Stranger Things - Imagines (Book 2)

Eddie Munson X Reader - The Band And I

A/N - This chapter was inspired by the song The Band And I by Maisie Peters, which just immediately makes me think of Eddie every time. I hope you all enjoy it.

You could've sworn that you had been paying attention to the petty bickering filling the back of the van. I mean, at this point, you could probably have recited one of Gareth and Jeff's interactions from memory alone. 

-You ate my last Oreo without asking.

-Yeah, well, you shouldn't have left them out to go stale if you didn't want someone to eat them.

And sure, usually, you would happily listen in from the front seat with a small smile on your lips, but today, you were finding it exceedingly hard to focus on what was actually being said. You knew exactly why you were so stuck in your head too. 

At your last stop, you'd excused yourself to use the phone, knowing that you were already about 3 days late for your weekly call with your mother and that you would be getting a lecture for the entire length of your conversation. 

But when she'd answered and heard your voice, she'd sounded so relieved that you felt a little guilty. You'd been having so much fun touring the country with the band that you barely even thought about home anymore. In fact, you would be pretty happy just driving the width of the country with the boys over and over again without ever going home. 

So, instead of being honest, you had lied as effortlessly as you could manage. Yes, I'm eating properly. Lie. No, it's not all shitty fast food places and rundown diners. Lie. No, you weren't dating anyone. Lie. Yes, you missed home. Lie. Yes, Eddie was making sure to keep you out of trouble. 

Finally, you had found something honest to say, though it was probably a little subjective. Your mom had made sure to give him a lengthy lecture about making sure to keep you safe and out of trouble whilst you were on the road. And sure, he was doing it, but probably not for the reasons she thought. In fact, if she knew the truth, she would probably think that Eddie was the trouble. 

You and Eddie had started dating within a couple of days of hitting the road, years of pent-up longing finally spilling over and turning into something a lot more stable than either of you would have expected. He was one of the most gentle guys you had ever met, so sweet with you that it had been a little shocking at first. But now, 4 months in, you couldn't imagine ever being with anyone else. 

So, after a good 10 minutes of lying to your mom, you'd made up some other excuse to go inside and meet back up with the boys. And ever since, you'd been stuck in your head, running over the memories you had made so far. 

You and the boys playing Uno in the back of the van after you'd packed up for the night, coming up with your own rules in the hopes of convincing them that you were winning. Watching as Eddie immediately got on board, even though he knew you were lying through your teeth in order to get an upper hand in the game.

Sitting up in the passenger seat next to Eddie whilst he drove late into the night, listening to the boys snoring quietly in the back. Glancing over at him to find him lit by the dim streetlights, looking more beautiful than you had ever really realised. The two of you made soft conversation so that you wouldn't wake the others, talking about anything that came into your heads as the world flew by outside. 

Laughing at Gareth when he told you about the girl he was totally in love with, the same girl that had been your server that evening in the diner. The same girl that he'd barely been able to say 2 words to beyond his order. Teasing him just the right amount, but knowing deep down that he would probably be in love with the very next pretty girl he saw too. 

Coming off stage after your Philly gig, knowing that you were the best damn band that had ever played the venue, all of you were high on adrenaline. Eddie wrapped his arms around you, both of you ignoring the sticky heat that lingered between you from your performance. And then he had kissed you and you could've sworn that you had never felt as loved as you had in that moment.

A hand shaking your knee was the thing that had finally drawn you out of your own thoughts, your head turning to look at Eddie, your brow furrowed in question. 

"You not going to lecture the idiots for fighting?" he asked softly, thumb running over your knee lightly before returning to the steering wheel, his eyes continuing to dart over to look at you as often as he could without crashing the van. 

You shrugged slightly. "They probably know the lecture by heart by now," you hummed out, pulling your legs up under yourself and settling down a little more comfortably. 

Eddie hesitated for a moment, glancing up at the rearview mirror to make sure the boys were still too caught up in their argument to actually be listening to the two of you. "Are you alright, Baby?" he started. "You've been real quiet since dinner," he pressed on. "You not feeling good?"

"I'm fine," you murmured, clearing your throat slightly. 

Part of you wished you could leave it at that, that you could just sit in silence for the next couple of minutes without having to actually explain yourself. But, God, Eddie looked so damn concerned by your change in attitude that the idea of not talking made you feel sick. 

"Do you think that I'm a bad person for not missing home?" you finally added, turning to look at him properly, your head falling against the headrest a little too hard. 

"Did your mom say that?"

You shook your head slightly. "No, but I can tell she misses me. Is it super shitty that I don't really miss her?"

Eddie's mouth opened as if he wanted to answer before falling shut again. "Your mom isn't used to not having you in the house, Baby. She's bound to miss you."

"But I'm sort of awful for not missing her back, right?"

"No," he breathed out again. "Honestly, Sweetheart, I think you've just been too busy to really miss anything from home," he told you, reaching out to squeeze your knee. "Besides, you've got us with you, so it's not that different to being at home, right? It kinda takes that homesick edge off when you're constantly keeping those knuckleheads in line just like you did in Hawkins." 

You paused for a moment, a small smile pulling at your lips as placed your hand over his, squeezing his fingers. "Yeah," you agreed softly. "I just can't believe we're actually here," you pressed on. "Remember when we first played The Hideout? You told me we would end up touring someday."

"And now we're living the dream, huh, Baby?" he hummed out, grinning when you drew his hand up to your lips, kissing his palm. 

"Well, I hope we never wake up."

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