ᕼᗴᒪᒪᖴᎥᖇᗴ - 𝐄𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐧

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟎𝟔.

❝Message Received.❞

☆→★→☆→★→☆→★→☆

"HER BODY JUST, LIKE, LIFTED UP IN THE AIR." Eddie starts to explain. The shake of his voice only made Kieran desperately want to comfort him, but he couldn't. "And, uh.. And she just, like.. Hung there. In the air. And her bones, uh.." he trails off, whimpers left his mouth and he closes his eyes tightly. Kieran knows that look all too well. 

Kieran steels himself, and before he can overthink it, says, "Eddie, you.. you don't have to —"

"Stop," Eddie pleads. Kieran falls silent. "Just stop, Kieran. You.." he trails off, shaking his head from whatever he was about to say. Instead, Eddie continues to stare at one single spot on the shed floor. When he speaks again, it's shaky and uneven. "Her bones started to snap. Her eyes, man. It was like there was something, like, inside her head, pulling. I..I- I didn't know what to do, so I… I ran away. I left her there." 

Kieran's heart clenches inside his chest. He should have answered that call. To be perfectly honest, there are a lot of things he should have done. I should have tried harder to protect him. Kieran's mind is a brutal place made up of self deprecation and loneliness, in it, he's his own worst enemy. Kieran feels Max's hand on his shoulder. He offers her a small smile, because if anyone gets it, Max does. She hasn't quite been the same after last year either. Max nudges his shoulder playfully, like a sister would to annoy an older brother. For the first time tonight, he felt a little bit of peace. 

Eddie scoffs, shooting them all a look. "You all think I'm crazy, right?" He pinches the bridge of his nose. Kieran's eyes soften, but he doesn't speak. 

It's Dustin who speaks next, trying his best to reassure Eddie. "No. We don't think you're crazy. I —" 

"Don't bullshit me, man!" Eddie shouts, his voice cracking. "I know how this sounds." 

Kieran knows Eddie's terrified. He knows because a part of him is, too. It does sound crazy, but after the Demogorgon, then the Demodogs, then Russians and the meat monster's Mind Flayer, this doesn't sound super crazy. 

"Do you think I would be here if it was bullshit?" Kieran pipes up, softer at first before his voice grows in confidence. "After being killed every single year after what happened three years ago, trust me, this isn't crazy at all. So, why don't you just listen to us?" 

He probably should have eased into that a little better. He can see, even in the darkness, the fiery defiance in Eddie's brown eyes. Kieran probably should have let Dustin or the others – minus Steve – handle it. Max's hand slides off Kieran's shoulder as if she knew what was about to happen. Eddie scoffs. He may still be close to tears with a crack in his voice, that may or may not remind Kieran too much of the day he left Eddie. 

"And where were you when I actually needed you?" Eddie fires back. The hostility in one simple question is astounding. "You walked out on me, Kieran. So don't you dare act like you're doing me any favors by being here. You didn't even answer the fucking call." 

It was so quiet in the shed that you could hear a pin drop. Kieran is once again reminded of the fact that he shouldn't have come. Eddie is better off without him. Even an idiot could tell he wasn't wanted, and could see the underlying message. Well, message received. 

Kieran was just a day too late. 

"You know what, Munson?" Kieran says uncharacteristically quiet. "Message received. Good luck." 

Kieran stands, despite his friends' protests. If Kieran had looked back, he would have seen Eddie flinch. He would have noticed the look of despair cross Eddie's face, how he watched Kieran's retreating form with an uncontrollable look of pure longing. 

Kieran would have seen how Eddie Munson was still in love. 

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Every step Kieran takes further away from Rick's shed, the more it felt like he was carrying a large piece of lead. It was for the best. So, why on earth does Kieran feel a hole in his chest, and an intense emptiness inside? He kicks gravel while he leans against the car. His eyes never left the shed, they're trained on it like a hawk out searching for prey. A much needed cigarette is loose between his lips. Smoke danced around the nighttime air, giving Kieran a false sense of comfort. 

You walked out on me, Kieran. 

Kieran desperately tries to pull air and smoke into his lungs. Inhale.. Exhale.

Where were you when I actually needed you? 

Chrissy's face flashes in his eyes. How he failed Eddie and Chrissy. Kieran sinks against the car, sliding down it until he lands on the gravel. It doesn't register as he takes another drag from his cigarette. He can't stop the floodgates of thoughts screaming inside his head. Billy never should have died for someone like Kieran. He doesn't deserve it. Eddie deserves someone who can actually be there, without the constant fear beating in his chest. Stop, he pleads with his own mind. Please, just stop.. 

If someone had told Kieran three years ago that he would ever find common ground with Steve Harrington, Kieran would have laughed in their face.  It was as unlikely as a fish out of water. This exact thought is why Kieran is so surprised to look up in the darkness, and see Steve taking large strides to reach him. Kieran sighs and puts his cigarette out. He knows how hard Steve tried to quit a few years ago, and finally managed it. Kieran isn't going to be the one to rub it in Steve's face.

"They're doing their nerdy little comparisons again," Steve says as a way of greeting. To be perfectly honest, Kieran was thankful for Steve's oblivious nature. He doesn't want to have to talk about Eddie. Not right now. "They've ruled it down to whoever this Vecna guy is. That's who, apparently, killed Chrissy."

"Another Dungeons and Dragons reference?" Kieran scoffs, fiddling with the hem of his own shirt. "Of course it is. And of course it has to be a dark fucking wizard that is undead and has immense power." Okay, so maybe Kieran actually knows a thing or ten about the game, but it's solely for Eddie that he even does – or cares.– 

Steve blinks a few times in surprise. "Wow. I didn't peg Dungeons and Dragons to be your kind of game, Fraser." 

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Steven." Kieran winks. He, begrudgingly, stands up. "I guess I should go back in there, huh?" 

Steve rubs the back of his own head awkwardly. Before he can stop himself, he blurts, "he didn't mean it. Um, about you not doing him any favors." 

"Oh, Steven.. Don't try to protect my feelings. I'm fine." He shrugs. Steve looks unconvinced. "Really. I'm fine." 

He's not. He's not fine at all.

WORD COUNT:
..1,169..

AUTHORS NOTE —

The ending of this chapter isn't my favorite. I rewrote it so many times, but let me know what you think!