In November of 1985, you move to Hawkins, Indiana for your senior year of high school. Having been an outcast at your old school and still dealing with the anxiety and depression that came with it, you're hoping for a fresh start. Little do you know...
The rest of the weekend went by pretty slowly. Normally you would spend the days laying in bed either reading a book or listening to some music, but this weekend you felt like you had a bit more pep in your step. With your newfound motivation and energy, you decided to work on a new idea you had for a D&D character, help your mom around the house, and even watch the news with your dad on Sunday.
You felt better than you had in quite a while. You were even looking forward to going to school for the first time in a long time. You slept well on Sunday night and woke up on Monday eager to get your day started.
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You walked into Mrs. O'Donall's class and sat down in the desk you had sat in the previous week. Eddie wasn't there yet. The bell rang for class to start, but Eddie still hadn't arrived. You tried not to think about it too much, but your intrusive thoughts immediately started to run through your mind, "What if he is avoiding me? What if he's skipping school with a girl? What if he got into an accident?". Just as you started to spiral, the classroom door opened.
"You're late, Mr. Munson. Take a seat" you heard Mrs. O'Donall say disdainfully.
"Sir, yes, sir" Eddie said with a salute and sauntered over to the open seat by you. You could tell that Mrs. O'Donall was annoyed and it made you quietly laugh to yourself. When Eddie sat down, he looked over at you and gave you a smile. The rest of the class went by quickly and soon you found yourself in your favorite class, Music Appreciation.
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You and Eddie again sat next to each other on the floor in Music Appreciation. Your teacher explained that you would be starting a project where you research a band or artist of your choosing. After he went over the guidelines, he gave you time to work.
"What are choosing to research?" you heard a familiar voice ask.
You looked over at Eddie and said confidently, "Iron Maiden. I like their music and I think it would be cool to learn more about them".
"Gnarly" Eddie said with an engaging look on his face. "I think I'm gonna research Dio. I already know a lot about the band so it will be a way to get an easy A".
"Good choice", you responded simply.
The rest of the class passed by with you and Eddie chatting casually with each other while working on your projects.
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Soon enough it was lunchtime and you decided again to sit with the Hellfire Club at their table since you really hadn't made any other friends yet. As you approached the table, you overheard the boys excitedly talking to Eddie...
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"Whose number is it on your arm?" Gareth asked.
"I bet you wish it was Chrissy Cunnigham's" Jeff said.
"Tell us, Eddie, pleeease" begged Dustin.
Eddie locked eyes with you, but he quickly brought his gaze back to the table. Your heart beat a little faster.
"You guys should spend less time wondering about who has graced my presence, and more time figuring out how you'll get a lady's number." Eddie said in response to all the questions. You placed your lunch tray on the table as Eddie was finishing his sentence. Eddie then cleared his throat and said, "Hey, Y/N". You responded to Eddie with a shy smile.
You then noticed Dustin's eyes going back and forth between you and Eddie quickly. Thirty seconds went by and Dustin turned to Eddie and blurted out, "No way, it's Y/N's number isn't it?!".
You felt your face turn red. "You don't know what you're talking about" Eddie said to Dustin without making eye contact with him.
"Sure I don't, Eddie, sure I don't" Dustin said with a cheeky grin.
There was a bit of awkwardness at the table for the remainder of lunch. You weren't really sure why Eddie didn't tell them that it was your number, it's not like you had gone on a date or anything. It was a normal thing to give your phone number to friends so that they could contact you. Was it because it was on his arm? Was Eddie embarrassed? Did he want to keep your hang out a secret? These were all questions that went through your mind as you finished your lunch.
The rest of the day went by with you sitting through your classes and surviving another day of high school.
When you got home, your mom approached you, "Hey Y/N, so I was thinking, would you want to invite Eddie to join us for dinner this week?". You were both excited about and nervous at the prospect of Eddie having dinner with you and your parents, but you didn't want to turn down the invitation, so you casually responded with a "sure". Your mom smiled and quickly responded, "Great, I'm making spaghetti on Wednesday, see if he is available then".
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You spent the night working on homework and wracking your brain about how you were going to ask Eddie to have dinner with you and your parents. You were deep in thought when you heard the home phone ring. Less than a minute later, you heard your dad's voice yelling up at you, "Y/N, it's for you!".
