The Drive-In

6

Eddie tries to get to a sitting position with an uncomfortable hiss and grimaces in pain. Steve leans over to help him, and Eddie eventually sits up and shuffles back against the van wheel.

"Yeah, nothing I'm not used to. Just need a few minutes, is all." Eddie says, trying to catch his breath and get some sort of comfortable.

Steve sits on the ground at a right angle to him.

"Shit," Eddie sighs, turning to Steve, "Did they get my eye? The pain is kinda all over, and, honestly, I can't bring myself to look" Eddie looks up at the side mirror above him, "Even if I wanted to," he huffs out a laugh, reaching for his jacket he pulls out a pack of cigarettes takes one for himself and offers the box to Steve.

This time, Steve takes one and offers Eddie a weak sympathetic smile. Eddie smiles back, shutting one eye from the pain of doing so. Steve thinks.

"Glad to see you don't think I've got cooties," Eddie jokes, offering Steve his lighter.

Steve looks guiltily at the floor and looks back up at Eddie, and gently takes the lighter.

"Your eyes are perfect."

Fuck, that came out wrong.

"I mean, they are fine...you know...unharmed."

Jesus Christ, Steve.

Eddie looks up at him with raised eyebrows, wide-eyed, trying to hold in a laugh, which eventually he snorts out, and nods.

"I got it. Thanks. At least that means my Uncle won't be on my case about it. He specifically said, " One more black eye," and I'm gonna hold him to that verbal contract," Eddie says, taking a drag on his cigarette.

The fact that they had been chasing Eddie around a drive-in sure that made Steve suspicious that this wasn't just a one-off, and Eddie was weird, likes weird things, and dressed strangely, so of course, he was going to get picked on, but Steve hadn't thought it would be so bad someone had to use the term "one more black eye."

Steve lights his cigarette and hands the lighter back to Eddie. He notices a familiar shape on it. It's half one of those strange dice stuck to the side of it. He's seen Dustin and the kids with them.

"It was meant to be a graduation gift, but um...yeah...I didn't quite make it, but they gave it to me anyway," Eddie mutters awkwardly, as he's obviously caught Steve staring and thumbing at it.

"I've seen one of these before. The kids I hang- babysit sometimes have them, for some kind of game, a buncha names...er...Dee Andy or something?" Steve tries to remember.

Eddie tucks his lips into his mouth like he's trying to hold something back, "Yeah, it's called Dungeons and Dragons, D and D for short, like you said" Eddie gives him a half smile back.

Steve feels a little embarrassed having got it wrong, but Eddie had misheard him and thought he'd said the correct thing.

"So...um...thanks for dealing with those fucking ogres." Eddie's smile slips into a slight frown. "I could take 'em, you know, one on one, but as soon as they figured that out, they started turning up in packs" Eddie looks down at the ground, and a flush of embarrassment stains his non-punched cheek.

Steve did not want to add to Eddie's list of failings today, so he decides to bend the truth a little.

Steve snorts out a false laugh, "You think I took on all of them?! No. No way." Steve inhales at his cigarette, "If you must know, I came back here to offer you a ride...home." Steve adds quickly, "Because I kinda felt like an asshole, and then I looked over here, and you were messing around with the van. They saw me coming and ran away, man."