I bounced my knee up and down, watching Gareth and Jeff as they worked on a new song. It was terrible – it was disappointing to learn that they had been unable to write a song in two years. I cleared my throat as I leaned back into my couch.
"What do you guys want to do tonight?" I asked, trying to sound vague. Jeff shrugged.
"Whatever, man," he replied, strumming his guitar. I sat a beat.
"Maybe...maybe we check out the Hideout? I haven't been there at night in a while," I suggested, looking around the room. I finally locked eyes with Gareth, and he was glaring at me. "What?"
"You're so transparent," he spat, rolling his eyes. I feigned confusion.
"What are you talking about?"
"Haven't been there at night in a while," Jeff mimicked, making my voice sound stupid. I narrowed my eyes.
"I haven't!"
"Oh, I'm sure it has nothing to do with the surly girl who hates you?" Gareth quipped. I couldn't help but smile at the memory of her.
"Not for long," I said, grinning wickedly. Gareth groaned and fell back into the couch.
"Dude, please – Elle did us a favor in letting us audition, and I don't need you to piss her off any more than you already have," he begged.
"I just want to grab a drink at our old stomping grounds!" I insisted.
I was absolutely lying. I was itching to lay my eyes on Elle again, and hopefully make her smile. She was so mean when we left the other day, intentionally saying goodbye to Jeff and Gareth but ignoring me. It made me even crazier for her.
I spent the next thirty minutes working my ass off to convince them to go back with me and they finally relented. I sprang up and ran to my room, ignoring their calls for me to stop. I slipped into my favorite black t-shirt (the one I always got the most attention in, and that girls always insisted I should let them touch my arms in) and sprayed the cologne I saved for special occasions. I looked in the mirror, fixing my chain and smoothing my hair. I winked at my reflection and trotted back out to my friends. Neither of them spoke, simply rolling their eyes. I followed them out of my trailer, and we all piled into Jeff's small, green car.
We finally pulled up to the bar and Jeff parked. We all got out and I stood, running my hands through my hair and looking around. I was surprised by the amount of people who were filing in. The Hideout used to be a dive bar that no one went to.
I followed my friends in and kept my head high and on a swivel, desperate to lay my eyes on Elle. We walked to the bar, weaving through the crowd. We finally got there, and the same bartender from the other day was there. His eyes widened at us, and he smiled.
"What can I get you boys?" he asked, pulling out glasses.
"Jack and coke," Gareth replied.
"Same," Jeff said. The bartender looked at me.
"I'll wait!" I replied. The bartender smiled wryly.
"She doesn't bartend nights – she's busy with the band," he explained. I felt my face flush but smiled.
"Then I'll take two whiskeys and her location," I quipped. Gareth groaned but the bartender laughed. He poured the drinks and handed them to me. He pointed past me.
"She's right there," he said. I turned to where he was pointing and burst into a smile.
She was arguing with who I assumed was the lead singer – he kept trying to grab at her and she shoved him, pointing to the stage. She was in a different black dress, looser on her body but I still could admire it. I cleared my throat and sauntered over, steeling myself for her anger but excited for it.
---
"If you don't stop grabbing me, I'm going to replace you guys with a new band," I snapped, smacking Eric's hands away. He groaned and rolled his eyes.
"When are you going to quit being such a cocktease?" he asked, running his hand through his hair and smirking at me.
"When you grow a brain," I sniped. He glared at me, and I was about to yell at him some more when I was interrupted.
"I don't think that's any way to speak to a lady," the voice said. I bristled and refused to turn around. Eric glared at the person behind me.
"Who are you?" he asked. I knew who it was, but I was desperate for it not to be the case.
"Just a friend who wants to make sure this pretty lady is respected," the voice replied back. I buried my nose in my clipboard. I knew he wanted me to look at him. He wanted me to turn around and thank him for saving me from the big, burly man who was disrespecting me. Even though I was handling him.
"Go get on stage, Eric," I snapped, pointing to his band. He groaned but finally stalked off. I took a breath, steeling myself, and attempted to turn the other direction. I was unlucky as Eddie sidestepped in front of me, grinning down at me.
"Hey, Belle," he said, his eyes crinkling.
"It's Elle, Mr. Munson," I snapped, annoyed with him. I looked at him and got even more annoyed. He looked good. His shirt was tight, and he was showing off the tattoos that I used to admire from afar in high school. It looks like he had gotten more in the two years he was gone. He held out his hand.
"For you, pretty lady," he said, holding the glass of whiskey out. I sighed and made my face neutral. Eric and his band finally started to the cheers of the audience.
"I don't drink whiskey, Mr. Munson," I replied, my tone cold. His smile grew.
"You don't? What's your poison?"
"I don't see any situation in which that information would be pertinent to you," I said. I felt those awful remnants boil up when he tilted his chin up and leaned close to me. I could smell his cologne. It was nice. He was so close to my face. I stood stock still.
"Oh, maybe a situation where you and I get a drink together," he suggested. I cleared my throat.
"Again, as we will never be in that situation, you don't need to know my preferred liquor," I quipped. I saw his eyes flash.
"You're fascinating, Belle," he said quietly. I fought my blush.
"And you're in my way. Excuse me," I replied, stepping around him. I glanced over my shoulder in spite of myself and saw him watching me. He grinned when he noticed me looking back at him and he finished the whiskey he had bought me. I shook my head and stormed forward towards the bar. I went behind it, doing a quick inventory.
"How was the drink, Belle?" Nick asked, poking my side.
"Don't you fucking start," I seethed, opening a new bottle of gin. "You couldn't even have sent him with the right liquor?"
"Oh, what's the fun in that? I want him to win you over," Nick quipped. I rolled my eyes.
"There's no version of Eddie Munson winning me over," I replied. I looked at him. "Ever."
"The lady doth protest too much," Nick teased, tossing a dish towel at me. I felt anger burn in my chest. I decided to not reply to him, simply storming out to the back alley to take a deep breath. I set my hands on my hips and tried to calm down my racing heart.
Why, after all these years, did Eddie still have this effect on me? I felt like that stupid girl all those years ago before I wised up about him. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I needed to remember who I was. I needed to remember who he was. Some metalhead who didn't even remember me or what he did. I leaned up against the brick of the building and sighed.
No matter what, I was still that girl at heart. I winced at the memory of her and shook my head. No one recognizing me now was a respite.
"There you are," a drunk Eric slurred, stumbling out into the alley. I groaned and immediately tried to go back inside. "Woah, woah, woah, baby, wait—"
"I told you that if you keep pulling this shit, I'll replace you guys," I hissed. I tried to get through the door, and he grabbed my arm.
"And I told you – quit being a fucking cocktease," he snapped. I glared at him and ripped my arm out of his grasp, leaning close to his face.
"There would have to be something there for me to tease for you to call me that," I spat. I stepped back in. "Congratulations, you just got your band kicked off of Saturdays for a month."
I slammed the door in his face, locking it to inconvenience him and make him walk all the way around front.
---
I was sitting with Gareth and Jeff, tuning them out as they chattered on about something. I was still dreaming of her perfume and how good it smelled when I got close to her. I was watching the door that she had slipped out of earlier, waiting for her to come back. I needed to figure out how I was going to talk to her again. She was tough to crack – I loved a challenge.
"Have you seen Henderson yet, Munson?" Gareth asked, bringing me out of my thoughts. I felt my face flush and sat up, looking at my hands.
"Um, well, so—"
"Are you serious? You haven't seen Dustin yet?" Jeff exclaimed. I looked at my hands.
Dustin had been the angriest when I left. It was right after graduation, and I was done with Hawkins. I was done with everything and everyone, and I was convinced that to be successful, I needed to leave everyone and everything behind. I'll never forget how hurt Dustin was when I told him I wouldn't give him a forwarding address.
I was wrong, of course. I was miserable, with no support system and no friends. I tried auditioning for bands but could never really fit in, always holding myself back. It was a miserable existence. And I had been eating crow ever since I got back.
"Jesus, dude, he's going to be so upset if he finds out from someone else that you're back," Jeff said, shaking his head. I swallowed nervously.
"I know, I just...I just don't know how to tell him," I replied. They were quiet but nodded.
"He runs Hellfire now, you know?" Gareth said. I felt my chest seize with pride and grinned at him.
"Is he really?" I asked, my voice cracking. Jeff was finally his old self, warm and kind.
"Apparently he gives you a run for your money as Dungeon Master – all they do is talk about how ruthless he is," Jeff replied. I grinned widely at him. Before I could ask more questions, I watched the asshole lead singer stumble offstage. I watched him carefully, tuning out my friends. He wandered to the bar, harassing the bartender who had poured our drinks earlier. He finally brushed the drunk singer off, but then the singer stumbled through the door Elle had walked out of. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach and stood quickly.
"You guys need another round?" I asked. Before they could answer, I quickly raced over to the bar. I hung back, watching it. I saw it open a bit, but then close, and got worried. I snuck around to the door and paused.
I knew Elle would be mad either way. But I didn't like how he had leered at her or how he has touched her like he thought he owned her. I shook my head and decided I would rather her be angry and safe.
As soon as I had made my decision, she came through the door and slammed it, furious and full of venom. She let out a frustrated squawk, and I couldn't help but laugh. She turned, caught of guard.
Her face wasn't filled with its normal stoniness – it was shocked and soft, her eyes wide. I felt my heart catch. She was normally pretty but catching her like this made me even crazier for her. It was just for a moment, because then she went right back to her normal surliness.
"What do you want?" she hissed. I held my hands up.
"I saw that creep follow you – I just wanted to make sure you were going to be okay," I explained. Her eyes narrowed.
"I don't need your help, Mr. Munson," she snapped. God, when she called me that, it took me out. It drove me crazy for her. I smiled and nodded.
"Trust me, I'm well aware, Belle. I knew you'd be mad, but I wanted to make sure you had back up," I replied. "And maybe I wanted to see you take out the guy who's been bothering you all night."
In spite of herself, her face twisted into a smile. It was sweet and bashful. I felt a flash of recognition and was confused for a moment. I smiled back at her, and she suddenly remembered who she was talking to. She was stone-faced again and crossed her arms.
"Maybe I'll focus my ire on the other guy who's been bothering me all night," she said, her tone cold. My smile grew.
"I'd do anything to get your hands on me, Belle," I flirted, setting my arm against the wall and leaning close. Her perfume was great. She remained neutral. I really think I was falling in love.
She scoffed and stepped around me. I felt my chest ache, wanting to be around her again. I turned and felt my heart stop when I saw her looking at me. She cleared her throat.
"While it was not necessary, I appreciate your...I guess I appreciate it," she said. She was not at her normal iciness, and I felt my heart skip. Before I could reply, she turned on her heel and disappeared back into the crowd.