Chapter Text
Valentine’s day is coming up and Eddie doesn’t know what the fuck to do.
He’s been dating Chrissy for about three and half weeks and it’s been the total opposite of their initial dynamic of seedy backseat spanking. They haven’t been in that van for any other reason but to drive them around to their next date. In between the bowling and diner brunches, they’ve been extremely chaste. Maybe a quick, stolen kiss or three. But Eddie has kept his word to keep things slow.
But now the dreaded day is coming up and Eddie is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. He’s never celebrated Valentine’s day with anyone before, and he still hasn’t broached the subject with Chrissy.
So, he calls her up, fingers tangling in the phone cord. Staring at the mottled ceiling of his apartment while his pulse thrums in his temples.
After four rings, someone picks up with a croaky, “Hello?”, followed by a cough.
It doesn’t sound like Chrissy at all, so he assumes it’s her roommate he ran into briefly earlier. “Hey. Is Chrissy there?”
“Who is this?”
“It’s Eddie. Pretty sure we’ve met? I showed up at your door with a note for Chrissy.”
“Ohhh. Eddie.” There’s a slightly coy tone here. “Love Letter Boy.”
“Uh, sure.” Not his usual reputation but maybe it’s an improvement on Satanic Freak. “So is she there?”
“One second.” There's a muffled sound of another girls’ voice in the background.
His girl’s voice.
Chrissy finally picks up, unmistakable with the innately soft tone. “Hey, Eddie.”
“Hey, sunshine.” He feels lighter just from hearing her say his name. “How’s it going?”
“Drowning in homework. You?”
“Drowning in Dynasty re-runs. Might die.”
“Please don’t.”
“I’d ask you to come over and give me mouth to mouth but unfortunately I think your education is more important.”
“Hmm. I think I like your idea better.”
“No, you do your homework.” Eddie rests elbows on his knees, bare feet sinking into the coffee-stained carpet. “It’s healthy. Like taking vitamins or jogging or something. I don’t actually know, I never did mine. It’s a miracle I ever made it out of high school.”
“Which is weird, because you’re smart.”
“You’ve got a very low standard for smart, but thanks.”
“You read Lord of the Rings,” she points out. “That’s literature pretty much.”
“If knowing the dirty details of Tom Bombadil counts as smart, I’ll take it.” He picks at some forest green wax stuck on the coffee table. Rick has seriously got to stop with the candles. Eddie’s tired of scraping multicolored resins off of every surface. “So I wanted to ask you a specific question.”
“Yeah?”
“Valentine’s Day is coming up soon. Like, tomorrow.”
“Yes, it is.”
“Are we…in Valentine’s Day territory?”
There’s a pause that has Eddie tensing up, shoulders rigid.
“I think so,” she says brightly.
Eddie exhales a slow breath. “So what did you want to do? It’s my treat, obviously.”
“I want to go to your place.”
Eddie glances around the apartment shared with his buddy, Rick. There’s clutter everywhere. Several half-empty pizza boxes stacked in a corner that no one’s bothered to touch for weeks. Dirty dishes piled perilously high. The vague scent of wet towels and tobacco that somehow permeates everything. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Is that okay with you?”
“Of course. Yeah. It’s fine.” He nods, teeth digging into his bottom lip, eyeing the spider-webs crawling across yellowed crown mouldings. “I mean, it looks like a nuclear apocalypse swept through here, but I’m sure I can fix it up. I’ll just dig up my hazmat suit. Break out the bulldozer. Not a big deal.”
“I don’t mind a little mess.” There’s a smile in her voice, but Eddie doubts she’d be smiling if she were sitting next to him right now.
“Oh, yes you would. There’s only so much dirty bong water a girl can take.”
“We could watch a movie,” she suggests.
He considers this, then rises to his feet. Crosses over to his box of VHS tapes on the floor and plucks out a worn favorite. “You ever seen Plan Nine from Outer Space?”
“No?”
“Oh. Chrissy. You’re gonna cry, it's so good.”
“Is it actually?”
“Well, it’s supposed to be the worst movie ever made, but I think that’s a gross exaggeration.” He sets the tape back in the box and sits on the floor, cross legged, playing with a thread in the carpet. “Maybe top five but definitely not the worst.”
She laughs. “What’s the worst?”
“I don’t know but I’d probably adore it.”
“You like bad movies?” There’s slight skepticism in her voice.
“Love. Is that gonna be a problem?”
“No, I just never purposefully watched a bad movie before. I thought you were supposed to avoid them.”
“Avoid them?” That thought is pure blasphemy to Eddie. He’d be clutching his pearls if he had any. “You’re missing out, Chrissy. Seriously. There’s an art to this. A lifestyle, really. I’d make a career out of it if I could.”
“Okay, well, I guess you’ll have to show me the ropes.”
“Will do. So you wanna come over at eight?”
“Sure. Where do you live again?”
“It’s the apartment on the corner of Woodchester Drive. About a twenty minute walk from your dorm if you go straight down Hillside. Gray building. Falling apart at the seams. Emanates a sinister aura of doom. Can’t miss it.”
“Awesome!” Her overly cheerful tone makes Eddie chuckle. “Sounds good to me.”
“Same.” He genuinely is excited. Can feel the anticipation floating under his skin, an invisible glow. “See ya tomorrow, sunshine.”
“Bye, Eddie.”
Eddie hangs up, grinning to himself.
*
The panic sets in later.
The big night arrives. Being the procrastinator he is, Eddie scrambles to make the apartment presentable with only an hour and a half to spare, when he should have given himself a full day with a power washer. After kicking Rick out to stay with a girlfriend and scrubbing down the kitchen and bathroom in an animalistic frenzy, Eddie attacks the bedroom. Starts deep-cleaning the closet when he was only supposed to shove more things in there.
Crazy behaviour on his part. Unbridled insanity. Why is he doing this for a girl who isn’t even going to look in here? There are records buried in the depths he hasn’t seen in years. Old books and dried out pot. Money too, which he pockets for a future date with the girl he is losing it over.
Half an hour until arrival. The clock is ticking and Eddie has just come out of the shower. Trying to pick his hair off the slippery tiles because he imagines Chrissy’s standards are pretty high. Maybe she’ll be offended that hair exists in bathrooms. Maybe she cleans the shower while she’s showering. He’s never had a girl of her caliber over and the possibilities are overwhelming to him.
Shit, he actually feels ill. He’s never had butterflies this chaotic before either. It’s like they’re trying to claw their way out his ribcage to storm the apartment.
Is it because he might get laid?
Don’t think of that. It’s very rude to think of that when they both specifically said they’d take it slow.
Okay, but maybe he’d be able to feel her up a bit more…thoroughly.
No. Focus. No expectations.
Ten minutes to her arrival, Eddie scans the premises. It looks decent. It’s no show home, but maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe it’s not a good idea to give her false expectations in case they do become something more long term.
But decent doesn’t feel like quite enough. It all seems a bit dry. Rigid. Bland.
Ambience, he realizes. They need ambience.
He’s run out of incense, so he goes to the bathroom and checks under the sink. Sure enough, there’s a candle. A fresh one in a jar. Sea-foam blue. It smells like candy, like fairy perfume. There’s even sparkles in it. Rick is an absolute madman.
Maybe she’d like it?
Is he just pushing his luck? Will this seem bizarre to her? So unlike him? Is he trying too hard? Chocolate’s more than enough, right?
Holy shit, Eddie. It’s a fucking candle. Relaaax.
He sets the candle on the coffee table and lights it. The fragrance starts to hit as soon as the buzzer rings. Disorienting in it’s candy kingdom aura.
He lets her in the building and when she knocks gently on the door, his heart is climbing up his esophagus.
When he opens the door, he’s blinded by color.
She’s spruced up. Glittering blue-green eye shadow. A matching blue dress under her yellow wool coat and her hair in that high pony tail he’s thought about playing with for days. More elaborately wavy than normal tonight. A rippling sea of curls.
And she’s holding a chocolate, pink-frosted cupcake in her hand.
“Hi,” she says with signature brightness.
She’s already in his arms before he can return the greeting. He’s never been more grateful for her taking the reins. They fit together. Their body parts seem to curve into each other at the perfect angles. Natural. Easy. Safe. He kisses the crown of her head, struck by the comforting scent of her strawberry shampoo.
Relief floods his nervous system. His mental labyrinths are far worse than the reality of having her here with him. How could he forget they flow so well together? Plus, she’s so cute and sweet he could…
“Hey, don’t mess up my hair!” she says with a laugh. “I used a curling iron and everything.”
“Sorry.” His hand retreats but his grin stays. “There’s something irresistible about you right now.” He watches her place the cupcake in his palm. “Por moi?”
“I hope it’s enough. I’m kind of broke right now.”
He’s surprised by that statement. He always assumed she was spoiled by her parents, received a hefty monthly stipend and free trips to Paris. It makes him sad that she might not be because it’s only right she be pampered that way.
“You being here is more than enough.” He reaches for the small heart-shaped box of chocolates he had left on the nearby entrance table. Places the crimson box in her hand. “For you, sunshine.”
“Aw, thanks.” She takes the box with a grin. Goes up on tiptoes to kiss his mouth. Brief but impactful, her cherry lipgloss left tingling on his tongue.
Yup. He’s already succumbing, a horny thrall making itself comfortable in his gut and chest. He closes the door behind them, loose-limbed and edgy all at once.
“Hey, it’s nice in here,” Chrissy says as she heads into the living room. The lights are dimmed low and the candle glimmers. The ambience was a smart choice. He should give Rick some free weed for his addition to the night.
“More a display of my last minute cleaning skills than my actual lifestyle.” He places the cupcake on the kitchen counter.
“Well, I appreciate the sentiment.” She sits down on the couch, placing the box next to the candle he just lit. Looking around his apartment in a curious yet casual way. Not at all the impervious ice woman he was imagining mentally tearing his home apart.
He flops down next to her, putting an arm on the back of couch behind her. She scooches closer to him. He makes a note to not move an inch because he will definitely try to jump her if things get handsy too fast.
He takes in her features, appreciating her fae-like beauty in the dim light. Candle-glow flickering over heart-shaped features. Long lashes. Pillowy, pink lips he wants to suck on.
She eventually blinks at him. “So are we going to watch a movie?”
“Uh. Right. I…got it right here.” He rises off the couch and kneels to flip through the box of VHS tapes. He was so worried about the cleanliness of his apartment he forgot about them watching the worst movie ever made. The concept feels excruciatingly dumb to him now. He glances over his shoulder. “We don’t have to watch this. I have normal movies too. Well, normal as in like…shit with dragons.”
Chrissy beams a chiding smile. “You can’t hype it up that much and not show me.”
He returns a sharp grin. “You’re right. How could I possibly deny you this masterpiece?” He pops the cassette into the VHS player, very curious about how she’s going to react to his favorite disaster.
He sits down as the movie starts, arm looping around her again.
“Neat candle,” Chrissy quips.
“Yeah, you like?”
“Uh-huh. It smells like bubble gum. And…blueberries?”
“I promise you’d prefer that to the alternative of stale cigarettes and Lysol.”
“Oh, for sure.”
“What’s your place smell like? A flower patch?”
“More like…hairspray and weed. And incense to cover the smell…of weed.“
Eddie raises his brows. “Did you get high before coming here, Ms. Cunningham?” He presses a hand to his chest. “Bless your heart.”
“I gave the joint to my room mate. I hope you don’t mind. I think she appreciated it more.”
“Well, she did elevate me to the status of Love Letter Boy so I guess she can partake.”
“Sorry about that. She likes to tease.” Her lop-sided smile makes his heart twist.
“I’ll admit there’s a certain ring to it. I’m gonna miss Satanic Freak though.” She looks so adorable right now, he can’t resist. He plants a quick kiss on her. Urgent but soft.
She looks disoriented, eyes limpid. “You’re cute.” She pushes against him, kissing him back much harder. All tongue and hungry insistence.
He returns her kiss with equal passion before pulling away, the motion akin to ripping himself in half. “Let’s keep things PG…for at least the opening credits.”
“Oh.” A flustered laugh. “Um. Let’s watch the whole movie. I won’t get carried away, promise.”
Shit. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything.
The credits finish and the movie starts and Eddie’s already itching to touch her in very inappropriate ways. Thankfully, she guides him into a more chaste touch by holding his hand. Linking fingers like the virginal sweethearts they pretend so hard to be.
“Believe it or not, Bela Lugosi is in this.” Eddie strokes a circle in the center of her palm with his thumb.
“Who?”
“Bela Lugosi. Vampire guy?”
She shakes her head. “Never heard.”
He clicks his tongue.“What about Vampira?”
“No.” Her brows furrow. “Is this…a vampire movie?”
“Well, there are vampires in it,” Eddie attempts to explain, “but I wouldn’t exactly call it a vampire movie. It’s more of a sci-fi-horror smorgasbord.”
“I thought it was about aliens from the title.”
“Trying to label this thing will only confuse you. You gotta take it in without thinking. Turn your brain right off. Let it wash over you like you’re on high dose of acid.” He circles his hand like he’s wafting a scent up his nose. “Just soak it all in, baby.”
“Okay.” Chrissy nods slowly, the corner of her mouth perking. “I’ll try my best.”
They watch the movie in anticipatory silence, with her giggling every few minutes, thank god. Flimsy graveyards and smoke machines and bad special effects fill the screen. Chrissy curls her legs up on the couch. Her knees resting against his thigh, hip pressing into his side in a way he can’t possibly ignore. There’s a stirring beneath his zipper. Half hard and needy. Every time she shifts against him, it’s an electric zap to his insides.
“Everything looks like it’s made out of cardboard,” Chrissy rests her head against his chest. Snorting at the ridiculous excuse for a space ship zipping around like a plastic toy.
“That’s because it is.” He bites his lower lip as her amber-honey perfume drifts around him. The temptation to bury his face in her neck and kiss a trail down to her breasts is getting ferocious. “Ah, there she is! Vampira! The one and only.”
“She looks pretty,” Chrissy absorbs the black haired beauty with blood dripping down the corners of her mouth. “And evil.”
“Just how I like em’.”
“You’re saying I look evil?”
“I’m saying I like sweet church girls twice as much.” His gaze lingers on her inviting bottom lip before he forces it back to the screen. “What do you think of Lugosi’s cape? Sexy, right? Think I should start wearing one?”
“I’m kind of surprised you don’t wear one already.”
Eddie quirks a grin at her. Lifts his elbow over his face to make a faux cape. Hand on his shoulder, Lugosi-style. A lurking creature of the night. “You into vamps, Chrissy?” He makes a hissing sound.
“Depends.” She smiles in return, raising a subtle brow. “Are you gonna bite me?” There’s an undeniable challenge in her tone.
He’s done resisting. He lowers his arm and links a finger in the collar of her dress to expose her clavicle. Leans down and sinks his teeth gently into the side of her neck. When she gasps, he cups her head and licks her throat.
Their lips meet for a deep kiss and it’s cherries in his mouth all over again. Deepening with each stroke of tongue. Less and less inhibited as she opens up to him more and more. It’s easy to do. It still takes him off guard just how easy it is to melt into her. How once that initial barrier she’s erected is breached, they can get to the heart of each other.
They gradually lower onto the couch, and it’s not like he’s intentionally trying to push her into the cushions but that flow just comes so effortlessly.
But he still pulls back to make sure. “How far do you want this to go tonight?”
“You mean, physically?”
“Yeah.” Eddie shifts over her, the space between their bodies buzzing. “I don’t wanna rush you or anything. Like, take your time. But the sexual tension’s starting to kill me. I’ve only kissed you for nearly a month. I respect it, but being this close to you is…difficult.”
“I know,” she admits. “That’s why I kept making us do activities in public so we couldn’t get the chance. I knew we wouldn’t be able to resist.”
He can’t help but smirk at that. “How strategic of you.”
“To be honest, I was kind of testing you.”
He crooks his head to the side, scanning her. “To see if I was willing to wait around?”
He is willing to wait a lot longer than he anticipated. He’s never had blue balls this bad for this long and he still has a deep reservoir of patience left in him if she turns down his desire tonight. He doesn’t want to let her go for the foreseeable future so patience is mandatory. A skill he must learn.
Maybe not wait-until-marriage patient, but even that’s starting to not seem as farfetched as it once-
Okay, don’t get ahead of yourself, Munson. Chill.
“Yeah, and I feel like I can trust you now,” she confides, though a part of him finds it hilarious that she trusted him enough to spank her silly on day one of their reunion. “That’s why I wanted to come over. I’m…not really in the mood for anything too crazy tonight though.”
“So no safe words.”
“Just your average, run-of-the-mill heavy petting.”
He would have scoffed at that being dangled over him not too long ago. Now it’s like an oasis in the desert. “Gotcha.”
“But I also want to touch you,” she says earnestly, suggestively.
Goosebumps ripple up his spine. His gaze lingers on hers. “Touch me then.”
For the love of God, Satan, and all other applicable deities, please.
Then her hands are going up his shirt. Soft, hot, and endearingly damp. Exploring him in a hummingbird-light way that has him far more riled up than if she had scratched him open like he’s used to.
There’s something in restraint that can be more erotic than full-fledged sex.
It’s new territory for him.
“Is that nice?”
God, she sounds so innocent. “Heavenly.”
She smiles, wrapping her graceful legs around his waist, swan-like. Stroking her hands up his spine to cup the back of his neck. Pulling him closer so that their kiss can intensify, dissolve.
Then her hand comes between them. Slides over his belly, and feels him up through his jeans.
He’s trying not to breathe so hard, to not show how obviously aroused he is, but it’s fucking difficult with her being so overtly eager for him.
“Can I?” She plays with his zipper.
“Uh.” It’s like asking a ravenous wolf if he’d like a bunny-rabbit on a platter. The answer will always be the same. “Yes, please.”