the shire is burning [eddie munson x OC]

chapter eighteen

Thirty minutes.

They've been sitting in Eddie's van, in complete silence, for thirty minutes.

At first, Willow had been thankful, coming down from her embarrassing panic attack. But around ten minutes ago, she had realized her heart rate had come back down, her breaths finally coming and going with ease once more. Now, she was just basking in how comfortable it was to sit and do nothing with Eddie. She's only experienced the phenomenon three times in her life; the first night her mother and her spent in Hawkins as they ate take out in the middle of their empty living room, the first sleepover she ever had with Robin, and the afternoon she realized her crush had evolved into love for Steve as she sat with him at Scoops in complete silence.

Eddie moves suddenly as Willow reminisces, causing her to look at his figure. He's leaning over her lap without a word, suddenly digging in his glove box as his tongue peaks out from between his lips in severe focus.

"Whatcha doin' there, Eds?" Willow doesn't need to whisper considering it's just them, but she does anyway. The moment feels fragile.

He doesn't respond.

Instead, he smiles once he has his fist around whatever cassette tape he had been searching for, his hand obscuring Willow from seeing what tape it was.

Of course, he's putting on music.

He fumbles with the tape for a second before he finally manages to press it into his radio, and the speakers pour out a familiar tune to Willow that breaks their silence.

She can't stop her laugh, bringing a hand up over her mouth.

"Don't you dare laugh, Red," he warns, holding up a threatening finger.

"I know there's nothin' to say, someone has taken my place. When times go bad, when times go rough, won't you lay me down in tall grass and let me do my stuff?"

Lindsey Buckingham's voice fills the van and leaves Willow in absolute awe.

"I thought you didn't like Fleetwood Mac?" she finally questions slowly, hand lowering from her mouth as her brain spins.

"I don't! I mean, this tape was just- it's just a friend's! They left it in my van," Eddie explains, lying so terribly Willow snorts.

"Which friend?"

"Huh?"

"Which one of your friends listens to Fleetwood Mac? Was it Gareth, or maybe Jeff? Jeff seems like a Maccie," Willow giggles, biting her lip to avoid busting out into full blown laughter.

Eddie is quiet as the tape continues playing on, 'Second Hand News' ending as the upbeat drums for 'Dreams' kick in.

Finally, by the first chorus, he speaks up, "Unimportant. The important thing is, are you feeling better?"

Willow couldn't smile softer if she tried. Eddie is tapping his fingers, seemingly anxiously as they aren't perfectly on beat, and she can see his eyes fluttering about the front of the van to focus on anything but her. She wonders how many times he's been a giant softie to his friends, considering his entire group plays up a particularly 'tough-guy' image to mimic their leader. It's why Willow had yet to sit with them at lunch - Eddie Munson had a role to play as a long-haired, loud-mouthed metalhead. And that role wasn't the doting boyfriend, at least not in front of his friends. She had to let him have that, at the very least.

"I am, thank you," her voice is still low, and she almost questions if he can hear her over the music until he looks up to meet her gaze with a small smile to match her own.