RUMORS•eddie munson

7

January, 1985

Ziggy and Eddie never really talked about what happened in his van a few weeks ago. They just climbed in the front seat and drove home, the van finally cooling down enough to start. They kept up with their weekly study sessions. The pressure was on. With four months left of school, the first semester was finally coming to an end, and that meant it was time for finals.
Ziggy had helped Eddie stay up to speed in all of his classes, earning test scores that were just enough to keep him above an F. Now, Eddie felt as though he knew everything necessary to keep him from flunking another year. When it came time for him to sit down and take his final, he was feeling confident. That is, until his mind began to wander. Ziggy was always in the back of his mind. They had grown closer over the past three months. So close that they made out. It was less than he truly desired, but more than he ever thought he'd have the chance of getting. When they first met, Ziggy acted as though she was better than him. As a matter of fact, Eddie had been pretty sure that she truly believed it. After really getting to know her, he could confidently say that he agreed. She was better than him. She was better than the whole school combined. He'd never been given the time of day by anyone romantically, but somehow, he managed to slip his way into Ziggy's grasp. How could someone so fucking perfect be willing to spend so much time with him? How could she be willing to kiss him? How could she want to kiss him? Had he been the one to initiate things those weeks ago, he'd probably be worried he had pressured her into something that she didn't want, but she kissed him. In Eddie's mind, that was a wonderful sign. As he mulled over the thoughts and feelings Ziggy had ignited in him, he was drawn out of his trance by the sound of her walking up to the teacher's desk and placing her finished exam down. He stared at her long ponytail in confusion. Here he was, recounting all of the words he had shared with her, and she was absolutely blowing through a test. It was like he wasn't even on her mind. He was thinking about her and she was thinking about their exam.
'Holy fuck, our exam!" Eddie was reminded. He clutched his pencil, reading over the next question he had yet to answer.
Once Ziggy had finished her test, she found herself in a similar position to what Eddie had been going through. Truth be told, she found herself thinking about Eddie more often than not. She was never good at making friends, so she wasn't sure if the way that Eddie acted around her was what normal friends would do, or if the flutter in her chest was completely valid. With that being said, she wasn't naturally shy either. When she felt that something was best for her, she jumped at the opportunity to achieve it. Eddie was different. She wasn't sure if he was what was best for her. Nonetheless, she knew that she wanted him. Ziggy refused to truly ponder on the idea that making a move was the wrong choice, because if she knew for a fact that it was a mistake, she wasn't sure that she could bring herself to genuinely feel guilty about it. Instead, she psychoanalyzed everything he did. She was the one to make the first move. The ball was in his court now.
After the sun had set and Ziggy got comfortable in her bed, Eddie had made his first play. He held the phone between his cheek and shoulder, using both hands to roll a blunt for himself on his bedside table.
"So, how does it feel to know that all of your hard work paid off?" Ziggy asked, playing with the hem of her nightgown on her thigh. She bustled her head in deeper to her pillow, smiling at the deep chuckle that slithered through her phone speaker.
"Pretty metal. Nearly shit myself by the end of fourth period, though."
"What? Why?"
"I was only half way done an hour in."
"How did that happen?"
"Just let my mind wander, I guess." Eddie broke out into a grin.
"Ya know," he trailed off. "I passed Miller's class, but I've heard Mrs. Johnson is no joke. I might need some more help." He scratched his chin, still smiling wickedly. Ziggy raised her brows from the other line.
"Oh yeah?"
"Oh, totally." He looked down at his fingers, waiting for a response.
"I guess a few more months of studying couldn't hurt. It would be a real bummer if you did all of this just to flunk out within the last half of the school year."
Eddie would later be able to confirm that it truly was a bummer.