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Chapter 38, Eddie, The Banished (Ep. 2: Vecna's Curse)
Nightfall had approached by the time they arrived at Reefer Rick's home.
It was a quarter to midnight and Gwen was already struggling to remain awake. Like she always did when night came, she took out a can of her energy drink and finished it as if it were nothing but water.
Right away, Dustin started ringing the doorbell. Not a single sound was heard. Not even a faint breeze or the sound of footsteps. The silence only made Dustin more impatient that he resorted to continue ringing the doorbell incessantly to the point it became ridiculous.
"All right, that's enough," Gwen snapped, placing her hands into her jacket as she tapped her foot vigorously.
"It's settled then. I guess he's not here," Steve lazily said as he struggled to keep his eyes open.
"Eddie! It's Dustin!" Dustin pounded on the door and ignored the complaints from Steve while Robin, Max, and Gwen directed their flashlights to the windows to check if there was anyone inside.
From what Gwen was able to see, the house was fairly messy and there appeared to not have been anyone inside for a while. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought this house was abandoned.
"REEFER RICK!"
Steve groaned and leaned his head back in frustration, "Don't scream that. If he's actually inside, now he'll never want to open the door."
Gwen took a step back from the window. She didn't find any use continuing to knock in a place that obviously didn't have anyone. If Eddie really was here, he wouldn't go for the obvious place. He would choose a more desolate, more conspicuous location.
She walked down the porch and shone her flashlight toward the back. It seemed Max thought the same thing, who now walked alongside her to what appeared to be a boathouse.
"Hey, guys?" Max called out.
The rest of the group sprinted to them and felt the smallest bit of hope that Eddie was hiding in there. It made sense considering since Reefer Rick wasn't home, the easiest place to break into was the boathouse.
Before anyone can take the first step, Gwen was already walking in its direction. She could hear Steve and her brother scolding her for getting ahead without knowing if it was safe, but if Dustin was right about Eddie, then she was certain he wouldn't harm her if he was inside.
She knocked gently against the door and moved slowly to the window to look inside while pointing the flashlight in.
"Are you insane?!" Steve reprimanded her, causing her to jump at the loudness of his voice. "You have to wait until I make sure it's safe."
Gwen appreciated the concern, but chose to say nothing nonetheless. She didn't come to Hawkins to dwell on their past relationship, so she preferred keeping her distance to avoid any conflicting feelings from getting in the way.
