Soon enough, almost everyone was here. Steve, Robin and Nancy came together. Mike, Lucas, Will and El showed up not long after. Joyce, Uncle Hopper and Jonathan were the last to show. Dustin stood up in front of everyone to explain why they were all here.
“I know you’re all wondering why I dragged you here. Trust that it's for a good reason. There's someone who wants to see you and there's going to be confusion but we’ll try to explain everything, ok? Ok you can come out!!” he yelled back, and Eddie walked out of the bedroom. It was eerily quiet for a second before everyone erupted. It was my turn to talk.
“Ok guys, I know this is a shock. Trust me, I know. I was just as shocked as you all are, maybe more so. I know you all have questions and we’ll try our best to answer them, but please calm down a bit, ok?” I looked over at Eddie, who now had Ivy cuddled to his chest, her little arms wrapped around his neck.
Once everyone had finally calmed, the questions started. Some we couldn’t answer but most we could. The biggest one we couldn’t answer was how. Even Eleven was stumped on that one.
My favorite part? No one was scared. Not a single one of them. They were rightly confused and some mad that they waited so long to tell everyone, but they understood when Eddie explained why he couldn’t risk it. Pretty soon, it was like he was never gone. The boys talked about DnD, although it had a whole new meaning to them now.
Joyce and I made dinner for everyone, while Nancy and Robin played with Ivy. I’d catch Eddie looking over at me often, winking when our eyes met. Still gave me butterflies even after all this time. I watched Eddie with his uncle and all the worry I had about how he would handle it washed away. It was like finding out about the demons that haunted our little town and the fact that his nephew was, in essence one of them, made no difference as long as he had him back.
Soon enough, everyone started to funnel out, leaving just me, Eddie and Ivy. I plopped down on the couch next to Eddie, who was holding a fast asleep Ivy. I leaned over and put my head on his shoulder and let out a breath. He took my hand with the one that wasn’t curled around our daughter and kissed my head.
“You ok babe? That wasn’t too much?” I asked, looking up at him.
“I will admit I was worried if I could handle that many people that close together, but it was easier than I thought. That's not to say it wasn't fully exhausting, but I'm really glad they all know now. It was hard not having anyone to talk to aside from Dustin and El. Not complaining, if it wasn’t for them, I'd still be stuck down there so ill always be thankful for that. It just feels like a huge weight’s been lifted and I can breathe easier now.”
“I have my girls and my friends and family back, and I couldn't ask for anything more. I’m just sad I missed so much.” He finished, kissing Ivy on her head, making her coo in her sleep.
“Yup, just like her mama. Little Dove.”
