INTO HELL [e. munson]

six.

·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ valentine's   ·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚

    LILA AND EDDIE SLOWLY BEGAN TO SPEND MORE TIME TOGETHER. They spent a day together putting the speaker in the van, and then took a drive with the speakers playing as loud as humanly possible.

Before she knew it, Valentine's Day was fast approaching. Steve had given up on dating, at least temporarily. He said he didn't want to waste his Valentine's Day on disappointment. Dustin had plans to talk to Susie for most of the night on his radio, while Mike was still upset at Eleven's absence in Hawkins. The only one who should've had plans was Lucas and Max, except she broke up with him unexpectedly.

It seemed no one was truthfully excited for the holiday to happen, except for Eddie. He had plans to take Lila to Indianapolis. He wanted to show her the nightlife and sneak her into a club, but he never told her the second half. That night Lila snuck from her room and escaped the small town of Hawkins for one of the first times in her life.

Everything felt more exciting from the town slowly fading from the side mirrors to the lights on the streets getting less frequent. "So, what are your plans?" Lila finally asked. In her excitement, she forgot to ask where he was truly taking her once they arrived.

"It's a surprise. I just didn't want to spend time in Hawkins, people talk too much."

"I didn't know I was so awful to be seen with," Lila teased.

"It's not-"

"I'm just joking," she cut him off, "I'm glad we won't be in town. Was there a reason that we had to do this tonight?"

"No, of course not." Eddie shook his head in hopes she wouldn't catch onto him and the small part in his heart she was beginning to grab hold of. "I hate Valentine's Day. Love is too scary for me."

Lila could feel her muscles tense for a slight moment. She recalled the terror she felt of Eddie and shook the thought out of her head. The whole ordeal was a confusing situation waiting to happen. "It can't be so bad, I mean why else would people write about it all these years?"

"It's not love, it's me. People like me don't deserve it."

"That's a stupid excuse, and you know it. You're like the best person I've ever met. But, let's not talk about it. We're supposed to be having fun."

Eddie was unsure of what to say, especially at the casualness with which she spoke. There was no hint of lying or attempting to try and make him feel better. It was just her being Lila, nothing else. A silence ensued that had Lila beginning to grow nervous at her perhaps saying too much.

Yet, she knew she said the right thing when Eddie placed his hand over hers, and she understood what he was trying to tell her. Eddie appreciated her.

The ride was generally silent until Lila would end up rambling about her latest obsession animatedly. On occasion, Eddie would do the same when bringing up Dungeons and Dragons or the latest metal album that was released.

When the city approached, Lila stuck her head slightly from the window and stared at the city lights as if the world was expanding before her eyes. At that moment Lila had a realization that she wanted to leave Hawkins. There was no choice for her, she had to leave in the fall. The complications could all be worked out later, for now, she kept that dream spinning around in her head until they made it to a club.

"I'm not old enough!" Lila protested as Eddie dragged her toward the door.

"Neither am I, just watch and learn," Eddie smirked before strolling through the doors with Lila trailing after him. No one even passed them a second glance, even when they made their way through the crowd to find an empty space where they could stand against the wall.

"What now?"

"Well, I'd say I'd get you a drink, but I don't want you getting into a fight, or roaming the streets at night again."

"That's unfair! I only punched her because she was talking about you."

"So Henderson was telling the truth," Eddie laughed to himself in disbelief.

"I defend the people I care about."

"You care about me?" Eddie took a step to where their faces were beginning to near and he looked down on her.

"I just said I did. Can we dance now? ABBA is playing."

Eddie didn't get a chance to answer before she pulled him from the wall and began to move back and forth with him. He became more enthusiastic the second the song changed to "I Was Made for Lovin' You" by Kiss. Eddie even went as far as to begin dramatically lip-syncing it to Lila as she smiled at him.

Though Lila would've normally been looking around to make sure no one was watching, Lila felt like the whole world disappeared around them. Eddie pulled Lila into him to spin, and they paused for a moment after. His hands were on her waist as hers sat right on his shoulders.

She knew what she had to do, and she threw caution to the wind as she grabbed his face and pulled it down to hers. Their lips met together in a moment of passion that had Eddie pulling her closer to him. It was as if she was the air he needed to breathe, and he couldn't get enough to survive.

They pulled apart for only a moment in which both smiled to themselves. "Let's get out of here," Lila said as she led him from the building into his van.

The second they were in his car, both of them were kissing again. Lila climbed onto his lap as his hands trailed up her back underneath her shirt. Everything felt like fire, and Lila couldn't believe she'd never had this feeling before now.

She knew she cared about Steve, but whenever they kissed it had never had such an effect on her. Even Eddie couldn't recall a moment where he wanted someone this badly, and yet he stopped her.

"Is something wrong?" Lila asked with wide eyes.

"If we're going to do this, it won't happen like this. When I have you, I'll have the time and space to learn every piece of you."

Lila was at a loss for words, but she still climbed off of him and moved back to her seat. "So Hawkins then?" It felt wrong to call it home.

"Hawkins," Eddie confirmed, "And I promise you we'll pick up where we left off soon."

"Soon."

Little did they know, soon their lives would be flipped upside down.