Alexithymia | STRANGER THINGS [ON HOLD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE]

twenty | the sauna test

The first thing that Matthew heard when he woke up after spending the night getting high with Eddie Munson was a muffled voice coming from his jacket.

With a groan, he opened his eyes to find himself staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling and simply blinked to himself before he looked around at the posters that were hung on the walls in the room.

Then he found himself looking at one thing in particular that was hanging on the wall in the room.

A guitar.

More specifically, Eddie Munson's guitar.

It was only then that it hit him that he had actually spent the night at Eddie's trailer and somehow ended up lying on the floor in Eddie's room.

And that fact alone simply scared the hell out of him.

Not once during the almost three years in which he had feelings for Eddie Munson did he ever think that he would be spending the night in Eddie's room, or even getting high with him for that matter.

It was this reason alone that he'd completely forgotten about the fact that he heard a muffled voice to begin with until he heard it once more.

After letting out yet another groan, he grabbed his jacket that he'd taken off at some point in the night and pulled out a radio that Mike had gotten for him, just in case either of them needed to get a hold of one another before he pressed a button and asked, "What the hell do you want, Mike?"

In turn, Mike asked him, "Where the hell are you?" When Matthew had only sighed to himself, Mike told him, "I went into your room to get you, but you're not there. So, where are you?"

As he started to run a hand through his hair, Matthew asked him, "Why do you need to know?"

Mike replied, "Look, I'd hate to have to use that lingo that Dustin likes to use, but we've got a code red."

It was then that Matthew suddenly straightened his head as he said, "A code red?"

In turn, Mike said to him, "Yeah, Matt, a code fucking red."

Then Matthew asked him, "And you're not just fucking with me, right? This isn't some bullshit attempt to get me to give you a ride to the mall or something?"

With a scoff, Mike replied, "No, of course not, Matt. Would I be saying 'code red' if I needed you to give me a ride to the mall?"

With a sigh, Matthew said to him, "Fine. I'll be on my way soon. Just, uh, try and keep things together until I get there, alright?"

Mike told him, "Just hurry the hell up and get back home, Matt. It's a matter of life and death."

With a sigh, Matthew turned off his radio and put his shoes and jacket back on and went to walk out of Eddie's room, only to stop when Eddie himself asked him, "Do I even want to know just what the hell that brother of yours is even talking about?"