𝚃𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚊 𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚙 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚌

𝙻𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍,

𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚒𝚗'𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚏 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚝.

𝚆𝚊𝚕𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚙𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚌 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚢 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍.

𝙴𝚖𝚋𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜.

𝙼𝚢 𝚍𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚕𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚎𝚊𝚛,

𝙳𝚎𝚊𝚏𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚏𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜

𝙸'𝚖 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚎.

𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎'𝚜 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚎 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚍𝚎

𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚜.

𝙲𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚘𝚙𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚒𝚎.

𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚍𝚊𝚛𝚔𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎.

"Oh that's a load of bullshit!"

"Shut the fuck up, dude!"

"You're ridiculous."

"As if."

"You're so full of it!"

"What?" Eddie laughed. "I haven't seen any of you shoot your goddamn shot!"

"That's because we don't need to be publicly shamed to know people like us," Jeff expressed loudly, flipping his fingers around the boys sitting nearby. "We don't have a chance with people like Lennon Seagrave."

"Dude," Eddie threw himself back and cringed dramatically. "Why are you acting like she's not of the same species? What are you even talking about, 'people like us. People like her...' We're the same people, Jeff."

"Ha!" he cackled. "How's that going for you then? I never took you to be one for a degrading kink," he joked, causing almost everyone around them to burst into laughter; all except Gareth.

"She's quite the charmer, isn't she?" he wallowed in satisfaction as he gazed up at the stage lights with a goofy grin spread from ear to ear.

"Dude," Dustin cackled. "You're never gonna get it."

"Thats not gonna stop him from trying," Grant laughed.

"At least I don't put people on pedestals and differentiate status of people into impossible and unachievable social expectations," Eddie complained triumphantly, smiling proudly at his sudden ability to speak out on social conformity in a logical and intelligent manner.

"Bro."

"Oh my god..."

"Here we go..."

"Tell me I'm wrong!" Eddie rebuked happily, throwing his hands out and smiling victoriously as none of his friends were able to counter him. "Until any of you insecure prudes make a stand and grow a pair, I rest my case," Eddie settled back in his seat, thinking he was ready to resume the game since he had won the argument.

However, his triumph didn't last very long when Gareth leered from the left of Eddie's battlefield.

"At least some of us were invited to go to party with her..."

Everyone got quiet.

The freshmen on the right side of Eddie were all staring at him curiously, all except Dustin who knew mentioning it would cause another uproar from Eddie who was protective and borderline possessive of the new cheerleader.

He was slicing through the air with piercing daggers in his eyes. His weapon of choice met Gareth's testing gaze with urgency. Even Gareth didn't know what to do.

"What did you just say?" he narrowed his eyes conspicuously and met Gareth's teasing tone with one of pure devilment.

Gareth's throat swelled nervously but he didn't stand down. "What? That's what kept us preoccupied..." he admitted innocently. "She was asking Dustin and me to come with her to this party tomorrow as her friends," he blushed and wiggled his head at Eddie to further make him jealous.

Eddie raised his brows and simmered in his protest. "Oh?"

"Can we get back to the quest?" Mike complained, knowing this was bound to be a long, drawn-out conversation if people didn't start focusing on the game.

"Ah, ah, ah, Wheeler," Eddie put his hand up and shushed the kid without taking his eyes off Gareth. "What was it I heard just a second ago?" he threatened the boys around the table with a look of disbelief. "That 'people like us'," he deepened his voice theatrically "don't have a chance with 'people like her'?"

Nobody wanted to speak up. He scared people into silence as his eyes filtered through them like a snake in tall grass. Nobody wanted to spook the venomous creature and nobody wanted to be the one to get bit. So, nobody moved, nobody spoke, and most didn't even bother breathing.

Eddie didn't want to admit how hurt he was to hear she was willing to call Dustin and Gareth her friend even though they hadn't even shared a single conversation. But there he was, putting in the effort just to have earned that title in secret. He didn't even know what he was to her in front of people. All he knew for sure was that the idea of those two being asked out to a party with her was infuriating and Gareth's playful jibbing wasn't helping.

"What do you call that then?" Eddie got to his feet and shot his hand out to Gareth.

"Eddie," Dustin chimed in nervously. "I'm pretty sure it's her brother who's dragging her along..." he admitted. "I don't think she wanted to go at all..."

"Why the hell would she ask you two in the middle of the biggest game of the year then?" Eddie pried, leaning towards Dustin who was sitting beside him to get a better listen.

"She looked kinda freaked out if I'm being honest," Dustin added.

"It's what?" Eddie peered down and moved his leather jacket out the way to reveal the time on his watch. "Halftime? I bet she's freaked the fuck out. When the hell would she have time to invite you, dorks?"

"You're so jealous," Gareth snickered, causing Will, Grant, and Jeff to giggle and chuckle at Eddie's irritated stare.

"I'm sorry," Eddie shot back with a fire burning in his eyes. "Why the hell would I be jealous of you," he laughed, sitting down in his chair and deriding Gareth pitifully.

"Everyone knows she's your little prodigy," he smirked. "And you're not one to share."

"She's not a piece of meat, Gar," he cringed. "You can't split her like a fucking pizza."

Something shifted in Eddie. He wasn't as protective in the same way as he was before. It wasn't self-driven. He was protecting her as a human being now, not as his... friend? Makeout buddy? Girlfriend? He didn't know. But it didn't matter either; not now.

"And who said she was my prodigy?" he continued to criticize the junior of the group.

"You're constantly chasing after her..." Jeff added to back up Gareth. "That or staring... You're always staring," he rolled his eyes in disbelief.

"And? I'm not gonna lie right now, all this lack of support and disbelief kinda hurts my feelings, guys," he shimmed out his jacket and slung it over the back of his throne which was quite literal in the sense that the theatre kids crafted one for a play they finished the week before. "You don't think I have even the slightest chance," he accused them all of betraying him.

"She would've made it a little more obvious if you had," Dustin scrunched up his nose as he broke it to his older friend.

"Whuh-" he gasped dramatically and grabbed for his chest as if it ailed him to be faced with such incredulity.

It killed something inside Eddie to bite his tongue. He would've jumped at the opportunity to rub it in their faces that he managed to charm the hell out of her... or rather... into her...

He would've instantly kissed and told if it weren't for the fact he valued her privacy and wishes more than his own ego and conquest. He knew she would've been furious if he had told them what they did alone. If she ever found out Eddie told people about their stolen kisses or their uncomfortable comfort, or even their support for one another when they were having panic and anxiety attacks, she would never forgive him.

"We'll see about that," he fell back in his pride and tried to rummage through his mental capacity to continue the game so they could all go home.

***

By the end of the game, Lennon was weakly holding onto her ability to stay upright. The CBD must have worn off because, by the time her feet were back on the ground, she wanted to cry and collapse all at once. Luckily, she didn't, but she wanted to.

In the end, she tried to celebrate with the rest of the team for their victory over the guest team but she wasn't feeling up for it. She was tired and stressed and worried because now she had to tell Billy she was accepting his invitation to be his date to Heather's party.

It was obvious that he was happy when they rose Lucus Sinclair into the air for scoring the winning shot last minute. But when Billy's eyes locked on her innocent ones from across the court, he fell back in his jubilation, straying from his teammates, and made his way over to her.

"We fucking did it!" he shouted exuberantly and earned an honest smile out of Lennon before she congratulated him.

"And by the way," she added. "I think I'll take you up on that offer for tomorrow," she watched nervously as his smile widened and his bottom lip was pressed between his teeth.

He bolted towards her at a sprint and wrapped his sweaty, warm, and muscular arms around her body. He clung to her smaller frame and joyously swung her in a circle to show his glee.

"Eight!" he shouted over the cheering in the bleachers. "I'll pick you up at eight!" he let go of her and started to back away when Jason and Bradley called out for him to join them.

"Eight is it!" she agreed, trying not to fret over the fact he had touched her and yelled at her at a sudden pace she wasn't prepared for.

If it hadn't been for the fact she was getting better with managing her PTSD and with Eddie's support, she would've been a mess after Billy held her like that. She just thanked the heavens he didn't try to kiss her.

Lennon turned and watched as the cheer team started to follow the boys out into the hall. Only Chrissy seemed to notice her hanging back. She fluttered her hand delicately but Lennon forced a smile and shook her head, casting her gaze out to the crowd and ushering towards Brontë who was already making his way down to the floor.

Chrissy nodded in agreement and gave her a thumbs-up before disappearing behind the double doors.

Once Brontë got to her, he engulfed her in a hug and jokingly complained about her being sweaty and smelly.

She slapped his chest and scoffed. "You're going out with the team, right?" she reassured the plan for the rest of the night so she could easily sneak off into the drama room and find the Hellfire Club to convince them to go to Heather's party; even though she wasn't in the position to be handing out invitations, the idea of going alone was horrifying.

She didn't care about her authority of lack of. She wasn't going to let Billy get the chance to enjoy the date so she wouldn't have to keep playing along to his tune.

One, it wasn't fair to him since he was actually interested in her. It was one thing to mutually agree to pretend to date and flirt, but he didn't seem like he was messing around. He looked like he actually liked her and she didn't want to play with his feelings if that were the case. Her infatuation with Eddie wasn't worth it. She wouldn't destroy someone else to get what she wanted. She wasn't about to start doing crooked shit to get time with him. She was changing into a new person, but that would be too much.

Two, using him for publicity wasn't right either. She was upsetting Tina and the girl didn't deserve that kind of betrayal. Lennon admitted that he was all hers, but now she was acting like she was in love with him. That was two-faced of her and she knew it. And Max... She was not going to do that to Max of all people. She was one of the only girls at school who liked the parts of her she hid. She wasn't going to put that girl through more hell because she made a mistake by letting Steve see her and Eddie being friendly in the halls.

There was too much at stake. She owed Billy a favor and knew this was going to be more merciful than anything he could've come up with in the future so she took it for what it was worth. Once she fulfilled this end of the deal and showed Billy she wasn't the girl he wanted, all would be right in the world.

Nobody was going to get hurt. So, when Brontë told her he was going to drive her home and head out with the team immediately after, she quickly told him she was catching a ride with Dustin. Brontë didn't pry too much after that. He asked who was driving since Dustin was only a freshman but once Lennon told him she'd figure it out, he went after Steve and Lucas.

Lennon laughed at her brother's ability to be so misled due to his own desires. He was too excited about being a teenager again to focus on the details of her whereabouts which kept Lennon from feeling more guilty about lying to Brontë. Otherwise, the lie would've consumed her. But she wasn't hurting anyone and Brontë only cared now because he had to be her guardian. If he were just her brother and her brother only, he would've deserted her without a second thought. So, Lennon had a little chuckle after waving him goodbye.

When they went their separate ways in the hall, Lennon snuck off to the theater room. When she turned the corner, she could make out loud screaming and aggravated or frustrated groaning coming from inside.

She slowly opened the door and peered inside. Surprisingly, she was backstage. She was expecting to be in a room filled with empty seats and faced with a large open stage. Instead, she was behind the curtains and got trapped in a maze full of old, discarded props, messily put away fold-up chairs, stray papers, cardboard cut-outs of buildings, paper-mache furniture, costumes, paint cans, and so much more than she bargained for.

She was careful when she let the door close behind her. The sound of passionate screaming got louder and she didn't want to intrude. There was a soft click when she was inside and she watched her footing under the dim lighting of the main stage.

The red curtain was closed but the lights shining from above were directed to the center stage. The only problem Lennon had was with the fact there was so much in between.

She found a cardboard tree, a handmade sculpture of a building, a hefty stack of paint cans, and a lot of unusual props she couldn't make out from either poor quality or the fact people tore them to shreds once the plays were all over for the season. She couldn't see anybody but she could hear them plain as day.

She followed the sound of laughter and dramatic gasping, being careful where she stepped and stopped when the sound of Eddie's voice appeared between the overlapping chatter.

She couldn't help but smile.

She weaved in between the cardboard cut-outs and came to a halt when she reached a wooden table stacked with paint, papers of various origins, and chairs. There were two things keeping the boys hidden: something about twelve feet tall covered in a sheet and a wall-like art project that looked awfully ship-like with cut-outs that had to be the windows of the underbelly.

Golden light flooded from behind the cutouts and because she didn't want to interrupt such a loud, daunting, and intense foretelling, she pressed her palms to the wooden table and leaned over, peering in through the 'windows' and remained hidden while also being able to watch.

She was facing Dustin, Will, and Mike front on and if it weren't for the fact she was several feet away and they were preoccupied with a battle between their characters, they would've been able to spot her with ease. She was able to look over Eddie's shoulder and had Grant's back predominately facing her as she kept behind the props.

Eddie grew in size, towering over the boys as his voice turned creepy and bellow-like. All the boys were sat in their seats with the exception of Mike who, like Lennon, was leaned over the table with his lips agape and his eyes wide on Eddie.

The tall brunet had his hand crawling towards the raven-haired boy evilly with a grimace.

"Now, with the undead lapping in clumpy pools of their own boiling flesh and blood, and with both her red and blue heads slain, tumbling at Tiamat's clawed and vengeful feet thanks to Lord Peregrin Hextor and Gaemon Windslore's immediate retaliation, she thunders upon you, Chadwick Wheelix," Eddie thundered hauntingly. "As her three remaining heads fall to the slopping, bleeding, severed remains of her fallen mates, she lets out an agonizing scream," and promptly, Eddie lets out the loudest, most blood-curdling scream Lennon had ever heard.

The abrupt and surprising power behind his scream caused Lennon to gasp and jump backward, hitting her elbow on one of the many stacked cans of paint on stage, sending them clattering and with them, the cloth to the styrofoam sculpture, spreading the color red across the white canvas.

Lennon immediately fell back and held her hands over her mouth to suppress the laugh threatening to give out. She thought she would be mortified to have been caught. She didn't think she would find it funny.

However, when Eddie displayed such a gory image of death and carnage in his game of D&D, the color of the paint Lennon spilled was the too ironic not to make her want to roll on the floor laughing.

"Fuck!" Jeff gasped.

"Shit!" Gareth grumbled.

"For the love of God!" Dustin flinched.

"Jesus H. Christ!" Eddie muttered as he grabbed his chest.

"Hello?" Mike called out curiously.

The clattering obviously caused the boys to jump as well and the spilled red paint wasn't reassuring.

She guessed nobody could see her and she didn't know what to do now that her cover was blown. It was embarrassing but it was even more embarrassing to have been watching in hiding.

Surprisingly, she didn't step out from behind the safety of her plaster ship with apologetic eyes or a self-conscious frown on her face. Instead, her sleep-deprived, energy-drained mind clung to the idea of D&D.

In the midst of her panic, she quickly decided that conformity would be her best chance at protecting her social status. These people were nerds, she needed to conform to be accepted. So, she remembered the name Eddie called her the other day and ran with it...

"I come in peace!" she pleaded, not showing her face as she put on a mournful, desperate voice on in the time being. "It tis only I," she snickered, wincing to hide her humor before clearing her face of any emotion other than hope. "Lennon the Endurer."

She was lowered to the ground and stuck her hands I to the red paint before smearing it against her neck and over her chest. Her hands were red and the liquid pouring from her neck mimicked blood.

She bit her bottom lip as she fought the smile wanting a place on her face as she knelt down beside the can of red paint and revealing herself to the boys.

She set the can upright to prevent any more from coating the floor or the sheet that covered the fake statue someone carved out of styrofoam and stood tall in front of them with forced confidence.

Her eyes immediately went out to Eddie and Grant since they were closet and when she was met with chuffed smiles, she knew it was going to be okay. Her ego wouldn't be too bruised and her addition to the story wasn't adding to her embarrassment like she first thought.