The Darkness Inside You (Steddie)

I Swear On My Life

That afternoon at school, things were so normal that Steve felt like he was in a dream. Everything was like it always had been, his friends, his classes. The only thing that had changed was that now he had Eddie and Samantha with him. All of Steve's friends accepted Eddie and Samantha without question. Steve couldn't help but smile. All the awful things he assumed would happen if people knew about him and Eddie were all in his head. His dad had told him that everyone hated homosexuals, though he'd always used much more vulgar, derogatory terms for them. So he expected to be shunned or ridiculed. But none of that happened.

On Saturday afternoon, Steve's mom called and asked him to come home for a little while. His dad had gone to Indianapolis, something to do with work, and he wouldn't be back until dinner time. And she wanted to see Steve, to make sure that he was okay. In a way, Steve didn't want to go and at first he refused. But Eddie coaxed him into it. Though Steve only agreed to go if Eddie went with him. So they told Wayne where they were going and why and headed for Steve's parent's house.

Steve's mom cried when she saw him and she hugged him tight, holding him for several long minutes while Eddie stood to one side and waited patiently. When she finally let go of him, she turned to Eddie. Then she was hugging him and Eddie was unsure what to do so he just raised his arms and hugged her back. She thanked him for taking Steve in and looking out for him and Eddie blushed several shades of red when she called him Steve's guardian angel. They talked for a few minutes, explaining to her that they were in love and that they planned to stay together for the rest of their lives. She seemed genuinely happy for them and promised that she would see them whenever she could.

Before they left, she took them upstairs to Steve's bedroom. All of his stuff had been packed into boxes and that hurt him a little, like a punch to the gut. His mom told him that his father had done it, that he was planning to take it to Goodwill and donate it, to get it out of his house. So Steve and Eddie spent some time going through his things to see if there was anything he wanted to keep. He chose several books, a large stack of cassette tapes, and several other small items to take with them. Mrs. Harrington gave them an empty box to put his things in then walked out to Eddies van with them. She hugged them both again, then pushed something into Steve's hand and closed hers over his. She looked up into his eyes and gave him a look that said just accept it, don't question it and Steve nodded.

As they were driving away, he finally opened his hand and looked down. There was a small roll of bills with a rubber band around it in his hand. He slid the rubber band off and unrolled the money, gasping as he did. Eddie glanced over and his eyes went wide as Steve separated them out and counted them. There were twelve one hundred dollar bills there. He gave Eddie a look and Eddie grinned.

"I guess I'm buying dinner tonight," Steve laughed.

"Nah," Eddie said. "Save it. We'll need it later, when we go looking for an apartment." Steve's eyes went wide and Eddie laughed. "You didn't think we'd live with Wayne for the rest of our lives, did you?"

"Scheduling our sex life around his sex life," Steve asked. "Sure. Why not?"

"I've got a small stash of cash that I've been tucking away from dealing," Eddie said. "I usually don't spend much of my profit, just enough to replenish my supply so I can keep selling and making more. I've got about twenty-five hundred." Steve eyed him curiously. He never suspected that Eddie actually made real money from dealing. "Well, some of it is from gig money, too," he continued, sensing what Steve was thinking. "After we graduate, we can find a place. In Hawkins, if you want to stay close to your mom. Or wherever. As long as I can play my music, I'm good with anywhere you want to go."

"But you don't want to stay in Hawkins," Steve said. "You once told me you'd rather die than go to work with your uncle." Eddie just shrugged. "I guess you could work in the mall." A sly grin spread across Steve's face. "At that ice cream place."