Work Text:
The summer heat infuses Steve’s head, leaving him lazy and sluggish. The bones that once helped his muscles keep his body upright are now jelly and his skin prickles with sweat. It’s not too bad, though, under the shade of the trees, where the heat is less oppressive and more on the sweet side of hot. Plus, there’s Eddie.
Summer looks good on Eddie. The shirts he wears sometimes, sleeves cut off, the slashes so deep they show off all that winter pale skin, the way sweat glistens on him, or the flush the heat brings to his cheeks. And, Steve’s favorite, how the sun brings out the cute spray of freckles on his face, his pinking shoulders. Steve loves kissing Eddie’s shoulders. Well, Steve loves kissing Eddie anywhere.
Eddie looks over, flashing Steve a grin that makes his heart thump hard. He smiles back and Eddie’s grin turns to something bordering on shy. Steve huffs and stretches out, head pillowed on one hand, idly twirling the hair on his stomach.
Summer has always been his favorite season, ever since he was a kid spending endless days climbing trees, or cannonballing into his swimming pool, chlorine thick on his skin. The afternoons spent out at the lake with Tommy H and then, as they got older, with Carol, too, and other girls.
That one summer with Nancy…
But this might be the best summer yet. Sure, he still has to work, there’s no vacation from that like there was from school, but this thing with Eddie started on the first day of summer, and Steve feels good about that. Every now and then, he wonders if it’s a summer romance, period, wishing the summer could last forever so he’ll never have to find out, but… No. It feels more solid than that. Like it's going to last.
Still, he sighs and says, “I wish it could always be like this.”
Eddie tips his head to the side, looking down at Steve; his hair falls into his face, casting it half in shadows. “Like what?” He pushes his hair behind his ear.
“Just this…” Steve waves his hand around. “You know?” He shrugs one shoulder. “The sun, you and me out here…”
“Why can’t it be?”
“We have to go back to the real world, sometime.”
“I’ll let you in on a little secret, Steve,” Eddie says. When he speaks again, his voice is lowered, almost a whisper: “This is the real world.”
“You know what I mean.”
A breeze rustles through the trees, but it stops before it reaches them; Eddie rocks side to side, shaking his head. “I can’t say I do, Steve.”
Steve rolls over, propping himself on an elbow so he can look up at Eddie. “Just… Summer doesn’t last forever.” He presses his lips together. “And we’re not kids. We have jobs and…responsibilities.” Jesus Christ, he sounds like his dad.
“Eh, jobs come and go, just like the seasons.” Eddie shifts his weight onto one hand, leaning over Steve. “But it doesn’t mean this can’t last.” The way he says it, it’s like he’s read Steve’s mind, that he knows some part of Steve is worried this is a summer romance that will fade with the fall.
Warmth rushes Steve, and he sits up so he can look Eddie in the eyes properly. “We’ll have an endless summer, huh?”
“Sure,” Eddie says, eyes twinkling, “why not?” He spreads his arms and adds, “We can do whatever we want, Steve.”
Steve licks his lips; he reaches out to tuck Eddie’s hair behind his ear again, fingers skimming Eddie’s jaw. The faintest hint of stubble prickles his fingertips. “Whatever we want?” He leans in, lips brushing Eddie’s.
Eddie nods. “Yeah.”
Their lips catch, barely a kiss, as Steve leans in further. Not too far away, the late afternoon sun glints off the surface of the lake; it gives Steve an idea. “Well,” he says, “in that case…”
He licks Eddie’s lips once, twice, before he pulls away. It takes all his willpower not to lean back in, fall into the kiss completely, especially when Eddie chases it, but he manages to push himself to his feet, looking down at Eddie. He pulls off his shirt, throwing it at Eddie’s head.
Eddie tugs the shirt away, blinking up at Steve. “Wha—”
Steve hooks his thumbs into the waistband of his shorts and, with a wink, pushes them down and kicks them away. His underwear goes with them.
Eddie grins, eyes dark, the flush in his cheeks deepening. “I think I like where this is going,” he says.
“Get your mind out of the gutter.” Steve reaches over to ruffle Eddie’s hair, dodging Eddie’s wandering hand when he makes a grab for Steve’s thigh. “Later,” Steve says, delighting in the dazed look on Eddie’s face before he turns and runs off toward the lake.
Wind rushes in his ears, muffling Eddie’s words as he calls after him; his blood sings as his bare feet pound the dirt path down to the lake. The sun is hot on his skin and the air is thick around him and he can’t wait to get into the water; it’s been forever since he did anything like this.
“That’s not what I thought you were going to do when you took off your shorts.”
Steve glances over his shoulder to see Eddie not far behind, and he can’t stop the laughter that bursts out of him. He doesn’t say anything, though, only runs faster and faster until he’s finally in the lake.
The water is only up to his waist, but it’s cool on his warm skin, fucking bliss after the long, hot day. He sucks in a breath and plunges down, water rushing in his ears. When he pops back up, Eddie is splashing into the water, naked and cackling like the beautiful lunatic he is. He runs straight at Steve, throwing his arms around him and tackling him into the water.
Steve comes up spluttering; he pushes his wet hair out of his face. “Thanks for nearly drowning me.”
Eddie drapes himself over Steve, his chest pressed along Steve’s back, arms around Steve’s neck. “Guess I got a little excited seeing you all wet and naked.”
“Yeah, okay,” Steve says, shouldering Eddie off him and squeezing his nose.
The water ripples as Eddie moves around, ducking his gaze to catch Steve’s eye. He presses his palm to Steve’s chest. “You good, though?”
Steve’s brow furrows. “Yeah, I…” He huffs. It still surprises him, the little ways Eddie shows he worries, that he cares. “I’m good,” he says, and curls his hand around the back of Eddie’s neck. He kisses him, softly, and adds, “Plus, I still hold the record for being able to hold my breath underwater longest, so it’d take longer than that.”
“Ooh, I love a man with a big lung capacity.”
Steve snorts and splashes Eddie. “I can’t tell if you’re just being weird or perverted.”
“Who says it isn’t both?” Eddie moves his hands through the water, back and forth, back and forth. “But I know you wouldn’t have me any other way.”
“Yeah, you keep thinking that.” Steve snorts when Eddie flips him off. He splashes Eddie again, and Eddie splashes him back, and it turns into a game of who can splash each other the most (Steve wins, no matter what Eddie says) and they wrestle and dunk each other until Steve’s lungs ache with laughing and Eddie finally admits defeat.
“This is nice,” Eddie says, moments later, flopping back with one last splash so he can float leisurely. His skin is still flushed with exertion and Steve is suddenly struck with how pretty he is.
“Yeah.” Steve’s gaze roams the length of Eddie’s body, taking in the shape of his muscles, the scars so like his own and so different at the same time, the tattoos new and old, and, damn he’s lucky.
He draws in a breath and ducks under again, pushing himself through the water, circling Eddie, then swimming out of his reach. When he comes back up, Eddie’s watching him, bottom lip tucked between his teeth. “What?”
“Nothing. I just like watching you swim.” An exaggerated, wistful sigh slips loose from Eddie. “Kind of wish I’d come to some swim meets, back at school.”
“Well, you can watch me all you want now.”
“Then swim for me, Steve,” Eddie says with a flourish of his hand.
“I don’t know if I want to.”
“Please,” Eddie says, drawing out the ‘e’.
“Mm… If you’re gonna beg…” Steve says, falling into a backstroke before Eddie can say anything else. He swims relishing the familiar rush of water moving around him, feeling Eddie watching him the whole time. It’s heady, a different kind of feeling than being watched at swim meets. Then, he was only focused on his time, on winning; now, well, he’s showing off for Eddie alone.
“Fuck, you’re hot.”
Steve’s pulse leaps. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Eddie says, “come here,” reaching for him, and pulling him into a searing kiss when Steve swims over. His fingers sink into his hair, and he twists them, tugging, sending electricity shooting through Steve.
A tiny moan escapes Steve, so he trails his lips down to Eddie’s neck, kissing him on that spot he knows drives him crazy.
“Fuck,” Eddie says, and then he pushes Steve away. “Hey, uh…” He runs a hand through his hair. “Race you to that tree.”
It takes a moment for the words to sink in, in the wake of kissing Eddie. When they do, Steve follows Eddie’s gaze to a large tree overhanging the other side of the lake. “Nah,” he says, reaching for Eddie again, “I’d rather stay here.”
Eddie darts out of Steve’s grasp. “Aw, c’mon. Loser gets a kiss.”
“Stay here, and I’ll kiss you, anyway.”
Eddie’s eyes narrow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means, it wouldn’t be much of a competition.”
“I—” Eddie puffs his chest up, hands on his hips, looking offended, but he deflates a moment later. “Okay, that’s fair.”
“So, do you want that kiss now, or…?”
“A tempting offer, but I crave the thrill of competition, Steve.”
“Fine. But you can race yourself.”
“Whatever,” Eddie says, and splashes away.
Steve watches him, the way his legs propel him through the water, the flex of his biceps as he lifts his arms; his technical form isn’t great, but Steve isn’t thinking about Eddie’s technical form. His mouth goes dry and his blood pumps; he is so fucking lucky. He’s giddy with it. This thing with Eddie, it might not be the relationship Steve thought he’d have, but it’s so good. And Eddie is so fucking sexy and beautiful.
When Eddie reaches the tree, he turns back and calls out, “I want you to know this is a very hollow victory.”
Steve laughs and shakes his head, finally swimming over to meet Eddie. “So,” he says, “you want your kiss now?”
“Hey, you’re the loser remember?”
“Oh, yeah.” Steve loops his arms around Eddie’s waist, pulling them flush together. “Give me my kiss.”
“You know I love it when you boss me around,” Eddie says, winding his arms around Steve’s neck, once again sinking his hands into Steve’s hair.
“I know,” Steve says, and lets Eddie pull him into a kiss. It’s always easy to get lost in kissing Eddie, and he knows Eddie feels the same; it’s in the way he kisses Steve, giving all of himself to it, every time. And, so, Steve has no idea if they kiss for seconds or minutes or hours, standing in the lake under the dappled light, but when they part he licks his lips and says, “So, what does the winner get?”
“Whatever you want,” Eddie says, breathless.
Steve’s lips twitch. “You’re the winner, remember?”
“Oh, yeah.” Eddie gives his head a little shake. “Uh, I’ll let you know later.”
“Okay.” Steve smiles, a small secret smile, happy to be close to Eddie, knowing Eddie’s happy to be close to him. After a while, though, he says, “Hey, uh… Do you really think it can always be like this?”
“Yeah,” Eddie says, easy as anything. “I mean, we might get hypothermia in winter…” He grins, tongue between his tongue, but his expression softens, turns almost serious. “But, yeah, I… I mean, I want it to be.”
It’s the closest either of them has come to talking about the size of this, of their feelings for each other. So, Steve says, “So do I,” not wanting to leave Eddie hanging for even a moment. He trails his fingers down Eddie’s face, pressing his thumb to Eddie’s chin, tilting it up, and adds, “And you know what?”
“What?”
“It’s going to.”
And it is.