The Drive-In

19

Eddie wakes up hazily to the sound of the telephone ringing and Wayne cursing the place to the ground.

"Hello? Yes, this is the Munson residence...EDDIE!!!!" Uncle Wayne calls out.

Eddie opens his door and looks out of it with narrowed eyes mouthing, "who is it?"

Wayne mouths back, "Steve?"

Eddie makes a cut-off motion across his throat and frowns.

"He's not here. You wanna leave a message? Ok, one second."

Wayne scrambles for a pen and paper, "Uh huh...yeah...ok...did he now? Interestin'...Well alright...Ok, I'll pass it on. Yeh. Yep. Oh, you know, not too bad, thanks. You?... I'm sure it's not that bad, is it?...yes, bye now, Steve...I won't forget...yes he'll get it...just like the other messages yeah...Steve! I will make sure he gets 'em. Goodbye!" Wayne puts down the phone.

"Eddie, for the love of my sanity, you have gotta call your friend back, ok?" Wayne gestures at the notes around the phone and underneath it on the floor.

Eddie folds his arms, "Jesus Christ. It's Monday morning! Schools out!!! What if I don't wanna speak to him?"

"Then call the boy back and tell him that!! I told him that five phone calls ago! Or we switch rooms. Your choice."

Eddie stomps back into his bedroom, grabs his bedding, and sternly walks back into the living room, dragging it across the floor before flopping onto the sofa.

"Oh, we got stubborn Eddie today, I see." Wayne pulls Eddie back to a sitting position, "Also, I ain't goin' back to sleep now, so neither are you. You're gonna sit there and tell me what the hell this kid keeps ringing my home for and why you don't wanna speak to him today, but yesterday morning you were standing right there telling me you were good enough buddies for a sleepover."

"I can't tell you, alright!!" Eddie says, trying his best not to lose his temper with the wrong person, "Even if I wanted to."

"Well then, you better call him back, or the next time that phone rings, you better answer, else I'm tearing that phone out and not buying a new one. Ya, hear me?"

"Alright! Shit! OK, I'll tell you, but you cannot tell a soul. No one! I don't like him much right now, but I don't wanna get him in trouble or hurt, you know?"

Wayne eyes Eddie curiously, "You got my word, son."

"Ok...well..." Eddie shifts uncomfortably, wraps himself up in a blanket, and clears his throat, "Well, Steve is...um..." Eddie looks everywhere except Wayne, "Remember I told you about what happened in the evening on Saturday with that guy?"

Wayne nods.

"Well, that guy and Steve are the same person," Eddie says worriedly, twisting his rings around his fingers.

"Well, I knew that," Wayne says calmly.

"Huh?" Eddie says in confusion.

"Well, how else could you have been at Steve's and at this guy's house at the same time if they weren't the same guy?" Wayne spells it out for him

Eddie opens his mouth to say something but then goes quiet again. He probably should have really thought about what he said to Wayne yesterday. Not that Wayne would tell anyone, but if Steve did like guys, that wasn't Eddie's secret to tell.

"There are two things I know you did between that conversation and now. You returned them videos, and you hung out with the Coffin boys. So what happened. You changed your mind? Don't feel the same? Are you worried about what the band thinks?" Wayne asks with genuine kindness.