The music in the bar was just a hair too loud for her regular tone of voice. She'd definitely have to put her concert voice on, not that she had ever been to one. The whiskey burned but went down relatively smooth. She could tell it was cheap, but that's about all she drank in college. For her short stint, that is. She chased her shot with a beer before watching Eddie do the same. She could already tell she would be wanting another shot soon. Especially if the music was good. She assumed there was a live band or musician coming on due to their seats away from the stage. She downed a good fourth of her beer before realizing that there were eyes on her.
"What?" She asked, trying to speak up over the bar's music.
"You just took that shot like a champ!" He said, excitedly, "You did party in college, huh?" He chuckled afterwards, taking a swig from his own beer.
"Just a little bit," She shrugged her shoulders, "I don't regret it though. I didn't like being so far away from my family," She admitted. Claudia might not have been her real mom, but she legally adopted her shortly after Dustin was born. She raised her better than her own father had. Despite her penchant for being inebriated, she liked to think that she turned out okay. She loved her job and her family and even though she didn't love her circle of friends, she was thankful for them.
"You and Dustin seem pretty tight, huh?" He asked, following his statement with another drink of beer.
"I mean . . . I try. Sometimes I'm not the best older sister, but sometimes he's not the easiest person to handle either. He's been through a lot I think," She realized she was rambling before taking a drink of beer, "Can we talk about something else?" She asked, kind of embarrassed for getting so emotional talking about her younger half sibling. Eddie was quick to nod and lean forward, his hand grazing her own which was wrapped tightly around her beer bottle.
"Yeah, for sure," He cleared his throat before the band started coming onto the stage, "Cross your fingers that it's a good one!"
Delilah felt a little out of place, but was so infatuated with Eddie thriving in this environment, that she kind of got lost in it all. She needed something to distract her from the fact that she hadn't really spoken to her brother in two weeks. As the band approached their instruments, the lead singer grabbed the microphone and introduced their name, "What's up Hawkins?! We are the best band in Hawkins! You know us as Soul Roach! Here we go!" The music started playing and it was pretty fast punk music. It wasn't the worst band Delilah had ever heard. Their guitarist was decent.
A waitress stopped by their table and eventually wound up bringing them another round of shots and beers. It had been a while since Delilah had really let loose like this. At parties, she spent most of her time sipping on beer and smoking weed, but never did she get really drunk. Not since college of course. The two skipped the toast this time and instead let their shot glasses clink together before tapping them on the table and shooting them back. As they listened to the band, this event happened one more time in the short span of about thirty minutes. Needless to say, Delilah was feeling good. The band took a break and made their way to the bar, where an idea formed inside Delilah's head. "I'll be right back!" She excused herself, giving Eddie's knee a squeeze before she headed towards the bar.
There was no way she could do another shot, but she figured she might as well grab a couple more beers while at the bar. Before she did so though, she approached the lead singer. "Heya! I really dig your style!" She said, nodding at him, "I was wondering . . . do you take requests?"
After another minute of conversing with the band, she quickly made her way back to the table. Eddie was giving her a kind of suspicious look before he spoke, "What was that about?" He asked, confused but also pleased when he realized there was another beer for him.
"You might wanna drink up," She nodded towards him, tilting up her own beer into her mouth and swigging a large amount, "You and I are gonna dance!" She felt as if she still needed to talk loud, even though the music sounded more muted than before.
She watched as Eddie's face flushed and he quickly tried to shake it off with a smirk and shake of his head. "I don't think so, this man does not dance," He said, taking a drink of his beer.
As the band got back on stage, the lead singer approached the mic again, "We got a request from a member in the audience. This one goes out to Delilah and her friend who really should dance with this babe," A couple of people cheered and wolf whistled through the crowd before Delilah looked over at her friend.
He looked devastated and his face was red hot. However, once the band started playing the intro notes of Love Hurts most commonly known by Nazareth, he couldn't help but crack a smile at her. Delilah chugged the rest of her beer, watching Eddie do the same, face still tinted red. After she was done, she pushed herself up out of her chair and went to grab Eddie's hand. The band played it surprisingly slower than she anticipated, though it still held that quick punk rock edge to it. She finally pulled Eddie out of his chair and the two made their way to the dance floor. A couple of other couples made their way as well, some giggling and pointing at Eddie and Delilah.
She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, resting her hands lightly at the nape of his neck, a wide smile spreading across her face. Her eyes softened when she met his dark brown ones and felt his hands on her hips. She couldn't help but giggle, watching him look away with an embarrassed smile on his face. "You suck, you know that?" He said, slowly swaying back and forth to the music.
Delilah nodded her head, "I couldn't help it! I'm drunk! I wanted to dance!" She said, rolling her head back before stopping it on his face once again, "With you!" She hollered over the music as they incorporated a pretty sick guitar solo.
"And you're sure you're not fucking with me?" He asked, looking her steadily in the face.
"Eddie, please, stop," She said, exasperated at this nervousness he had that she was somehow in cahoots with Jason Carver, "Do you really think I would come to a dive bar and drink with you if I didn't want to be here?" She asked, quirking a brow up at him.
"It just doesn't feel real, ya know?" He started, "I mean, I've known you since middle school and we've barely talked and now all of a sudden, here-"
Delilah decided to stop his nervous ramblings by pulling him close to her, so close that their noses touched. He certainly was stopped right in his tracks. The song came to an end and Delilah nudged her nose against his softly, "I'm not fucking with you, Munson. I," She stopped for a brief moment, debating on if she really wanted to let the next words come out of her mouth, "I like you." She felt so juvenile, having some kind of weird crush on the potentially weirdest guy in school. It didn't matter though, she couldn't help how she felt. She hadn't wanted to spend time with someone this much since, well, she wouldn't let her mind wander further on that.
She could feel his breath pause as he gulped, his face still dangerously close to hers. She cleared her throat and quickly pulled away, smiling at him and trying to diffuse some of the tension growing between them. "I think I really like you," He finally spoke out, offering her a soft smile. "But please, don't make me dance anymore," He chuckled as the two headed back to their table.
The two talked for what seemed like the entire show, sharing a couple more beers, though Eddie stopped at one point due to having to drive. Which he eventually successfully did, the two pulling into the Henderson's driveway. When Eddie turned off the engine, he glanced over at her, the two sitting in a calm silence.
"Do you wanna come upstairs?" She asked, seeing his face begin to freeze up a little at the way her question sounded, "To smoke a little more? Before your drive home?" She asked, quickly recovering, afraid to sound too forward.
"You really think your mom would be cool with that?" He asked, before watching her shake her head.
"Claudia is crashed out by now. Dustin might be up but he won't say anything," She shrugged her shoulders.
"Uh- well, if you're offerin'," He said with a smile on his face. The two got out of his van, gently closing the doors behind them.
The two tip-toed through the Henderson living room which was pitch black save a hallway light that was on in the distance. She felt Eddie grab her hand as he stumbled on the leg of the coffee table in the living room. Delilah couldn't help but snicker at him as the two made their way down the hall. Dustin's door was closed but a light was still on, their mother's door was closed and the lights were off, then they finally reached Delilah's room. The two stepped in and quickly but quietly closed the door behind them. Delilah let out a sigh of relief before making her way over to her vanity. She had been prepared for them to chill a little more, so she had a couple of joints prerolled already. She quickly removed one and made her way to her bed, she patted the spot in front of her, indicating Eddie to come over as well. Her window was already open for good circulation. He eventually sat down on her bed, a sight she was excited to see, if she was being honest with herself. They both folded their legs and sat cross legged on the bed, kicking their shoes off before they did so. Eddie's boots made a harsh clunk to the ground before Delilah took the opportunity to spark up the joint.
"Thanks for taking me out," She said, handing the joint to him after she took a second hit. Puff, puff, pass, ya know? "I am still a little drunk, I have to admit."
For a moment, she thought about putting the moves on Eddie. She was a pretty forward girl when it came down to it, but this felt different. For once, she felt like someone didn't just want to have sex with her but genuinely get to know her and talk with her and hold her hand. She hated that she was comparing everything to someone that was no longer living, but she couldn't help but spot the differences in her friendship with Eddie and her slightly toxic friendship with Billy.
"It's okay, you're a pretty cute drunk," Eddie said, taking a long drag from the joint. Delilah watched as his face looked confident with her for once. He didn't look nervous or shy, but that he was really owning his moment.
Delilah let out a small giggle and watched as a smile spread across her face. The butterflies were real now as she took the green back from him. "You had some pretty good dance moves back there," She half joked. The two's slow dance wasn't how she usually danced, but it just didn't seem like he would be into that.
"Jesus, you still owe me for that," He said, shaking his head in embarrassment.
"Oh yeah?" She asked, leaning forward on the bed and putting her nose against his, the joint still in between her fingertips. "What do I owe you?" She spoke in an almost husky tone as she felt his breath across her lips.
"Can I just-" He smacked his lips together and pulled away a little from her, "Look I just um . . . You are single handedly the hottest girl I've ever um . . . touched noses with, but . . . what the fuck are we doing here?" He asked, this new found confidence kind of confusing Delilah. She liked his confidence, when he felt sure of himself, but unfortunately it was affecting her ability to flirt with him.
"We're smoking a joint and talking," She said, leaning back a little and taking her second hit before handing it back.
"Yeah I know that, D," He started, taking a moment to let the smoke fill his lungs before he continued, still holding in the hit, "But like . . . We like each other, right?" He said, slowly exhaling, "Do you wanna like . . . go steady?"
Delilah was the one blushing and gulping now. IF there was one thing that made her nervous, it was commitment. Even though she had zero interest in anyone else, she still felt nervous when it came to relationships. "Uh . . ." She wasn't sure how to answer the question so she just shrugged her shoulders at him. "I don't know Eddie," She started off, watching the look on his face change as he handed her back the joint. "Can I have some time to think about it?" She asked, biting the corner of her bottom lip.
"Uh . . . of course," He said, running a hand through his messy hair before standing to his feet, "I better get going." She knew he was disappointed, but she genuinely didn't know if she saw herself in a relationship. She had never been in a long term or serious relationship, not even with Billy. It didn't mean she didn't have feelings for him, just that she was honestly scared of the outcome. She couldn't help but wonder what her friends would think to boot. The pettiest of things to think about. She watched as he put his boots on and she regretted not kissing him, giving him some kind of reassurance. Everything just made her nervous when it came to him for some reason and she couldn't put her finger on it.
"I'll call you tomorrow?" He said, though it was more of a question, like he wasn't sure if that was something that was okay.
"Yes please," She said, offering him a half smile before he left, closing her door softly behind him.
Delilah flopped down on her bed, joint sticking out of her mouth as she took a long drag off of it, knocking out a good amount. She was still feeling the butterflies despite not being able to reciprocate his desire to be in a relationship with her.
"Boys," She said to herself, ashing out the roach in the ashtray next to her bed.
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Author's note; sorry there wasn't more but I promise it's coming. Next chapter I'm kind of mixing it up as well. Don't worry I promise things will pick up before you know it! Thanks for all the new readers and the people commenting and starring my story. I really appreciate it and love to hear your feedback.