#i went to school for graphic design and then got a job in it and then didn't want to make anything in my free time anymore

[itsafalsegod]

One night a few moons ago I saw flecks of what could have been lights, but it might just have been you passing by

[fuck-customers]

I have been following you guys for awhile and have had so many fuck customers moments but last week I had the one that takes the cake because I thought I was about to die. I figured it was worth submitting.

For some backstory, I'm a graphic designer at a signs & awards shop. We do A LOT of different stuff for A LOT of different people/companies. (Including vehicle wraps, this is important for later.) I had been working with a set of customers (3 guys, also important) with a design for a while and they were being difficult. Nitpicking everything, wanting me to use copyrighted images, not understanding that I am not a magician and cant just poof exactly what they want into existence. I need TIME to do things and they aren't my only customers. They also don't have emails so all proofs were done by them coming into the shop.

So last Thursday I woke up with a terrible sore throat after going to bed feeling like garbage the night before. I'm super prone to strep throats so I scheduled an appointment at 8:30 am to get a test done. I could have scheduled earlier but I knew the customers were coming by at 8:00 am to see the designs and I wanted to be there.

I clock in at 7:45 am and have everything ready for them. By 8:20 am they have still not shown up and I can't wait any longer to head to my appointment. Thankfully I tested negative and when I got back to work by boss told me they were in at 9:30 and wanted to talk to me about the design and would come back by at 3:00 pm. I said cool and went about my day.

At 2:00 pm I get a call from my husband saying he was injured at work. He is a PE teacher at a school for kids with behavior issues so it's not unusual that he has an injury however this was a head injury and the on site nurse is going to take a look and make sure it doesn't need stitches and stops bleeding. Cause you know head wounds.

At 3:15 pm, my guys still haven't shown up. My husband is cleared as not needing anything immediately but is calling the company's workman's comp to get stuff sorted. He can't drive so he has a coworker drop him off at my job. He's chilling with me while I keep working and he takes care of the calls. Around 3:45 he realizes the head wound is still bleeding some and he needs to go to the walk in. I head out at 4:00 pm and my boss says he will take care of the guys if they bother to show up. My husband ended up needing two staples and is doing fine.

The next morning, I get to work around 7:45 am. There is a white truck, our company truck and a couple of my coworkers cars in the parking lot. Because we do a lot of vehicle wraps its not unusual for there to be vehicles dropped off overnight so I think nothing of the white truck. But as I am approaching the door and pulling my keys out I hear some doors slam and a male voice say "Not getting away from us this time!"

Guys, I thought I was about to die! Who says that to a woman alone in a parking lot? I spin around prepared to chuck my coffee and run when I realize it's the customers. I glare at them before turning back around and heading in the door. After I clocked in I had my boss wait on them. I also handed the order off to one of my male coworkers because I am not messing with them anymore. You can't blame me for not being there when you consistently miss appointments and then scare the shit out of me before I am even clocked in.

Posted by admin Rodney

[canonsinthehead]

Yuji/Sukuna/Choso Familiy & Sibling Dynamics Headcanons.

(this is old but imma post it anyway)

BIRTH ORDER & AGE

First, let’s address their birth order. So Choso is born first (obviously) followed by Sukuna and then Yuji. Ironically, they do possess many of the stereotypical personality traits we associate with your birth order:

First Born Choso (Second Parent/Older Sibling Curse): a severe case of “neglected older sibling syndrome”, overachiever/perfectionist/hyper independent, parental figure, difficulty expressing emotions properly, responsible. 25-26 yo.

(Cursed) Black Sheep Middle Child Sukuna: “unloved” child, when I mean black sheep I mean in a VERY bad way, isolated by age since Yuji is too young and Choso too old, independent, Rebellious as fuck, lone wolf, overall red flag, 19-21 yo.

Favorite Maknae/Golden Child Yuji: Obvious favorite child (by parents and siblings), charming, outgoing, creative, social butterfly, often needs reassurance, 15-16yo.

They used to be 5 siblings but the other 2 passed away (Kechizu and Eso), leaving only these 3. Their parents' history is a bit unknown and complicated since they are a reunified family.

Yuji and Sukuna’s dad raised them during their diaper years but that’s all before he passed away. As for their mom, she vanished without a trace, so they don’t remember much of her. Since she was their father’s second wife it didn’t affect as much either. This other mother who birthed Chosos and their two other brothers is also mysterious since they as well don’t know a lot about her either.

They all most of their care under Yuji/Sukuna’s grandad care but the old man couldn’t wait for them to reach the age right age to get out of his house especially Sukuna with all the trouble he caused. Meanwhile Choso was abroad working as a model, but then grandad passed away, he came back to take full responsibility of his only brothers left meanwhile Sukuna who just got released from prison/juvi went his own way.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First Born Second Parent Choso

As I mentioned before Choso has always been the most responsible type, but it is not completely true. When he left the household first, he went on a self-discovery quest. He tried different avenues for his life and made a decent of money as a legit model. Away from his family's eyes and under different stress, he got involved in various types of hard drugs that scarred his eyes permanently.

Grandad’s death motivated him to get clean and get his act together to take of Yuji. The passing of his brothers pained him the most and their grandfather’s death made him feel like he was abandoning Yuji by being away and leaving him alone for his selfish ambitions. He now works 2 jobs, one in data entry and another in graphic design.

He will not mention while being overseas, how he got mixed up with a weird crowd and witnessed darks things. Aside from a satanic cult and people with supernatural abilities, a man named Kenjaku seriously claimed to be Yuji’s mom. What?

Choso spoils Yuji to the fullest. He appreciates how Yuji genuinely looks up to him and respects his quirky/edgy personality and looks. Sukuna will never admit it, but he is envious of their close relationship/bond to the point of being a full-blown hater. Since their toddler days, he did all he could to destroy it while hating being associated with his two brothers.

Cursed Black Sheep Middle Child Sukuna

Well well… it seems like he always was like this vindictive evil ass kid. Since his younger years, he contrasted Yuji’s bubbly and sweet personality with his cruel and harsh tendencies.

Going from hurting kids in pre-school and middle school to beating up twice his height and weight in high school and beyond, he seemed like a typical hyperactive mean little kid, but it evolved into something sinister.

His room is a constant mess. Smells of weed, piles of clothes, and IS THAT A REAL SWORD AND A KNIFE COLLECTION ON THE WALL?!? He hides handguns and military grade snipers under his bed.

As I said, he got tattoos OVERNIGHT, many suspected he joined a gang around the age of 15 yo, the same period when he was hopping from one problematic situation to another. Getting kicked out of high school many times to end up in an alternative school (which he ran away from btw). In reality, he was a gang leader and already made a name for himself with few bodies under his belt.

At 17 yo, he was sent to juvie/prison, during that time nobody knew where he was and what he was doing. Cutting ties with him was not difficult, it almost felt like a relief since he has been exponentially wilding out since Choso left.

“I’m not gonna babysit you, bye.” He told Yuji, Before he vanished without a trace, leaving his younger brother alone behind. It's not like Yuji couldn’t survive without him (not going to happen with Choso constantly sending money from abroad). Their landlord exploited the teenager’s situation and kicked Yuji out of their apartment. Luckily Nanami was there to help….

Sukuna is the type to:

Blast his music with 1000% volume in his trap car windows wide open.

He tried to do a drive-by on Yuji and Megumi

Sneak out of his bedroom by the window

Matter of fact, many people will try to beat up Yuji thinking it’s him. Luckily Megumi is with him and the boy can defend himself

After moving into Nanami’s house, Yuji can live a normal life for a while. but 2-3 years later Sukuna shows up unannounced as if he hasn’t been missing for all this time saying “Yeah, I was in jail.”. nobody can verify this information.

He is by definition the male counterpart of baddies/city girls/bad girls of the world. And attracts them. He would sleep with them. According to rumors and a lot of “He Said, She said” saying he ate some of past his girlfriend’s kids. But always keep in mind he cares NOTHING about ANY women.

You can catch him at your local Travis Scott concert casually engaging in devil worship. Meanwhile Yuji in content forcing Nobara and Megumi to go see Megan Thee Stallion. Luckily Gojo and Todo are fans as well.

Sukuna is somewhere in the rough parts of town in a busted basement apartment with some white haired girl.

How is this man still breathing or standing when you can only see him eat Mcdonalds and Taco Bell.

Nanami raised his voice against him after he tried to sneak up on his wife during the night (You look delicious, come here!). This added to the months of Nanami being on high alert 24/7. He had to add locks to all bedrooms’ doors fearing he would attempt to kill everyone during the “ungodly hours of the night”

Sukuna listens to drill/Trap Rap. The hardcore type (anything adjacent to Baby Khia)

(NSFW) This guy has an unhealthy obsession with Megumi Fushiguro (it’s about to get devious…) he goes on and stalks the boy and pulls on him like;

 “Why don’t you join my gang my sweet little Fushiguro?” “We would make a perfect duo together, forget about my goofy ass brother” “I jerk off thinking about you” “Let me lick your feet”

Yuji got beat up bad the first and only time he asked why does Sukuna wears long pointy acrylic nails.

Sukuna is a proud cop hater; he’ll eat them for lunch.

He also commits armed robbery/home invasion without a mask and STILL not getting caught.

Favorite Maknae Golden Child Yuji

he is the type seriously ate glue as a kid

Was and still is a hardcore otaku especially when it comes to music and dances. His anime impressions are legendary.

Yuji has a weird habit of being extra touchy with the adults he is attached to, especially with hugs and burying his head in their chest. (mainly with Nanami & Choso). Nanami WARNED him not to do it with his wife or he will have to kill him. Himself.

His room is full of posters.

Will eat ANYTHING.

[fleouriarts]

time for a jamie and co LORE POST!!!! here's them with their (immediate) families. all the actual lore and such below

JAMIE: only child with a single mom. since furries in this universe can only have kids within their taxonomic families, adoption is really common among smaller families like prionodontidae. however jamie's mom erica really wanted a bio kid, so she ended up marrying another linsang who she liked... well enough, but not that much. they get divorced when jamie's a little kid. she had jamie at an older age; by the time he's in college her markings have already started greying, which is why she looks a little dull next to him. nowadays she works as a teacher and she loves her son vewy much :3

SANTIAGO: santiago is the only one in the main cast with different species parents. cross-species kids are just the species of either parent with a 50/50 chance cus i don't feel like dealing with hybrids... HOWEVER sometimes genetic fuckshit happens. because of said genetic fuckshit, santiago grew to a cow size instead of a sheep size. i couldn't fit all the family relations shit on the actual image but emilio is santiago's OLDER brother (hes 25) but people always assume hes younger because santiago is a giant. magnolia and amapola are twins and both 8. mariana is either a teacher or a librarian (haven't figured it out yet) but she used to paint when she had more free time which is how santiago got interested in painting and eventually went into fine arts. jorge is a plumber and emilio is a graphic designer. santiago is the first in the family to leave their hometown (key west) for a degree (emilio went to a local college) and his mom + sisters were SOOOOOOOOOO SAD so he comes home to visit as often as he can. also since he is in family bovidae he has several cousins/aunts and uncles/etc that are different species. all i know for sure is that one of them lives near jamie and co's college and is some sort of antelope (leaning towards bongo bc i like them). also using this poast to announce that i changed santiagos outfit here is his new cute flowers and bees sweater look

JOHNNY: her family works on a chicken (and other assorted birds) farm, the chickens are for both eggs and meat while the other birds are just for eggs. this is actually a common set-up in the dorian furryverse, it's hard to farm livestock as a carnivore (because all the livestock are deathly afraid of you) so herbivores usually do the job even if they can't actually eat what they farm. johnny's parents are sorta "confused but got the spirit" about her being a butch lesbian. jimmy is an ass about it but he gets better. shoutout to this horse color calculator for helping me figure out which coat colors were plausible for them

NULL: null has an older brother and does not talk to their parents. sakichi is six years older than null and they were never very close; their parents treated sakichi as the "successful" child and null as the "problem" child. they're also quite conservative. null realized they were agender in high school but stayed closeted at home, they planned to come out to their parents immediately once they got to college and were able to support themselves. something happens that instead makes them come out a few days after their graduation and they get kicked out. null doesn't know where to go and ends up living at johnny's farm for the summer before college (sakichi lives far away doing some tech job and so can't take them in). the clantons are basically null's family at this point. once null legally changes their name they remove their last name entirely (it probably says X on their documents just cus there has to be SOMETHING there). sakichi and null see each other very occasionally, and sakichi still talks to their parents, but only when absolutely necessary. it's not malicious, he'd just feel too guilty cutting himself off from them completely

ARGYLE: argyle is an only child with well-off parents, his mom is a lawyer and his dad is a quirky ancient history professor. his parents are like EXTREMELY doting so they were secretly kinda glad that he came back home so they could see him more often. argyle was really scared that they would hate him for going into a less stable field, but his parents love him to death and are ready to support him in whatever. suzanne was probably a nightmare at pta meetings i'll be so real

[spritebug]

What do you think the MS characters studied during FCU/at university generally?

Thank you for the ask! ^^

My FCU knowledge is very limited, so I’m sorry if this is ooc or goes against cannon 😅

I’ve also never done something like this, so I hope the layout is okay!

What the main Mystreet characters studied at FCU/College/University

———————————————

Like I say, I don’t remember much of FCU. So this will be based on their MS and PDH personalities!

(Also I’m British so I’m sorry if I mixed anything up!)

Aph

-I strongly think aph went into a creative subject.

-Specifically Graphic Design or Drawing and Painting

-I also think she could have taken Creative Writing, after realising that she could make Fan fiction her entire job if she just “got it published”

-turns out it wasn’t that easy.

-(I think she’d have considered a Veterinary course, but decided against it after realising she’d have to see some of the animals pass on)

Katelyn

-I truly don’t talk about Katelyn enough.

-The easy answer is obviously a sports based course.

-Such as studying/training for volleyball or Sports Coaching.

-BUT I think she also could have done something in Drama, specifically Acting and Performance.

-I think she would have taken up Boxing Lessons during this, either for fun or to try cover her love of Theatre.

Nana(kc)

-Bakery.

-It’s easy, I know. But I really think she probably would have taken a Bakery and Patisserie course.

-If we’re also talking in universe stuff, then I think she might have taken some form of Magics Classes.

-And depending on when her dream of starting a maid cafe started, she could have taken Business Management to try and do that.

-I like to think she had a part time job at the Meif’wa scouts as a scout leader.

-(Probably also considered Veterinary as an option)

Garroth

-This man was way too difficult

-But it’s okay we love him anyway

-I think Garroth would be the type of person who just panicked and applied for a course in whatever he got the best grades in at the end of secondary/high school, even if it’s not what he wanted to do. (Which is valid)

-He probably could have continued in Baseball, but realised he’d rather keep it as a hobby and not a career.

-Garte absolutely offered him an apprenticeship at his business, and definitely tried super hard to get him to accept.

-Thankfully, Zianna pushed for him to do what he wants not what Garte wants. We love zianna.

-But, Garte definitely made him do a part time course in Business Management “just in case”

-Garroth doesn’t know what he wants to do in life yet, and that’s perfectly fine.

Zane

-Ahhh zane. Just as difficult as his brother.

-I think he could have done English Literature or some form of Poetry, gotta get the angst out somehow.

-But other things MCD and the wiki also make me think he could have done Business management to try and please his dad and become the favourite child.

-Garte probably offered him the the apprenticeship after Garroth declined it, but it was too late to accept.

-He probably considered an art course because of his love of MLP 2D animation.

Vylad

-MY BOYYY

-I have so many opinions

-Okay, so for some reason I really think Vylad would take a Photography course. It just makes sense in my mind.

-If not photography, I think he would have taken any course that involved him having to travel in order to study.

-I think Vylad learned at least 1 other language during college/uni.

-Probably took baking classes at one point, but kept eating his projects before he could present them.

-I don’t think Garte got around to offering him the apprenticeship, but he wouldn’t have accepted anyway.

Laurence

-This man. I love him, but his wiki is….lacking compared to everyone else’s.

-But we continue anyway

-I’m tempted to say he didn’t go to Uni/college, and instead helped on his parents farm for a little while or did some form of Apprenticeship.

-if he did I think Laurence could have continued football/soccer, but I think he’d get bored and choose something else.

-I think Laurence would be the type who chooses his courses based solely on what he enjoys doing, without a real plan on what to do afterward. (me too)

-I think he would have taken a culinary course, mainly surrounding savoury food.

-college/uni is probably where he learnt Japanese.

-I think Cadenza would have convinced him to do a part time Fashion and Beauty course “or she’d disown him”.

-Definitely did Babysitting as a part time job.

Dante

-Dante. One of the hardest out of this list.

-I’m honestly so stumped for our dear Danny boy

-I can imagine Dante going into something like Engineering or Film.

-I literally have no idea why, it’s just all I picture when I think about it. I wish I could provide more information

-I think he probably got a job pretty early after leaving Secondarily/High school. Like just something small, not a stable forever job.

-I think College/Uni has to be around the time he toned down his PDH-era flirting.

Travis

-I feel like Travis could have went into Media or something along those lines.

-Or social studies

-He seems like he’d do an apprenticeship somewhere, but I’m not sure where.

-he’s a tricky one

-he definitely did cooking lessons at some point

-I think college/Uni is also where he learnt a martial art

-He defiantly went to the same place as Dante

Aaron

-I think Aaron didn’t have much control over what he studied. I think he was heavily influenced by his parents.

-Definitely took Business Management

-Definitely took some form of Werewolf classes

-And definitely lost interest quickly

-100% made use of the on-campus gym. He probably spent more time there than classes.

Lucinda

-Magic time

-Definitely took multiple Magic Courses.

-Specifically about Familiars and Witchcraft

-Took bakery classes on the side, and tried to mix the two together.

-I think she could have also taken gardening on the side.

Nicole

-I think Nicole’s dad would have tried to convince her to study Law or Politics, but after less than a year she switches.

-I think she would have taken Sport and Exercise Science, to better herself and others.

-I think she could have taken Veterinary part time too, like a wildlife sanctuary or something.

-She probably took martial art classes in between classes.

Cadenza

-CADENZAAA

-yes I’m including our girl

-She absolutely took Fashion Design.

-And possibly Beauty on the side.

-She knew exactly what she wanted in Secondary/High school, and she hasn’t changed her mind since.

-Definitely took self defence classes

-Also helped out at her parents farm for a little while.

———————————————

I hope this was okay, I had to re-do the whole thing three times cause I kept accidentally losing all the progress 😅

[moonchildreads]

small town

Chapter 23 - Cum on Feel the Noize

IN THIS CHAPTER: Yearbook messages, unlikely friendships, and Corroded Coffin puts on a show [13.8k]

WARNINGS: mentions of dead parents (eddie's mom), child neglect (not very graphic, eddie as kid), underaged drinking (no one gets drunk), low self-worth

A/N: i know. i promise you, i know. but i did say i was never gonna abandon this fic, so if you didn't believe me, that's on you, buddy. blame my job for my two month absence - three new people joined my team and one of those left last week, it's been hectic. this is an extra long chapter as a sorry for making you wait for so long. i hope you are all okay and still interested in my dumb little story, we have a lot more to go before we say goodbye. <3 (btw lemme know if you wanna be added to the taglist!)

masterlist - prev - next | playlist

Girls, rock your boys We’ll get wild, wild, wild

Monday, June 9th - 1986

The last Monday before graduation was Kyle Foster’s most anticipated day of the year; not because it meant that school attendance was officially an afterthought for most of the school’s population, but because it was the day the overpriced yearbooks he had been working on all these months were ready to be picked up, their pages waiting to be filled with doodles in colorful pens and silly stickers. He was particularly proud of this year’s edition, with its green leatherette hardback cover and bright photos printed in glossy paper, everything on them carefully arranged by the Yearbook Club with evident care and love for their craft. For a few hours, Kyle got to feel like he was hot shit. Teachers congratulated him and his fellow club members for their wonderful work, people he’d never talked to before in his life asked him to sign their yearbooks, and the basketball team kept patting his back in the hallways in between classes to thank him for the double spread with pictures of them lifting their championship trophy. Life was good, but even though he was enjoying his surely short-lived popularity, there was only one person Kyle was particularly looking forward to seeing. As faith would have it, he found that exact guy leaning against his locker waiting for him between third and fourth period, a yearbook under his arm and a piece of minty gum in his mouth.

“Hey, man,” Eddie greeted, pulling him into a bro-ey side hug that didn’t suit his personality in the slightest. “Nice work.”

“What’s up, Munson? Heard you’re finally leaving this place.”

“Yeah, about damn time,” the tall metalhead laughed, and Kyle thought he’d never seen him carry himself with such levity before. “Wanted to thank you, y’know? I mean, I know I kinda bribed you to do it but you came through for us and went above and beyond with the design and everything, so, thank you.”

“Ah, it was nothing, dude. Couldn’t ruin the yearbook by giving your club a shitty spread,” Kyle downplayed his work, but they both knew he had enjoyed the secret assignment.

“Well, then. Would the artist care to sign his masterpiece?” Eddie joked, extending his yearbook to Kyle with a jet black pen tucked into it.

Kyle nodded, surprised by the request, and went straight to the blank pages at the back. From what he could see, no one had signed it yet. He realized then this was Eddie giving him a definitive olive branch, whatever feud they’d had over his little debt more than ready to be buried in the sand and thoroughly forgotten. He quickly penned a generic “have a good summer!” message at the top corner, slowing down while writing his name when he felt Eddie’s hand slip something into his front jean pocket. Ah, there it is, Kyle thought, smiling to himself as the weight of the small weed baggie Eddie had promised in exchange for his rule breaking could be felt through the rough fabric. He gave the book back to his newest acquaintance before opening his messenger bag and retrieving his own, shocking Eddie with his silent offering. Kyle was not only accepting his olive branch but returning the gesture, and so Eddie signed his name in a little unoccupied corner, adding a smiley face with devil horns under it for good measure.

“Pleasure doing business with you, Foster,” he said genuinely, tucking his trusty pen into his back pocket.

“Likewise, Munson.”

“We look so fucking badass,” Gareth said, eyes stuck to himself holding a knight’s helmet under his arm in the Hellfire section of the yearbook.

“I know, right?” Jeff said, giddy. “Kinda wanna get it framed. You think they’ll give us copies if we ask?”

The Hellfire Club was enjoying a peaceful lunch outside, the day still perfectly warm despite the constant clouds that perpetually obscured the sky over Hawkins, Indiana. The older boys were doodling on each other’s yearbooks, laughing about bad portraits and accidental funny faces belonging to classmates, while Dustin and Mike quietly muttered to one another at the head of the picnic table. They looked like they were arguing about something important but no one else seemed to have noticed - if they did, they were giving them space to resolve it on their own. Pretending like she wasn’t eavesdropping while she wrote a heartfelt message in Donny’s yearbook, Dottie listened carefully, worried about Dustin who seemed to be particularly distraught at Mike’s disinterest in cooperating with him.

“I’m just saying, aren’t you tired of acting like you’re still upset with him?” Dustin asked.

“I’m not acting, I am pissed off,” Mike huffed. “I don’t get why you aren’t. He cut us off and he’s never coming back, get it through your head.”

“Well, maybe he feels like we cut him off. Have you even tried talking to him since Spring break?”

“No, why would I?”

“Mike,” Dustin was nearing his breaking point.

“What? Did you?”

“Yes!” he threw his hands in the air. “I called him the next day because I’m not an asshole!”

“If you talked to him, why isn’t he here then, huh?” Mike asked, icy. “Why is he still hanging out with them?”

“I said I called him, not that I talked to him,” Dustin grumbled. “He wasn’t home, he… he was at a party with the jocks- Look, all I’m saying is that I feel like shit, okay? I think we’re all being idiots right now and we should talk about it. This is just like what happened when we found El and-”

“This is nothing like what happened with El. He was just scared-”

“We were twelve, Mike. We didn’t know what we were doing, maybe- maybe he was right and we should have been scared! And maybe he shouldn’t have to be the one to always apologize first!”

“He ditched us!”

“Oh, grow up,” Dustin said, getting up from the bench with his yearbook in hand and hurrying to catch up with a redheaded girl who looked about his age.

Dottie watched how Mike gathered his things and disappeared into the cafeteria without saying goodbye, giving off moody teenager vibes to anyone who dared to cross his path. Meanwhile, Dustin was now animatedly chatting with his mystery friend near the doors - the girl he was talking to was signing his book and rolling her eyes at something he was saying, a shy but still clearly fond smile on her face. Dottie felt like she’d seen her before somewhere, but never talking to Dustin. She seemed nice, if a little sassy. I guess that’s why she’s friends with Dustin, she thought.

“Really? You got him a sweater? In June?” Jeff’s laughter brought back her attention to the table: she quickly doodled a little daisy next to her name at the bottom of her message and gave the yearbook back to Donny.

“He’s always wearing sweaters at the office, okay? And also, it’s not like he’s gonna grow two sizes before Winter starts,” Gareth defended himself. “It’s still gonna fit him in a couple of months.”

“What are we talking about?” Dottie asked, leaning her head onto Eddie’s shoulder as he stole one of her apple slices.

“Father’s Day. Gareth got his Dad a wool sweater.”

“It was on sale!”

“What did you get for your dad, then?” she asked Jeff.

“New slippers. His old ones were falling apart.”

“Very thoughtful. You?” she turned to Donny.

“Nothing yet. I kinda wanna get my Dad a funny shirt but I haven’t seen any good ones around. D’you think it’s too late to get one printed?” he asked at large.

“Oh, Eddie bought a cute one the other day!” Dottie said conversationally, looking up at the long haired boy from her place on his shoulder. “They had a bunch of graphic shirts at that store near Melvald’s, right?”

“On Mulberry? Sweet, what did you get?” Donny asked, munching on some grapes.

“Found this ugly thing with a brown Care Bear at the front that says World’s Best Grandma,” Eddie said, half a smile pulling at the corner of his lips. “Thought it was funny.”

“You’re gonna get your teeth kicked in if you wear a Care Bears shirt in public, dude,” Gareth snickered.

“Well, good thing I’m not gonna be the one wearing it then.”

Father’s Day was historically somewhat of a weird day for Eddie. When he was a little kid and still hadn’t developed a mouth filter, other moms at the park or strangers at a store would sometimes see him wandering around unsupervised, think he was lost, and ask him where his Mom was; he’d always reply with a simple “oh, no, my Mom is dead”, like the answer wasn’t absolutely devastating to hear coming from someone who hadn’t learned how to tie his own shoes yet. Like clockwork, they’d all sputter out an awkward apology, feeling sorry about unknowingly asking a young child about something so painful like losing a parent at such a tender age. A couple of times some of them went so far as to offer to buy him a snack, as if that could distract him from the tragedy of his Mom’s untimely death and, in turn, make themselves feel better about being nosy. Eddie, however, didn’t mind the questions. He liked telling people that Maureen was dead, because he learned very quickly that those were the only times people saw him as someone to take care of; just a little innocent boy having to grow up without the woman who’d loved him most, instead of shunning him as soon they inevitably found out he was Wyatt Munson’s devil spawn.

Another thing Eddie learned very early on, was that his Dad didn’t care about Father’s Day, mainly because most of the time he didn’t even care to acknowledge he had a son unless it was useful to him. And so, after the second year in a row Wyatt threw into the trash can the crafts Eddie had done for him at school without so much as looking at them, the drawings stayed in his backpack and the treats the teachers gave to all their kiddos to gift to the most important men in their lives got hidden in an old shoe box underneath his bed. There they waited until the older man passed out on his couch with a beer in his hand, and the littlest Munson got to eat them in secret without anyone calling him a pig for smearing chocolate all over his face and fingers. No, Father’s Day had always been a weird day for Eddie - at least until he moved in with Wayne.

The first Father’s Day Wayne and Eddie spent together came after almost eight months of living together. There had been a Halloween, a Thanksgiving, a Christmas, Eddie’s 9th birthday, and a Mother’s Day spent along with Grandma before that, but Eddie’s little stomach still churned with the thought of Wayne dismissing him on a special occasion like Father’s Day. He quietly waited in bed after the sun rose, ears perked up for any noise coming from the living room but the minutes ticked by and Wayne didn’t get up, busy catching up on some much needed sleep after a long week at the plant. The youngest Munson impatiently crept along the hallway until he reached his Uncle’s side, kneeling on the carpet next to his fold-out bed and observing his chest go up and down with each breath he took.

“Uncle Wayne,” Eddie whispered, but the older man didn’t so much as flinch. “Uncle Wayne,” he tried a little louder, softly shaking his arm.

“Huh?” Wayne opened his eyes, startled to find his nephew’s tiny fingers wrapped around his forearm. “What’s going on? You okay, Ed?”

“Mhm,” he nodded, wild curls bobbing along with the movement. “I- I made something. At school.”

“Yeah? What d’you got there?”

Eddie lifted a piece of paper, the sun filtering through the moth-eaten curtains helping Wayne read along. Happy Father’s Day, said the handmade card written by a teacher and decorated by his nephew, each letter colored inside with a different crayon. Wayne’s heart sank when he realized he’d forgotten what day it was. He didn’t even know which hole Wyatt was currently being kept in, but he guessed he could call his Ma and ask her about it if Eddie wanted to pay his Dad a visit. Or at the very least, he could take the kid to the post office to mail his shitty excuse of a father a letter he most likely didn’t give a damn about. Wyatt hadn’t called once since he’d gotten himself locked up, and Wayne tried not to think too much about Eddie stiffening up whenever the phone rang when he first moved into the trailer with him. He didn’t want to do it, didn’t want to have jackshit to do with his little brother anymore but he’d do it anyway even if he knew it was a bad idea, because Wayne Munson would have walked barefoot to the end of the world if it made Eddie happy, and God only knew that that boy deserved a small mercy for once.

Wayne peeled the card open curiously and felt his chest tighten up when he saw how wrong he’d been. Inside there was a crude drawing of two figures, one bigger than the other one: it was him and Eddie, standing on bright green grass, a big yellow sun with a smiley face at the upper left corner of the page, and a tree with juicy red apples to the right side. The figures were holding hands and Wayne was wearing a trucker hat - the same blue one that was resting on the kitchen counter next to his keys. At the bottom right of the card, written with the nicest calligraphy Wayne had seen from his nephew yet, was a simple I love you in purple crayon.

“You drew this for me?” Wayne asked, trying to get his emotions together.

“D’you like it? Miss Mullins gave us Hershey’s Kisses too,” he lifted a little paper bag that looked like it had been squished in transit. “I’m sorry I ate one without asking. I wanted to know what they tasted like, but I can buy you more! I have money left over from my birthday-”

“That’s okay, Ed. You can have as many as you want if you brush your teeth after,” the eldest Munson sat up tiredly and pulled his boy from the floor into a hug. “Thank you for the card. You’re very good at drawing, y’know that?”

“Miss Mullins says I’m good at art and music,” Eddie beamed. “And sometimes Math too but I get distracted. She says my reading’s not very good though.”

“You’re a smart boy, just keep practicin’ and you’ll get better,” Wayne said, feeling his nephew’s body sink into his arms the longer he held him. “Hey, how ‘bout you go get ready while I take a shower, huh? We can go get pancakes at Benny’s.”

“Really? Can I get whipped cream on mine? And chocolate chips?”

“You can get whatever you want, boy. Go on, go get dressed,” the older man ushered him down the hallway towards what used to be his bedroom and locked himself in the bathroom for a little privacy.

Wayne cried in the shower that day, much like he’d done after Thanksgiving dinner, when Eddie said he was thankful he got to live with him, even if it was just for a little bit. He got Wyatt to sign away his parental rights before Christmas came around after that. Wayne stuck the card to the fridge door with a carrot shaped magnet and drove himself and his nephew to Benny’s where Eddie ordered chocolate chip banana pancakes that Wayne ended up eating half of after the 9-year-old’s tummy became too full to keep going. Upon returning home, they spent the rest of the day watching cartoons and practicing Eddie’s reading during the commercials. When the littlest Munson fell asleep on the couch after the sun had set, his energy finally depleted, Wayne helped him put on his pajamas and tucked him to bed, stopping to kiss his curly head before he retreated back to the living room for a nightcap.

“Good night, son,” he’d said, turning off the lights, and for once, Eddie didn’t go to sleep wishing he was Wayne’s, because he knew he was and Wayne knew it too.

“You got Wayne a World’s Best Grandma shirt for Father’s Day?” Donny said, amused. “He’s gonna think you knocked someone up.”

“Of course not,” Eddie scoffed at him like he’d just said the stupidest thing ever. “He’d think I knocked someone up if it said World’s Best Grandpa, but it doesn’t say that, does it? Therefore, funny shirt.”

“You were there with him and you let him buy it?” Jeff looked at Dottie, whose cheeks felt like they were burning upon remembering Wayne’s resigned attempt at a Birds and The Bees talk two weekends prior.

“I… I thought it was funny too,” she admitted sheepishly.

“You two are spending way too much time together,” Gareth shook his head. “When did you even go shopping?”

“Last week after band practice,” Dottie said, mischief in her eyes. “Don’t tell my Dad if you see him because I told him I was at yours all afternoon so he wouldn’t snoop around and find his gift.”

“What did you get him?” Donny asked.

“A bunch of candy and a book. The guy at the store recommended it, he said it was pretty new. It’s called Ender’s Game, I think?”

“Oh, I read that one,” Jeff said, frowning.

“What, is it bad?”

“No, I think your Dad might like it," he shrugged. "But you know me, I don't like military shit.”

“How could we forget about you being Mr. Pacifist,” Gareth poked fun at him goodnaturedly and Jeff shoved him gently in return.

“Hey, speaking of band practice,” Eddie said, lips curling upwards as he leaned into Dottie’s personal space. “You think your Dad's gonna let you come to The Hideout tomorrow?”

“On a school night? Keep dreaming.”

“Oh, come on, no one’s even taking attendance anymore,” he pressed on.

“I’m pretty sure Mr. Russell took a nap in class today,” Gareth said, spreading a rumor he’d heard about the old Algebra teacher.

“He did. I was there, I heard him snore,” Donny nodded.

“There you go, darling. Not even the teachers give a shit anymore. So, what do you say?" Eddie batted his eyelashes dramatically.

"You know I wanna go, I just don't think he's gonna let me. Can't you wait one more week? He promised I won’t have a curfew anymore after graduation," she bargained.

"You say that like you don’t already know we’re gonna ask you to come next week too," Gareth said, grinning. “Besides, what kind of manager are you if you don’t come to all our shows?”

“Wasn’t aware I had signed any official contracts. Do I get health insurance?” Dottie joked.

“You get one box of kiddie bandages and we’ll drive you to the hospital if and only if any bones stick out,” Donny said.

“Wow, what a deal. I’m in,” she laughed.

“You’re gonna come then?” they all looked at her expectantly.

“Alright, fine, I’ll ask him. But if he says no you aren’t allowed to be mad at me because it’s definitely not my fault,” she finally relented.

“If he locks you up we’ll help you escape the tower, princess, don’t worry about it,” Eddie said, his breath ghosting the side of her head, and she shivered in anticipation for the new adventure that was to come.

James working past the time Hawkins High School let its students out had proven to be heaven-sent to the new couple looking for places to hang out without any prying eyes around. Eddie and Dottie were lying on her bed, hiding away from the world in her room, the radio on at a low volume playing Top 40 hits. Van Halen’s Why Can’t This Be Love was setting the perfect mood for Eddie to kiss his not-yet-girlfriend stupid - their movements still shy and exploring, neither of them rushing to get ahead of themselves. In recent days, they had progressed from chaste and giggly pecks to something much more slow and romantic, making the most of their moments alone to make each other feel comfortable and loved. Eddie hovered over her, tummy pressed against Dottie’s while supporting most of his weight on his elbows, his hands free to gently caress her cheekbones and jaw between kisses, stopping every so often to look at her dazed smile if only to will himself to believe that the girl he was so in love with was as equally smitten with him as he was with her.

Dottie let her fingers wander up his arms, one of her hands tangling in his unruly hair and occasionally pushing stray curls behind his ears to get a glimpse of those deep chocolate colored eyes she adored so much. Her other arm sneaked into his t-shirt sleeve, nails drawing barely-there patterns on the back of his shoulder, making him hum like the stray cats at the trailer park when they let him pet them after being fed. The delicate white curtains swayed calmly, brushing against the pillows in the windowsill, the gentle breeze outside rustling the leaves in nearby trees. Everything felt so peaceful, warm, and cozy. She felt like she could spend an entire lifetime like this, with the boy that had swept her off her feet so thoroughly that she almost felt like she was floating whenever he was around.

“What are you thinkin’ about?” Eddie asked in a soft voice, index finger brushing down the slope of her nose.

“You.”

“Me?”

“Mhm,” she smiled, fondly. “You’re so pretty.”

“You’re pretty. Beautiful. Gorgeous even,” he lifted his eyebrows and pouted, making her giggle at his antics. “I wanted to play a song for you tomorrow but the guys said it didn’t fit with the rest of the setlist.”

“Which song was it?”

“Nope,” he shook his head, curls tickling her. “I’m not telling you. We’ll play it in Indy.”

“I have to wait a whole month? That’s so rude!”

“It’ll be worth it, you’ll see,” he muttered, leaning down to kiss her again, and she accepted his love eagerly.

The low rumble of a car pulling into the driveway burst their cozy bubble, Eddie groaning as his head fell forward onto Dottie’s shoulder, making her snort loudly. He scrambled off her bed and dropped himself on her desk chair, fingers dancing on top of her scented Mr. Sketch markers before settling on the brown one and lifting it up to his nose to smell the cinnamon embedded in the ink. She watched him with an oddly enamored smile on her face, like him sniffing her stationery supplies was the most charming thing she’d seen him do yet. He twirled a marker between his fingers before drumming with it once on her yearbook resting unassumingly on her desk.

“Can I draw something for you in here?” he asked, tapping the hardcover again with the cap of the marker.

“Can I write something sappy in yours in exchange?”

“Knock yourself out, darling,” Eddie smiled, pulling his yearbook out of his ratty backpack and tossing it onto her bed where it made a soft thud upon colliding with her comforter.

When James climbed up the stairs to greet his daughter after a long day at work, he found both teens deeply engrossed in their tasks: Eddie’s long hair was draped like a curtain obscuring his sketch from view as he worked steadily with his chewed up pencil while Dottie was lying on her front decorating a corner of a page with her colorful pens. James leaned onto the door frame when she looked up, gifting him the same smile she used to give him as a toddler when he picked her up from daycare.

“Yearbooks are out?” the eldest Burke asked, nodding towards the book in her hands.

“Yeah! Ed’s drawing in mine but look, we got a full page!” Dottie said, rising onto her knees to show him Hellfire’s spread.

James sat at the foot of her bed, glancing at the glossy pictures in front of him. He couldn’t recall Dottie being so excited about a yearbook before, but he supposed she’d never really been a part of any club at her old school and this was an important first for her. There was Dustin front and center, arms and legs bent like a lifeless puppet being held by strings, Erica’s hand poised in the air as if she was the one controlling him while Mike and Gareth lifted her up in a  princess-like manner, a tiara glinting on her head and a school flag draping down her back. Jeff and Donny scowled at each other dramatically, engaged in a lethal fight that Jeff was clearly winning, his sword pressed to the middle of Donny’s golden scepter. But it was his own daughter and the boy that kept smelling markers before he put them to paper a few feet away from him that really caught his attention.

Eddie lounged on his throne with a fake skull in his hand, rings twinkling in the room’s moody light, and legs spread out like he was a despot king about to order someone’s head to be cut off. Dottie stared at the camera with a mischievous smirk, hands cradled around a crystal orb, looking like she knew something no one else did and was more than ready to drop a cryptic riddle that would ruin your entire life. They were playing characters, just like everyone else in the picture: Mike was the loyal knight, Dustin was the terrifying jester, Erica was the bratty princess. Except Eddie’s arm was curled around Dottie like she was his most prized possession, devotion noticeable in his seemingly innocent posture. He might have been the one sitting on the throne and she on the chair’s arm as his trusty advisor, but it was very much clear to anyone that stopped to truly look at them that even though he was the King, she had him wrapped around her finger. It shouldn’t have been a surprise - after all, since 1953 the song did say God save the Queen, not the King.

“It looks super cool, right?” Dottie asked, eyes shining. “Jeff wants to ask the Yearbook Club if we can get copies, I’d love to put one on my corkboard.”

“That sounds great, honey! It’s very theatrical,” James agreed, scanning down the list of names: Edward Munson - Chapter Leader, Donatello Andrea Vitale - Treasurer, Jeffrey Thomas Patton - Secretary… “Who’s Lucas?”

“Huh?”

“Lucas Charles Sinclair?” he asked. “His name is on the list but I don’t see him in the photo.”

“Oh, that’s Erica’s brother. He was in the club before I joined, right, Ed?”

“Yeah,” Eddie said, lips tight. “He, uh- he quit before Spring break. Conflicting schedules.”

“Ah, that’s a bummer,” James nodded, knowing first hand how scheduling was the greatest enemy of a D&D party. “Why isn’t Erica on the list though?”

“She’s still in middle school so she’s not, like, entirely allowed to be in the club actually?” Dottie grimaced. “But Eddie thought she should at least be in the picture. I mean, I’m there and she’s known these guys for longer than I do.”

“She only joined a couple of weeks before you did,” Eddie shrugged. “But a member is a member, no matter when they joined.”

“Spoken like a true leader,” James smiled, flipping the pages to find the senior portraits.

He reached the B section and immediately found his daughter, her red knitted sweater barely visible, the picture cutting off just below her shoulders. She was smiling in it, yes, but she didn’t really look happy. She seemed nervous, perhaps even a bit apprehensive. Her eyes were dull despite the bright lights behind the camera, and the little dimple below the right corner of her lip that she’d inherited from her Mom was nowhere to be found. In comparison with the wicked witch that had been staring at him in the Hellfire Club’s group photo, this girl looked like a shell of herself. Empty. Lost. Scared. Two months had passed between the two pictures, and one more since the last one had been taken, and James realized he couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her glow as much as she did every day now. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he looked at her and wondered why he hadn’t done anything to prevent her light from dimming so much right in front of him. Bitterly, he realized the proper question wasn’t why he hadn’t done anything, but instead why hadn’t he ever noticed it had been dimmed in the first place up until that moment.

“I’m so proud of you, honey,” he muttered, pulling her into a hug and letting out a heavy sigh courtesy of his own inadequacies as a parent.

“You’re not gonna cry, are you? Because you’re gonna make me cry if you cry,” she said in a joking manner, tears already threatening to climb up to the surface.

“You’re just really big now and it sneaks up on me sometimes, that’s all. I’m getting emotional in my old age,” he laughed, turning back the pages to Hellfire Dottie - the happier Dottie. “Your hair looks really pretty like this.”

“Yeah. Feels more me, I think,” Dottie agreed. “I need to get the ends trimmed before graduation, though.”

“If it keeps getting shorter I’m afraid you’re gonna end up bald soon.”

“I’ll go to a salon this time, promise,” she laughed.

“Still can’t believe you just-” James did a cutting gesture with his index and middle fingers. “-went to town on it.”

“Wait, what? You chopped off your own hair? When?” Eddie asked curiously, reminding them both that he was listening to their conversation.

“I thought you knew about this!” Dottie said. “I had really long hair back in New York.”

“It reached the top of her jeans,” James added.

“No way! Why did you cut it?”

“I just needed a fresh start, y’know? New school, new haircut. It wasn’t that big of a deal,” she shrugged.

“Honey, you snipped it all off at the first gas station we stopped at on our way from New York. Almost gave me a heart attack when you came out of that bathroom.”

“You’re kidding,” Eddie stared at her in disbelief.

“Nope,” said James. “Had to take her to a hairdresser to even it out as soon as we got here.”

“In my defense, it didn’t look that bad. It was just… very layered,” Dottie said.

“You’re lucky you chickened out and didn’t cut it shorter or you’d be looking like a boy right now.”

“Yeah, yeah, we get it, I’m not a hair stylist. I’ll stay away from scissors and let the pros handle it next time,” she rolled her eyes at her Dad.

“Well, I’m gonna go get a shower,” James announced, returning Eddie’s yearbook to his daughter. “You staying for dinner, Ed?”

“No, thank you, sir, Wayne’s waiting for me. Just gotta finish this drawing and I’ll be out of your hair for the night,” Eddie said, lifting the book in his hands as if to demonstrate he wasn’t just wasting time.

“You’re never a bother, kid. You can stay as long as you’d like.”

“T-thank you, sir,” he said in a small voice when James walked past him and ruffled his hair affectionately as he left.

“Dad? Wait, hold up-”

Dottie launched herself into the hallway and caught up to her Dad when he was halfway through his bedroom door. She nervously looked up at him and James lifted an eyebrow, curious.

“Would it be okay if I went to The Hideout to see the guys play tomorrow?” she asked, chewing on her own lip.

“Honey, it’s a school night-”

“I know but the teachers aren’t even taking attendance anymore. And I swear I’m not gonna skip the next day! Please, I’ll be back before midnight.”

“Dot-”

“You know Jeff’s dad wouldn’t let him do it if he was coming back home at 3 am every week on school nights. Please let me go? I really, really, really wanna see them play.”

“Would you be riding with Eddie?” James sighed.

“Yeah, he’s Gareth’s ride. His drum kit doesn’t fit in Donny’s car.”

“Okay, you can go-”

“Thank you!”

“-but! You gotta be back by midnight, okay?” he said, stern. “I don’t care if the teachers aren’t doing their jobs anymore, school’s not out until Friday. You’re not on holiday yet.”

“I know, I won’t break the curfew, I promise-”

“And you can’t drink any alcohol either. If I have to pick you up from the station for any reason, you’re grounded until September.”

“I won’t drink a drop, Dad, I swear. I just wanna see the guys play,” she pleaded with doe eyes.

“Fine. You can go,” James finally relented.

“Thank you!” Dottie shrieked, hugging her Dad and shaking him in her excitement. “Thank you, thank you, thank you-”

“Alright, alright, calm down. Just be careful, okay? And call-”

“Call you if anything happens. I know. Thank you,” she kissed his cheek and ran back into her bedroom where James heard Eddie scream “fuck yeah!”, followed by a loud thump and bright laughter.

That night after dinner, Dottie sat on her windowsill looking at the inside of her wardrobe, mentally putting together an outfit that wouldn’t make her stand out like a sore thumb in the dingy bar. Jeans and sneakers are fine, Eddie had said when she asked him about it, but she knew the guys dressed up for their gigs, and she wanted to fit in. Maybe she should have asked her soon-to-be-boyfriend to lend her one of his band t-shirts, but then again, Eddie had a tendency to get grabby whenever she wore his clothes lately, even if it was just a borrowed sweatshirt when she got cold during a movie night. It was better to be lowkey about this; they were already pushing it a lot lately with the secret daily hangouts and the doing errands together thing. Borrowing his clothes in such a public event like his own band’s gig was as big a declaration of love as they came.

Yes, it was best to keep this under wraps, for the sake of all their friendships with the rest of the boys. She’d wear her own clothes to her very first Corroded Coffin show, and she’d be extra careful with her yearbook when she gave it to her friends at The Weekly Streak to sign. No one had to know that Eddie had drawn a very realistic looking arrangement of daisies on a corner of a page, along with an incredibly telling message that would be hard to explain if anyone read it. However, nothing was stopping her from letting the words he’d written in his usual chicken scratch form behind her eyelids as she let sleep take her under, a perpetual lovesick smile tattooed on her face.Thank you for believing in me, darling, he’d said. I love you now and always. Your Endearing Eddie.

Tuesday, June 10th - 1986

If there was anyone in Hawkins who had bad timing when it came to scheduling business transactions that happened outdoors, it was Eddie Munson. He was in such a hurry to sell most of his stash before he was due to start his first ever real job at Thatcher Tires the following week that he’d failed to account for the permanent drizzle that haunted Hawkins most of the time, and thus, had to move from his preferred selling spot in the woods to the back of the East classroom wing, his back pressed to the warm brick to shield himself from the droplets falling from the sky.

While he was busy earning much wanted cash so he could take his still-not-official-girlfriend out on a date to celebrate their graduation, Dottie and Gareth were lounging in his van, side door cracked open to let some of the day’s heat out. The almost empty parking lot looked menacing surrounded by a thick haze, a moderate breeze directing the drops of water to hit the van’s windshield in a comforting rhythm. Gareth was, as usual, being a menace. He was going through Eddie’s tapes, exchanging their cases to mess with his friend, and never letting a song reach the end before he was skipping forward to the next one. Dottie would have complained about it if she wasn’t so concentrated on her knitting, the summer baby blanket she was working on spread out over her legs. She was in the middle of calculating if the soft cotton yarn she had left was enough to finish the row she was currently knitting when Gareth turned around in the passenger seat to catch her attention.

“You excited about tonight?” he asked, glancing at the songlist at the back of a mixtape.

“Yeah, it should be fun! Though I’m not sure what I’m gonna wear yet,” she put down her needles and stretched in her seat. “Eddie said sneakers and jeans were fine, but I don’t wanna look lost, y’know.”

“Pick the oldest, shittiest clothes you have and you’ll fit in just fine. Most of the drunks in there go after work, it’s always a lot of plaid, jeans, and dirt.”

“You’re not selling this to me very well.”

“I don’t have to,” he grinned. “Eddie says jump, you jump.”

“No, I don’t-”

“Hey, there you are!”

She was about to tell Gareth off when Chrissy appeared from the mist, shielding herself from the rain by holding her cheer cardigan above her head. Immediately, Dottie slid the van door open a bit more so she could climb in, moving all her knitting supplies to her lap so the strawberry blonde girl could sit next to her. Gareth looked at both girls awkwardly and muttered a quick hello before turning in his seat again and busying himself back with the mixtapes.

“I didn’t know you knitted,” Chrissy said, thumbing the corner of the blanket. “This is so pretty.”

“Thank you,” Dottie smiled. “It’s a gift for my Aunt, she’s having a baby in a couple of months.”

“Aw, that’s sweet! Let me guess, a girl?” she said, pointing at the baby pink yarn.

“How could you tell?” Dottie said with good natured sarcasm. “Her name’s gonna be Rose so… pink for Rosie! It’s not very original but I’m hoping she still likes it even though she’ll be born in the middle of summer.”

“I’m sure she’ll love it. I used mine until I was in preschool, there’s no age limit for a good blankie,” Chrissy said, kindly. “I wish I could do creative stuff like this, it looks fun. I tried to learn to sew when I was younger but my Mom’s so not a good teacher. She made me cry once because I forgot to put the presser foot down.”

“I could teach you a few things if you want,” Dottie offered. “I’m not an expert, but my Aunt is, like, the most perfectionist person on the planet and she taught me everything I know so…”

“You’d do that?”

“Do what, teach you?” the blonde nodded in response. “Of course! We’re friends! And it’s a great skill to have, it comes in handy more than you think.”

“We’re friends?” Chrissy asked, eyes suddenly shiny.

“After everything you’ve done for- Chrissy, of course we’re friends,” Dottie said, grabbing the other girl’s hand.

“Oh, thank goodness,” she breathed out, a quiet laugh escaping her lips. “I feel so much better about asking you to sign my yearbook now, I didn’t know if I was being weird or not.”

“For future reference, we like weird here,” the brunette said in a stage whisper, leaning down to get her own yearbook out of her backpack. “Besides, I kinda wanted to ask you to sign mine too so we’re even.”

The girls exchanged books and quickly got to signing, aware that Gareth was pretending like he wasn’t in the same vehicle as them. He didn’t want to turn up the music and rudely drown their conversation, so he distracted himself by drumming on Eddie’s dashboard with two pens, wondering what on Earth had Chrissy done for Dottie that made her so thankful towards the cheerleader. Dottie grabbed her nicest black pen and found an empty space under Eddie’s message. He’d written Don’t be a stranger, Chrissy the Cheery (and thank you for the advice! See you at the wedding) next to a crude drawing in blue ink of a girl with a ponytail lifting one pompon and doing devil horns with the other hand.

After thinking about what she wanted to say to the cheerful blonde, Dottie settled on a nice simple message that was cryptic enough should anyone else read it, but also something that conveyed just how truly grateful she was for this new found friendship. Have a fantastic summer!, the note opened. Thank you for everything. Call me whenever! At the end, right next to her name and a little daisy, she wrote down her phone number. The word everything was underlined twice. When she gave it back to her rightful owner and saw the message Chrissy had written on pink ink on her yearbook, she let out a girly giggle. It was so lovely to get to know you, have a good summer! Let’s hang out soon, it read. Below, Chrissy had also written down her phone number. Both teens looked at each other with a knowing grin and hugged, not paying any attention to the metalhead who’d put them on each other’s path hopping onto the driver’s seat of his van, hair damp from the rain.

“Aw, aren’t you two cute,” Eddie said, grinning. “Did she sign it?”

“We both did,” Chrissy said, returning the smile. “How were the sales?”

“Great! I’m selling my last bit on Thursday and then I’m keeping the rest for myself. A man’s gotta have his vices.”

“What a shame,” the blonde shook her head. “Hawkins is losing its nicest dealer to the workforce.”

“I’m the only dealer you know, sweetheart.”

“Because you’re the nicest one, keep up! I’m gonna have to buy from sleazy dudes now, ugh,” she said while she gathered her things to leave.

“You should have enough to last you until you leave for your pre-season with what I sold you today,” he frowned, concerned that every time Chrissy bought from him, the amounts she asked for kept increasing.

“Yeah, maybe,” she said and shrugged, sliding the door van open and hopping off. “See you around, guys!”

The three of them watched her jog towards the school with her cardigan draped over her head again, her petite figure losing definition in the haze. Eddie clicked on his seatbelt - a habit he’d picked up since he started driving Dottie around - and pulled out of the school’s parking lot, winking once at the girl on his backseat when he put his hand on Gareth’s headrest to reverse into the open road. Dottie rolled her eyes at him, picking up her knitting needles once again. Gareth stared at the school building until it disappeared from sight before he turned to his friends.

“I still can’t believe Chrissy Cunningham is not only super nice to us freaks, but also smokes weed,” he said, making both of the other teens laugh.

James Burke did not think that moving to the town he had grown up in as a quiet wallflower would result in an exponential growth in his daughter’s social life, but truth be told, he wasn’t exactly upset about it. Before packing up her whole life and facing the Big Drive to Hawkins, Dottie had never once gone out for the night on a weekday, much less during the school year. But James had agreed to it, and Dottie had promised to be home before midnight, which brought them to the living room where the tired father sat in his armchair and amusedly watched his daughter pace the entirety of the room swinging her arms around with each step she took.

“You’re gonna burn a hole in the carpet, honey.”

“Good. This carpet gives me allergies.”

James chuckled, following her with his eyes as she padded her way to the window once more and peered outside yet again despite knowing that she would hear Eddie’s van first before seeing it, as per usual. She sighed dramatically and resumed her pacing, glancing at the clock on the wall anxiously. Mildly embarrassed upon noticing that her friends were still perfectly on schedule, she took a few deep breaths and tried to get her emotions in control before their arrival.

“You know you can call me if you get there and want to leave, right?”

“I know, Dad,” she rolled her eyes at him. “Stop offering to pick me up from places, you know Eddie’s gonna drive me back whenever I ask.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t exactly comfort me as much as you think it does, honey. That van looks like it’s gonna die on him at any second.”

“Oh, come on,” Dottie argued. “He loves that van, he takes good care of it.”

“The fumes that come out of that thing say otherwise, but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt since he’s gonna be a mechanic and all now.”

And speak of the devil, thought James, as the aforementioned smoky van appeared down the street while playing loud metal music. Dottie hurried to grab her keys and a jacket, ready to bolt out of the door and get to the damn dive bar already, but her Dad insisted on walking with her outside to say hi. Eddie and Gareth waved at them as they approached, lowering the music so they could greet the older man properly.

“Good evening, boys,” James said, hands on his hips in a typical Dad pose but with a friendly smile on his face. “How are we feeling? Excited for the show?”

“Hell yeah!” Gareth said, grinning. “We’re gonna kill it, the setlist is awesome tonight.”

“You let him add an Anthrax song to it, didn’t you?” Dottie laughed knowingly, sliding the side door open and climbing in.

“We’re closing with Metal Thrashing Mad,” Gareth looked at her with an expression of triumph.

“Sounds like it’s gonna be a riot,” James chuckled and turned to his daughter. “Have fun, but don’t get into too much trouble. Midnight, okay?”

“I’ll get back here by 11, sir, I promise,” Eddie said, nodding once.

“Midnight’s okay, Ed,” the eldest Burke said, putting his trust in the young man’s hands; Eddie nodded again in understanding. “Have a good show!”

The man patted the side of the van as a goodbye and headed back inside, privately enjoying how much he could make Eddie squirm with just a few well placed words. He liked Eddie, he really did - he was polite, unapologetically himself, resourceful, kind. He loved his friends and wore his heart on his sleeve. And he loved Dottie, that much was clear to literally everyone that surrounded the teens. James didn’t know what the situation was like between them at the moment, but he could tell something had shifted based on recent interactions he’d witnessed. In his opinion, there seemed to be some sort of deeper connection between them since that fateful party they had gone to just a handful of days earlier, but James had to admit, albeit a little reluctantly, that even though he had been on the lookout for signs of a romantic relationship developing, not a lot had truly changed.

Eddie and Dottie had always been unusually close even upon first meeting, that was an undeniable fact about their friendship. It was hard to pinpoint if anything romantic had blossomed between them when Eddie had been calling her darling since the very first moment he laid eyes on her, or when Dottie gravitated towards him at any given moment, even in rooms filled with other people. Their hugs, while always having lasted longer than a regular friendly hug, were chaste and innocent, their main purpose always to comfort and to reassure. Eddie’s hands always stayed above her waist, not even so much as accidentally dropping to her hips in James’ presence, and any compromising position he’d found them in was at best playful, certainly never inappropriate.

It wasn’t that James was particularly concerned with the nature of the teens’ relationship; after all, he had been a teen himself once, he wasn’t an idiot. If anything was bound to happen, they weren’t going to ask for his permission beforehand. No, his worries were more about the knowledge that Dottie and Eddie dating while having the same group of friends could make a potential fall out incredibly painful for both of them, and the poor man was just desperately trying to protect his daughter as best as he could. He already felt like he had failed her once, he couldn’t let her down again. And yet, despite being cognizant of the dangers ahead, James found himself trusting Eddie because if Dottie trusted him, how could he not trust that his daughter knew better than her own Dad did about the matters of her heart?

“Okay, be honest, guys. How do I look?” Dottie asked, shoving half her body between the front seats so they could look at her better at the first stop sign.

“You look gorgeous, princess,” said Eddie.

“Like a toddler,” said Gareth, at the same time.

“Gareth, what the fuck,” Eddie deadpanned, swatting at his friend’s chest.

“What? She’s lucky they don’t ask for IDs,” he said, doubling down.

“You don’t tell a girl she looks like a toddler when she dresses up, you asshat,” Eddie said. “See, this is why you can’t get a girlfriend, you know nothing about women.”

“How would you know any better, you don’t have a girlfriend either!” Gareth retorted, making Eddie snort. If he only knew…

“You two bicker like an old married couple, did you know that?” Dottie said, settling back on her seat.

“That’s because we are,” Eddie joked, grabbing Gareth’s hand and giving him a kiss on the knuckles, making his friend yank his arm out of his grasp while the older boy laughed loudly.

Everyone was in good spirits as they journeyed to The Hideout, but whether she wanted them to or not, Gareth’s words made Dottie pause. Both boys had told her dark, casual clothes would be okay when she’d asked them for advice, so she’d gone with a striped dark blue and white t-shirt and black jean overalls, her trusty Reeboks matching Eddie’s keeping her feet comfortable. She glanced at both of her friends through the rearview mirror and compared her clothes to theirs, but that would never be a fair fight: they were dressed for the stage, not to be a spectator like she was. Gareth was wearing a loose shirt with the sleeves cut out, leather bracelets with spikes decorating each wrist along with his usual rings perched on his fingers. He had a flannel tied at his hip and his jeans were incredibly distressed, something that his Mom hadn’t been too happy about when she found out he’d ripped them himself on their driveway with a sharp rock. Eddie sat next to him, tapping on the steering wheel lightly as they talked about the setlist, looking like a vision straight out of his wildest rockstar dreams in acid wash denim and chains. Admittedly, his eyeliner did look terribly smudged, but he more than made up for it with enthusiasm and a giddy grin etched permanently into his features.

There was no comparison and there would never be one. Dottie simply didn’t fit in. They were undiscovered rockstars, masters of their craft who had poured blood, sweat and tears into a yet unfulfilled dream, and she was just the high school friend who was lucky enough to meet them before they blew up. She tried to be excited for them, to join in on the fun, but all she could think about was how Eddie was destined for bigger things than to be chained to an elementary school teacher and the white picket fence she had always dreamed of when she was living in a tiny apartment with her Dad back in New York.

Unaware of her inner turmoil, Eddie pulled into The Hideout’s parking lot next to Donny’s car, Gareth excitedly hollering out of the co-pilot’s window to get their friends’ attention. Donny took one last drag of his cigarette before throwing it to the side, and hurried to meet them along with Jeff, hugs and pats on their backs exchanged before immediately busying themselves unloading both vehicles. Dottie was quick to mask her discomfort by helping out; a task that forced her to stay focused was always a welcome distraction for her worried brain. The boys chatted loudly, their tired grunts filling the eerily empty parking lot as they moved heavy amps and Gareth’s drum kit into the bar through a service door to the side of the building, leaving Dottie to trail behind them carrying cables and drumsticks.

“Hey, you okay?” Jeff asked, taking a mic stand from her hands, back pressed to the metal service door to keep it open.

“Yeah! Yeah, I’m just nervous,” she lied, her smile failing to reach her eyes. “Never been to a place like this before.”

“No one here bites, I promise,” he nudged her shoulder. “And if they do, we’ll fight them for you. You’re with the band, you’re a VIP now.”

“My heroes,” she said, pretending to swoon.

The small exchange might have gone unnoticed had Eddie not become finely attuned to the girl’s emotions even when she wasn’t sharing them out loud. Something wasn’t right, he was sure of it, and he was determined to find out what it was before their set started. He wanted her to enjoy this, to see him doing one of the things he loved most, to let her into a space that up until now had been sacred for him. The Hideout’s little stage wasn’t the Madison Square Garden, but with her in the crowd, he felt like it was the most important show he’d ever play in his entire life.

“I really like your shirt,” Dottie was telling Donny about his Iron Maiden tee, holding his bass for him as he searched for a pedal that had gotten lost in the back of his car. “The black makes your eyes pop out.”

“But I need my eyes,” he whined jokingly.

“You know what I mean, dumbass,” she laughed, softly hitting his leg with her sneaker.

“I was gonna wear something else actually but I couldn’t find it,” he said, frowning at his car’s messy floor. “I have this Halloween shirt- aha!”

“Did you find it?”

“Yep, it was under the mat,” he climbed out of the car and pulled his pants up higher. “My ass wasn’t showing, was it?”

“I would never let you show your ass in public,” Dottie said, giving him back his bass. “We got everything? What do we do now?”

“Yeah, we just need to set up and-”

“Hey man, can you start without us?” Eddie asked, sitting on the back of his open van and patting his pockets for his cigarettes. “Need her help with something.”

“Uh- yeah, sure,” Donny said, looking at both of them suspiciously and noticing how Dottie appeared to be as equally confused as he was. “Don’t take too long.”

Donny hoisted his bass case over his shoulder and disappeared into the building, throwing one last look at them for good measure. While Eddie busied himself lighting up a cig, Dottie shifted her weight from foot to foot nervously. What on Earth could Eddie want her help with right now? Was he… was he going to tell her to leave? Had he realized this was no place for her and didn’t want anyone to see she was with them? Or with him?

“Come ‘ere,” Eddie said, widening his legs so she could stand between them. “You gonna tell me what’s going on or do I gotta tickle it out of you?”

“You know I don’t like tickles.”

“Then I guess you’re gonna have to spill, don’t you, princess?” he flicked some of his ash to the side and wrapped an arm around her hips to bring her closer. “What is it, huh? My eyeliner’s that bad you can’t even look at me?”

“No,” she muttered, lips curling into a resigned pout. “You look pretty.”

“I look like shit. People might confuse me with a raccoon.”

“A pretty raccoon,” the right corner of her mouth lifted into a tentative smile and he took that as a win.

“If it’s not my eyeliner, what’s bothering you then? You wanna go home? ‘Cause I’ll drive you back right now if you want me to, just say the word.”

“No, no,” she quickly shook her head, curls bouncing around but her eyes were still stuck to his knees. “I wanna see you play.”

“Baby, I know something’s upsetting you. Talk to me, come on. We’ve been good at that lately,” he pleaded, thumb sneaking into the side of her overalls and under her shirt to rub comforting circles on her skin.

“It’s just-,” Dottie huffed, crossing her arms and curling on herself. “I feel weird, okay? I look like an idiot.”

“What are you talking about?” Eddie frowned.

“Ed, I’m wearing overalls.”

“And?”

“What do you mean, and? You look like a fucking rockstar and I’m some random toddler following you around. I don’t fit in, Gareth’s right.”

“Okay, first of all, fuck Gareth,” she opened her mouth to argue but he beat her to it. “No, no, fuck Gareth. He doesn’t know shit about fashion, never trust anything he says, okay? He used to wear polos every day before he met me, you knew that? He can’t judge anyone. And I love your overalls. You look adorable in them.”

“But I don’t want to look adorable!” Dottie stomped on the ground, which only furthered his point. “You look so badass, why couldn’t I look like that?”

“You wanna look badass? I’ll give you any of my shirts next time, I promise,” Eddie pulled her closer until she uncrossed her arms and rested them on his shoulders. “But don’t listen to that dumbass. I love how you dress. I really fuckin’ do, babe.”

“Yeah? The toddler thing gets you going?” she asked, melting under his earnest eyes.

“Nah, that’s all you, darling,” he stretched himself up to kiss her gently. “You get me going. And you always fit in with me, alright?”

“Okay.”

“Nope, come on, you gotta say it.”

“Eddie.”

“I’m waiting,” he sang.

“You’re insufferable sometimes,” she rolled her eyes, but this time her smile was much more genuine. “Fine. I fit in with you.”

“Always.”

“Always.”

“Good,” he took one last drag of his cigarette and threw it away, lifting himself up to close the van doors and direct into the bar. “We’re gonna talk about this later though. I know you’re still thinking about it.”

“It’s scary how much you know me,” she mused, leaning onto his side for courage as they walked to the front door.

“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t pay attention to you?” he said, opening the door to let her in.

Boyfriend. He had called himself her boyfriend. They hadn’t discussed what they were yet; Eddie was adamant about asking her out properly on Graduation Day but it felt good to hear that he knew what he meant to her. That he wanted the same thing she did, even if her anxious heart got in the way sometimes. Dottie was so sure he’d get bored of her once he realized how truly boring she was, but failed to consider that in all their months together as friends, Eddie had learned to love their differences and cherished them deeply. Why would he want someone who was just like him? He was an idiot in his opinion, he’d hate it if she was equally impulsive, messy and brash as he was. She was soft where he was rough, logical where he was a dreamer, practical where he was ignorant. And in turn Eddie felt capable where she was inexperienced, bold where she was shy, and calm where she was nervous. Two puzzle pieces that are cut the exact same way never fit, and Eddie was confident in the knowledge that they were alike, yet different where it mattered the most. It was just a matter of time until she got to see things like he did, and he’d be damned if he didn’t help her get there faster.

“Dave! What’s up?” Eddie hollered as he approached the bar, a bald man with a bushy beard greeted him with a big smile.

“Hey, Ed! The guys told me the big news, I’m proud of you, kid,” Dave said, putting down his rag and a glass to pat Eddie’s back over the counter. “You brought a new friend today?”

“Thanks, man. Yeah, this is Dottie,” he introduced them. “Dot, Dave, he’s the owner - Dave, Dot. Treat her right, okay? She’s our manager.”

“No shit,” Dave laughed. “How did that happen?”

“I got them a gig in Indy next month and they offered me the job,” Dottie said, slipping onto a bar stool next to Eddie. “We should talk business sometime.”

“That’s my girl,” Eddie beamed, squeezing her hand before walking backwards to the stage. “Give her anything she wants, I’ll cover her tab!”

“So, you’re Eddie’s girl, huh,” Dave said, eyes glinting.

“I guess I am,” Dottie smiled, before her expression dropped in realization. “Could you- We’re not, like- The guys-”

“Secret’s safe with me, doll,” he winked at her. “I knew something was up when Ed started adding ballads to their setlist. Now, what’s your poison? On the house.”

“Would root beer be an acceptable choice?” she asked, cheeks burning under her skin.

“Depends. You want ice cream with it?” he threw his rag over his shoulder.

“I’ll never say no to a little vanilla.”

“Attagirl. I can see why he likes you,” Dave said, and disappeared down the kitchen door in search of a scoop of ice cream.

Dottie turned around in her stool to look at her friends happily setting up for their show, palpable excitement coursing through their veins. Gareth was hunched over his drum kit, tightening and loosening the skin until it was perfect while he heard the story Donny was retelling, Eddie laughing loudly and Jeff cringing while uncoiling a cable. They looked happy, barely controlled energy bouncing around the room much to everyone’s amusement. Two older men sat in a corner of the bar, mugs filled with frothy beer and a bowl of peanuts shared between them - they lifted up their drinks and smiled at her in acknowledgement when she glanced their way. Dave was funny, charming and a little bit kooky, all the right ingredients for a good bartender. He kept Dottie busy by telling her stories about every regular that was in the bar, and introduced her to the two men as “the boys’ boss, so no funny business with her”. Rudy and B.B. ate it up, calling her bosslady in all further interactions, asking her about their friendship with Corroded Coffin and telling her silly stories they had collected about her friends over their years as The Hideout’s only band with a permanent slot.

It was clear to Dottie that this was a family built on routine and comradery. They had nicknames for each other, knew about beverage preferences and medical conditions, asked about parents, wives and children. B.B. was all too glad to have someone new to show off the pictures he kept in his wallet, his five grandchildren looking up at Dot from the glossy paper as he shared names and little anecdotes about them proudly. When it was time for Corroded Coffin to finally start playing, everyone paid attention and even cheered when the first few notes of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid began. Dottie sang along to every single word that came out of Jeff’s mic, thinking about that very first time she’d seen them play in Gareth’s garage. This felt equally warm, homey, and handcrafted. A labor of love.

Corroded Coffin was a sight that begged to be seen. They were loud and unapologetic; they crooned to the outcasts, the freaks, the weirdos. Lee with his prosthetic leg and handlebar mustache, Rudy with his white hair and beer belly, Shonda with her leather vest and scary-looking motorbike parked outside. These drunkards were their very first fans, and they enjoyed the Tuesday night gig as much as anyone could enjoy first row seats to a Metallica show in a big arena. During a water break between songs, Lee asked for a Judas Priest song and the boys indulged him, Gareth immediately launching into a complex beat that made him break one of his drumsticks in half at the end. He looked the happiest Dottie had ever seen him.

The half hour show came to a close, and Corroded Coffin said their goodbyes with pure elation and sweat dripping down their faces. Dottie wanted to help them load everything back into the cars, but Shonda kept her busy and glued to her stool talking about New York and the best food places she had encountered on her travels. If Dottie recognized some of the mentioned spots as known queer hangouts she’d always wanted to go to but couldn’t because she was underage, she said nothing, but the knowledge only endeared the older lady more to her. When the guys had finished putting everything away, they surrounded Dottie at the bar and Dave presented them with a beer each. Yes, it was illegal to serve alcohol to minors, but no one cared. They’d earned those fair and square, and what was the big issue with a little toast between friends to the Hellfire Class of ‘86 who would be graduating in just a few short days?

“Since when do you go dry after a show, Ed?” Dave said, grabbing the bottle Eddie had pushed back into his hand.

“I’m driving her around tonight,” Eddie said, nodding towards Dottie who was lost in conversation with Jeff. “Her Dad might kill me if we get pulled over and I’m drunk, and I actually like being alive.”

“She’s got you whipped,” B.B. commented, making the rest of the older men laugh while Eddie’s ears burned red at the light teasing.

“Good for her. Someone had to do it at some point,” Rudy said, lifting his frothy beer to his lips, and truth be told, Eddie was more than happy to admit they were right.

Dottie was not expecting Eddie to pull over halfway between her house and Gareth’s after dropping him and his drum kit off, but it soon became clear that he wasn’t about to let her go to bed without talking about what had happened earlier. He was still a little jittery from the show, adrenaline starting to run off now that they were surrounded by the quiet of the night in a deserted street, truly alone for the first time all day. After reaching to click her seatbelt off, he helped her crawl sideways onto his lap, resting her weight half on him and half on the driver’s door, legs draped over the center console and stretching towards the co-pilot’s seat. Despite the fact that he’d just played a 30 minute set and still felt a little bit damp with sweat from his performance, he took the time to bask in the sense of calm that washed over him. This is the best part of my day, he thought, lazily pressing kisses to the side of her head as she played with his rings, a dazed smile on her face.

“I fuckin’ love you,” he whispered, pushing her hair behind her ear and making her squirm in delight when he pressed another kiss to her temple.

“I love you too. You’re my favorite rockstar,” she muttered back, nosing his cheek.

“You had a good time?”

“The best. Everyone was so nice.”

“They better be,” he said dramatically, lifting his hand into a menacing fist. “Or else I’d have to kill them.”

“Stop,” she laughed, arms wrapping around him. “I’m sorry if I worried you earlier. I was being silly and got too into my own head.”

“You gonna tell me what that was about? And don’t say it was about your overalls, because I know it wasn’t,” he lifted her hand to his lips to kiss her knuckles gently.

“I don’t know, I guess… I was just thinking about the future, and-”

“Uh-oh. Is this it? Are you breaking up with me? Shit, I knew that old dog Rudy was gonna take you away from me.”

“Shut up,” Dottie slapped his chest lightly as she laughed and he pretended to be in excruciating pain, slumping against his seat. “I… I was just wondering if there’s gonna be a place for me, y’know? In your future? And I got upset thinking that maybe there wouldn’t be.”

“Why would you think that?” Eddie asked, uncharacteristically serious.

“I mean… I dunno,” she admitted. “You’re gonna be a huge rockstar and I’m just, like… your boring high school sweetheart that wants to become a teacher. Is that really what you want for your life?”

“Yes. I want you.”

“Eddie, I’m being serious.”

“Yeah, me too,” his hand came up to hold her face. “I’m not gonna become a rockstar, Dot. That ship sailed a long time ago.”

“You’re only twenty-”

“It’s not about my age. Jeff’s leaving Hawkins and he’s gonna be a fancy businessman with a- a fuckin’ pacifist non-profit org or whatever people do in West Virginia,” she snorted at his words and he continued. “Gareth’s probably gonna become the greatest studio percussionist in the world for all we know, and Donny has his family’s restaurant to take care of. We’re all going separate ways, and I don’t wanna do the rockstar thing without them. Like, that’s my band, y’know? I’m not gonna go solo, it’s all of us or no one.”

“I get that, I do but… I just don’t want to be the reason you give up on your dreams,” she admitted. “You’re gonna resent me if you do, and I don’t want you to wake up one day and realize that you are unhappy and you hate me.”

“I could never hate you and I’m not giving up on anything because of you, darling, I promise. Is it really that hard to believe that I want a normal, peaceful life with you?” he shrugged.

“But you hate normal.”

“No, I don’t. I thought I did but… I can’t be hanging onto a maybe forever, babe. I can’t do that to Wayne. I want to help him out, have a good job so I can pay for things around the house, move out before I turn 30. Give him back his goddamn bedroom, for fuck’s sake,” Eddie scoffed bitterly, thinking about his poor Uncle’s back after years of sleeping on that shitty fold-out bed. “I want to make his life easier. He deserves that much.”

“But you could help him out even more if you became a rockstar. You could- you could buy him a big house, and he wouldn’t have to work anymore, he could just retire,” Dottie pressed on. “Didn’t you want to get out of Hawkins? Travel the world?”

“Yeah, but I think I’d miss you too much if I was away on the road all the time. I’m already suffering about you going to Michigan and that’s only three hours away. I can’t get on a tour bus and not see you for eight months, you know I’ll die if you don’t kiss me regularly,” he joked.

“What makes you think I wouldn’t be right there with you on the tour bus if you asked?” she joked back but her voice was so, so earnest.

“Darling, I could never do that to you. I could never ask you to give up on a full ride scholarship for me, fuck. You earned that shit, you have to go and get your degree so I can brag about how smart you are to everyone I talk to.”

“But who’s gonna keep the groupies away from you if I’m not there?” she whispered dramatically.

“I’ll chase them out, let the guys have all of them. Got the best and only groupie I need right here,” he squeezed her to make the remnants of her insecurities go away before kissing her forehead.

“I’m not a groupie though, I’m your manager,” Dottie reminded him. “I’ll have you know, Dave and I are gonna discuss business soon.”

“Yeah? You gonna look out for us? Read all our contracts before we sign them?” Eddie played along, smirking up at her.

“I’ll get you moved from Tuesdays to Thursdays, you’ll see.”

“God, you’re so hot when you know what you want.”

“Eddie!”

“What, my girl is the smartest manager in the world and I can’t find that hot? Fuckin’ sue me then,” he laughed and leaned in to kiss her, feeling incredibly lucky about the fact that she chased his lips for more when he pulled away. “I’m being serious, though. I know you don’t believe me when I say I don’t want that rockstar shit anymore, and this is way too brave of me considering we haven’t even gone on our first official date yet, but… I dunno. I kinda really like the idea of coming back home after a long day at work and getting to hold you like this. I used to think having a normal life was so lame because I never had it and now it’s all I can think about.”

Eddie had told himself throughout his whole childhood that he didn’t want to live like his classmates. He didn’t want to have family dinners every night like they did, because it meant he would have had to eat vegetables like broccoli and carrots instead of whatever unhealthy snack he could make for himself while his Dad was out of the house for the night. He didn’t want to have perfect attendance at school, because he liked whenever he could sleep in until late before “going on an adventure” on Wyatt’s Good Days. He liked spending his summers with his Grandma, stuffing his face full of ice cream and pie, and he liked when Wayne had a few days off from his job as a trucker and returned to Hawkins bringing dumb trinkets he had probably bought at a gas station on his way home, but felt like treasures to the youngest Munson. Eddie had told himself he didn’t want anything more than what he had throughout his childhood, because Wyatt said whining was for pussies and for girls, and his son wasn’t either of those things, are you?

It wasn’t until Eddie moved in with Wayne that he found out he really liked carrots because they were unexpectedly sweet and that he didn’t like grapefruit because it was bitter. He didn’t skip a single day of school for a month and his teacher put a gold star next to his name on the wall. His clothes were now always clean, and he didn’t have to wash ketchup stains in the school’s bathroom anymore to hide them from his Dad because his shirt would be hanging from the clothesline the next day like the offending red splat had never been there in the first place. Eddie thought that living in a real house was bullshit, because he lived in a trailer now and the trailer park was fun. He could feed and pet the strays and go to the playground whenever he wanted, and the people who lived there said hi to him when they saw him collecting flat rocks to skip at the lake when Wayne took him fishing on weekends, and sometimes the old lady next door would give him a bite of watermelon if he asked nicely.

But now Eddie was 20, and he wasn’t scared of admitting he wanted more. He wanted a water heater that didn’t randomly die on him, and a bedroom without mold stains, and Wayne to have the privacy he so very much deserved after 12 years of sleeping in the living room. He wanted a garage like Gareth’s, a backyard like Jeff’s, and a loud but loving family like Donny’s. And whenever he thought about those things lately, he always ended up dreaming about lying on a big comfy couch after a hot shower with his sleepy girlfriend pressed to his side and the decadent smell of a roast cooking away in the oven. No rush, no worries. Just love.

“I think about it too,” Dottie said quietly, jostling him out of his cozy fantasy.

“You do?” he asked, surprised.

“I never had a house until we moved here, I’ve always lived in small apartments before. And it’s not like that’s a bad thing, because it isn’t! I’m really grateful I always had a roof over my head. But I used to dream a lot about having a house like my grandparents when I was younger, and… I don’t know. When I think about it now you are there too. I know, I know it’s a lot, we haven’t even, like, talked about-”

“No, no, that-,” Eddie said, an unfamiliar warmth spreading in his chest. “That sounds really nice, darling. Tell me more? About our future house?”

“Well… it changes all the time. When I see something I like, I add it so it’s always different,” she said, cheeks warm at his soft gaze. “Like, it didn’t have a front porch until I met you, but now I know I definitely want one.”

“Why did you add a porch when you met me?”

“Because you have one! I love it when we sit outside when it’s rainy, it feels really peaceful. And also I think it’s really cute that Wayne waits for you there sometimes. I… I kinda wanna do that.”

“You wanna wait for me to come home on our front porch?” Eddie asked, grip tightening around her waist.

“Mhm,” she buried her head on his neck, closing her eyes like she could see themselves in the future. “We should get a swing, I can make cushions for it. And plant fruit trees in the backyard.”

“We could set up the basement to host D&D nights,” he continued. “And a dog. We should definitely get a dog.”

“Yes. A big dog.”

“A big black dog, and we can name him Ozzy,” he smiled.

“Aw, I wanted to name him Bilbo,” she pouted.

“You can’t name a black dog Bilbo, that’s a name for a brown dog,” Eddie argued.

“We can have two dogs then, one black and one brown.”

“That’s too much, we need space for the kids.”

“K-kids?” Dottie lifted her head and stared at him like he’d just grown two heads.

“I thought you wanted kids?” he was confused.

“I do, I just… I didn’t think you wanted kids,” she admitted. “And we’re still so young, it feels strange to talk about that.”

“I mean, I definitely don’t want kids right now but maybe in like… five years-”

“Ten,” she said, in a tone that left no room to argue.

“Ten years sounds great. We could have kids in ten years, right? I’m not gonna be a loser by then.”

“Eddie, you’re not a loser,” she frowned.

“Wait until after graduation to make big statements like that, babe.”

“You’re not a loser. You’re the best rockstar mechanic in the world and Ozzy, the kids and I love you.”

“Fuck,” he groaned, wiping his face with his hand. “Princess, you can’t shit like that or I’m gonna ask you to marry me before our first date.”

“Ed?” Dottie said nervously; his hand fell from his face to her thighs and he looked at her. “Are we… are we moving too fast? We haven’t even been on a real date and we’re already talking about, like, marriage and living together-”

“We’re just goofin’ around, babe,” he said, grabbing her hand. “We don’t have to do anything until we’re ready. You gotta go to Michigan first and get your degree, and I have to move out of Wayne’s, we have time. I’m just, uh, putting my cards on the table early so you can yell at me if I start being stupid. That alright with you?”

“Yeah. Yeah, that’s alright with me,” she smiled back at him.

“Besides, everyone at The Hideout knows you’re my girl now. That’s bigger than marriage - if we break up they’ll take your side.”

“Am I?”

“Huh?”

“Am I your girl?” Dottie asked, knowing the answer but still wanting to hear it from his lips.

“You know you are,” he pulled her into a kiss before singing softly. “My girl, talkin’ ‘bout my girl… my girl!”

“You’re so silly,” she giggled, noses bumping in the dark.

“But I’m your silly. You’re mine and I’m yours, okay? So no more getting upset at whatever bullshit Gareth says. I’ll kick his ass.”

“It’s not his fault. My brain just hates me sometimes.”

“I’ll fight your brain,” he said, making her giggle again. “You’re It for me, darling. We fit in together. It’s just that easy.”

“Easy,” she repeated.

Eddie had told himself a lot of lies growing up, but the biggest one was that he didn’t want a normal, quiet life, because that was lame and he wasn’t going to conform to the system like everyone else did. He understood now that maybe, just maybe, having the most regular, happy, love-filled life he could get with his high school sweetheart turned elementary school teacher and a big black dog named Ozzy, in a house with a swing on the front porch, enough rooms for children that didn’t exist yet, and a basement where he could DM as many campaigns as he could think of, would probably be the biggest act of defiance he could do in the eyes of a town who thought he would never be deserving of the common luxuries everyone else got to have without having to fight for them.

taglist: @munsonology @kurdtbean @every1lovesanunderdog @eg-dr3amer3

[silent-raven13]

"It's all cool."

(AU: So I was inspired by one of Heiibo's artworks, it's the one with the Au of Miles being in his 30s and Hobie in his 20s. So I decided to write a one-shot.)

Hobie L. Brown, a twenty three year old student at Borough Brooklyn Community College soon transferring to New York University, if he wants to go that route. Honestly, he's not sure if he should transfer. There's many reasons to why he shouldn't go to a University.

One it's a fucking scam! He can't justified paying so much money for a couple of classes for a degree, he could perfect his skills by putting himself out there.

Two, he likes the easy slack off of community college, he's not weighted by so many units being a part time student. It's easier for him to be Spider-man, jumping through hopes. It's a tough job being Spider-man while maintaining a personal life.

The young man had his big red headphones on while listening to Kendrick Lamar, he holds on his skateboard and Jansport customize backpack. His black backpack had all sorts of pins, buttons, markers of doodles and graffiti, he likes his things having his own artistic touch. The tall skinny young man let his heavy red Doc martins boots make heavy thuds with his baggy light blue sweats and a white sleeveless shirt. His bouncy freeform locs follow every step he takes, his grey eyes glistening by the lights in the hallway heading towards an apartment door.

The last reason... He stopped by the number of the apartment, his heart pounding against his chest... he could feel his cheeks warm. Is he flustered? Does anyone noticed he's blushing? Probably not with his dark skinned tone, yet his eyes gaze with love. If he does transfer, he will no longer have a reason to see his crush.

With two knocks, he heard a male voices through the door, "Coming." Hobie bites his bottom lips feeling his heart pounding faster and faster, he's excited to see his crush.

Then, at the door swung open revealing an older thirty year old black Latino man with big Honey-brown eyes and a great smile. God, Hobie loves his smile, it's like he's staring at a Sunflower.

"Hey, Hobs! What's good? Glad you can make it." The thirty year old happily smiles, "I'm so glad you agreed to help me."

"Heh, it's no problem, Miles." Hobie plays it off cool, being the quiet one.

The older man name Miles chuckles, "Still I appreciated it." Hobie met Miles in a Literature class, they seem to hit off. The tall young man got to learn Miles went back to school for a quick certificate, he already had a Bachelor's Degree in Graphic Design. It didn't take him long enough to fall for the thirty year old, he's his type. Smart, funny, love for good music, loves art, Miles is an artist, and he's so passionated about whatever he put his mind to it.

Hobie fallen for this man hard! If he were to transfer, would they be able to contact each other like right now? He doesn't believe so.

"Come on in, man. You thirsty? I can get you soda, or juice or-" Hobie walks inside Miles' apartment seeing how clean it is. "Um... Soda is cool." He lick his dry lips taking in his crush's scent, the type of aesthetics he's into.

Miles' apartment had a modern style mostly simple, it seems the warm bricks was the main attraction to the living room. So the subtle warm tones with black furnitures suited the room, having a bit of plants and warm light wood. Hobie's eyes saw the creamy white wall with a few paintings and photos.

"Sit, man." Miles came by with a cup of tea and can of cold soda, "Man, I'm glad you're here. I need your opinion on these projects I'm working on."

"It's all cool." Hobie sat on the couch putting his headphones down around his neck. He took the can of soda to sip.

"So how's your day going?" Miles stood taking a sip of his tea, he gave a small smile. "Heh, sorry for my fit. I kinda dress like this on my day off." He wore a black oversized shirt and black sweats.

"Nah, it's cool." Hobie kicking himself. What is he thinking using the same vocabulary? 'It's cool'?

"Haha, always being a cool dude, Hobie." Miles decided to sit on the couch next to Hobie, he set his tea on the coffee table, then grab his laptop on his coffee table, "So, let's get started."

The twenty three year old nodded, he inhale Miles' scent. Damn, he smells real good that cologne he wears always got him intoxicated. Hobie saw his crush typing away, then a message pop up which got the older man to sharply inhale.

"Sorry, dude. I gotta check on my work for the moment." Miles sigh, his whole bubbly personality shifted to a serious attitude.

Hobie saw the older Latino giving a slight frown, then inhale sharply at the email he received. The younger male being curious slightly leans over looking like a cute puppy with his grey eyes sparkling to catch a whiff of Miles' cologne.

"Mmm," Miles place to fingers on his left cheek letting his chin rest on the rest of the finger having to think.

Hobie leans in more to the point his face rested on his crush's left shoulder not really caring what the document on Miles' laptop is, he gave a small sigh through his nose. He wanted Miles to focus on hi this time.

"Sorry man, I know you changed your work schedule to see me. Let me give a quick message and I'll work on this later." Miles chuckles as he leaves back letting his head slightly tap against Hobie's.

That's another thing Hobie likes about Miles, he wasn't the typically Macho Black Latino that always try to prove their masculinity. He seems to be very comfortable with being touchy with Hobie.

Hobie's heart flutter feeling Miles' warm cheek touching him, yet he maintain his cool. "It's alright." He said.

Miles quickly type his message to send it to his team, "There. Awe man, I didn't expect for Alchemax to be very strict on their copyright. Make sense."

"Oh yeah? What was it about?" He asked.

"Some new drug. We needed to make some designs for it, and worked on their website." He chuckles, "They always compete with Oscorp."

"Oh..." Then Hobie saw Miles' desktop with a fan photo of Spider-man swinging from around the boroughs. "You... You like Spider-man?"

"Yeah, he's cool. I like how he's cleaning up the city. It's been a long time since the city been safe, with all the news coming out about corruption with the NYPD... I'm glad we have a Superhero willing to take matters in his own hands."

"Oh yeah?" This made Hobie flustered a bit more before sitting back on his spot.

"Yeah, heh." Miles finally had his laptop rest on his lap, "So, for class... are you ready for the Midterm?"

"Fuck no." Hobie chuckles.

This made Miles laughs, "Yeah, me neither. I guess we need to start somewhere." The two are taking African American Music studies. "So... what were thoughts on the Punk era?"

"I loved it. I always listen to those types of music." Hobie said.

"Oh yeah?" Miles chuckles, "I didn't take you to be into punk music."

"I always loved their beliefs. Anarchy ruling while capitalism is down." He's a bit shy talking about his own opinions. Sometimes he keeps to himself about it.

"I'm more into R&B." Miles rubs his chin, "I'm a bit old school, ha. I am an old man."

"You're not old, man. You look like you're twenty seven."

"Ha, thanks. Anyway, we should get started with the beginning." Miles got his music ebook and flips it over. Hobie took out his textbook with his iPad and apple pen taking notes.

The two study together giving each other pointers and made flashcards. Miles brought out a bag of chips and all sorts of snacks. "Hey, let me know if you're hungry. I can order us Chinese food, my treat."

"Oh thanks man." Hobie said, "I... I can pay-" Miles shook his head, "Nah, it's fine. Get whatever you want, it's my treat since you took time off to study with me. Helping this old man study, hahaha."

Hobie nodded, "Okay." His grey eyes watches his crush getting up to get him another can of soda. Then, the front door jiggled suddenly being open.

A grown Asian man came walking in talking through his airpod, "Oh yeah? Well, I told you that Wednesday is a no go because we need to get the report from Sander! Okay, contact him." The guy looked surprised to find a young stranger in the living room. "Um.. hi?"

Hobie was about to curse him out, until he heard Miles' voice.

"Ganks, that you?" Miles came from the kitchen to the living room spotting his best friend. "Hey, man."

"Hey, dude. I came to the stereo. Sorry, I didn't know you were on a date." Ganke said.

"What? No, we're just classmates, man. He's definitely too young me for." Miles quickly said, this made Hobie a bit upset. Really? Hobie didn't think he was that young, then again Miles probably had more experience with- Wait, did Ganke assume he was Miles' date- so that means-

He felt his whole face warm, there's a chance Miles is gay or bisexual. That made him super happy to know he'll have a chance, if he's Miles' type. It seems his crush views him like a kid, which sucks. "Hobie, this is Ganks. My best friend."

Ganke got his stereo before taking his leave, he side hug his best friend bidding him a farewell. Miles went back to Hobie, "Sorry about that. I forgot my best friend was coming, his fiancee asked for my stereo for a party."

"Are you going?"

"Nah, it's more for couples and I ain't gonna be on a blind date." Miles casually said.

"Oh yeah? You don't want to find that special someone."

"Ehh, I feel like I work too much." Miles chuckles, "But you're young, so I recommend enjoying your youth. I'm pretty happy being on my own." He finally sat next to Hobie. "Anyway, I'll stop talking about my boring dating life, I bet ya'll young folks prefer a good talk about multiple partners and stuff."

"No. I... I actually don't mind hearing you. You're not old, you know. I think you're pretty young." Hobie slightly frowns, "You are pretty inspirational."

"Oh..." This made Miles a bit bashful, "Awe, man. You're making me blush, heh." The young man gave him a small smile. Hobie always been kind to him from he saw in their classes. The young man never seems to be bothered by anything or ignore everyone he doesn't care for. Yet, he always treated him as a friend, and seems like an adorable lost puppy.

Then he felt Hobie's head lay on his shoulder, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, um... I got accepted to New York University."

"Ay, that's great. You gonna go?"

"My scholarship only pays part of it, I would have to take out student loans." He yawns, "I wanted to ask you if... you think its worth it."

"Hmm, honestly Universities are a scam. I don't want you to be debt and feel like nothing good came out of it. Think about the major you pick and see you can do it with an Associate. I do believe Masters can only take you far if you're into business, or tech or stuff like STEM. But if it's about making music or producing you can survive with your Associates or none, just networking."

"Hm," Hobie didn't want to go, he wanted to be here with Miles. At least, he felt safe with him, and there's no judgement. This is the first time he fell for a guy like Miles, his own taste in people never were as good as him. "I dunno... I'm a bit unsure."

"Hey take your time. Do what you want. I feel like I got lucky with school. Of course, I worked my ass off but honestly, if I were to start over, I should've went to community college and start from there. Would've been much easier to find what I wanna do."

"Really? Your mister Columbia."

"Haha, hey with the major I pick I think I would've been fine with other schools with a much lower tuition. My student loans wouldn't bite me in the ass." He jokes, "Anyway, take your time. Damn, if you go we might not hang out like this anymore. I'ma miss this."

"You... you don't wanna hang with me outside of school. I know, I'll be in a different school, but..."

Miles quickly said, "I don't mind, it's just... you might wanna enjoy your college life. Make new friends-" Hobie quickly said, "I like hanging out with you." His grey eyes gleaming at his crush.

"Me too, man. If that's the case, I can share you my socials!" Miles offer.

"Sure. Um.. my stuff is a bit..." Hobie saw his own Socials seeing how he post himself showing off his chest, or being seductive. Maybe he can catch Miles being interested in him. "rated r."

"Nah, that's fine. My artworks been a bit R rated..." Miles admits having to share his personal art social media.

Hobie got the chance to see Miles' artworks, they are beautiful and empowering of black men and women. There's drawings of their body in the nude with pencil, markers, and paint. It's Life drawing of these figures expressing their body. Lowkey, Hobie got jealous seeing these men being so damn handsome with their hands holding their penis with a grin on their face, and eyes staring at the viewer. This means, this person was smiling at Miles when he drew this.

"A bit too much, huh?"

"No. It's cool. So were they your partners?"

"Some... some are old friends, models..." Miles chuckles, "I really like this drawing. The model was so much fun to be around. I think I got his number..." He got a weird serious look from Hobie. "What?"

"Nuthin'." Hobie didn't like that. He can tell the model might have a thing for Miles. It's like his eyes turned almost sharp like a Great Dane, like be careful whatcha say. "You keep their numbers?" Sounding jealous.

"Ha, only for hang outs or for my next project. He lowkey got a bit expensive since everyone likes using him as their muse."

"I could be your muse."

"Hm?" Miles got caught off guard from that.

"If you look at my socials you can find me posing at stuff for fun. People say I'm model material... I just never saw myself like that."

"Let me see," Miles saw Hobie's socials to find pictures of him showing off his V-line and happy trail, "Ohh, I see. Yeah, you got a great body, would you be comfortable if you posed in the nude?" Since he's an artist, he wasn't phased by nudity.

"Hmm, depends what type of poses." Hobie would be nervous to have Miles staring at his naked body. "I wouldn't wanna show my junk."

"That's fine. We can have a blanket covering it. What about your butt? I do like how tall and slim you are, I'm assuming you got an amazing back." Miles' artistic side blooming with ideas for his next projects. He gasps, "I can have you lay on a bed with a nice silk sheets and cover some parts. You got nice piercings on your body, it would be ashamed to not draw them."

Hobie nodded, "Yeah?" He never saw Miles so happy about drawing him, it actually got him happy. Can he really be his muse?

"Oh man, we're getting side track. Sorry, man. You probably wanna focus on school-" Hobie shook his head, "No, I'm fine with us just talking. I kinda know most of this stuff." Honestly, he already taken the class before and passed with flying colors. He retook it when he heard Miles telling them in their friends' circle at school about needing this class for an elective. Hobie just had to retake it to be closer to him.

"This is pretty much your stuff. I don't expect less from Hobie Brown." Miles chuckles which got Hobie lovingly staring at his smile.

Soon the two went back to studying, then Miles order Chinese food. The two ate while studying a bit more. "Mmm, this is pretty fun." Miles said, then he noticed Hobie slowly falling asleep on his shoulder. Should he wake him up?

The young man looks so cute like this. It seems like he's exhausted. Who knows how busy he is with his part time jobs! Miles put a blanket over them, he kept studying for a bit. Soon Hobie snuggle against him being comfortable, he felt safe with his crush around him.

Miles noticed how the young man got on top of him almost having him be his stuffed teddy bear. "A little break with be fine." So Miles set his textbook aside and lies down to let his friend snuggle him. The thirty year old went on his phone texting his best friend.

Ganke: Dude, that guy likes you 🥱

Miles just chuckles, then felt Hobie's arms wrapping around his waist a bit tighter. "Mmm." He snoozes.

The older man rub his friend's slender back to calm him body, then said, "Sleep tight, Hobie." Placing a small kiss on his forehead like he would do when he watched over his baby sister. Hobie let out a small smile still sleeping away, he had one of the best sleep in his life.

[anemiccastiron]

Steve, Eddie, or Jonathan Fic?

Hi! While I'm not going to write about Billy, I thought maybe I could do something with Eddie, Steve, or Jonathan? I have a story outline, not sure if any of you'd be interested, or with which character, so I was putting this out in hopes for some clarity!

It's a very rough outline! Fem!reader - I use 'she' and 'her' basically every other word.

-

Uncool, dorky guy annoys girl since elementary school; answers her questions, harsh peer grading, comments of certain food "toxicity" while she and her friends pass by in the cafeteria, and accidentally breaks wrist before graduation during gym period.

At graduation, during announcements they realize they are attending the same near-home college. Approaches her around her family to sign his yearbook. Her friend warns him off, informs the family that's the kid who broke her wrist. He's scared away by angry parents.

College starts off with some of the same gen ed classes. First he is the same, annoying and loud. While looking at the club board, he comes up next to her and asks what she's joining. Quickly, the first thing she sees he wouldn't like is ballet. Yanks the square, tearing down the whole page and it floats to the ground.

As years pass in college, he quiets down and avoids her. She is working as a finance intern, while still doing ballet in her free time.

On Thanksgiving night, painting a DnD board model, his roommates got tired of his music that he listens to while he works, and tosses the board out of the window...

...Coming home from a bad family dinner, where she is made to feel childish for her hobby and not focusing her free time on furthering her career and spending time with family, she sees him picking up the pieces on the sidewalk. Helps him, and they awkwardly chat.

Senior year, the last party of the year, she goes with her friends. He goes to get at least one taste of that sort of thing. She's sitting in a room, one she's occupied by herself by faking sex noises. He goes to find somewhere to decompress and knocks on the door. His smarts and being sober leads him to ask, "Wait, doesn't it take two people?" and goes in, innocently - not creepily. They both sit and talk. She asks about what he plans to do after college. He has a job already lined up as a graphic designer. He asks her, and she has no idea what she plans to do. She tells him that his life always seemed easy. He explains it hadn't been; no real friends, no social life, no saying the right things to the right people (hint, hint). He tells her that her life has always seemed simple. She gets upset, with all her underlying issues. She leaves.

Four or so years pass and at an office party with his colleagues, she and her boyfriend (who works there) are in attendance. She sees him first, boyfriend asks and she tells him how long she's known him. Boyfriend says he's one of the guys that he regularly gets drinks with after work. She’s like, "oohhhh, that's xxx..."

...He doesn't see her until he makes his round of hand-shaking and gets to her boyfriend. He's awestruck, she's still just as beautiful. Party goes on and the boyfriend asks if he can hold a DnD campaign at their place with some friends from work, him included. Only asking now she's had a proper chance to meet them all.

Come time for the session, she's picking up their dog from surgery. She thought the game would be over and went upstairs to ask boyfriend to help carry the dog up. Boyfriend says no, since he's still playing the game, but mc guy can because his character is badly injured, but truthfully just wants to talk to her. So, he goes down and pets the dog. He says, "What a pretty girl," and the girl says, "He's a boy." He just smiles, since it really was for her. They talk about how life has been, what she's been up to. Asks about ballet, and she says she doesn't dance anymore because it "doesn't pay." He laughs and says, "Hobbies usually never do." She explains she knows, but doesn't explain that she stopped because she felt guilty because of it. She wanted to use her time to be with family, friends, at work, and with her boyfriend (he asks how long they've been together (four months)). So, he asks what she does for fun then. She reads, and he asks what book currently. She laughs, and he knows it must be something "bad" to get that reaction. She eventually tells him, and it's a "spicy" fantasy book and he makes some comment that lets her know he's read it too. As they smile, there's a flash of a scene where it mimics the book - them two as lovers in some dystopian woodland, on a blanket, kissing and expressing love lol. She instantly blushes and breaks eye contact...

..Then ends with asking about an upcoming high school reunion. Neither were going to attend, but plan to now.

He's waiting against his car, she arrives, pokes fun at him for waiting and that he's shaved, but he said he wasn't going in without her. They go in, their high school respective friends call them over, they part ways. Her old friends, true to style, ignore his whole existence, and just talk about how long her hair has gotten and so on. His friends pat his back, laugh about how dresses now, and then ask about her. He doesn't really confess anything, but smiles as he dismisses their comments...

...A little time later, she excuses herself to go call her boyfriend to ask about the dog. She takes her clutch with her, so it looks like she's leaving. He freaks out and follows her. The sun is setting, so it's scenic lol...

...Their conversation starts off with her asking what he's doing, why he followed. He comes up with some lame excuse, but really worried she was leaving without getting a chance to talk.

Eventually spills his guts to her and says, in question format, if she knows why he answered all those questions for her in school. She doesn't, and he tells her it's because he knew she wasn't good with science or math. He wanted to help her, but realized how annoying he was about it. Reaches out, rubbing the wrist he accidentally broke, and apologizes for how he treated her then. Goes on to explain that in college, as he matured and she only got prettier, he was just scared to approach her, so he didn't. Now as adults, he just wants to be put out of his misery, so to speak. Her hand, that he was holding is placed on his chest, above his heart, and he apologizes that she's with someone and he’s saying what he is, but he just needs to know. She's shocked and doesn't really answer besides, "I'm with xxx..." which technically is her saying she does like him, just nothing she can do about it now. Then she goes back in.

A little while after, she's constantly thinking about what he said, but is ultimately wanting to make it work with her boyfriend. Though, he's more work motivated and wants to climb the corporate ladder. She's picked ballet back up and they see each other less. After sex one day, interrupted by a work call, they both lay there. They come to an agreement that it's not working out, and end things on good terms.

A month down the line, she runs into him at the craft store. She's buying fabric to sew pillows at her new place and he's buying stuff for DnD. Things are a bit awkward and silence lingers, then she cuts in if they can talk that night, maybe a date. He smiles and asks, "What about your boyfriend?" And she tells him they broke up.

On the date, at an ice cream parlor downtown, the conversation is the usual, a bit stale as they warm up. They go for a walk around downtown. By the end, tired of tiptoeing around what she wants to say, she stands in front of him and tells him that she almost hated him when they were younger for what he did, that there was this guy she was attracted to but he was being unkind to her. Then he just stopped all interaction during college and she still was attracted to him, and now he's confessing that he likes her, upset he did it while she was in a relationship, and tells him, despite that, she still "likes" him.

blah blah blah they get to know each other and love one another

[pointless-soap]

Review - Public Goods

While visiting my family for the holidays, my dad told me that he had gotten me an Airbnb nearby his apartment. That way, my girlfriend and I wouldn't be sharing the couch with two rambunctious dogs. My girlfriend and I are very grateful for this, as we appreciate having our own space like this.

When we arrived yesterday, I took a look in the bathroom and noticed that the hand soap, the shampoo, the conditioner, and the body wash are all the same brand: Public Goods.

(I'm only including the one picture, because it's all you really need. All the other bottles are basically the same, but instead of saying Hand Soap, they say Shampoo, Conditioner, or Body Wash.)

First things first, I have to admit that the graphic design of the bottle does nothing to endear me to the soap. I'm not a huge fan of minimalist design. I think it's boring. I like clutter. I like when there's a bunch of little stuff on bottles. I think bottle's should have word searches and crosswords goddammit. This bottle has the brand, the type of soap, the volume, the slogan "It's all good", and nothing else. Where's the pizazz? Where's the fun? It's gone.

Hand Soap

Anyway, onto the soap itself. Despite the first impression, the hand soap is actually pretty solid. I don't mean in terms of matter. It is a liquid, don't worry. I mean that it does the job well. It doesn't really lather well, which is disappointing, but it doesn't clump up at all, it spreads easily, and it wipes away grime. It works! A good sign for soap. Not much to say for the smell though. It's pretty inoffensive, subtle, standard soap stuff.

7/10

Shampoo

Not gonna lie. It was pretty disappointing. Felt like I was just using the hand soap on my hair. It didn't lather, which is like the one thing I expect shampoo to do? There's gotta be suds in there, otherwise it's no fun. I even went and grabbed an extra squirt to see if maybe I could rub more in, and all I got was disappointment. Anyway, it's fine otherwise. Smells pretty nice, but again not like anything in particular. That's it. Also it pretty effectively killed my curls, but that's normal for shampoo. It's why I only really shampoo once or twice a week.

5/10

Conditioner

I didn't use the conditioner. I have curly hair and use a specific conditioner for it, recommended to me by my sister who went to beauty school and knows these things. I didn't want to completely kill my curls, so I just used that.

?/10

Body Wash

At first, I was optimistic. It came out of the bottle thick, which is great for a body wash. Smelled nice. Was a different texture than the shampoo and hand soap. Fantastic. Pretty quickly though, I became disappointed. I don't know if it's the brand or if whoever owns the Airbnb did this, but it honest to god seemed whatever down. Just fell right off like sauce off of penne lisce, the worst pasta noodle. I guess I'm clean, so that worked, but it was genuinely disappointing.

4/10 (Again, it might've been the owners who watered down the soap though, so if Public Goods wants to send me fresh bottle, they can DM me and I'll update the review.)

Summary

Public Goods seems to me to be a decent company. They talk a lot about environmentalism and sustainable practices, which I hold to be a very important topic. I hope what they say is true. But what it says on the soap bottles does not seem to be.

"It's all good" the soap bottles say, right near the bottom, in tiny print. I would say it's more like "it's fine" or "it works" because those are technically true.

But the hand soap was pretty good.

[idsb]

hi im new here can you give a brief rundown of like you lol?? where youve lived, jobs, partners, interests, give me the idsb lore please!!!!!

hi!! sure, I have a lot of new followers and I was just thinking the other day abt this and how my blog is like 70/30 my personal life v Taylor so that must be confusing for new people. so yes! here's the spark notes:

My name is Holly and I just turned 28! I grew up outside of Boston and lived in NYC for ~10 years after I went to art school there. I dropped out of college after one semester to pursue my actual dream of touring with artists. After I dropped out I spent a while willingly homeless in NYC so that I could establish myself & my career there. Eventually it worked & I had been doing freelance photography, videography, graphic design and merch sales as steady income since ~2017. I was in a 5 year, emotionally abusive relationship with my high school sweetheart and finally ended it in 2018. A bit after this, I went to Australia for the first time with my then-friend now-boyfriend (Nov 2018). I've been obsessed with Australia since I was like 5 years old and it was an incredible adventure. I spent about 3 weeks there alone without then-friend, and during those 3 weeks met a Man. The last night we spent in Australia on this trip was Christmas Eve, and said man invited me to have an outdoor Love Actually screening and have a wine picnic with him and all his friends. it was one of the best nights of my life. We hooked up and he singlehandedly cured some sex-related fears I had from the previous relationship and I couldn't stop thinking about it for months. Back in America (Jan 2019) I entered my hoe phase in a never-ending quest for validation and slept with every guitarist I'd ever worked with while meanwhile having a big mental breakdown. Enter a John Mayer vibing man we called the Guitarist here, and a lot of Bad Shit he did to me in his own validation quest mental breakdown (May-August 2019). Clearly my only choice was to fly back to Australia to see the other guy! And I did (September 2019)! Then I was mega depresso when I went home bc my life felt hopeless & I'd already lived out all the hope it had going for it :) I continued my hoe phase and chronicled it via Spice Nights where I’d just answer nsfw asks and give advice for like 8 hours straight. This is waxing over it but it was chaotic and I cannot understate the Depression (Feb 2020).

Then the pandemic happened whomp whomp. I lost all my gigs and posted about it on Tumblr dot com, this blog gained a very large following sort of bc of being a Taylor blog and sort of bc of live-blogging all the drama. ms Taylor Swift saw it and she sent me $3,000 to cover my rent for all of lockdown. a lot happened as a result of that but in the end I realized it was not smart to stay in NYC and spent summer 2020 roadtripping around the US with my then-friend who had first come to Australia with me, who had since joined the leagues of guitar-playing-employer-i-was-sleeping-with (there were 4 in total but I was in loveeeeee w this one). Big Cruel Summer vibes. my friend group exploded partially as a result of my behavior and partially bc they were cunts who didn't care about John Mayer vibe man manipulating me. So then I said fuck it and moved to Montana to work in a national park w guitar guy I Actually Loved who had become my boyfriend at that point, and we lived there until winter 2021. Then I started touring again, got insanely successful, was making more money than most people I knew with salaried jobs and booking work all over the world, my relationship ended over some drama I found out about way after the fact but then we got back together & moved in together (May 2023). Going great. Then I got so fucking burnt out from my job I was like stop the presses I am fucking off to Australia I can't do the music industry and the mega late-stage capitalism anymore. so now I live in Melbourne and am a bartender at a fancy cocktail bar and my relationship is sort of a LDR but I’m going home soon maybe(?) and that is what you missed on Glee!!!!

[fuck-customers]

So I have gotten a new job with slightly higher pay but full benefits (yay!) and it reminded me of something that happened while I was bellyaching about how I wasn’t hearing back from jobs while at work one day. Keep in mind, I had been applying for a new job since February of 2023 and I’m JUST NOW getting a new job that isn’t even in the field of what I went to school for.

The reason why I wanted a new job is because a) my boss wasn’t going to pay me more than $14.50 an hour, which no big deal I could theoretically make it on that, but I have basically $860 in monthly bills and that leaves me very little to keep stashed for emergencies or save up to buy a house and b) no benefits, no career growth opportunities, only one week of paid time off for an entire year with no accrual. The man deadass said that if I wanted to be paid more to go work for fast food (because around here they are starting fast food workers at $15.00 an hour with some benefits) then got butthurt whenever he learned I was actually genuinely looking for another job.

One day I was talking about how I hadn’t heard from a job I was very interested in when one of our annoying regulars (one who works at a museum, and claims to be a graphic designer but honestly doesn’t do real good work and makes my manager do most of the design work and claims it as her own - not to mention sticks her nose in everyone’s business and wants you to drop everything to do her stuff for her) overheard me and decided that she had a wonderful suggestion for me: “Why don’t you come volunteer at the museum?”

I responded: “What’s the starting pay?”

“Well, there’s not really any pay - we’re looking for volunteers mostly. There might be a chance you’ll get paid minimum wage but it’s every so often.”

“So, you want me to leave a job where I am guaranteed to get paid $14.50 an hour, to come volunteer at a museum where there is maybe a possibility I would get paid $7.25 ‘every so often’.”

I’m fairly certain I embarrassed her by saying that because she stared at me for a moment before trying to talk about something else but I continued badgering her just because I was so fed up with her at this point, “What about me saying ‘I wish this job that would be $18 with benefits would get back with me!’ translates to ‘Let me try to pitch this full time volunteer opportunity!’? I understand y’all need help just as much as the next business, but unless your boss is going to give me what I’m looking for I’m not going to come spend forty hours a week just volunteering somewhere for practically free whenever I want to make sure I can make rent.”

Y’all she left and didn’t come back for almost six months after that. She just recently started showing up regularly again and she’s still working for the museum - and complaining about how she doesn’t get paid what she’s worth for what she’s doing. Makes me wonder how she’s able to make ends meet if even she supposedly only gets paid minimum wage “every so often.”

Posted by admin Rodney.

[russanogreenstripe]

Been thinking around Weird Al

Earlier this week, before I heard about his new single, I was thinking back to my senior year of high school. That was when Skipper Dan came out, and it felt like peering into a possible future of mine.

For reference, two things I was real big into in middle and high school: Weird Al, and theater. First as afterschool drama club, then actual theater classes, and even a fully student-led and organized production because we wanted to. My whole friend group at the end of high school was theater kids. And it would have been very natural to go on and major in theater in college - several of my friends did. But I didn't. Because I was afraid. Because I'd heard so many stories of people who tried doing theater/acting/performance as a living, and ended up waiting tables, flipping burgers, or hosting the Jungle Cruise ride like Skipper Dan here. I'd been told implicitly and explicitly by society that performing arts was not a viable career path, and especially graduating during a recession, the need for financial stability was drilled into my head. This song felt like the straw breaking the camel's back - a creative performer I loved warning me not to go into theater, or else I'd end up a sadsack loser like Skipper Dan. So initially, I went to a local community college for Graphic Design. Completed a semester before falling into major deep depression, both from the stress of school and other life factors. Stopped going to school for years. Very dark period of my life. Not performing theatrically anymore. It wasn't until 2013 that I got motivated enough to change my lifestyle and went back to school, this time for Network Technology. Still prioritized being able to make money and have a long-term career. Graduated in 2016, got a job at a datacenter, and did my damnest at it for two years before having another breakdown. I came to realize that, while I was capable of doing that kind of technical work, it wasn't how I wanted to spend my life. The work felt meaningless and empty, even if I was able to (mostly) make rent and pay bills.

So now I'm in the middle of a career change, going back to school. And part of me wonders now, almost 15 years later, if I should have gone with my original plan. If I had instead leaned into what I was good at - and am still good at, if I'm being honest - and not let fear dictate my actions. Would my path have been as rocky if I hadn't spent all that time trying to hide who I really was, working overtime to convince the world that I'm a tech guy and not a thespian? Part of me thinks that I would have been happier going into Performing Arts, even if I hadn't been successful. That even if I struggled financially and personally, I would have been truer to myself - I was so afraid of ending up like Skipper Dan that I was willing to amputate parts of my soul.

[prestonmonterey]

TLT UPDATE!! BEFORE I GO TO BED

(gods im so tired...)

@vincentaureliuslin @tatsumisheep3

no photos today so heres my cat :P

OPENING NIGHT!!! it went super well!!!!! (i think)

it was PA night so the understudys were percy and annabeth and they killed it!!!!!! :DDDD

also my director gave me a compliment today so im in a good mood (it was somethin along the lines of "you finally did a good job as cerberus" but ill take what i can get...) (i still have beef with him but.. whatever....)

its crazy how fast this show is going and that itll all be over after sunday,, but also i am SO tired bc we literally spend more time at school than at home this week :(

also getting a lotta acne bc im not used to wearing this much make up every day :P

but hey at least ill get to rest a teeny bit on the weekend (just in the morning TwT bc we have matinees)

also my parents and some of my friends are comin tomorrow so they BETTER FUCKIN BUY ME CANDY (i really really really want candygrams... one of the stage managers got like 4 boxes of candy i am so jealous...)

also also also we did the legacy robe last night before preview night and my friend (and mother /ij) got it :DDDD very happy for her

um um um i felt like i had more to say but idk this is already a lot and i cant remember things im kinda tired :P

oh i finally got my camper necklace!!! the beads were missing for like a week but they were just on the table in the costuming room... anyway my friend made it for me during tech class bc shes so so sooo sweet <3 (while i was in math trying to force my friend to study... *stares at neeks* /aff) i got four beads that kinda almost make the ace flag!! (black for tech, silver for the fall play, light blue for this show, and purple for my grade)

idk if i explained it before but all of our necklaces represent how much theater we've done,,, bc its kinda like how long we've been at camp. theres a bead for each grade based on our class colors, and the tlt bead, so everyone gets at least 2. theres also beads for each of the past musicals and plays at school, and a black bead if youve done tech, and a white bead if youve done leadership :D some of the seniors have like most of their necklace filled because of how many shows theyve done

heres another cat pic to keep you engaged and reading this /hj

also also also many many thanks to my wonderful actor and tech friends i would not survive without them (especially thanks to tech bc they have to put up with us actors... /hj) its poseidon's actors first show i think and they have a LOT of quick changes so their section of the rack is,,, kind of a mess. also the lamp for the oracle scene has broken multiple times i think already... and i already left my make up bag out yesterday and my watch in the cubbies today TwT we are a hot mess

my graphic design teacher was acting today :D (the farmer in drive is a teacher role, and they switch out every night) and i love him being so absolutely perplexed by the energy circle before show :333

also i remembered to put setting powder on for the first time,,, and... i forgot that my mom is SO much paler than me TwT (i was very washed out...) so ill probably stick to spray for the rest of the week :P

sorry i really am rambling tonight...

ok i will probably hopefully do at least one more update after strike on sunday!! (depending on how tired i am,, i might just curl up on the floor and sleep after the sunday show actually...) unless something goes horribly wrong,,, then ill probably post about it too

good night!! i need to collapse in bed and try to save up enough energy for tomorrows show :3

have a wonderful day/night and remember to hydrate! (or you'll die straight...)

[strawbubbysugar]

I saw you mention in an ask that you work as a concept artist. First of all that's insanely cool??? Secondly could I ask how you got to work in that field? And in what industry did you find a job? You don't have to answer if it's too personal, I just REALLY wanna work in that field too and I have had no luck so far

I’m super lucky to have gotten my job, the industry is REALLY tough!! I went to school for both 3D animation & graphic design, and the company I was hired at had just opened a new department so I was able to work to build that division of the company! :)

[kathaynesart]

your career is almost EXACTLY what i want mine to eventually look like.

do you have any tips on reaching the point you’re at, now? like what did you major in in college, etc?

(if this is too big an ask ofc you don’t have to answer)

Of course! I'm always willing to give advice where possible. More info below:

I went to school at Loyola Marymount University in LA, California where I majored in animation and minored in studio arts. If you are planning on working in the arts, I recommend taking several things into serious consideration when it comes to schooling: A) Consider whether or not talent searchers for your job of choice care more about your portfolio or a piece of paper that says you studied in this department. There is no universal answer and this can vary from job to job. B) If you can learn through cheaper means such as online courses/community college rather than go into debt for half of your life for a four year experience. C) If you really want put all your chips on the table and go into the arts (I went to a well rounded university in case I fell out of animation and art as a career). Next off, realize that there can be a big difference in what you're passionate and what your skill sets are. Be flexible and really examine what you like to do in your free time as well as your strengths and weaknesses. I loved cartoons and anime in general so I thought animation was the way to go, however, in retrospect I draw very slowly (which is not great for 2D animation), did not like 3D programs, and spent most of my free time outside of school projects messing around in Photoshop with designs and writing stories. With this in mind I realized years after graduating that my strengths lie in graphic design (which has been mostly self taught), writing, and illustration. With finding work, realize that every little thing you do is an opportunity for a job, whether you realize it or not. For example, an acquaintance of mine from an old job saw my silly Inktober drawings on social and reached out to me to ask if I could fill in for him at Mattel while he was on a month long honeymoon. That's how I got my foot in the door with my several years long freelance gig at Mattel and it was purely by knowing people and continuing to put my work out there for them to see. So make sure to always be open to meeting people, be it through conventions, fandoms, or even jobs unrelated to your desired career. You'll never know what might come of it! Finally make sure to create accounts on sites like Indeed and Linked In and keep them up to date. I got my current job by being on Indeed and my Diseny job I got through Linked In. Both times they reached out to me rather than me submitting to them.

I hope that helps! If anyone has more questions feel free to ask!

[just-rogi]

guys,,, i just applied for my dream job and had an interview today that went crazy well. im suposed to find out if i got the job tomorrow!!!

its an 11th and 12th grade graphic design and photography teaching position at a school thats a ten minute walk from my apartment.... like.. yall... im really hoping i get this job please please please i need a win