Asking the time Eddie woke up on any given morning (or afternoon) was already a riddle he couldn't answer, but ask him the day after a gig and you had more chance of milking a dragon while it lay slumbering on its hoard.
'Okay, that was too much even for me,' he thought as he pushed himself up from lying on his stomach.
His hair fell down to his shoulders in a sleep-created tangle and boxers felt twisted in a way that he couldn't be bothered to rectify just yet, first he needed to stabilize himself to earth and then he could think about his clothing situation.
Shifting to sit at the edge of the bed, he stretched out the kinks throughout his body and gave a weary sigh, palming the tiredness from his right eye that refused to clear from sleep-induced blur.
He wasn't sure why last night had hit him so hard, it wasn't a longer set than any other and yet he felt like he'd been dragged through it and hit every possible obstacle on the way.
Though that wasn't an unusual feeling, ever since he woke up in a too-white hospital room nearly ten years ago he'd find that sometimes his body would ache after some mundane activities or he'd tire easily from something that once wouldn't have had him thinking twice.
Sometimes he couldn't tell if that was merely natural ageing now that he was reaching thirty or if it was some kind of mental blockade that liked to rear its head from time to time, though he was pretty sure it was the latter.
If they physical scars weren't there to remind him of that terrible time in his past, then the mental ones certainly were.
Dropping his chin to his chest to stretch out the ache between his shoulder blades, he was met with the physical reminder of '86, the mass of scars that would be a lifelong reminder of what Hawkins had barely survived.
Man, was he glad to be out of that shithole.
He'd clawed his way out of the Upside Down a completely different man and both he and Wayne were more than eager to leave the town behind, especially as Eddie was still the local pariah, a reputation that he just knew would still hang over his head even with the actual culprit rearing their ugly head.
A part of him hadn't wanted to leave, but he ultimately wanted to give the place the middle finger as it disappeared in his rear-view mirror.
The people that needed to find him from that town knew where he was and he could make it to band practice, that was what mattered.
Grabbing the shirt he had discarded the night before from the floor, he pulled it on and stood up to stretch out the last of the kinks from his joints before he padded his way through the house, adjusting his boxers as he walked.
Although it had been nearly a year since he had moved in with his partner, Eddie still found it weird to walk through the floor of a house that was considerably more expansive than the places he had lived with Wayne, especially that infamous trailer.
Not to say that he wasn't thankful for the trailer, he'd have happily lived with Wayne in a castle of boxes if that's what the man could afford, Eddie would be happy anywhere that was semi-stable.
As he approached the kitchen, he caught the sound of scuffing feet and muffled music and instantly found himself smiling.
It was always a good day when music was in the house.
Not knowing if he'd be spotted as he approached the kitchen, he quickly pressed his back against the wall to sneak towards his usual vantage point where he could hide tucked up in the corner against the wall while he peeked around the door frame.
He'd barely glanced inside before he found himself smiling at the scene before him, his heart swelling.
It was sights like this that made him appreciate that he's taken on a typical job as a mechanic rather than jumped back into dealing.
Stood at the sink with bright yellow marigolds was his partner, headphones in they swayed to the music that he could just about make out as they dipped a glass in and out of bubble covered water before they scrubbed the inside with a sponge.
Keeping their rhythm, they set the newly washed glass aside and grabbed a plate do place into the water, still bopping on their feet as the music died down and another song queued to play.
Once the music swelled again, they started to hum as they scrubbed at the surface of the plate, it took a couple of seconds before Eddie recognised the song, one that brought a smile to his face knowing that it would bring the brightest smile to theirs.
Using their distraction and use of headphones, Eddie crept into the kitchen and made his way towards his oblivious partner, who had started to not only dance but quietly sing along, the compulsion too much to take for that particular song.
Once he was close enough and the song was at the peak timing that he needed, he wrapped an arm around them and pulled them until their back hit his chest as a yell of surprise left their throat. His other hand came up to grasp their headphone and pull it away from their ear as he leaned in and gave his best Freddy-inspired; "Crazy little thing called love."
A combination of a laugh and a yelled version of his name came from his lover as they twisted in his arms to face him, sud-soaked hands coming to rest over his shoulders.
"I thought you were still asleep," they said with a wide smile.
"Yeah, the thing about that is that they have to wake up eventually."
They rolled their eyes and papped his cheek, leaving behind a light spattering of bubbles and a warm but quickly cooling spot of water.
"Okay Mr. Pedantic."
"I prefer 'Sir Pedantic', if you don't mind."
"It just so happens that I do."
They smiled that smile he loved, the one that made their eyes twinkle, and then leaned up to kiss his cheek before turning back to the sink to continue washing.
Eddie kept his arms around them, leaning in the rest his chin on their shoulder as they both swayed to the music coming from the headphones.
Occasionally, he would mumble-sing along or press kisses to their neck or cheek, but both were content to let the music fill the atmosphere and dictate which rhythm they would be working on until the task was done.
"Okay, you can let go now," they said after wiping their gloves dry on the towel they kept rested by the sink before throwing that to one side so they could slide the Marigolds off.
"Hmm, no, I don't think so," Eddie smiled, tightening his hold. "I'm quite happy like this."
"Me too but I've still got things to do today."
"And you can't do them like this?"
"With you acting like a koala? I could try but it'd make my life ten times more difficult."
"Ten times, huh?"
"At least."
"I see...good argument, but I'm gonna have to counter it with 'too bad'."
"Oh, tough point to argue with there, Munson."
"I know."
They dropped their head back against his shoulder with a laugh, looking up at him with a look of love and adoration.
"What if I asked nicely?"
He pretended to mull it over, pulling his lips to one side as he furrowed his brow before shaking his head, brown curls managing to get even wilder than they already were from sleep.
"Nah, sorry, I'm going to need at least a bribe."
"A bribe?"
"Mhmm and it's gotta be a good one."
"Not asking for much, are you?" They laughed again before letting out a low hum of thought. "Okay, how about if you let me go I'll give you on command kisses and all the loving cuddles you could ask for,"
"Hm, that's very tempting."
They narrowed their eyes then huffed, "Fine, I'll even throw in a six pack."
"A whole six? How can I say no to that?"
They shook their head, unable to keep a straight face. "You drive a hard bargain."
Eddie gave a small hum in response and pressed a kiss to their temple, rocking them with the music that was still playing. He may have not been a huge ABBA fan but he could merrily jam to a bit of Dancing Queen if it made the one he loved smile.
"What are you thinking of for dinner today?" They asked, their eyes closed as they continued to rock back and forth.
"I dunno, maybe we should order something? Have a quiet night in after last night."
They nodded slowly, opening their eyes to look up at him again.
"You did amazing last night, you all really brought the house down."
"You think so?" He replied, unable to stop himself from grinning as his chest swelled with pride.
"Absolutely, you guys are going to be big someday."
"And you'll be front row of every show?"
"I better be, even if I have to pay my way in, I'll be at the front, screaming your name the loudest...except maybe for Wayne, who will be right beside me."
"You think he's a concert screamer?" He laughed.
"Oh, absolutely, the loudest."
He didn't think his smile could widen further and yet somehow, it had.
His arms tightened yet again and he buried his face in their neck to simply hold them and be in the moment.
It had taken hell of a lot to get to where he was and he still felt like he had a long way to go in getting over the trauma of Hawkins, but if things stayed like this then he knew he would be okay.