zero || eddie munson (UNEDITED!!!)

7 ~ watergate

"There's a gate in lovers lake?"

"Whenever the demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening," Nancy replied. Null nodded, slightly envious of the way Nancy's brain worked. She was good at putting pieces of information together, she was smart. Null was... well just not smart in that way. "Maybe Vecna's the same way."

"Only one way to find out."

Robin climbed into the boat, followed by Eddie, followed by Nancy and Null. Dustin tried to get in as well, before Eddie stopped him.

"Hey, hey, hey, you trying to sink us? This things holds four people tops, okay?" After some expected deliberation, Dustin, Max and Lucas had to stay behind.

Steve began to push the boat off before jumping in it himself. This of course, Dustin could not accept. "You said four!"

Steve shrugged and said, "sorry."

"Bedtime at nine, kiddos," Robin yelled.

"Miss you already!" Null yelled.

As they paddled out further into the lake, the unreliable compass they were relying on suddenly became even more unreliable which prompted Nancy say, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down."

"Slow down, guys," Steve reiterated, prompting Eddie and Robin to stop their paddling.

"Guys, what's going on? Come on, talk to me. What's going on?" Dustin asked over the walkie.

"Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capital 'aah!'"Robin answered.

Steve began to take off his shirt. "Steve, what in the hell are you doing?" Null asked.

"Somebody's gotta go down and check this out," he answered as if it was obvious. "Unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, then... It's gotta be me. No complaints, all right?

"Never was a fan of what lurked under the water," Null muttered, well aware of the double meaning to her statement. They would never quite understand that one.

"Hey," Nancy looked to Steve softly. "Be careful."

Steve looked at Null, who was looking at Eddie before giving Nancy a resolute nod.

"Where we at, Wheeler?" Eddie asked after a few moments of silence.

"Closing in on a minute," she replied.

"Okay," Robin exhales.

Null tried to ignore the concern she felt for her ex boyfriend. Eddie seemed to pick up on it, as he grabbed her hands and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Null managed to give him a small smile in response.

After a few more moments of waiting, Steve broke through the water, damn nearing giving them a heart attack.

"Oh Christ!" Eddie exclaimed, and Null burst out laughing courtesy of relief bubbling up inside of her, but also at Eddie's reaction.

"I found it," Steve said. "It's more like a snack size gate than the mama gate, but it's still pretty big."

Steve then was pulled underwater, startling the group, before coming back up almost instantaneously. He looked towards the group, visibly confused, before he was pulled back under again, although this time, he didn't resurface.

"No! No!" Eddie freaked out. "What the hell was that, man?"

"Seconded," Null added. "What the fuck?"

"Jesus!" Eddie said, turning around with his hands on his head. When he turned around, he found Nancy standing up, looking at the water. "Wait, wait, wait. You're not going in there, are you?"