much of me. The thoughts of my mom start whirling back into my mind but I'm quick to push them away. I doubt they'd waste money to fly me across the country to be there, right?

Going over the thoughts in my head and considering flying back home, I'm already landing in Atlanta. My nerves cause physical pain in my body walking toward luggage claim. I wipe away the stress sweat from my face as I watch all the unfamiliar bags slide past me on the conveyor belt. After finding my suitcase, I make my way out of the building to look for my car. Luckily, my ride is also covered to the set so it's one less thing I have to worry about.

"Hey!" Someone yells from a distance. I turn my head further in the opposite direction and continue looking for my assigned car. "Hey!"

I turn my head around in instinct and instantly feel my heart sink down to my feet. Jo stands outside the drivers side halfway and waves me over. I look all around to make sure he's looking at me, but I finally move my feet when he starts yelling again. Cars behind him honk furiously but he doesn't seem to care as much as I do. I'm now in a full sprint trying to reach the backseat to throw my luggage in and jump into the passenger side.

"Took you long enough." Jo scoffs, I can sense he's messing around with me but I don't want to feed into it too much. I can't let everything we've been through go.

"Sorry, just wasn't expecting you to be my chauffeur." I buckle my seat belt and keep my eyes on the road as he pulls away from the crowded area.

The ride is silent, and I know it's going to be like this for a while considering it's a 40 minute drive. It feels like it's almost been that long but looking at the clock tells me it's barely been 5 minutes. I blow out air from my mouth and tap my thighs awkwardly to a random beat. I look out the window beside me and see in the reflection that Jo is looking at me then looking back at the road.

"How was the flight?" He finally asks. I could tell he's been trying to find something to say. I can also tell he instantly regrets asking such a random question.

"It was good. Went by really fast." I answered quickly. I look over at him and he's already looking at me. We both rip our eyes away from one another to create another awkward silence.

We finally make it to the set after the awfully long ride. It somewhat gives me hope that Jo doesn't hate me, at least not as much. I wish I had tried to start an actual conversation or even apologized but I was too shocked by the unexpectedness of him picking me up. I wonder if he volunteered to.

I get out of the car and start walking to my trailer. It feels good to be back. Now that I'm here my nerves aren't as bad and I feel somewhat relaxed.

"Eden, wait." I turn around to see Jo jogging toward me. He stops and rests his hands on his hips, hanging his head down low like he's trying to think of something to say.