the_freak | Dear Billy

Fuck. Billy again. Eddie's expression definitely betrays that there's something larger at play in how he blinks and hesitates a moment.

"...maybe sit with that one for a bit first?" he suggests casually, "A few minutes, and then if you still want more I can make it?"

The way Eddie looks just makes the frown deepen. Was there something wrong? He had passed out earlier - Eddie probably put him on the couch and was just worried. Maybe he hit his head? Eddie said he vomited, so maybe he did while he was out of it. There's no telling.

A huff and he sits back with the piece he's halfway through at this point. "Yeah? Make me feel like a child with a timer and shit for my food." But he eats what he's got, and sits back with the blanket still in his lap. The headache is at least ebbing, his stomach cramps lessening with some sort of food in it. But he waits, drumming his fingers on a knee while he does.

Because he wants more. He's hungry, damn it.

"Yeah, well, if you're a real good boy you get a shiny gold sticker," Eddie teases lightly, lips spreading into a grin.

He's not really sure how to properly fuss, dropping a second blanket into Billy's lap and pretending to get one for himself, quickly dropping it unused onto a chair and forgetting about it as he settles into a completely different one.

"So um...do you...how are you...feeling?" he asks carefully, not sure how to broach this. Hey, do you feel like you have a whole other guy in your head, but not THAT guy? Cause you do!

There's a bit of staring for a very long moment. Then another, then he finally looks away. He hears Eddie approach, and accepts the random blanket being added to his lap. He pulls it around his dirty figure, sinking into its warmth. Well, what little warmth it has at the moment. Hopefully it'll have more from what little Billy's radiating.

"Mostly hungry. A little... almost like being hungover I guess? Just, the usual feelings after you get sick." Eyes glance over Eddie, lingering on his hands like they'll magically produce more toast. "A bit tired too, but I'm always tired." Billy didn't realize that being tired was just a side effect of switching, especially when they body had to deal with Hargrove's high energy.

Eddie glances reflexively at his broken watch, but naturally it gives him no idea how long he's actually made Billy wait. He wants him to be able to keep it all down this time. If he caves too soon and Billy gets sick he figures he'll feel worse than he does now.

"God, I know. Like...five more minutes, okay? Pills should kick in soon," he offers, though maybe Billy doesn't remember taking them...that was Hargrove. "...do remember how you wound up on the couch?" he tries to prompt.

What pills? Was Eddie trying to drug him or something? Fuck. Or maybe he was thinking too hard about it, it was probably just aspirin. He notes how his head hurt but less now. He rubs his forehead with a grimace, thinking on the question.

"I remember… sort of collapsing. Over there," and the blond points to the area where the switch had happened. When Hargrove had deemed Eddie a threat and went for answers. "Figured I had blacked out or some shit and you put me on the couch. Better than staying on the floor."

A moment or two passes. "Do I seriously have to wait five fucking minutes for another piece of toast?" Maybe Billy will apologize for what he's saying while he's hangry.

"Something like that," Eddie agrees. He needs to wrap his own brain around this before he tries to explain it properly to someone else. And he doesn't need Hargrove jumping out to try and strangle him if he freaks Billy the hell out.

"I mean...I don't actually have any authority here." Eddie points out with a grin, "But if you want me to make it for you, then yeah. You're gonna wait five whole fucking minutes." There's a playfully challenging look directed at Billy.

It wouldn't be the first time he's blacked out, it won't be the last. Billy takes that in stride and is at least glad someone was here to get him off the floor. Blue eyes linger on the vase and he gets up to pick it up and carry it back to the couch. Billy looks like he's about to say something, but Eddie beats him to it. Talking about making the toast.

Instead of giving a smart retort, Billy throws his blanket over Eddie's head and sets down the vase on the coffee table before heading to the kitchen. "Fuck you, I'm not waiting for you to burn the house down to make toast." Ah, there's the snappy remark. He goes to the kitchen and fishes out another few pieces of bread. He eats at one while the other two toast. The stomach growls again, protesting the meager offerings but it's better than nothing.

"Hey-" Eddie's protest is muffled by the blanket, and it takes him a moment to untangle himself from it, trying to push his hair back into place with a huff. "Arson's not my thing, remember?!-" he retorts, raising his voice rather than follow after him. Of course- Billy won't remember it's murder that's his supposed new thing, but there's plenty of alleged crime to chose from when it comes to 'that Munson Boy'.

He sighs and settles in the chair rather than try into stop him, touching his side and wincing a little. Maybe he's over done it today with the physical crap. Wheeler'll give him hell if she finds out he hasn't been taking it easy.

"If it's not arson, then what is it, freak?" Billy calls back, eyes set on the steam coming out of the toaster as it does its job to the bread. When it pops, he quickly puts it onto the plate and heads back to the living room. He and Eddie might not be friends, but Billy doesn't want to be alone. Not after months in the darkness.

He catches the wince and plops down hard next to the other. "What did you do? Looks like something hurts. You finally fuck around and find out with someone?"

"Well, we are in my supplier's house right now," Eddie returns, cheeky grin almost audible in his voice, "You weren't one of my clients though. Maybe you have some wonderfully wholesome image of me."

"Nn- fuck-" Eddie makes a show of rolling his eyes, laughing softly, "First off, it would not be the first time, let's not kid ourselves," he points out, trying to redirect with humor, and he shrugs a shoulder, "Nothing serious," he lies almost reflexively. Though Billy knows at least a bit about the sort of shit that's really going on in Hawkins, don't he? "You know, just...epic battle wounds, fighting evil. Totally boring shit."

"Fuckin' junkie," he mutters around the crisped bread. "No one in school has a wholesome image of you. You're a freak, Eddie." The first piece gets finished off quickly, proving just how ravenous he is. Even licks the crumbs off of fingertips. He tries to not think about the cupcakes that were put in the fridge for later.

Finally, he turns his gaze down to where Eddie had been pressing at his side, scowling. "So you're fucking hurt. And now trying to play it off?" The last piece of toast gets a mega-bite bitten from it before he's up again, moving towards the bathroom. Or where he thinks it is anyways. "Where's a first aid kit? Not having you bleed out on the couch. Or get infected with whatever the fuck is on those cushions."

After all, if it wasn't safe to have his face pressed into it, probably wouldn't be good to have an injury near it either.

There's an amused noise, Eddie not seeming bothered by the title at all as he grins widely. He's built up a whole persona around it, leaned in and taken some of the power from those who spit it at him with malice. "You should try it some time, you might like it."

"It's fine," he dismisses, but Billy's all ready up. Eddie wants to say he doesn't know, but he's familiar enough with Rick's place to wave him back towards the kitchen. "Top cupboard, on the left."

Billy listens and his steps can be heard going back into the kitchen. While he looks, he drops another piece of bread into the toaster to cook while he searches. Thankfully with Eddie's directions it doesn't really take long to find it. The toaster pops, the first aid kit is found, and the toast is held in his mouth as he heads into the living room.

"Over." He twists his hand to indicate what he wants Eddie to do, then takes the toast out of his mouth. "Let me see it. Before you bleed through your shirt and you look like a God damn crime scene."

"Are you making more fucking toast??" Eddie gives an exasperated groan. He's totally going to puke again. Though he does seem to be managing better. Maybe his stomach's adjusted some.

He gives a vaguely disgruntled look, but he's all ready moving to twist into position. "You know, most people buy me a drink at least before they start ordering me around like this," he notes with another of those grins, tugging his shirt up and off with a bit of strain. He's definitely torn some of the stitches Nancy worked so hard on, bandages stained with blood, and he eyes it with guilty surprise. "You know what you're doing at least?" he asks.

"I told you I was fucking hungry!" There's some anger in his tone, and Billy quickly finishes off the piece before taking a seat again. The kit gets opened and rummaged through while Eddie takes his shirt off. There's a glance and a scowl at the torn stitches, and he picks out surgical needle and thread that were still in the container.

"Yeah. You learn to do shit like this where I'm from." With what he's experienced anyways. Easier to fix himself up, rather than go to a doctor and let his dad get wind of it at all. The last bit of bandage gets taken off and tossed to the side to deal with later. "No numbing shit in here. You're a drug dealer so I'm guessing you're not gonna be a pussy about this."

With a little skill, the blond manages to thread the needle and finish readying it. "And if you start flinching on me, I'll knock you out so you stay still."

"Yeah, well don't come crying to me if you puke your guts out again," Eddie mutters.

"What, California?" He drops that teasing tone just a bit, afraid of coaxing out that proper anger if he pushes too far. Annoyance keeps him from displaying too unsure of a look. He managed without last time, but Harrington had to hold him down. They were fresher then though, and he isn't sure he's about to die this time, so he nods with a defiant look.

"You really need to work on your bedside manner, you know that?"

"You really think I care about my bedside manner?" Billy wasn't known for his manners after all. "And yeah, of course California, not this shitstain of a hick town." The words are all but spat out. Billy hasn't warmed up to this city by now, especially after being shut away somewhere dark and unknown for the longest time. The blond moves in closer and gets a better look.

"Won't take too long to stitch this back up." He had done it to himself once, stitching up a gash on his arm caused by a plate. The skull tattoo covered the scar left behind for the most part.

The stitching starts and for whatever it's worth, Billy's hands are as gentle as they can be. He remembers this shit hurting when he closed up his arm. "I hate it here," comes the quiet admittance. "California has it's flaws, but at least the ocean makes up for it."

"Heh, well not for someone like me at least," Eddie teases lightly. The only times he's seen Billy lay on the charm and behave a bit has been for whatever girl seems to catch his eye.

Eddie doesn't jump to defend Hawkins. A little hard to after everything, but he does frown a little.

He closes his eyes, exhaling through the first bite of the needle, but he's sat through enough tattoos that he handles it better than either of them were likely expecting. "Never seen the ocean," he notes, matching Billy's softer tone, "You going back? After you-" he cuts himself off, remembering abruptly it's not a question of waiting until after graduation. There's not going to be graduation for either of them.

Easier to lay charm on women when word could get back to his dad about charming anyone else. But now if he was supposedly dead and Neil was gone...

Well that changed things.

Billy concentrates on his task, only glancing blue eyes to meet brown before continuing. "I would, if I had the money. Can't afford to drive all the way out there with my stuff and get a place to live." And he'd have to figure out graduating, but there was no telling how that shit was going to work with all of this Upside Down nonsense. And that he was a literal dead man by government records.

He ties off the end and rummages through the kit to pull out bandages and medical tape. It gets cover and secured before he gives it a light smack. "You're done. Don't rip it open again. Did that happen because of that shit the kids talked about? Upside Down or something?" He remembered Max talking about it.

He remembered something taking over his brain and how it split that brain apart a month later.

Eddie gives a hesitant nod, shrugging his shirt back on carefully. It still feels wrong to talk to anyone outside of the circle of people who filled him in on all this shit to start with. But Billy's not going to think he's crazy based off what Eddie's heard and pieced together, and he's not going to run off to the cops, so...

"Yeah. It happened down there. When we were trying to destroy him. Coulda been a lot worse," he dismisses with a guilty shrug. Obviously whatever hurt he'd suffered was nothing compared to Max.

Billy is going to be the last person to think Eddie is crazy. Hell, he doesn't even know he's mentally unstable now. He does look surprised, though it's not clear if that's a good or bad thing yet. "Oh. I didn't... know it was an actual place."

The fasteners on the first aid kit snap into place, locking it. Billy gathers up the garbage he made before heading back into the kitchen to throw it in the bin. He thinks about making more toast while he's in here, but the blond passes for now and just heads back into the living room. "I'm guessing shit is still going on with it too? There was... an earthquake. I think I passed out during... or maybe after it happened." Meaning it wasn't safe and it was jarring and Hargrove took the driver's seat again.

"Did that place make it do the quake?"

Eddie gives a nod that says it's a whole long story. "It's a place. A fucked up version of Hawkins with monsters and shit," he summarizes grimly.

As for what's going on... Eddie hesitates again, but nods. "Vecna, he um...the earthquakes were him opening up a gate. A real big ass gate. Between our world and the Upside Down."

"Didn't think this place could get worse," he mutters. But it can and it has and Billy doesn't like it. He stands there for a long moment, showing on his face that he's debating something. The cupcakes in the fridge, even if it's too early for his birthday.

A decision is made and he sits. "Great. More upside down bullshit." He wants a beer. He almost wants a smoke. At least being hidden away made him clean of cigarettes, to his dismay at the time. The couch creaks as he sits once more. "I guess I have to stay here right? And you too since you're wanted for murder?"

Because Billy remembers that before he passed out.

"Hey, you only had to spend a few years here," Eddie teases with a pointed look. "I promise, you do not know the depths of how much this town sucks ass."

And god, Eddie wants a beer too. A smoke. A joint. Anything to clear his head. He's only got one of the three, and a limited amount at that, so he tries to hold off a little longer, finger tapping anxiously.

"You don't have to, but it's probably safest for now at least," Eddie agrees, "I have a few connections I can talk to, but you're going to take some...explaining."

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