#it's about eddie's personal growth mostly

[resident-gay-bitch]

To Eddie, music was never about the fame. 

He always believed in being a good person. Too many bad people in his life have shown him what’s most important, and Eddie’s always believed that no famous person can be good. Sure, there are kind and generous famous people, ones that gave and loved and supported others. But if you’re sitting on that much money, and that much power, how good can you really be? 

Okay, well, sure. It’s not like fame isn’t something he wanted. Who wouldn’t want to be famous, for real? Yeah, famous people aren’t good in his eyes, but Eddie knew he wasn’t all that good anyway. He tried to be, he really did, but sometimes he was just an asshole, and he knew that. Plus, he’d spent a few too many nights in the holding cell down at Hawkins PD to be considered a good person. So yeah, fame would be cool. Like, what doesn’t sound appealing about the fucking Freak rocking up at his highschool ten year reunion as an uber rich, world famous rockstar, desired by men and woman alike? It would be fucking awesome. He’d be able to fuck with so many of these dumb assholes. 

Music to Eddie was about the feeling. 

He played to feel. 

He performed to make other people feel. 

His love for music started young. His mother would put him on her lap at the mere age of three and press his little hands over the ivory keys of her old family piano. He could play a handful of quippy songs by the age of five. She used to sing him lullabies (which were mostly just old blues songs and a few of her favourites by the Beatles), and Eddie learned to sing along with her.

Often when just sitting at home, when he was colouring or doing his homework or something at the kitchen table, he’d listen to his mother hum whilst she cooked or cleaned around him. And he’d start to hum along, and they’d start to sing, and then soon enough they’d be dancing around the apartment singing their songs. And when Eddie was five, he was still a small kid, but he saw Wayne playing his guitar and wanted to learn. He couldn’t stretch his fingers over the frets or strings, couldn’t wrap a hand around the neck, hell, the body was bigger than he was. And so Wayne pulled out his old ukulele, tuned it up, and taught Eddie a few songs on that. 

When Eddie turned eight, and he got a little bigger, Wayne gifted Eddie his old guitar. Eddie learnt. He taught himself, mostly. Well, a few chords from Wayne, a few chords from his mother, and the rest he just… figured out. He’d rent videos of lessons, or guitarists playing live in concert and would imitate the way they moved their fingers. 

He had a good ear for sound, learnt from a game his mother taught him. She was a singer, used to sing on the late night news with a bunch of other chorus girls. So she’d hum a note and Eddie would try and match it, and she’d keep humming it until he got it right. So he’d just keep moving his fingers in different formations until something sounded smooth and resembled the sound in the song he was trying to learn. He was sure it was probably wrong, sometimes, not the way the rockstars played it, but it sounded the same, so that’s all he cared about. 

He could write well too. He always used to like coming up with silly songs whilst getting ready in the morning. He had a song for brushing his teeth that went for exactly two minutes, to make sure he brushed them well. He had a song for getting dressed, and a song for packing his lunch. He had a song for everything, and his mother bought him a journal to write all his songs down in, so he did. He wrote them all, and then he wrote more, and by the age of eleven Eddie had two shelves full of journals with all his songs. 

Music was his way of feeling, his way of coping. 

When his mother died, so did the music.

**

if you'd like to keep reading, you can find the full 11.3 k word fic here on ao3 :) don't forget to reblog and leave a kudos!!

[sp0o0kylights]

Steve and Gareth as Cousins, no longer a warm-up and now called Lifelines, part three! I’ll throw it up on A03 when I finish the fourth part. 

Prior parts can be read here: Part One / Part Two 

First things first, the most amazing @ sereinpetrichor managed to track down the OG Twitter thread this runaway train is based off of! 

It was this thread by @gatorthots, the Tumblr version of which can be read, here.  All blame for this idea firmly rests on their brilliant, plot bunny inducing shoulders. 

The other, follow up thread I mentioned was this one by Silas, whose tumblr name I do not know. 

As always and forever, shout out to the most amazing @chalkysgarbagefire​ who helps me edit/plot/pats my head while I’m crying in their inbox bc the words aren’t wording right. 

Warnings: Steve and Robin are canon (S3) drugged. I took a slightly (kinda sorta) more realistic approach. Vomit mention, canon threat of violence/guns (the Russian guards) Mention of pantsing/past bullying, Steve and Robin’s drugged asses not understanding personal space, Dustin’s canon...Im gonna go with assholishness? but like, I think its more than he’s a young kid and doesn't quite have the emotional growth/awareness yet in this kind of insane situation to know how to react to the whole address/torture bit (really who does)/its a defense mechanism--and Gareth sort of has a panic attack. 

Whatever the hell they had been drugged with, Steve and Robin went from 'giggly happy fun time' to 'vomiting into toilet bowls while loudly wishing for death’ awfully fast. 

Gareth was not an expert on drugs. He knew Eddie wasn't either (the guy never dealt anything stronger than your average psychedelic--had some agreement with his Uncle about only selling "the 70s basics") and repeated looks towards him proved Eddie was still trying to figure out what Steve and Robin were on. 

Answers hadn't exactly been forthcoming--Eddie's gently made attempts at ferreting out information had only caused more confusion.

Like why the two of them were so freaked out about a gate, or what had made Robin gasp, and then laugh so hard she cried when Steve had made a particularly rough noise then muttered; "Even that sounds better than Tammy Thompson." 

Either way, Gareth was mostly trying to figure out what the hell they were going to do, because sobering up in a busy, public mall wasn't exactly the best idea. 

"I regret," Robin tried to say, in-between gagging. "I regret--hrk--" 

"Me too." Steve moaned, head resting against the stall wall. Gareth, still caught up in panic, had been permanently regulated to door guard while Eddie alternated between sweet talking, rubbing backs and offering quietly whispered advice. 

"Let's go back in time and ignore the whole silver cat thing." Robin continued, slumping back down onto the floor. 

"Wouldn't have mattered." Steve muttered. "Dustin would have figured it out without us. Kid’s too damn smart." 

"So?" Robin grumbled, quietly thanking Eddie as he once again brushed her hair out of her face. 

"So he would have gone down there anyway, which means I'd be down there anyway." Steve concluded. "We shouldn't have gotten you involved though." 

He shakily pushed himself up, staggering to his feet and looking like bambi on ice while doing it. 

Eddie quickly came round to offer his help, hands spread as Steve groaned out a curse and clutched his head.  

The older took a step forward right as Steve lurched back, unbalanced and shaky. 

 "Oh shit." He said, eyes wide as he crashed backwards into Eddie, the latter catching him with a grunt. 

Despite the entire situation, Gareth found himself stifling a laugh as Eddie wrapped his noodle arms around Steve's chest, trying to hold the other up without falling himself. 

"Come on big boy, why don't we just siiiit back down." Eddie said, slightly breathless as he helped guide Steve back to the floor. "There we go…"

They did so outside the bathroom stall, Eddie sinking into a kneel as Steve sort of flopped down on top of him. 

Blinked a few times, like the drop had rattled what little sense he’d managed to recover in the last few minutes. 

A pleased noise came out of his cousin's throat, and holy shit was Gareth going to have blackmail for life, because rather than vacate Eddie's lap, Steve just turned around in it. 

Reached up with one finger outstretched and proved himself to be very much still under the influence as he touched Eddie's nose.

"Boop!" He said, and then giggled as Eddie dropped onto his ass in surprise. 

Gareth watched Robin as she took the whole thing in, from Steve's snickers to Eddie's shocked expression, eyes growing wide in excitement. 

He failed entirely to cover his own amusement when Eddie abruptly found himself with two sailors invading his personal space, each taking turns to boop his nose. 

“Uh.” He managed to get out, blinking rapidly and at a loss for words. “Ah.” 

Steve caught the metalhead’s awkward, red-faced expression and proceeded to drop his head to Eddie's shoulder, muffling his laughter against the man's vest. 

The helpless look his best friend sent him was one Gareth would remember for a long time. 

“O-kay.” Eddie said, frazzled, as Steve recovered far too quickly, turning to rest his cheek against a slim shoulder as he walked two fingers up Eddie’s battle vest and towards his hair. Likewise, Robin had discovered Eddie’s wallet chain, and had begun fiddling with it. 

One finger curled around a strand of brown hair and Eddie jerked his head, removing the tempting piece away from Steve’s hands. 

“I know you’re used to getting whatever you want, your highness.” He said, his own hand smacking against his waist before Robin figured out the other end of his chain ended in a handcuff, “But you of all people should know the hair is off limits.” 

Completely undeterred, Steve just gave him a loose, easy grin. “It’s so pretty though.” He complained, fluttering his eyelashes in a blatant attempt to try and turn on the ol’ Harrington charm.  “You can touch mine if you want.” 

Yeah, Gareth’s blackmail was getting better by the second. 

He might even get a new piece for his drum kit out of it, if this kept up. 

Free weed too, considering Eddie’s blush was now fire-engine red. 

“Man,” Eddie said in a clear bid to deflect the entire situation (and Steve’s fingers) away from his hair, “the last time someone called me pretty was right before I got pantsed—-is Tommy H hiding in one of the stalls again?” 

Steve picked his head up, confusion crashing down his face. 

“Did he do that?” He asked. 

Then, with growing horror; “Do you think I’d do that?” 

Eddie raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that your whole little court’s M.O.?” 

Steve sucked in a breath, looking downright hurt. "I wouldn’t do that." He insisted, eyes wheeling from Eddie to Gareth and back, as though hoping Gareth would back him up. 

“I’m not--I’m not friends with Tommy anymore.” Steve continued, voice growing smaller as he spoke. “I’m not friends with anybody anymore, except maybe Dustin.” 

It sounded so defeated; trodden on and subdued that Gareth stepped forward automatically, to do--something. 

Provide the fucking comfort his cousin was oft denied and hug the guy. 

As always, it turned out to be the wrong move. 

"Oh thank god." A kid said, seconds after bulldozing through the main door and nearly bowling Gareth over in the process. "I found them!" He shouted over his shoulder as swept into the room. 

“Speak of the devil.” Steve said flatly, and even drugged, he managed to pull himself back together from distressed to stoic in mere seconds. 

The curly-haired kid--Dustin apparently--stormed right up to the pile of humans splayed on the floor, hands on his hips. "What the hell. We told you two to stay put!" 

Steve rolled his eyes as Robin booed him. 

“Have you forgotten what’s happening? Or how we’re kinda in a Red Dawn situation?” Dustin continued, looking like he’d just escaped from a summer camp. 

The kid even had a walkie talkie clutched in one hand, of all things. 

“We know.” Steve and Robin deadpanned at once, before looking at each other; Steve pointing a finger towards Robin and Robin pointing one back. 

This caused the kids to trade their own long suffering, “can you believe this shit” faces. 

"We need to go, and the only way we’re gonna get out of here unnoticed is if we blend in with the crowd." Dustin said impatiently.  “Now come on Steve, get up already, you've had worse.”

"I really don't think I have." Steve muttered, but moved to push himself to his feet anyway. 

Eddie beat him to it, and he and Gareth both hovered nearby in case Steve was still unsteady. 

Thankfully, the kids' presence seemed to sober up Robin and Steve both. 

Not actually sober, that wasn't how drugs worked, but whatever was left of the fun was sucked right out of the bathroom, replaced by two teenagers who were sort of functional on whatever they'd been drugged with. 

Stress and adrenaline, Gareth knew, could overcome a lot of things. Including Russian "truth serum" apparently. 

“Yeah well you're lucky you got found by these guys and not anyone else. " Dustin continued pointedly, before turning his attention towards Gareth and Eddie both. "Thanks for watching our friends, but we've got them from here." 

Gareth made a sort of unhinged, disbelieving noise. 

 “No, no you do not.” He declared, anxiety clawing at his gut at the mere thought of abandoning Steve to two children. 

"I don't think you heard him." The girl stepped forward, braids swinging about her face as she lifted her chin and nailed him with a cold glare. 

 As if this entire situation couldn’t possibly get weirder, Gareth suddenly realized she had a helmet in her hands and knee pads on.

 "He said we got this. So scram." She flicked her fingers out in a dismissive sort of "shoo" gesture.

"And leave my drugged cousin with his new girlfriend behind!?" Gareth challenged right back, emotions far too raw and frayed to care he was snarling at a little girl. "I don’t think so!”

"Cousin!?" Dustin bit out, sounding almost betrayed for some reason, at the same time Robin who'd been climbing to her feet with Eddie’s help, shouted; "I am not his girlfriend!" 

Steve, clearly unwilling to entertain whatever fight was brewing, clapped his hands together. 

"Yes cousin, Dustin. It's a type of family member." Steve said, after they all flinched and looked to him. He at least looked steadier on his feet this time, though Gareth still lingered nearby in case he took a wrong step. 

"I know what a cousin is, Steve!" Dustin shot back. 

“Then why are you acting like a lunatic?” Steve complained, and Gareth got to watch in real time as Steve pulled on the persona he often wore in high school down around him. “You said it yourself, we don’t have a lot of time. Worse, I don't know if anyone saw Gareth and Munson here with us.” 

He jerked a thumb sideways in Eddie’s direction, not that anyone couldn’t figure out who “Munson” was. 

“They stay with us until we’re out of this mall.” Steve finished, before he started towards the door.

One step he was Gareth’s cousin, drugged and vulnerable because of it. 

The next he stood taller, talked smoother, took charge with an aurora that said he expected everyone to listen to him. 

It was fake as hell, but it worked. 

“I know you’ve got a plan Dustin, so spill it.” He commanded as he walked.  

 Dustin, despite all the squawking, did just that. 

xXx 

Of all the things Gareth had expected to see upon escorting their little ragtag crew out of the bathroom, groups of intimidating, mean looking assholes wasn’t on the list. 

He found himself repeatedly nudging Eddie in the ribs, unable to take his eyes off what was clearly a checkpoint as he staggered to a halt. 

It was one thing to be told people were after Steve and the “Scoop’s Troop” As Robin had jokingly named them. 

It was another entirely to see the security guard directly in front of him look over a woman’s ID before apologizing to her, a sleazy grin matching his oily pony-tail as he waved her on. 

They really were looking for someone. 

Not someone, Gareth realized in dawning horror.

Them. 

Robin apparently, came to the same conclusion seconds later, because she snatched Steve and Dustin’s arms both, hauling them backwards. 

“Argue about Dustin’s address later, we need to find a different way out.” She hissed quietly as she tried to slowly reversed direction, movements still a bit sloppy. 

She might have even gotten away with it, had Sleazy Pony-Tail not turned and made eye contact with Gareth right after she spoke. 

His eyes swept over him, then to the rest of the group, freezing like a cat that had spotted its prey.

“Abort, abort!” Dustin sputtered, wheeling about on his heel. 

Erica, whose name Gareth had learned when she kicked him in the shin after he asked why an actual infant was running around with Steve and Robin, pointed towards the escalators before she beelined over to it, ducking into the center and riding it down like a slide. 

Something Eddied was downright delighted to copy. 

Gareth might have enjoyed it himself, had he not been looking over his shoulder to see not one, not two, but four security guards giving chase--and gaining. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuckikity fuck.” He heard Robin chant as she shot past, Steve planting himself at the top as he made sure everyone got down to the next level before sliding down himself. 

"Do not let them leave!" One of the guards yelled to the others, accent clear as a bell. 

"Holy shit that guy's actually Russian." Gareth found himself saying as he skidded across the floor and bolted after the others, Steve hot on his heels. 

He had kinda expected the Russian thing to be some sort of drug influenced inside joke and not an actual, honest-to-God Soviet. 

Which led to the question of why the fuck adult men in security uniforms had drugged random teenage retail workers.

Food workers.

Whatever the fuck one called a two people who scooped ice-cream in sailor costumes. 

"There's another group up ahead!" Eddie yelped, swerving sideways and nearly taking Erica out while doing it. 

Noise erupted ahead of them in the form of foreign shouting and loud, harshly barked commands to “Freeze!”  

‘Oh hell no.’ Gareth thought wildly, as he caught the form of the giant fricken gun the guard closest to him held. 

“Split up!” Dustin howled, and before anyone could comment about how bad an idea that was, Gareth found himself being yanked sideways. 

Steve swore loudly behind him as Robin, who’d crashed backwards, pulled him in the opposite direction and in a second their group broke in two. Gareth, Eddie and Dustin going one way, Steve, Robin and Erica another. 

"This isn’t happening." Gareth muttered, words made in a sort of pleading denial as he and Eddie turned the corner and immediately vaulted over the counter of an Orange Julius. “I smoked or drank or did something and this is a hallucination that is not. Actually. Happening.” 

Dustin at least, was smart enough to dive around the counter instead of over it, sliding towards them on his knees. 

Eddie quickly yanked him down to the floor in-between himself and Gareth once he was close enough to grab, one hand going over the hat to shove the kids head down. 

Annoying or not, he was at least several years younger than them, and Gareth could practically feel Eddie’s protective instinct kick in as he kept his hand on Dustin’s head. 

Together they tried to silence their breathing as the guards’ shouting continued on behind them. 

What was worse than their noises though, was when they unexpectedly and suddenly, went silent. 

Gareth’s breath felt far too loud as the stillness gained a suppressive weight, pressing down harshly against him and making it harder and harder to inhale. 

‘Panic attack.’ He realized, thoughts a touch detached. ‘You can’t afford to have a panic attack right now.’ 

Not when it had a high chance of getting them all killed. 

Slowly he moved his own free hand, placing it atop of Eddie’s, fingers gripping down in a way that was no doubt painful. 

Eddie glanced over to him and Gareth thanked every single time he’d smoked way too much weed, because his best friend immediately clocked what was wrong. 

Turned his hand over, so that Gareth could hold onto it atop Dustin’s hat. 

It didn’t help with the knowledge that his very much still drugged cousin and his equally drugged not-girlfriend were also hiding somewhere, or that there was significantly more Russians than there where terrified teenagers (and one--whatever age Erica was.)  

Flashlights cut shapes into the wall overheard, trailing along the Orange Julius menu. Quiet voices covered even quieter footsteps and Gareth had the sudden realization the probability of there being more than one guard carrying a huge gun, was very, very high. 

Worse?

This part of the mall wasn’t that big. There were only so many places to hide, and as such, only so many places to look. 

Death comes for everyone eventually, but Gareth hadn’t exactly expected it to show up before he hit twenty.

Not that they could do anything but wait. Pray to God and the universe and any other higher power he could think of to intervene, head pressed hard against the wood behind him as the small noises drew nearer.

What he hadn’t expected was for said prayers to get answered in the form of a of a fucking car being thrown into the Russian’s like bowling balls. 

“Run!” Dustin shouted, and Gareth wasted absolutely no time in doing just that. 

The only goal on his mind was to find Steve, get out, and then have a very long discussion about what the hell this all was, in that exact order. 

[bidisasterevankinard]

for the prompts can you do 1 and 8 I feel like they fit so good together

Nonnie, it's a little got way from me (1211 words) because I have strong Tommy feels so. here you are(I know it's not just fluff and I'm so sorry)

Sometimes there are days Tommy just doesn’t want to get up from the bed. It can be simply because he is exhausted after a long and hard shift or because it’s rainy, and cool wind, which walks all around, makes his bones and old wounds ache.  Those days are pretty easy to get through. Just take it easy, take painkillers, make sure you’re warm and watch Love, Actually in bed with cocoa. Simple and comfy.

But they're also days when he can’t get out of bed, not because of a little pain, or at least it’s not because of physical pain. There are days in his life when his head attacks him with memories of the army, or bad calls, or all the years he was looking for someone to love him, and, most importantly, for a reason to love himself. Because there were more than enough days he was rough, rude and just simply awful to himself. And all this darkness around him forever found a place in his heart and head, mainly staying low, being overpowered by his self-growth and reasons he founds to love himself anyway, by hanging outs with Eddie, sometimes with Chim and even Hen, and of course, by dates and smiles of Evan. 

Evan, this adorable dork, found the way to give him the sun to light his life enough that darkness is scared to get out. But it still is waiting for the moment when he will be too distracted and unprotected to hit again. 

Like today.

Yesterday was … a lot. He accidentally met his mother on the market where he went to get some good groceries for the meal he was planning to cook for Evan to make him feel good after the shift. The literal bumping into each other near the vegetables quickly became a screaming match, mostly from his mother’s part, because Tommy way long before stopped to try to to prove that just because he likes men, doesn't mean he's a bad person, or son, or chose the wrong way.  Eventually, he just ran away from there.

Then the dish he tried to make burned because he was too distracted crying in his bathroom. He had to order take out.

And then Evan texted him that he couldn't come tonight because they had a long and hard call, and the only thing he wanted was to fall into his bed.They changed plans from a little dinner together yesterday to spending all day together today. 

Yesterday ended as awful as it was all day. The nightmare of one of his close calls made him sleep badly after, turning half the night in his bed, trying to get the best position for sleeping, but not succeeding for more than two hours. 

So, here he is, miserable and alone in his bed, looking at the clock which shows him that Evan will be here in less than five minutes, but he is still in his bed, in his the most comfy, but really old hoodie and boxers. 

Tommy kind of wishes Evan would text him now and rain check again, not wanting to drag the man into his mess, but of course as he thinks about this, Evan opens the door.

“Hey, sleepy beauty, I brought us coffee and your favorite burgers from this cafe you like so much,” Evan’s voice, as always sunny as his face and smile, spreads throughout the small house.

The sound of the sneakers being taken off, then steps to the, as Tommy suspects kitchen, as next he hears sounds of the plates taken out. Next he hears footsteps again and then his bedroom’s door is open, to reveal his boyfriend in his dark skin jeans and burgundy hoodie, Tommy pretty sure Evan was wearing during the tour. 

“Hey,” Evan smiles at him, putting plates and coffee on his nightstand, and sits down near his face, putting his hand to stroke his hair.

Tommy will never admit he melts into the touch. But he melts and ready to purr like a kitten being pet.

“Are you having a blanket burrito day?”

“Blanket burrito day?”

“Yeah. I call the bad days, when I can’t get out of the bed because of my leg or  because of bad mood, or both,  ‘blanket burrito day’,” Evan kisses his forehead. “Are you having this today or you just want me to jump into your bed?” his boyfriend smirks and winks at him and Tommy smiles a little too.

He knows he can joke about that. Say that yes, it was his way to get Evan into his bed and maybe make out or even something more, but he doesn’t want something like that.

He needs someone to hold him. Just hold him and show him he’s not alone and it will get better.

“Can you hug me?” Tommy doesn't like how small his voice sounds and he hates how quick he folded looking at his boyfriend who with one glance knew he was having a bad day. “If-if it’s ok.”

“Are you kidding me? Of course it’s ok. I love cuddles,” Evan smiles at him, taking his jeans off and lying down behind him, putting his hands around his waist.

He makes sure Tommy can feel himself touching every part of Evan’s big body behind him and Tommy wants to cry from the feeling of being safe. Protected. Loved.

They stay like that for half an hour, not talking and Tommy breaks the silence, needing to know.

“You don’t ask questions. Why am I having a bad day? What happened?,” Tommy plays with Evan’s fingers on his waist, “Or you are not even trying to tell me to stop. You aren’t telling me to male up,” he whispers it but in silence and with how close they are he knows Evan hears him.

Hands on his waist only squeeze tighter and then he feels a careful little kiss on his neck.

“We all have bad days. Especially on our job, with everything we saw. It’s normal to have them and you deserve to let yourself be sad if you feel it without trying to move on. You deserve someone to take care of you. And the reason for your bad mood isn’t so important for me to find out, if you don’t want to talk right now. You can do it on your time. Just,” Evan turns them so he can look him in the eyes. Blue to blue. “Don’t push me away. I want to be here, with you not just on good days. I want bad days too. Because you can’t live without them. But,” Evan smiles at him and kisses him so chaste Tommy wants to cry, “you can be not alone. Especially on bad days. You can share the pain with your person, making the burden easy to bear.”

Tommy just nods and lets himself get comfortable in Evan’s hands, feeling how slumber takes over him because the warmth from Evan and his breath lull him into sleep.

“I’ll tell you after the sleep,” Tommy mumbles before falling asleep.

“Take your time, baby,” Tommy feels the kiss on his shoulder, “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.”

Tommy knows it’s not the promise only about today.

read on ao3

prompts

[nqueso-emergency]

i mean - i think buck has not exactly been liked by a big part of the buddie fandom for a long while. some of them liked to hide it or not admit it, but they were bad at it. i thought it was obvious they don’t like buck for the longest time.

if you read their takes, or their fics, or any headcanon, it’s always the same formula. buck screws up, buck acts like a child, buck needs eddie to come to the rescue because he doesn’t know better, buck has to apologize to eddie. most of the time they also have eddie be super understanding and catering to buck as if he was his second child.

but then the buck we get in canon becomes more and more like the complete opposite version of their buck. and eddie is becoming someone they also don’t register in their fanon fantasy. i think they deeply hate how buck is the more stable one of the two. i think they hate how buck has grown up and is, arguably, a bit more mature than eddie right now. i think they hate the show is starting to paint buck as a figure you can rely on, that is wise and helpful, and mature (i think they slowly want to make him be the perfect captain, but i digress).

meanwhile eddie is slowly spiraling down, he hasn’t exactly grown a lot since he came onto 911 (in comparison to other characters, including buck), he’s if anything, gotten slightly worse. he mistreats women and doesn’t show a lot of remorse for it - he doesn’t seem to be super guilty over the pain he caused marisol in 709/710. understandably he was more upset about chris, and i would think of this as a fluke, but we’ve seen this before (hey, ana). eddie has also been shown to lash out against people whenever he gets mad at them, and he’s shown he’s okay lying to his friends without, again, feeling remorse about it. and hey, i am okay with a flawed character. everyone at the 118 is flawed and i think that’s what makes them great characters. i personally don’t like eddie as much as the rest, but that’s mostly due to his lack of self reflection and how he usually doesn’t apologize for his actions. as well as for the way i just don’t see him grow up in a way i can relate to.

to sum this up, when you put buck and eddie together it is rather obvious how different they are. and how different they are to the version that exists of them in fanon. and when you put them together throughout the seasons you can see buck’s growth, something it’s barely there with eddie.

so it makes sense that they’re now hating on him. they started at 710 when they wanted buck to be the one to solve eddie’s issues, and were mad that he chose to leave the diaz family alone to deal with their stuff, and went home to decompress and be with his boyfriend. he’s been judas to them ever since.

but hey, if some of them stop shipping buddie because apparently buck is a pos (ofc it can never be eddie, the one to make several big mistakes and have questionable behavior during s7)… silver lining. if they leave because of them i won’t complain, i’ll just watch them to with a smile and a sip of coffee.

sorry for the long rant lmao.

No I think you're right! They want the dynamic of uwuBuck and parental figure Eddie and that is not what is happening. If they wanted that, funny enough, they'd need season 1 Buck, the one they really don't like. (Or even know)

I believe Eddie's problem is that he's always been the hero. He won that silver star and I don't think he really believes he should have. He was just doing his job, ya know? But everyone looks to him as this army hero and in reality this man is so terrified underneath it all he feels inadequate in every avenue of his life.

It's why Ryan's excited to basically "ruin" Eddie. He needs it.

[lemotmo]

Ask box is still closed but they commented on the deleted scene. First activity from them in days.

Technically I'm still on blog sabbatical but that deleted clip was a wild choice. There's a lot to unpack in that very short scene and none of it is very flattering for Tommy. The medal comment when Hen and Karen asked about his intentions was immature and blatant deflection. It was also cringe, the wtf facial pout he added didn't help. What I don't know though is if the lines are meant to come across as cringey or if his delivery is what's off. And that was just the first cringe moment. He only made it worse after that. Saying they're going slow, and he's letting Buck set the pace was good, he should be following Buck's lead, but then he immediately made a sexual innuendo joke, and yet another wtf facial expression choice. I know the rule tends to be that since it was deleted we can't count it as canon, but knowing that he saw the way Hen and Karen reacted to that conversation, and still followed it up by turning another meaningful conversation attempt, this time by Buck, into another sex joke, an even more immature and gross one, is certainly a writing choice. And clearly a deliberate one.

That wasn't even the most alarming part of that scene though. The diet comment about Buck is a warning siren if ever there was one. That line was concerning because it is absolutely a call back to Buck 1.0 who believed the only thing he could offer anyone was his physical appeal and he was obsessed with keeping his body to a certain standard. The fact that we now have Tommy making multiple comments about their physical relationship, and Buck's appearance, is not good. Especially when you couple those comments with the other scenes of him dismissing Buck's excitement and overzealous personality. None of that spells a healthy relationship for Buck, the character the show cares about. It continues to show Buck's very unhealthy dating pattern of settling for people who are physically attracted to him but don't seem to genuinely like the person he actually is. It's actually kind of fascinating.

I genuinely liked the Tommy of episodes 1-4, probably not coincidentally the length of his originally planned arc. He was written well in those episodes, he worked. I'm also now pretty convinced that those first 4 scripts were kept pretty much intact to when Eddie was the plan. They clearly put effort into him originally. Everything that came after 7x4 went increasingly downhill, and that's because they hadn't actually planned anything for him after that episode. If they had been able to stick with the original Eddie plan he would have been gone after episode 4 because the kiss would have been all that was required to initiate Eddie's spiral. Once they had to swap Eddie for Buck they had to change their plan because Buck was already searching for something so the kiss wasn't going to be enough to make Buck spiral. Which means they still need to get Buck to whatever the plan for him was but now they have to do it through Tommy. They're not going to put effort into Tommy because after 7x4 he became a textbook plot device. His scenes and dialogue are now strictly to move the story forward, and nothing more. It's why he seems so different now. What's interesting is if Buck's spiral is now going to result from him back sliding from all the personel growth he has had since Buck 1.0. All the work Buck has put into growing himself as a person and working on himself. That's why the diet comment was so concerning. It's the old Buck. If he thought figuring out he was bi was the last piece of the puzzle and he should feel 'fixed' now, but Tommy and their relationship still feels mostly physical he may revert back to believing he really doesn't have anything else to offer. A return of Buck 1.0, and a version of himself that Buck has referenced frequently he believes Eddie wouldn't have liked. I'm probably giving the show way too much credit but this would work and it would be fascinating to watch.

Thank you so much for sending this and the next one to me Nonny! :)

A day after the first one, the anonymous OP made another post about the deleted scene. I will paste it here as well, so these two posts can be read together.

I put it under a cut to save all your dashboards from clogging up. :)

All right, so first of all, I agree on so many things in these two posts. In the beginning Tommy was 'okay'. I didn't love him, but he was an okay character and love interest for Buck. But as the show went on he just became worse and worse as a character. To the point where a lot of people who liked him in the beginning actively started disliking and hating him. And most of it is tied in with the way he treats Buck and talks about Buck.

And ultimately I do think this is the whole goal of the show. They are doing their absolute best to show us that Tommy is NOT a good guy and definitely not a good match for Buck. By posting this deleted scene they are once again trying to make that point.

Unfortunately this message just flies over some people's heads and all they see is a this fantasy headcanon Lou told them about. They aren't watching the show as it is, they are actively trying to mold the show and BT into something it isn't.

I can't possibly explain any of this better than the OP, especially the part about Buck's body image. So I'll let them speak, but I agree so much with what they say.

One last thing I personally want to add is this:

Whenever Tommy opens his mouth, everything gets reduced to sexual innuendo and/or a dumb sex joke. And when it isn't about sex, it's him being extremely dismissive and negative in anything he says to Buck or some of the other characters.

This is also a thing that got transferred to the BT fandom in general. Everything Tommy does or says is over sexualised by a lot of the fans, in posts, messages, pictures and fics it quite often boils down to sex.

Now, I have nothing against sex. I realise sex is a part of the human experience, even for fictional characters, but to make it so that all that ties this couple together is sex? That is not what Buck is about. We know that about him. He has canonically been established as someone who is looking for love, a connection, a family...

So, why don't they talk more about the real deep canon love connection BT have on screen? I'll tell you why. It's because there is no canon love connection between them whatsoever. Tommy has no depth as a character. He is there for a specific purpose, a plot device to help Buck navigate his way through a new phase in life. That's it. The only emotional connection Buck and Tommy have is fabricated in, yet again, a Lou cameo headcanon that probably cost 200 dollars.

In the deleted scene between Tommy and Henren we see him at his worst and it's clear that Henren do not like or trust him. And yes, I kinda get why the OP would have wanted that scene in the episode, because it would have shown us -once again- that Tommy's intentions for Buck are mostly just about sex. This isn't anything serious. This is about sex. He tried with Eddie, realised it didn't work so he moved on to Buck when he saw how confused Buck was about whose attention he was trying to get.

I have no doubt he probably likes Buck, but he has no deeper intention beyond the sexual aspect of the relationship.

I said what I said. Don't come at me. This is my blog and I can respectfully blog about my opinion here. No ship hate here. Just common sense.

Remember, no hate in comments or reblogs. Let's keep it civil and respectful. Thank you.

If you are interested in more of the anonymous OP’s posts, you can find all of their posts so far under the tag: anonymous blog I love.

[princessamericachavez]

I still can’t believe how unhinged the couch thing is.

In s5 we see that Taylor brings her couch into the loft even though Buck has one and they have a problem from the get go because both couches (aka their personalities, their lives, their wants) do not fit in at the same time. They are both too attached to their own individual lives and goals to actually share a life. There’s no space for both of them in that home.

Ok anyway moving on Taylor is gone and we have an empty space where she forced her couch into Buck’s space.

Anyway, my point is: 6x1 we have the whole couch conversation and it’s always been such an OBVIOUS metaphor for Buck and Eddie’s relationship that it drives me insane.

“You know, I think it’s weird that he’s struggling to pick a replacement when he has so many excellent options right under his nose.”

“Like you?”

“It’s like he’s choosing not to see them and everything they have to offer.”

In the same season where we now know that Eddie will be exploring his dating options and going out with other people?????? Are you kidding me???????????

Buck saying this while he cooks for Eddie and Chris???? While he offers food and comfort??? In a show that has consistently utilized cooking and feeding others as a clear metaphor for love and family?!?!

And they even hammer it in again!!!

“What are you offering?”

“Right now, Bobby’s famous lasagna.”

I need to talk about thisssss. Because not only have we been presented with the idea of food as love and nurturing but also cooking as personal growth, about learning to nurture yourself and others and getting out of the darkness. Think about Bobby after joining the 118. But also think about Maddie being impressed by Buck “growing up” represented by Buck having learned cooking skills from Bobby. Think about Eddie going to therapy and swapping recipes with Linda and learning to be better and look after himself after getting chewed off by his dad for burning breakfast for his mom and sisters.

What Buck is offering is his own growth as a person. Is saying “I’ve put myself back together”. It’s saying “I’ve been working on myself for five years to become a better man”. It’s saying “it’s taken me several tries but I’m finally getting there.”

And of course after all that it’s when we go fully into the couch metaphor. It’s hard to say much about this dialogue that hasn’t been said before, but mostly I want to highlight that, for Buck, this metaphor is tightly tied to romantic relationships. “My last two couches came with girlfriends” and “maybe I don’t want to pick the wrong couch again”. But it’s also the fact that Buck picks his chair to take the couch’s spot for now. That is Buck. Buck being single.

The whole metaphor could’ve simply been about Buck realizing he doesn’t need a relationship to define him and who he is and that he should choose his own path and create a space in his home for himself. But if that was the case he would’ve just bought a couch for himself. The single chair represents his single path at the moment. The couch will be a romantic metaphor.

All of this to say that it’s absolutely unhinged that this is the last shot of Eddie we see in 6a.

And this comes after a) Buck called to give them the baby news, b) Eddie looked less than pleased at the reveal, c) Eddie hung up saying he was gonna try to get some sleep before taking Chris to school.

Except we see him drop the controller here. So he clearly kept playing. Even though he looked quite frustrated there. Fighting with himself. Anyway clearly something was bothering him.

What’s insane to me is that we cut immediately from this shot to Buck sleeping and the whole baby onesie shot. And I don’t think it could be any more obvious that we are meant to connect these two dots. Especially when we see them in the same montage as Henren and Maddnie sleeping together on their respective beds. And we know Buck’s whole donor thing was partly motivated by other things, like his need to be useful to others and save everyone, but also his eternal search for family and perhaps a call to fatherhood (even though he’s clearly not struggling with separating the idea as everyone expected).

Anyway, I do think having Eddie sleep on his couch rather than his bed was certainly A CHOICE. and it feels even more obvious when we know what happens in 6b.

I love that the Buckley’s brought up Buck’s lack of couch an episode before. HEY REMEMBER THIS? And it’s so much A Thing that we see that even Maddie gets it.

Which is so important considering the very. next. episode. we are going to get the most obvious callback to this metaphor in the shape of Buck finally finding rest and peace at Eddie’s couch?!?!?!

THEY ARE SO UNHINGED FOR THIS

And then they go as far as to have Buck point out “how did I pass out so fast?”

Like boyyyyyy you’re this 🤏🏽 close to figuring it out!!!!!!!

Anyway I cannot WAIT to see how they bring it up again and how Margaret’s couch finds its demise and especially knowing Buck’s very last scene of the season will touch back on the metaphor.

It will be so insane if they actually pull this off!!!!!!!

[formosusiniquis]

today is a new day to find you

Eddie is having the worst day known to man. It might qualify as a catastrophic event. Missing homework, lunch spilled on the cafeteria floor, broken strings at band practice, and that's not even touching Steve Harrington.

Steve Harrington who keeps talking to him like they're friends. Steve Harrington who has become a new person overnight. Steve Harrington who keeps making hypotheticals about time loops. Steve Harrington who is somehow the best and worst part of his day.

AKA my @steddiebang fic!!

Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson; Tommy Hagan & Steve Harrington & Carol Perkins; Past Steve Harrington/Nancy Wheeler; Corroded Coffin & Eddie Munson WC: 57K | Rated M | Tags/Themes: Time Loop, Sort of No Upside Down AU, Angst w/Happy Ending, King Steve Growth Arc

Check out my fantastic artists who brought this fic to life, I've been so blessed to have them pick out my fic to make art for! You can find @sammichtastic on twitter at sammichesnstuff and her piece here! You can find @milkychai on twitter too at at milkychai and their piece here!

And a special thank you to my Beta @rainingingeorgia who really helped whip what you're seeing into shape!

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five (FINISHED)

It was, in a word, fucked that he had to take gym a second time along with the rest of senior year. It was, in several words, absolutely fucking bullshit because he had actually passed gym the first time. Surely, his senior gym credit should still count, even if he’d treated it like office hours to set up deals with meatheads in a venue that didn’t actively put him in harm's way. Well, mostly out of harm’s way, as the blood spotting his uniform shirt can attest.

Hell, there were some days his last block gym class was the only one he’d attend. Slipping in with the bell at 2:15 in time to be the last one in the locker room and out on the line for attendance. Now he’s being forced back through it for what? No seriously, for what? Surely there was some other elective that could fit in this block, shouldn’t the second year senior get first dibs at study hall or something.

Maybe if he complains enough about the loss of his civil liberties. His freedom of expression is being taken from him by forcing him into this shit uniform. Maybe if he’s a big enough headache they’ll just let him leave. He’s learned the rules to enough of these little sports, there had to be a test he could take to prove that he doesn’t need to be a walking target on a volleyball court.

Not that he thinks Jenny Marshall meant to peg him in the face and give him a bloody nose, but the sentiment stands. Between the shorts and the blood he looks like a sad shaky shelter dog or something.

There are, of course, some fringe benefits. Eddie may have to wear the signature Tiger green, but so does Steve Harrington, who definitely has the legs for the outrageously short gym uniform they’re forced to dress out in. And if he’s going to keep looking for that silver fucking lining like he promised Uncle Wayne he would; thanks to Jenny Marshall he gets to ride the bleachers and watch pretty, pretty Steve Harrington bounce around in those shorts for the rest of class. Maybe a more bronzed lining than silver, Harrington hangs onto the sun warmed summer glow even with the October chill creeping in. Freckled thighs with nary a tan line in sight Eddie lets himself wonder if the rumors that had circled the big 18th birthday bash are true: when Harrington’s not in the swim team speedo he doesn’t swim in anything at all.

The volleyball net that Steve is playing at, floppy and torn, is more of a suggestion than a barrier. Now that Eddie is benched, it’s Harrington’s five against Hargrove’s four. The tides haven’t changed in anyone’s favor.

Billy had placed himself across from Harrington at the start of the game, his patience rewarded now as they rotate positions and the King is once again opposite him in the front row. That not-barrier doing all it can to keep the two a foot apart, Hargrove pacing in the eighteen inches of space his position in front of Steve allows. Jenny and her nose killer serve send the ball over to Hargrove’s side of the net. They get it up in the air again and Hargrove smacks the ball down hard between Steve and Sarah Smith. 

It hits the floor with a thwack that makes Eddie wince. Almost drowning out Billy’s mean little laugh, but there’s no missing the smug look on his face. The far too proud of himself smirk he sends somewhere to the left of Steve. 

It’s for Steve though. Definitely for Steve.  

The usurper to the throne, Hargrove has been sniffing for weakness that Eddie was pretty sure wasn’t there. The closest Harrington has ever come to failure was last year’s attempts at Nancy Wheeler, one he seemed to give up as soon as it started.

Tommy H. would be the reason, if Eddie had any guesses. He tried to base an NPC group around the Harrington court once. Tommy a loyal knight to a mostly inept king. Tommy who sidles up close to Sarah, despite his own maiden the Lady Carol playing one net over, smirking the same smug smile as Hargrove -- maybe another weak spot in the Harrington reign -- he says something loud enough to embarrass Sarah if the way she flushes and scurries closer to Harrington’s side is any indication but not enough for Eddie to make out.

He never did get the character balances to work in the game. He scripted and broke down motivation and drive but every time he just couldn’t figure out what Hagan did for Steve. Couldn’t figure out why Harrington kept his so-called friends around.

Gym takes too damn long to end. Or maybe it ends too soon. The final bell that releases him from his prison like Cthulu from the deep is buried quickly under the ringing in his ears as Steve Harrington is calling his name. Resignation fills his spirit, but when the King beckons you wait.

[buddiesmutslut]

Hot Take

BUCK IS THE BEST PERSON TO GIVE DATING ADVICE TO CHRIS, HEAR ME OUT.

Okay, I know we're all laughing about women fleeing Buck and how awful he is at relationships, but I don't feel like that's true.

First of all, just because a relationship ends, doesn't mean that it FAILED. Dating is as much about getting to know YOURSELF, what you want out of a relationship and what your own boundaries are as it is about getting to know the person you're dating. It's about growing, and learning from your mistakes, and I feel like Buck HAS done that. I'm not saying he's a perfect dater (the Taylor/Lucy thing, wtf was that?) but also, he has gotten better.

With Abby, he grew from fuckboy Firehose to someone that is considerate and thoughtful to his partner. (I don't LOVE that we credit Abby for his growth, since he was the one that made the initial boundary to not meet up right away because he didn't want to fall back into that sleep with anything that moves mindset, but she is mostly credited with it canonically, so we're going to use it.) Also, she didn't leave because Buck was a bad boyfriend or anything. She left because she needed to find herself after her mom died, and that's it.

With Ali too, she left because of his job, because she couldn't handle being with a first responder, which is a genuine concern for a LOT of people. It's hard to love someone with a dangerous job like that, and not know if they're going to come home at night. It had nothing to do with who Buck was as a boyfriend.

With Taylor, that whole relationship was a mess, IMO, them getting together when they did was a recipe for disaster. Obviously, Buck shouldn't have asked her to move in because he was scared to tell her about Lucy, but I'm not saying he's a PERFECT dater, I'm saying he's learning, and that's what's important. When he did admit to the kiss, Taylor is the one that decided that it wasn't a hard line for her, or she would have broken up with him, living together or not. It probably would have been awkward and complicated, but it was all of those things when they DID break up later in the series. From this relationship, Buck learned that it's better to be alone than it is to be with someone for the wrong reasons.

He has had a lot of growth from s1 to the end of s6, and that is clear in his dating.

Now, everyone that's saying Eddie should go to Bobby or Chim for advice, I'm going to say this: It's easy to date when you immediately find the person you're going to marry.

Let me be clear, I'm not saying that Madney & Bathena don't have their own struggles within their relationships, but Bobby and Chim got pretty luck, they found women that they clicked with and then eventually fell in love with almost as soon as they went looking.

When Bobby decided he was ready to move on from Marcy, the ONLY person we actually see him dating in the show is Athena, and they end up married.

After Tatiana leaves Chim, and he decides that he's going to be himself and look for a genuine connection, Maddie is conveniently placed in front of him.

I'm not saying that either of them are bad daters, or bad partners or anything, but we don't really SEE them date. Maybe it's because they're older and they already know what they're looking for and what they can and can't accept in a relationship, but realistically, it's wild to think that you're going to fall in love and get married to the first person that you find when you start dating. The majority of people have to date around and actually look to find the person they're meant to be with, not magically find them right out of the gate.

Especially for a FIRST first date, it's all about figuring out how dating works, what is and isn't expected and acceptable and navigating getting to know a new person, as well as yourself, and I think Buck is the clear best option when it comes to experience about women. He's had several girlfriends and also convinced only God knows how many people to sleep with him, so he's obviously charming, and pleasant to spend time within a romantic situation.

Also, God knows nobody is asking Eddie for dating advice, since the man only married his girlfriend bc she was pregnant and then had to be told (BY BUCK) that he deserved to be happy in a relationship instead of sticking it out for everyone else.

Anyway, this has been on my mind ever since that interview came out with everyone making fun of Eddie for going to Buck because he's had (based on what we're reading about Natalia's character) 4 "failed" relationships, but again, I truly believe that a relationship ending does not automatically mean it failed.

Also, Eddie goes to Buck because they're CO-PARENTS & SOULMATES but all of this other stuff too 😂

[missmagooglie]

The promo for next week is what made it clear that Buck is regressing regressing. All that bullshit he's suggesting to Chim? All those proposals that Bobby (correctly) said were just a list of potential calls?

That's Season 1 Buck talking. That's Early Abby Days, pre She Needs You To Step Inside With Her Buck who wants love and romance but doesn't know what it's supposed to look like. That's a version of Buck who isn't ready for something quite so grown up.

Our Buck, Season 6 Buck, knows better than that. He knows Chimney and he knows Maddie and if he stopped and thought about it for half a second he would realize that a big showy proposal isn't right for them. He'd realize that the right approach is something more personal, more intimate. It's Chimney sitting Maddie down and saying, 'we both know there are plenty of reasons we "should" get married, but let me take a minute to make sure you understand the reasons I want to marry you', and giving Maddie space to express all the reasons she's hesitant rather than putting her on the spot with something public that pressures her into saying yes without a conversation.

Buck's been different since the lightning strike, sure. It was a big event, it had a profound psychological effect. But I think the bigger issue here is that Buck has been growing and changing and maturing for the past 6 seasons and he hasn't had a chance yet to properly acknowledge that to himself and update his self-concept. I think the reason we're seeing Buck regress so hard is because he's consciously trying to act like "the same old Buck", but his understanding of "what it means to be Buck" hasn't kept up with the growth he's been doing.

At the gravesite, Buck says he feels like Natalia "really sees him" - which, let's be real, is an insane thing to say about a person you've just met on a good day. And he's saying it to Eddie, who the writers have made abundantly clear is the one person who most sees Buck and understands him and has seen his growth and his insecurities even when others don't.

But the thing I think Buck is getting from Natalia is actually the opposite of what Buck thinks he's getting from her. When Buck says "she sees me", he means "She only sees this me. She doesn't know the man who died, just the man who woke up again."

And while there is some value in that, mostly in allowing himself to be his "now" self without worrying about how it might or might not align with his past self, I think Buck also needs someone who can help him understand that those two versions of himself are closer to each other than he thinks. And the version of himself he's trying to be for the sake of everyone else (ie "the same old Buck") is not the version of him that his loved ones lost at the top of that ladder.

The lightning strike changed Buck - after all, how could it not? And Buck, being someone who is so used to being left behind, is naturally worried that changing who he is will cause the people he loves to leave. But that isn't something Buck needs to be afraid of, because he's been changing for a long time now and he has people who love every version of him, and will continue to love every version that comes next.

And I keep thinking about that choice to have Christopher fall asleep on the couch just like Buck did, the way it puts Christopher and Buck in the same category for Eddie - that category of "family" and "home". Because Christopher is changing too. He's growing up. The man he is going to slowly become is not the same person as the boy he is now, and it is understood that while some of that growth might be painful it is normal and natural and to be expected. And there is not a single direction in which Christopher could grow that would make Eddie love him even a little bit less.

When Buck realizes that Eddie loves him the same way? That there is no version of Buck that Eddie will not love with his whole heart? And when he doesn't just realize it, but actually believes it?

That's the endgame, baby.

[allthingsbucktommy]

While I won’t speak for the rest of the season as im very interested in how the current arcs will play out and personally I think Buck and Tommy have had their limelight and I enjoy seeing them settling warmly into their relationship. They don’t need any more drama they deserve just to exist and happily at that (as much as possible concerning said arcs),but I will share what I hope for next season.

And really more or less what I want is just more Tommy. We know Buck. We know his friends, family, his past, all the things that make him the Buck we all know and love. And while we absolutely know things about Tommy we only kinda know him from others perspectives and only one of those perspectives are from someone close (Buck) but still new. I hope we get to meet other ppl in Tommy’s life. Maybe any family (if there is any), a best friend (sue me but I would like to see Sal again and see if he remained close with Tommy), his coworkers at the 127 (I miss Lucy okay), I just rly want to know more about Tommy from people that have been around him for a long time and were able to see his growth into the person he is now.

I completely agree with you, Buck and Tommy have already had the focus on them and how their relationship has started. Not saying it wouldn't be interesting to see how everything evolves between them, but we have to keep in mind that this season is shorter, and there are so many characters that it's impossible to see everything that goes on in their lives. Also, we know they want to show a more rom-com focused relationship, so I don't think there will be much drama about them at the moment. If the relationship goes forward, which I think it will, there are bound to be ups and downs in their relationship, but at the moment it's pretty clear that the drama is focused on Eddie, Bobby, and a bit on Karen and Hen, mostly.

What we know about Tommy is precisely through the experiences of other characters, that's true, and most of the things we know are about Tommy before he came out. I mean, yes, we know some things about his new self, but not how he got there, his relationship with his family and co-workers, his previous relationships, etc. I sincerely hope that if Tommy is a part of season 8, we'll have an episode focused on him. I don't want to say it necessarily has to be a Tommy Begins, but an episode more focused on him and his work, and his relationship with Buck.

We can only wait, and cross our fingers!

[findafight]

Controversial headcanons/opinions! That are mostly about Steve now that I read them back.

1. Stancy’s biggest roadblock is Nancy’s inability to admit she’s wrong/makes mistakes.

2. Jancy’s biggest roadblock is Jonathan’s parentification. Jon loves Will, but some of his devotion to him is tied up in that - something I think fandom tends to overlook. We’ve already seen that Nancy either forgets or underestimates how much the Byers rely on Jon and I would not put it past her to view him looking after Will on the same level as her having to look after Mike & Holly.

Even once it’s revealed and they talk about it, it’s going to open a rift between them.

3. Joyce doesn’t give a shit about Steve and never will. Hop gives a shit reluctantly, in a mostly professional capacity but will be haunted with guilt if Steve dies.

4. Karen Wheeler is a shitty person and if the Duffers wanted me to think different maybe shouldn’t have teased her considering sleeping with a kid her daughter’s age. Also doesn’t give a shit about Steve, but is better at hiding it.

5. Billy, while being in the closet and brimming with self hatred, did not have a crush on Steve - he wanted the weird codependent yet weirdly void of sexual tension friendship that Steve would go onto have with Robin.

The fact that Steve hated him and was constantly ignoring him or pushing back at him was part of the appeal. That and the fact Steve’s a bitch - Billy thought that was hilarious.

6. Steve intelligence wise is average and actually has a fairly broad general knowledge - he just has difficulty with the terminology and isn’t great at explaining things to other people.

7. Steve’s kids are Dustin, Max, Lucas and Erica. He will absolutely protect the other three, but any presence he continues to have in their lives is a by-product of the other four.

8. Mike has a on again/off again crush on Steve and it’s part of the reason he turns into an angry cat around him.

9. We will meet Vickie’s entire family before we see the Harringtons on-screen.

10. Jon would *not* react well to Stargyle happening - he refuses to believe Steve is queer, assuming he’s just messing with Argyle/trying to get revenge on Jon for cheating with Nancy (for added tragicomedy, this is how Steve finds out about that).

11. Eddie likes ABBA. I have no fucking idea why fandom seems to think that he’d hate it and has me genuinely questioning how many people in fandom have met an actual metalhead. I know he’s a pretentious douche, but *Jesus*.

12. Whatever else happens between them, Robin will always hold a grudge against Nancy for not knowing who she was when they were first introduced. Steve has the excuse of being a popular kid who was ignorant of his surroundings at all times. Robin is the person who could swipe Valedictorian out from under Nancy but chooses not too. See also, Barb and the handful of grudges she has with Nancy regarding Steve.

omg so many anon! let's do this. long post so I'm going to add a readmore!

Yeah I mostly agree? The inability to let Nancy apologize or be wrong I think really sets back her growth as a character no matter what, and it's really pronounced with stancy! It is something that could be resolved but I do not think the show will do that. Steve wasn't the person Nancy needed in s2, but maybe he is now. Idk there's better stancy meta out there haha There are issues they have I'd love to see addressed but. doubtful they will. Idk if nancy will end up single (like I think she should) but I also don't know if they're actually going to follow through on stancy revival in s5 or just leave jancy as is.

2. Jonathan's parentification!! Absolutely agree. He needs to work through his inability to move on and look to the future for himself. His focus is on Will, who needs more of an older brother from him than another parent, especially now Will is closer to the age Jon was when everything started. Jon is defined by his family, and them needing him. But we sort of see in s4 that Will is growing up, El is too, and they don't need him in the same way Will needed to depend on him in earlier seasons, and Jon is spending time smoking with Argyle, but not actually dealing with what he's feeling.

this is room for Jonathan to develop character-wise, but it's also so interesting how his parentification has been an issue with Nancy! Like she wants to be a priority, but Jon can't do that, because he hasn't figured out how to 1) focus on himself and his wants 2) let himself look at the future as something that isn't looming but something to look forward to!

God I would love to see him figure out what he actually wants and how to balance that with his loyaty to his family in the show! or read a jon focused fic where he gets to deal with these things.

3. Joyce doesn't like steve :'| why would she? he's just some guy to her that Jon didn't like and who used to date her son's girlfriend. Steve's not on her radar at all she doesn't give a shit about him lol (I should write more of the joyce doesn't like steve fic)

4. uhg yeah I think I've already posted about alternatives to the stupid Karen side-plot where it's like. random pool middle age affair man, flirting with mr. clarke, or just her making moves on her own husband to show she wants to make changes in their marriage and the fair being a little date for the wheelers or SOMETHING to make her not creepy and actual have it mean something to her character? or just. not! include! any karen plotline at all!

5. billy is interesting because i would say there might be some one-sided sexual thing happening between him and Steve, and Steve hating and ignoring him would totally egg him on with whatever was going on in his brain. idk if he wanted it actually actionable but was probably going for some weird and very intense pscho-sexual homoerotic relationship. maybe not what could be described as a crush but certainly not whatever stobin has going on (though if he had lived stobin would have also pissed him off lol)

6. Yes! steve can understand a lot if he's given time to understand it. like he's just not a genius or talking fast, and he asks clarifying questions so he (and everyone else) knows exactly what's happening. maybe that might look like he's getting left behind but he's making sure everyone is on the same page, which is actually an important part of plans and sharing info. I'd also say he'd probably have pretty good head for strategy!

7. Dustin, Max, Lucas and Erica are absolutely steve's kids! thank goodness we got Steve and Max content in s4, but I'd love to see more of Steve and Lucas and Erica! I do love Steve with El too, because I think they should and could have a great dynamic, but that's all fanon, unfortunately. Mike and Will having some kind of relationship with Steve are just byproducts of Steve being friends with the others.

8. Mike and his mortifying crush on steve is so precious to me. He'd be so mad about it. It'd be so funny. to me. not for him. but for me :)

9. Harrington parents will remain an unsolved mystery haunting the fandom forever and always. We will know the names of Robin's grandparents and their pets before we see or hear anything more than Mr. and Mrs. Harrington.

10. I am obsessed with this idea. I love stargyle sort of coming out of nowhere for other people. My favourite. They can bond over having great hair and being a chauffeur for children not related to them. Jon side-eyeing this so hard even tho maybe he's been focusing on Nancy and their relationship when steve and argyle are having their Bonding Moments. The confrontation of Jon accusing Steve of getting with Argyle to mess with him, Steve going "what the hell. why would I have an elaborate polt to mess with you that included pretending to be queer? and kissing a man? multiple times??"

and Jon blurting about how of course he would to get back at jon for cheating with Nancy and steve just stopping. and trying to clarify. and Jon digging himself deeper. ooooooh. something to think about and expand on?? 👀👀👀

11. it was the 80s and disco was way out of style but also. who doesn't like ABBA. don't trust anyone who doesn't like at least one ABBA song. suspicious. Eddie would be vocal about his hatred for Progressive Rock though.

12. Robin and her grudges!!!! omg yes if robin was holding herself back from being valedictorian she'd be Pissed that Nancy didn't know who she was. like at least know your rivals! that in combination with the barb thing and all the steve things. Robin's not letting it go. I love her pettiness she's so funny and great. Queen.

[rogueddie]

Anyway, Steve going to belly dancing lessons and meeting people from Egyptian and Middle Eastern backgrounds. It's a good way to continue his character growth and educate the audience he's a surrogate for about those cultures.

Like, I doubt Steve has suddenly become a perfect person now. There's still going to biases he has, especially being in a small, mostly white, American town. It could be something, as a b plot, that Eddie introduces him to.

Maybe he said something that he didn't understand to be wrong and Eddie takes it upon himself to do his best to correct and educate- but there's only so much he can do with his limited knowledge. Maybe he could also learn quite a bit, with the things Steve relays, and it's something that brings them closer together.

[cinematics123]

So… there is a lot. And I will probably save some of it for a more focused/personal Buddie post.

First, if you were on the Buddie train (and I am) you were not wrong. Secondly, despite no Buddie, this was an excellent finale. Even the pacing was mostly on point. It was… good tv. If they were going to get cancelled (and they thought they were) this was the canon ending. We’ll call this CanonA. Let’s look at the CanonA ending.

For many of our mains, the firefam, it’s a good ending. Bobby and Athena are both healthy and get their cruise. Maddie and Chimney are planning their legal escape from the IRS wedding.

Hen and Karen story picked back up a thread about a baby, which is very interesting, but… we didn’t really get anything else on Denny and his Dad? Is that story line… done? Are they ok? It seemed like there was more conflict because of how the hospital scene let Nathaniel in but with some real distrust. It feels like they dropped one (meaningful) thread to grasp at another. It’s good, but not great.

Buck’s ending is more mixed; Eddie’s is downright tragic. Buck’s CanonA ending is that he got close to the answer and got the wrong one. Any wonder that his math power crapped out on a date with Natalia? People have said that growth in the show is non-linear. People don’t always learn, people don’t always grow. Buck makes the same couch mistake he did with Taylor. In CanonA, Buck may never know how close he got to that special ending. Instead in CanonA, instead of finding happiness, he goes down the Lev path from 6A. Happy-ish. Girlfriend, maybe kids, life gets busy, maybe finding the meaning at the end. Not bad, but not what “The Age of Absolutely” was about either.

Eddie’s is… tragic. We’ve gotten trickles of Eddie’s real story, but 6B confirmed so much fandom speculation. Though he had met Shannon before, they got together senior year, right into kids and marriage - and Eddie runs away for at least 2 deployments. He bails. He later dates Ana, sees the ready made family - and breaks up with her. He is putting wanting a wife and mother over his heart - that’s canon.

Eddie fawning over Buck in the poker scene and all of 6B is equally canon. Please correct me if I’m wrong but I believe their last deep talk together is… about how Natalia sees Buck. Eddie says the experience had to have changed Buck. Not only does he see Buck… but implies something has changed between him and Buck. With Nat and Buck dating, Eddie rushes to find anyone to date - and basically ends up with Ana2 (instead of Chris’ teacher, she helps him find glue for his project).

It seems like… Eddie’s realized that while he sees Buck, Buck… doesn’t see him. And Buck is not seeing Eddie in that scene. In a kind of parallel to “Buck is in the room”, Eddie needs Buck there too… but this time Buck goes the other way and Eddie doesn’t say a word. Instead, Buck goes… and Eddie goes back to his heteronormative fantasy. Despite saying he wants to get better “for me” he’s after a wife and mother for Chris, Chris is even there with him on the date phone call. It’s not just lack of progress, Eddie got to the very threshold of opening himself to Buck - if only admitting it to himself. Instead back into the closet. That’s Eddie’s CanonA ending. It’s grim. It doesn’t “get better” for Eddie. He gets to the edge and chickens out.

If you think you were misled that Buddie was a romantic plot, you’re right. When looking at our firefam, Buck and Eddie were constantly paired alongside the other couples. We didn’t just see them through a romantic lens, that was how they were presented. In the CanonA ending, there is not even a last scene with Buck and Eddie tighter as friends, it’s Buck&Nat and Eddie/Chris talking to Marisol. The pairing of the two as a couple/family is broken. In itself, that’s sad. Them laughing over beers or Buck being there encouraging Eddie on while he talked would not have broken the “coupling” lens. They deliberately chose to do so.

So much like how Eddie reaches the point of understanding only to hesitate and withdraw back into heteronormativity, so does 911 on Fox. It clearly got to the point of understanding Buddie as a couple, presenting Buddifer as a family, and then… pulls back and gives them last minute female love interests. Like Eddie, it chickens out and loses out on giving Buddie CanonA happy ending. Instead what it gave then was… realistic and everyday bad relationships. They got close, but in a case of life imitating art, like Eddie it settles for being convention and traditional at the expense of its own growth and happiness. I hope 911 on ABC does them better.

[hello-naptiime]

Hi gang

I see were talking about Jonathan Piss ass ToiletJon again

And as someone who was fucking THERE, WORKING FOR HIM WHEN EVERYTHING DROPPED

Oh my FUCKING GOD AM I SO PISSED OFF.

Welcome to my rant/vent

Mutuals look away Im sorry

Tw// for grooming and manipulation. General gross things in that area

Also Jinbop.

First of all Ashlie and Jon did was gross, but where Jon failed at literally everything Ashlie succeeded.

When the news dropped of what happened in 2017 Jon made a fucking video of him crying like a little man child, and then pressed charges (also doxxed himself like an idiot) WHICH IS INSANE BEHAVIOR. Even in his written respone he was only making excuses.

At that time I was in very close connection with him, I was on his build team, I played multiple games with him. He would come into vc and hang out with us for several hours, you could consider us friend maybe! I wouldnt.

But I was at the very least in a lot of personal servers.

So when things dropped I knew almost all of the behind the scenes BULLSHIT that was happening. How everyone waited for it to blow over and stuck by him. (I got kicked out of servers too cause people knew i was against him but I was still told everything by friends who were still in there)

Then February happened. And so much more, much worse things got exposed. From only his end. I won't mention who was involved, out of privacy reasons and because I dont want to drag them into this. But holy shit dude everyone left him after that. It was over, his gross behavior with minors (included me now that i think about, sir why are you calling me and my friends cute we are 15-) His awful and manipulative behavior with people he finds useful, how he treats his teams

. He never credited anything, I made his goddamn Dimensions s2 designs, Eddie made the skins. Only Eddie was mentioned, once on a stream.

Eddie also made designs and skins for Rosethorn, and got credited in video no less.

Its not that hard and yet!

The main point is

He was still acting in 2020, the incident was in 2017. And he was acting like this, in late 2020. Into 2021.

I wanted him to get better. I really did, I had been hyperfixated on this group of people for years it hurt a lot.

But its been almost three years and he infact has stayed the same!

He is a grown ass man acting like a toddler on a public twitter account, what makes this man some one to respect in any sort of way.

Theres so much more shit I know about this man, that I can't fucking say because of the people involved not giving me permission too. And I respect that. Thats their story to tell.

Now ashlie on the other hand.

Ashlie made a concise apology and owned up to her actions, shit she made sure not to happen again. She went to fucking therapy, she broke off that relationship first and has made so much effort to distance herself from that and apologize everyday of her life.

She went to therapy after breaking things off, and she went again after the callout just to double fucking check she wasnt a horrible person.

She initially handled everything that happened in 2017 in private, like youre supposed to do. Not have a public twitter meltdown. And in late 2020 still handled mostly everything privately. She wrote out a full explanation and apology that is still very visible on her yt channel, not her twt her full 100k subscriber yt channel

I THINK, THATS GROWTH and she should be respected for that. She's actively changed as a person from the 20yr that made mistakes

And what's crazy is that Max and Ross still make youtube videos with her.

Max and Ross, YKNOW. The people who made sure fucking Jinbop got arrested and stomp Sky's name into the fucking ground for the shit that Sky did. I 100% trust those two to make a decision about a person in their circle when theyre doing some FUCKED SHIT.

IN FACT, THEY DID DROP ASHLIE WHEN THE ALLEGATIONS CAME OUT. SHE WAS IMMEDIATELY KICKED OUT OF EVERYTHING INVOLVING THEM

And they came back. They came back and started making new things and videos with her, Ross is an active participant in almost all of her videos.

I think that speaks wonders about her.

Don't drag her name through the ground I respect that woman and all of her endeavors in the future, she has more than made up for the fact.

Jon is still an awful person, and I dont think he will ever change. He's had more than ample time to and acts like whinny child on Twitter. Actively tries to pull nostalgia bait on his dying yt channel and mocks his ex "friends'" work. I want him gone from the youtube sphere and to get an actual life.

[moonchildreads]

so last year my always wonderful and dearly beloved @duquesademiel tagged me in a game that said i had to list three things i was proud of in 2022, and i've been thinking about that a lot so here's three things i was proud of in 2023!

i started posting my fics here and on ao3! this was a big thing for me because it was the first time in my life i took my craft seriously and gave it the love and respect it deserves, and i've been really enjoying it! i feel like i know myself better as a writer and as a person, and i've been able to explore a lot of topics i was interested in through my writing and purge some demons in the process. (if you're curious about it, you can read all 147.3k words of my eddie munson fic here, i'm almost done with chapter 24 and will be updating soon!)

i made new friends! i'm a fairly shy person, even if i'm a friendly bunny (i'm still friends with the same group of people since i was six!!! that's over two decades of friendship!!!) so imagine my surprise when i found a new group of friends here that i talk to on a daily basis, that i get to share my life with, and that claim to??? love me??? is this real life??? so shoutout to my spice gorls, and thank you for making this year so much fun and full of love. and while we are at it, shoutout to my q&d besties who i got to hug and kiss and laugh with for a few days during the winter holidays. my heart is much bigger, fuller and healthier because i have you in my life. i'll tag you all below hehe

i grew as a person. still in therapy, just like last year, but i made a lot of progress! 2023 was one of the toughest years of my life, i lost my two grandmothers and it shook my foundations deeply because i am who i am mostly thanks to the women that have raised me, but even when faced with the utmost pain and grief i've ever experienced, i still consider 2023 as a year of growth and profound happiness. my grief may never leave me, but i've found out that i am strong enough to carry it, to let it mold me and, most importantly, to let it soften me. i feel like i love more wholeheartedly and unabashedly now, and i am aware of how finite life is and just how much i want to be here. 2022 bunny would be amazed at how much 2023 bunny wanted to keep living, and that's the thing i'm most proud of and that i'm carrying with me into the new year.

we made it, 2024. let's fucking go <3

tagging the people that made my year so much more worth living so they can share the things they're proud of too:

my dragons: @duquesademiel, my loveliest merryweather; @justahappycloud, my adorable flora; @gutterratt, my wonderful fauna; and @so-inlove-with-the-wrongworld, my literal soulmate. i love you all deeply, madly, truly, and i can't wait until we're reunited under the same roof singing miranda! songs like our lives depend on it again.

my spice gorls: @queenimmadolla, my showstopping vivi; @potatobeanpie, my bravest maisie; @oneforthemunny, my most chaotic evie; and @munsonology, my first ever friend on tumblr and my partner in only-child-related crimes. thank you for letting me talk my shit until your ears bleed and for making me laugh so much my tummy starts hurting. i hope i made you as happy as you made me this year.

[vmures]

For the character meme, how about Steve?

Not sure if you mean Steve Harrington or Steve Rogers... I'm gonna go with Steve Harrington and if it's the wrong steve I'll answer again.

favorite thing about them

I honestly started out expecting to seriously dislike him, but his character growth was amazing. I love how protective he is of people, but especially the kids. He's sort of my favorite type of character--the sarcastic little shit who likely has a whole lot of trauma in their upbringing and is probably neurodivergent in some way who actually has a very soft heart and a lot of kindness in them.

least favorite thing about them

I wish he'd realize he was worth care and affection, including his own care and affection. He doesn't seem like he cares if he's injured as long as no one else is. I also hate how down he is on himself, though I empathize with it a lot.

favorite line

Oof, this is hard. I'd have to go with his reaction to Robin's crush. "She sounds like a muppet." It was just such a Steve reaction. It takes him a minute to process that she said she likes girls, but then he doesn't give her shit about that. Nope, he gives her shit about her taste in girls.

brOTP

Steve+Robin, platonic soulmates for sure. I just adore these two dorks and all their co-dependent tendencies.

OTP

I'm not really much of an OTP person as I've always been a multishipper, but I'd have to say that my favorite ship for him is Steve/Eddie. I just love their chemistry and things they work really well together.

nOTP

Probably Steve/Billy Hargrove, I can see why people like it but it's not for me.

random headcanon

Steve is a good example of the feral kids of my generation in a lot of ways, meaning I'm pretty sure he mostly raised himself. His parents might be rich, but they don't strike me as very present or concerned with his life. I think he and Tommy likely became friends because their parents were friends and Steve tried real hard to be what was expected of him by others until he just couldn't pretend anymore.

unpopular opinion

I'm only on the fringes of the fandom, so I'm not sure that any of my opinions about Steve would be unpopular, except maybe my dislike of Steve/Billy as that is a popular ship.

song i associate with them

Weirdly, "We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel. He found himself faced with monsters and secret government plots and instead of running for the hills he ran in and did his best to fight and help.

favorite picture of them

His "I told you so" look is just as good as his "bitch please" look. lol He's just got great microexpressions.