Teenage Dirtbag (Eddie Munson x OC)

Lovely Rita

The next morning, Jackie's eyes cracked open to find the sunlight shining through the curtains, making her squint as it rose. She shut them again, settling into the warmth of the bed, growing accustomed to the scratching of the blankets. As she reopened her eyes, her groggy hand reached out towards the nightstand to grab her glasses. Jackie rubbed her tired eyes as she placed them on her face and began to grow used to the sunlight before noticing the sleeping figure next to her. The pillow wall was hardly there anymore, Eddie's body dangerously close to her own, his arm thrown across the bed to where she once rested and she wondered if it had been lying on top of her throughout the night.

Jackie swung her legs over the side of the bed and sat upright. Her head turned over her shoulder, watching as Eddie barely stirred at her sudden movement. His face was pressed up against the pillow, his curly hair spread across it. He seemed peaceful. It was the first time she had seen him calm in a while. Jackie felt her lips curl upwards and then exited the room, deciding it was best to let him rest.

***

By the time Jackie had shown up at the Wheeler household, Nancy and Robin were already gone, leaving her with Steve, Dustin, Max, and Lucas.

"I can't believe I'm stuck here being the damn babysitter again," Steve scoffed, crossing his legs in the velvet blue chair that sat in the corner of the Wheeler's basement. "It's not fair. I mean, we should be able to help."

Jackie shrugged, sipping the coffee that was given to her by Mrs. Wheeler on her way in as she walked around the basement. "I don't mind."

"You don't mind?" Steve questioned.

"Yeah," She plopped down on the couch, crossing her legs to cover her gray skirt. "I probably would've stayed behind anyway. For Max."

The two moved their gaze to the back of the basement, where Max sat at a desk. She was writing furiously, headphones on, ignoring anything else. Steve nodded. "Guess you're right..."

Lucas and Dustin came barreling down the stairs, waffles in hand. "You guys want pancakes?" Lucas asked as he came into the basement, plate in hand. "Mrs. Wheeler made them."

"A little dry," Dustin chewed his food. "But still good."

"I'm good," Jackie sighed. "I already ate."

Steve looked at her strangely, like he was trying not to smile or laugh. "You did?"

"Yeah?" She replied, feeling confused and awkward. "I got McDonald's breakfast?"

Dustin sat down next to her. "How's Eddie?"

Jackie nodded. "Good. Bored, probably wants more food at this point, but good."

Steve turned around to the coffee table beside him and picked up a small stack of black and white papers. "These are from Nance. They found this at the library yesterday." He passed around a copied image of the Watcher Weekly article discussing the mysterious murders of the Creel family and its supposed connection to the supernatural. The boys read the article over briefly, lost expressions glazing over Lucas and Steve's faces as Steve started to pace the room. "Do you guys understand any of this?"

Lucas shook his head. "No."

"Pretty straightforward," Dustin replied.

"Oh, straightforward, really?"

Jackie shrugged. "He's not wrong. I guess it depends on how you're reading it but basically, Victor Creel claims to have been attacked by something that sounds an awful lot like Vecna. If he really did kill his wife and kids and try to take Victor, as he says, that makes Victor our lone survivor."