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antigoneidk · 2 years

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“Was it the party?”

Eddie Munson x reader

summary: this is part two of ‘i’m always going to take care of you’. you keep telling eddie you’re okay, but he just doesn’t believe you.

warning: this fic contains graphic depictions of sexual assault and sexual violence. language, trauma and ptsd. the reader is extremely confused, and terrified of what her body feels like, along with her mind. eddie isn’t trying to be an asshole, but he doesn’t know how to cope with how the reader is acting, so he’s coming off as pushy. it’s not as bad in this part, but will increase for the next part. i know everyone is different and their experiences. this is just how i interpreted my personal experiences. please read with caution. also, please give this some love<3 it took forever to write and super super long.

taglist!

also! i was going to tag more for the people who wanted part two, but tumblr said i could only tag 50 people?? so sorry if you didn’t get tagged:(

@ariesl0ves3ddiemuns0n @eddiemunnson @eddiemania @imdoingbetternow @kellysimagines @ches-86 @flowers-and-tsukki @justaproudslytherpuff @supercalifragilisticprincess @fionnthebandersnacc @imabadarsebard @ohlovelyhollow @tessiemessie @bellasfavoritesweatpants @mic429 @averysblog @antigoneidk @no0neknowsm3 @cosmic-lavender @your-starless-eyes-remain @noturmom15 @lexthemess21 @underthebatcape @catherinnn @insomniac-nerd-posts-things @ahzysauce @phantomxoxo @getbillzoned @kaqua @delilahtaylorsverson @kneelforloki @actuallybarb @imangy @avobabe87 @rovckwells @fentyreligion @genuine-possum @heeyitsg @softyutae @blowing-mikey @tripthlightfantastic @nothisispatric @aa-li-yxh @livasaurasrex @ultimate-sdmn-trash @xxhospital-for-soulsxx @hearts4laura @lillianofliterature @chaos-incorp @fvcking-gxddess

He had thought maybe you had hit your head and didn’t remember, in fact, he kept asking you about it on the drive home, because you were nothing short of a chatty kathy. You were trying too hard, and he could tell. You kept talking, trying to convince him, and yourself, that you were okay and that nothing had happened to you. However, there had been no emotion in your voice, and that was a dead giveaway. You were just speaking, your voice cracking at the vocal chords you’d damaged during your screams.

The only thing that had kept you sane was the adrenaline in your system. It was keeping you stable, keeping you from panicking. It all felt like a dream, like it had a deep fog over top of it and was becoming more difficult to remember. You used it as motivation, that maybe, maybe, it would be better by morning. Maybe things would be okay. You were strong. You’d been through worse, and you could get through this.

You were almost hyped up, in a way, thinking that this could just blow over quickly, wouldn’t effect you. Eddie was almost afraid to let you sleep, thinking maybe you’d gotten a concussion, but you needed it, thinking maybe, by morning, this would all be over. He stared at you all night until you both had laid down to sleep, and that adrenaline was the only thing that was allowing Eddie to wrap his arm around you. You had felt high as you drifted off to sleep, and you hoped so badly, that it would all be swept away like a dream.

•

You didn’t believe in god, at least, you didn’t think you did. However, something in the universe was trying to help you, maybe repay you for what had happened the night before. You hadn’t opened your eyes yet, but you felt that pain in between your legs that you had hoped so badly would not be there, but it was worse. You had the urge to let out a pained groan, a scream, but you kept thinking about Eddie. He was right beside you asleep, at least you thought he was.

You turned your neck to the side, whimpering at the pain in your nose. Your heart had skipped a beat at the sight of his empty bed, eyes settling on a piece of paper in his spot. You reached over and grabbed it.

caught called into work, sorry sweetheart. call me when you get up. love, eddie.

You immediately looked around the empty room, needing clarification. A deep, wheezing breath fell from your lips and you caught your reflection in the mirror. Holy hell. You looked just as bad as you did the night before, only worse. You looked like you were in excruciating pain, and you were, you just weren’t dealing with it yet. You moved to sit up, wincing and whimpering. You’d never felt so…stiff before, so sore, and your bones were practically snapping as you moved into a sitting position.

You just sat there, the sound of his old fan clicking with every spin. What do I do now? That was what was going threw your mind. You scanned your memories, and your face crumbled together. Nothing felt like a dream. Nothing felt like it hadn’t happened. It was all there, front and center stage of your mind. You were replaying everything like a movie in your head, gasping quietly at certain images.

Nancy’s clothes still remained clad to your skin, and you moaned at the uncomfortable feeling of how hot you felt. You started to tear up when you pulled off your sweat pants, the muscles in your back stretching uncomfortably at the angle. Dark and angry bruised were splatted like paint on your knees, the memory of being smacked down to the floor replaying in your mind. You whimpered deeply, fingers caressing them. There were a few tiny ones that went down your legs, but your knees had taken most of the damage, and they looked horrible.

Then, you tore your arms out of your sweater, softly sobbing at the pain as you tossed it to the floor. You were bare, besides your thin scrap of underwear. You didn’t have the courage to look down there, yet. Your breath hitched at the dark line across your abdomen, mind flashing quick pictures of the tub you’d been pressed against. It was a few inches above your belly button, deep and agitated, colored with red and purple splatters. You knew they’d only get worse as the days went on, and god, Eddie could not see this.

There were tiny, green spots on your shoulders, but they didn’t compare to your others. You figured you’d be covered in them by the time the sun went down again. You looked up to your reflection, squinting your eyes to see your nose. You let out a sob at the bruise, knowing you sure as shit couldn’t hide that. It was definitely broken. It felt broken. Your breathing was coming out in short wheezes, and you swore you could hear a tiny little pop every time you exhaled. There was blood crusted around your nostrils, some darker than others, indicating you had bled through the night. You looked down to your pillow. Yep, you had.

Then, you slowly spread your thighs apart, keeping your panties on. Blood was stuck to the insides, the bottom of your panties red from the flesh blood. Nancy had cleaned you, but now, it hadn’t done much good, as you were covered in it again. Just seeing it, sent you into another world of hurt. The pain seemed to triple, like you were accepting it.

What else could you do? Eddie wasn’t home, you had the place to yourself. And you thanked whoever the hell lived up in heaven, because you knew if he had been there, he would have found you out. Your eyes were wide, and you were shaking. Vibrating with a certain…energy that you didn’t know how to deal with it. You couldn’t sit up anymore, so you turned to lay on your side.

Then, you let go. You couldn’t help it, it was impossible. You let out a sob that would have killed Eddie, and you curled deep inside yourself, pressing your legs together to ease the deep stab. You needed to go to the hospital. You knew you needed to, but you couldn’t. Eddie would find out.

You weren’t in denial anymore. This was you accepting it. Something horrible had happened to you, whether you wanted to believe it or not. You couldn’t understand it. Why did it happen? Was there something you’d done to cause it? Who was it that followed you to the bathroom? You had so many questions and no answers.

You felt alone. Never in your live had you felt so alone. You felt abandoned, even, and it was damn near just as painful as what your body throbbed in. You had seven hours to do what you pleased. You had seven hours until he got back, so you could cry. You could scream and you could wish that you wouldn’t have to feel it anymore.

You had seven hours to pull yourself together. Because Eddie’s life, his freedom and his reputation, depended on you keeping your mouth shut.

•

“Fuck!” Eddie cursed, swerving in the road as he tried to keep the vase of flowers from spilling in his passenger seat. Water spilled out and stained the seats, gaining strings of vile curses under his breath. He huffed, settled them between his legs as roses hit him in the face.

Work had been extremely busy for him today, and car after car had showed up needing something adjusted. It was good, though, meaning he got more money, but still, he’d been anxious to get home and see you. He’d stopped at the local flower shop right before they’d closed at seven, and was lucky enough to find one bouquet that hadn’t been sold. He also picked out a stuffed panda with it, and even he had to admit that it was cute.

He pulled into the trailer park and slowed down his speed. He’d learned his lesson one night when the children who lived next door where out late playing, and he’d received and earful and a half from an angry mother and father. He smiled softly at the sight of his home, the kitchen light on, and he knew you had to be up and around. He was happily humming a tune to a song he couldn’t remember the name of, something he’d had in his head all day, and slammed the door to his van closed.

He fished his keys out of his pocket, the pandas arm in his mouth and vase in the other. He kicked the door in with his door, maneuvering his way inside. “Hey, sweetheart, I’m home!”

He glanced around the the combined rooms, his nostrils filling with the scent of something cooking. “Where ya’ at, babe?” He set the flowers and stuffed animal on the counter, hopping happily to what was cooking on the stove.

“Just a sec, Ed’s!” You called from the bathroom, and he sampled what seemed to be a stir-fry from the frying pan. He didn’t use to eat vegetables. He hated them, but you got him used to some, saying that he needed to eat them and that it was important. It was hard to deny you when your eyes had looked so full and bright.

“How’s the nose doing?” He shouted back at you, munching on a carrot you’d thrown into the dish. He propped himself up on the counter, kicking his feet out playfully.

“S’fine.” Was all you replied, and he tapped his fingers against his thighs as he waited for you to come out. His vision snapped to the left when the bathroom door opened.

“Hey!” He smiled, hopping down. “How’s my favorite nose in the world doing?” He smirked, his hands coming up to the sides of your arms.

You shrugged your shoulders with a small smile. “It’s okay. Hurts.”

He crinkled his nose as he investigated it, his finger coming up to trace the bandage you’d put on a cut. “Geez’ kid, you really banged yourself up, huh? Looks like you got into a nasty fistfight.”

He smirked, and you exhaled as you tried to mirror it. “Yeah. I made dinner.”

“And I got you flowers.” He bowed his arm, his dark curls cascading down. “And a panda.”

You hummed softly as you walked toward them, playing with a petal. “They’re beautiful. Thank you.”

You were no longer wearing Nancy’s clothes, and had put in a pair of black leggings and a grey sweatshirt. It got unbelievably hot at night, but you couldn’t risk him seeing your bruises. Your hair was slightly damp from being in the shower, but you didn’t wash your hair, or much of your body for that matter. You had only wanted to get the blood off your thighs, and you barely had the energy for that.

You’d forced yourself to get up and make Eddie dinner, because you had a part to play. You had all day to cry and wish for the sweet release of death to part you from your pain, but that time was up now. You were okay, you just needed to fake it till you made it.

“Anything for my girl.” He kissed your temple, his arm curling around your waist. Your eyes froze on the stem of a rose, his fingers burning your flesh. That feeling sent a panic through your chest, but you couldn’t give it power. No, no, no, you had a part to play.

“You hungry?” You pulled away to grab a plate.

“Starved.” He replied, hopping over to the kitchen table. “You didn’t call today. I was hoping you would.”

“Oh, yeah.” You gulped slowly, hands shakily scooping food onto his plate. “Sorry, I slept all day.”

“I was afraid to let you fall asleep last night.” He chuckled as you returned to the table, setting down two plates for you. Your portion was significantly smaller. “Thought maybe you had a concussion.”

You gripped the edge of the table tightly, gritting your teeth as you slowly lowered yourself to sit down. He stopped talking mid sentence. “You okay?” He raised a brow.

You nodded quickly. “Yeah!” You forced out too quickly, too high pitched, like a frog was stuck in your throat. “How is it?” You gestured to the plate.

“Oh, uh-” He switched his focus. “It’s good! I like that sauce you always put on this. Reminds me of chinese food.”

You smiled as you listened to him talk, your hands shakily picking up your fork. You brought the food up to your mouth, but it tasted sour against your taste buds. You chewed slowly, your stomach curling inside of itself at the foul taste. You breathed heavily through your nose.

“And so I told the guy that we didn’t have a radiator hose, and that we’d have to order one, but he just didn’t listen!”

Minutes were passing and Eddie kept talking, deep in conversation about his work day. You kept forcing yourself to nod along, to smile here and there and add a little comment, but it was becoming harder and harder. You’d barely ate anything, and you were beginning to fidget in your seat, the pain returning between your legs. God, it felt so hot in there. You looked over to the oven to make sure you had turned it off.

“Then by six o’clock this harley pulled in! Shit, babe, you should of seen her. Flames on the side and skulls on the handles!”

The pain was getting hotter, and the hotter it grew, the more you couldn’t keep your focus. With every word Eddie spoke, you kept remembering. Your mind flashed little images here and there. The feeling of the man’s hands, the feeling of his rough lips biting at your own. The feeling of him forcing himself inside you. So many feelings for one girl.

“I really think I’ll have enough money by spring. Image how badass I’d look with one of my own! Maybe I’ll get the Hellfire logo on the side.”

Damnit. God damnit. Why was this happening? Why couldn’t you stop thinking? You were having dinner with Eddie! Eddie depended on you to keep strong, even though he had no clue what in the hell was going on. You were stronger than this. You had to be. You’d had your day to blubber around, damnit. You couldn’t do this, so why were you? It was literally eating you alive, sitting there in that kitchen, eating dinner, you were being tortured by your own brain.

“Sweetheart?”

The pet name pulled out of your water like trance, your eyes growing wide as you looked across to him. “Yeah?” Your voice was thick, full, like vomit was legitimately in your throat.

“Are you okay?” He said carefully, placing down his fork.

You nodded. “Yes. Why do you ask?”

“Because you’re shaking.” He said blatantly, nodding down to your hands. You looked down, holding up your hands closer to you. Your brows narrowed. They were indeed shaking.

You swallowed roughly, tucking your hands down to your lap. You said nothing.

“You not eating anything?”

The mere thought made you want to pass out. You gave your plate a glance, blinking slowly. “I’m not hungry.”

He’d been wrapped up in telling you his work stories, a ceremony you both did every night, but now, he could tell something was off. It was overwhelming how much he took in, in so little time. His elbows rested on the table, watching you carefully. “What’s the matter?”

Your eyes batted up to him again. “I said I was fine.”

He could feel a potential argument brewing in the near future, but holy shit was that the lie of the century. He straightened himself. “Then why are you so quiet? You’re never this quiet.”

You huffed, growing uncomfortable under his intense stare. “Eddie- my nose hurts.” You pushed out a breath, your hand coming up the sore bridge.

His lips parted in question. “That bad? Y/n, if it hurts that bad then you should go to the hospital.”

You shook your head, crossing your legs uncomfortably. “No- no, it’s not that bad.”

His brows raised inquisitively at your defiance. You just said it hurt. Why were you changing your words? He sighed quietly, looking back down to your uneaten food. He was worried about you, but more so confused you. You were being difficult, and you never acted that way. What had gotten you so riled up?

You were both met with an awkward silence, and guilt swarmed over you, a sudden, intense feeling of sadness washing over you. “I’m sorry.” You muttered.

“Honey, you’re freaking me out, here.” He said with a humorless grin, not knowing what else to say. He reached his hand out to you. “Did I do something?”

“No.” You rushed quickly, your eyes growing wide. “No, no, you did nothing.” Your voice was the softest he’d ever heard, the most genuine words you’d said all night. You grabbed his hand, ignoring the feeling the contact gave you.

“Then what’s wrong?” He pressed gingerly, his other hand coming atop of yours. “You said your nose is fine, so why are-”

“I’m just- I’m overwhelmed, Eddie.” You gulped, stuttering out the words, glaring down at your hand trapped between his.

“Why?”

“I don’t know! Work, I guess.” You pushed, your breathing becoming louder, strained.

You were met with silence, and you could feel his eyes staring at you, hard. You bit your tongue, not being able to take your eyes off your hand. You let flashing back to his hands. But the hands who held you now where not his, they were Eddie’s. You had to calm down.

And he knew you were lying. Sitting there watching you, Eddie knew you weren’t telling him something. Whether it was big or small, simply something that embarrassed you, it was something that you were keeping from him, and it was obviously affecting you. Maybe it was wrong on him to push you, to keep asking what was wrong, but you didn’t get this way. It was out of your character, so it puzzled him.

“Y/n,” His hand had traveled up to your wrist, and you couldn’t keep still anymore. You jolted up out of your seat, spilling your drink in the process, and clutched your hands to your stomach. Eddie jumped in surprise, his eyes widening at your sudden out burst.

“Sorry- sorry,” You gasped, scooting out of your seat. Your eyes were brimming with tears, and tripped on your own feet trying to get out of your seat.

“Baby, hey-” He tried to reach out to help you, but you only shook your head and backed away.

“I uh- shower, I’m gonna take a shower.” That was all you said, nodding your head quickly as you darted off to the bathroom. You slammed the door quickly, locking it and turning on the faucet. Once the water began to pour, you covered your mouth with both of your hands, sobbing between your fingers. Your body trembled as you sunk to the floor, having no plans to actually get in the water. You curled up into ball, the position the only comfortable one you could seem to be in these days, and cried your heart out.

It was too hard. Pretending was too hard. You couldn’t stop thinking about it, what had happened. You had swore that you’d be okay, that all you needed to do was buck up and that you’d get through it. Without anyones help. But you couldn’t. Every time he spoke, you were only being flashed back to that night. The touch of his hands sent you into a frenzy. You couldn’t pretend. And you were devastated by this, because even though Eddie had no idea what had happened, he knew something was wrong, and it was only a matter of time before he found out.

•

He was racking his brain trying to figure out what he’d done. You didn’t want him touching you, he was able to tell that much. So he must of done something, right? He had to admit, he did sorta ditch you at the party to swim the guys, but you made it clear that was what you wanted. Did you lie? Were you mad at him for that?

You had been in the bathroom for almost an hour now, he spent that time cleaning up, trying to make up for….well, whatever the hell he did. He had changed out of his work uniform and into a pair of grey sweatpants, along with a plain, black t-shirt. His hair was wild from his frivolous he was working, cleaning up your small home. It may have been small, but you decorated it nicely.

His heart skipped a beat at the sound of the shower turning off, and he quickly pushed away loose strands of hair. He leaned against the counter, pretending to make himself look busy and that he wasn’t staring at you. Your figure caught his eye, and he turned, his eyes immediately narrowing. You hadn’t changed clothes, your hair wasn’t wet. You had not taken a shower.

Your eyes were completely bloodshot, red all around the rims. You tried to dry your tear tracks, but it was useless. It was obvious that you’d been crying, and it was obvious that you just sat in the there for the past hour. That made him feel worse, his heart sinking as you both stared at each other. Had you wanted to get away from him?

“Was it the party?” He was going to try a different approach, a lighter one, but upon sight of your tears, he couldn’t. He needed to know what was going on.

Your eyes widened. You hated that they did, but you couldn’t help it. Your hands melted into tight fists at your sides. “What?” You squeaked.

“Sweetheart, if you didn’t want me to hang out with the guys you should of just told me.” He said softly, taking a step closer to you. “I would have stayed with you, I just thought-”

You should of been relieved that he wasn’t going where you thought he was, but you weren’t. You didn’t want to talk about the party. It was all you could think about.

“No, no, I said you didn’t do anything wrong, Eddie.” You squeezed your eyes shut in exasperation, your fingers coming up to your nose.

“Then why are you so….reserved?” He couldn’t help the huff that escaped, desperate to cure your ailment. “You won’t talk to me. Y/n, you don’t even want me touching you. What did I do?” His ringed hands gestured out between the two of you.

He was overwhelming you. Already, even after your breakdown in the bathroom, you could feel yourself start to panic again. You took a deep, noisy breath as you squeezed your hands. Giving him a tired look. “Please- I just want to go to bed, Eddie. I’m just tired, alright? Don’t worry about me. I just need to sleep.” You stressed painfully, and his eyes stared at your hands, that were now shaking again.

He swallowed a lump in his throat, an uneasy feeling in his gut that was going off like alarm bells. “I can’t just- I can’t just not worry about you, y/n.” He strained, his voice growing tired at trying to pry it out of you.

Your hands moved to cover your face, your fingers pulling at your scalp tiredly. You were so tired. You felt like you could sleep forever. You wanted to sleep forever. “Do you think you could sleep on the couch, tonight?” You had no problem saying it, even though it hurt you, but you felt like you didn’t have a choice.

You slowly pulled your hands down, your lip pulling down at the sight of him. “What?” He froze. His eyes sunk, melting into a gleam of sadness. You’d never asked him that before, even when you were in a phase of constant fighting.

“I just want..to be alone tonight.” Your voice cracked at the hurt look on his face, and you grabbed your stomach to keep from curling over.

And honestly, Eddie felt like crying. He was so confused, and felt so guilty for way you were acting. You were scaring him. He’d never seen you, or anyone, for that matter, seem so petrified. But, he obviously wasn’t helping the situation. He had tried time and time again to get you to open up, to get you to talk to him, but you refused. You always talked to him, never had a problem with it before. It was just the kind of couple you were. Eddie wasn’t good when it came to processing his emotions, so his response came out dry, and border lining pissed off. “Fine.”

•

Three days later, and you and Eddie were at the worst you’d ever been. You were barely speaking to each other, and he had continued sleeping on the couch ever since you’d asked him to that first night. He was doing this purposely though, trying to give you space. He realized crowding you wasn’t going to help him. He thought, maybe, if he give you time and space to breath, you’d come to him when you were ready. That’s what he kept telling himself.

But it had been three days. Three days since you’d had a decent conversation. A kiss or a hug. You were at your worst. You were trying to keep it bottled up as much as you could when he was home from work, but it barely made any difference. When he was at work, you sobbed in bed all day, holding the space between your legs that ached. It felt like you’d been torn in two, and it hurt so, so bad, and wouldn’t go away. Your hair was greasy from not being washed. You weren’t eating properly. You weren’t doing anything.

You knew you were destroying Eddie, but you couldn’t help it. You had wanted to be so strong for him, for yourself, but you weren’t. This was bigger than you. It consumed you and became the only thought in your brain. That night when you had been raped. You had no energy, but when he’d come home, you’d at least try to just lay there in bed, but it was becoming harder and harder. Your words with Eddie were becoming far and few between. It created a dramatic tension between you. He stared at you the entire time, waiting for you to talk to him, but the words would not fall from your lips.

Your bruises looked horrible. Dark and much more angry. They hurt to the touch. Your knees ached terribly and you had to sneak an ice pack to lay with, switching it from your legs to your abdomen, sometimes holding it between your thighs. You felt as if you’d been strangled from the inside out. You felt pathetic, guilty for something you didn’t understand, like the weight of the world was on your shoulders. Your nose was swollen and it made it difficult to breath out of, the bruises now a dark, deep purple, almost black. More had sprouted up around your body. Some on your back, across your chest. A few scratches too, but you didn’t remember getting them. Nightmares had now possessed you, ruining the peaceful escape that sleep gave you. They were all foggy, but the only thing you could remember was fear, that night being replayed over and over of what it felt like.

“I just don’t know what I’m doing, man. I mean…I’ve tried apologizing, but shit, I don’t even know what I’m apologizing for! She won’t say anything to me! She won’t come near me! It’s like…it’s like she’s scared of me or something, man! I don’t know what the fuck to do.” Eddie was pacing quickly, arms flailing about, ranting to Steve and Robin who war behind the counter at the family video. He was in his work uniform, clocked out for his half hour lunch break.

“I’ve tried giving her space. I’ve tried to be patient, but damn! She’s freaking me out guys! I’m worried about her!” He was biting his nails, practically forgetting about his friends who were giving him weird looks.

“Look man,” Steve cleared his throat. “Maybe it’s just…I don’t know, that time of the month or something.”

“Oh, God.” Robin groaned, leaning into her hands. “It’s called a period, Steve, and you can’t blame that on everything.”

“Then why wouldn’t Stacy go out with me last night!” Steve argued.

“Guys!” Eddie snapped, banging his fists on the counter and making them jump. “You guys got all shift to talk about the female body, right now, I’m worried about my female, okay? Help me! What do I do?”

“Are you sure you didn’t do something to piss her off?” Robin tried again, not having much interest in Eddie’s love life. She loved you, don’t get her wrong, but she didn’t care much to hear Eddie bitch and complain all day. It was hard to get him to stop.

“Yes!” He nodded furiously, smacking the table repeatedly with hopped steps. “I haven’t done anything! And she won’t fucking tell me what’s wrong!”

The three jumped when the doorbell rang, signaling a customer came in, and turned around. “Hey, Nance.” Steve smiled, waving her over. “How’d you like the movie?”

Nancy hadn’t even gotten fully inside when she made eye contact with Eddie’s figure, and froze by the door. She gripped her bag tightly in hand, swallowing roughly. “It was alright.” She never did watch it. In fact, it was four days over due, with a whopping bill of $1:80. She didn’t have the desire to watch movies these days.

“Hey, Eddie.” She closed the door, slowly making her way towards her friends.

“Wheeler.” He nodded in a greet, barely catching her eye as he kept his focus on what was wrong with his girlfriend.

All Nancy did for the past three days was thing about you. She couldn’t eat, could barely sleep. She wanted so badly to come see you, but she was afraid of overstepping. She had horrible, horrible guilt about the party. She was blaming herself for inviting all of those people over. She wanted to come help you, to come take care of you. But she was afraid. Most importantly, she was curious. Did you tell Eddie? She came up to the counter, standing right beside him as she slid the rental toward Robin. She looked over to the side as discreetly as she could, barely even registering Steve rant about how good Back to the future 2 was.

“What’s going on?” She tilted her chin down to gain his attention.

“Huh?” He blinked, sniffling. “Oh, uh- just on my lunch break. Trying to get some dating advice from Lavern and Shirley here.” He scoffed, turning to lean on the counter.

“Dating advice?” Her big, curious eyes were full of worry, her teeth chewing on her bottom lip.

“Yeah.” Eddie pursed his lips, crossing his arms. “Y/n is being really weird. I’m worried about her.” He said quietly, guilt making him sigh heavily.

Nancy’s heart sank. You didn’t tell him. It wasn’t her place, she didn’t get a say in it, but she knew that he needed to know. She knew how dependent you were on him, how dependent he was on you. You guys told each other everything. It was just the kind of couple you were. You were handling this all by yourself, and she was thankful no one was looking to see her bottom lip quiver. “How so?” Her words practically came out in a whisper.

“Quiet.” He stared at the windows. “She’s jumpy and…I don’t know, she seems like she’s upset with me for something. Doesn’t want me to touch her. Hell, she’s barely even speaking to me. She keeps saying it’s just her nose but I don’t believe her.” He rushed, coming to pinch the bridge of his nose. “She seems so spaced out, like she’s scared. She doesn’t even want me sleeping with her. I don’t understand what I did, Wheeler.”

Oh, god, she had to see you. She had to check up on you. Nancy gulped harshly, feeling sick to her stomach. She glanced back to Steve and Robin, who were arguing about some cheap horror flick. “I could check up on her.” She said confidently.

He turned to look at her.

“If that’s okay.” She added, features shrinking against his stare.

“Could you?“ He exhaled, uncrossing his arms. “I’d appreciate it. Maybe…I don’t know, maybe she just needs a girlfriend to talk to. Can you let me know what she says? I can’t think straight thinking about her like that all by herself.”

Nancy stalled, but gave a nod. She could deal with that later.

“Hey, thanks, Nancy.” He smiled, clapping her on the shoulder, his tense body relaxing. “I gotta go back to work, but maybe I can catch up with you later?”

She parted her lips slightly, forcing a smile as guilt ate her alive. “Okay- yeah, sure.” She could deal with that later.

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