the shire is burning [eddie munson x OC]

chapter one

Heartbreak is a fickle thing. Individualistic, too, by nature.

Sometimes it's like the movies, loud and unapologetic. It's screaming matches in the pouring rain, any onlooker overtaken by the poetic sight. It's late night phone calls where sour words are spoken and relationships are still ended. It's chocolate ice cream and blankets wrapped around freckled shoulders, the best friend dutifully saying "it's not you, it's him". Sometimes, it's like the movies. About ninety percent of the time it's like the movies.

The other ten percent is what Willow Jenkins is feeling. It's not loud, yet still demands to be felt. It is quiet and miserable, silent in its drumming against her ribs. It's even ironic, comical. As her eyes continue to flicker between Steve, on her left, and Robin, on her right, the only other thing she can feel besides the heavy heartbreak is the burning embarrassment.

"It's not that I still love her, Robin! I just- it's just...you guys don't understand ," Steve groans, leaning onto his elbows as he runs his hands over his face in frustration. He's spent the last ten minutes rambling about Nancy Wheeler while Robin teased him relentlessly and Willow sat privately heartbroken and tuning most of it out.

"Then make us understand how you, Steve the hair Harrington, is struggling so hard to move past some girl? Weren't you considered like, the king of Hawkins high before you graduated?" Robin chastises him as Willow begins to pick at her nails.

"Not that it matters, but yes, they did call me that," Willow almost scoffs at the way Steve suddenly puffs out his chest, a stark contrast to the role of a heartbroken boy he had just been playing, "Nancy is just... there's no words. Have you ever even been in love? Either of you?"

Willow stops picking at her nails immediately as Robin throws her head back in a scoff similar to the one Willow swallowed down. "Jesus Christ. We aren't having this conversation."

Steve ignores Robin's exasperated remark, his eyes now focused on Willow instead. He raises his eyebrows, clearly hoping she'll side with him.

"Don't look at me, Harrington. I've never even been on a date, definitely never been in love," Willow feels lucky that any words will even leave her dry mouth. Her tongue is heavy, sticky almost. She still hasn't shaken the throbbing in her chest. And it only worsens as the lie leaves her throat.

What she wants to reply is, yes. She wants to scream it from every rooftop within a three mile distance of the Starcourt Mall. Because for the last year, Willow Jenkins has been hopelessly in love with Steve Harrington. It all started at the end of sophomore year, when she would go watch Robin's marching band practices, and they consistently overlapped with track practice. She had tried to fight it, forcing her eyes down to a book in her lap, or maybe whatever homework she was trying to finish up to maintain her one week headstart in all her classes, or simply watch Robin make funny faces at her from across the field. But then, Steve would run by with his stupid hair, and flash a stupid smile, and it would give Willow stupid butterflies. She thought once he started dating Nancy Wheeler, it would go away. Her childish attraction would vanish and she could joke about the year wasted with Robin.

But it didn't. It hasn't. And at this point, Willow doesn't think it ever will.

Steve opens his mouth to finally reply, but Willow decides to interrupt, unable to take it anymore. "I'm going to the bathroom."

Neither of her friends say a word, not only shocked from how abruptly she stands and hurries to the employee bathroom, but probably due to the customers she can hear enter the ice cream shop as she shuts the door to the bathroom.

Robin isn't going to let me live that stunt down .

She bends over the sink of the small restroom. It was painted a sickly bright shade of blue, more-so turquoise really, with a nautical theme to induce further nausea. Her hands move on autopilot, cool water spewing out the silver faucet. Willow doesn't even glance up at herself before splashing cool water across her heated cheeks. It helped with the fiery embarrassment, but she could still feel that awful ache in her bones. Any time Steve talked about Nancy she felt it.