𝙻𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚐.

𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚞𝚗 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚞𝚙.

𝙸'𝚖 𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚕𝚘𝚢𝚎𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚑 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚁𝚒𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗 𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚋.

𝚈𝚎𝚊𝚑, 𝚠𝚑𝚢 𝚜𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝙸'𝚖 𝚜𝚘 𝚖𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚞𝚙?

𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖.

𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖.

𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖.

𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖, 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖.

𝙳𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚊𝚖.

"Oh fuck no," she gasped, quickly dropping her hand from the petrol nozzle and running toward the back end of the van seeing as it was the closest hiding spot from Steve.

She could see Steve's face through the car window as he slowly pulled into the gas station. Lennon instantly feared he had seen her. If she saw him, surely he could see her.

She ran to the back of the van, not knowing if she had been spotted or not, and quickly hid away from her brother's best friend.

"Shit..." she mumbled under her breath. "What the actual fuck am I doing?" she cursed to herself, realizing how ridiculous it was that she was hiding from someone like Steve.

As humorous and immature as it sounded in her head, she couldn't shake the ill feeling of being caught.

There were no windows in the back of Eddie's van so all she could do was stealthily crawl to the front and peak out from behind the passenger seat.

She looked out from behind the headrest and found the lot to be empty.

Confusion replaced her earlier anxiety.

She knew what she saw. She felt crazy but she knew she wasn't; not entirely. She saw Steve. She saw his car, she saw his face.

But she didn't see him now. She just faced a snowy parking lot where a man from inside was rushing to get back into his car.

She turned toward the gas station thinking he might have needed something other than fuel but there were only a few cars parked by the entrance and Steve was nowhere to be found.

She then extended her gaze out from behind the seats and turned toward the pump. There, she saw it again. Steve had parked on the other side of the gas pump and was getting out of the car just as Lennon had poked her head out.

"Shit..." she hissed, quickly jumping back and getting her heel stuck on the loose edge of the carpet in the back.

"Fuck..." she gasped, wincing and crumpling an empty pack of cigarettes, an empty bag of pretzels, and a drumstick all in one fluent fall.

From the outside, Steve's eye caught the movement of the van next to him just as he closed the driver's door. His eyebrows furrowed curiously, finding the bounce of the van's suspensions to be odd when there was nobody visibly sitting inside.

He would have simply brushed it off, thinking it could have been a false alarm of the uneven wind patterns from the bipolar weather, but the nozzle was still in the tank.

The van looked completely deserted the longer Steve observed it. The gas handle was sticking out from the backend of the van but there was nobody around. There was no one outside, no one sitting in the front seats, and as unaccompanied as the pump seemed, he could have sworn it moved.

Steve kept staring at the van in question and instead of paying for fuel and getting on his way, he stalked around the backend, wondering if there was anybody there that he just simply didn't see. But it was vacant. He then lowered his body into a squat and inspected the ground, looking underneath the van to see if a pair of feet occupied the other side. But again, it was vacant.

He then noticed the footprints in the snow. It was scuffed and the traffic from the station clouded them but he could still see fresh prints by the machine that supplied the petrol. Then there were more leading to the backend which disappeared before reaching for the other side.

Just as Steve had grown overly suspicious of the deserted pump, Eddie was making his way back to Lennon. Only, when he looked up from his new pack of Salem's, he was surprised to see Steve Harrington standing on the other side of the gas pump, staring quizzically at his van like there was something that caught his eye.

He would usually find suspicious eyes alarmingly. He had plenty of drugs in his van, along with empty bottles of beer that wouldn't look good if inspected if someone ratted him out. They could be guys he'd upset on the street seeking revenge, cop-hoppers who wanted to bust him, or even shady people looking to rob or hot wire his van, but because it was Steve, he felt a different sense of anxiety. It wasn't quite as serious as a stranger's stare, but it was enough to pique his curiosity.

Eddie pulled two cigarettes out, flipping one and putting it back in the pack before pulling the other to his lips. He quickened his pace as he lit the tobacco between his lips and discarded his lighter just as quickly as he retrieved it.

"Harrington!" he shouted with a pinched smile, taking a long drag from his cigarette before pulling it from his lips.

Steve looked up from the backend of Eddie's van and took a step back like he was startled.

"Did you forget to put the pump back before you went in, Munson?" Steve moved for the pump on his side and started to fill his car with fuel.

"Huh?" he looked back with a confused look on his face, causing his eyes to go out to where he last saw Lennon and found it to be deserted.

"The pump?" Steve ushered toward the tube connecting his van to the gasoline system underground.

Eddie followed Steve's hand motion and was at a loss of words. "I mean..." he trailed off after remembering Steve's affiliation with Brontë.

That's when his eyes met Lennon's through the windscreen. Eddie stopped in his tracks and watched as Lennon widened her eyes and pulled his finger to her lips as if to silence him from inside.

"Uhhhh..." Eddie stood dumbfounded.

Steve briefly looked up and saw Eddie blankly staring at his van.

Eddie watched Lennon point to the side of the van that Steve was at, following up with a rapid hand being sharply sliced across her neck. Eddie understood what she meant but that didn't mean he knew what to do about it.

"It must be those drugs, man..." Eddie turned his eyes toward Steve, letting his eyes linger on Lennon a moment longer to validate what she wanted him to do.

However, his mention of drugs only caused Steve to look up from the pump with concern, not terminated suspicion.

"Yeah... I totally forgot," Eddie added unconvincingly.

Steve leered suspiciously and momentarily looked toward Eddie's line of sight before giving him his full attention. "Drugs?" Steve clarified, growing more suspicious of Eddie and his behavior.

What was he looking at in his van? Why was he acting so weird?

"Yeah," Eddie raised his eyebrows theatrically with a cigarette dangling loosely between his lips. "I guess you shouldn't mix weed with molly, dude," Eddie warned forebodingly, moving for the pump before realizing he still had a few pushes for his penny left before his tank was full.

Getting away from Steve wasn't going to be as easy and brisk as he hoped. He was broke. He needed to get what he could with what he had. So, Eddie kept pumping.

Eddie had his back to Steve in hopes of showing him that he wanted to be left alone, but Steve continued to stare.

"Hey, uh..." he called out curiously. "You haven't seen Lennon around lately, have you?"

Steve knew she was interested in Eddie. He hadn't seen them together since he came to her for tutoring but that didn't mean she hadn't seen him since then. They were both present at Heather's party but Steve didn't see them together at all that night. However, Lennon was stubborn and didn't take anyone's word without proof so it wouldn't surprise him if she kept hanging out with him.

Eddie's pulse quickened as he tried to come up with something to say. He wasn't much of a liar, but the truth would have sent Lennon into immediate house arrest, and depending on how much Steve hated him, the truth might have sent him into an immediate arrest for harboring a missing person.

"Brontë the Bitch's little sister?" Eddie tried acting casual as he turned on his heel and pressed his backside to his van.

"Don't act coy, Munson," Steve narrowed his eyes and propped a hand onto his hip. "I have eyes. For whatever reason, she likes you. I was just wondering if you've seen her?"

"What?" Eddie smiled sheepishly. "Don't act so modest yourself, big boy. What's there not to like?" Eddie flung his hair back over his shoulder and extended his hands out like he was putting himself on display.

He found some stability in irritating the entitled. He was confident in himself and because he only had legendary metalheads to productively compare himself to, nobody would have useful ammo to tear his self-esteem down. It was what he was good at. Simply breathing was enough to provoke people, it had become second nature. After a while, it had become comforting to claim that sense of power.

"The drugs, for one," Steve pouted sarcastically. "I wouldn't talk about molly so loud with a cop sitting right over there," Steve pointed to the corner of the shop where a parked police car was sitting.

Eddie turned to see what he was mentioning and smiled. "Cop's on his break inside the gas station. There's no partner either so... I'm all good," Eddie scrunched up his nose and blushed.

"How do you know that?" Steve countered in disbelief.

"Good dealers don't sell to dimwits and they definitely don't get caught doing it," he clicked his tongue and winked at Steve, causing him to grow more uncomfortable the longer they shared the pump.

"Lennon," Steve sighed impatiently, wiping Eddie's smile clean from his face. "Have you seen her?" he repeated his question.

"Mmmhm," Eddie hummed questionably. "You're gonna have to remind me..." he flicked the side of his head and rolled his eyes. "The molly really takes a toll on the ole memory after a while."

Steve groaned, knowing Eddie was trying to get on his nerves now. "Lennon Seagrave. Brontë's little sister. 5'6 brunette. You know who I'm talking about, dude. I just wanna know if you've seen her because she hasn't been home and Brontë's worried after hearing about Billy's accident last night since they went to Heathers together-"

"What accident?" Eddie asked overzealously.

"You haven't heard?" Steve wondered, completely oblivious to Eddie's eagerness to learn more.

Eddie shook his head. "Would I be asking if I had?"

Steve ignored Eddie's sarcastic comment and shoved his hands into his jacket pockets for warmth before explaining what happened. "After Lennon left Heathers, Billy went to drive Tina home, and sometime between then and now, there was a car accident on 37. You seriously haven't heard?"

If it weren't for the fact that Lennon went with Billy and could have been in that car with him that night, he would have made some sly remark about being the freak that doesn't give a shit about popular jocks and their drama, but he couldn't even pretend not to care now.

"No," Eddie responded innocently. The pump clicked and his tank was finally full. "Well, uh... Shit, man," Eddie showed empathy toward Steve and his concern over Lennon. He disconnected the nozzle from his tank and propped it onto the pump stand. "I hope you find her. I wish you luck," he saluted Steve as he made his way toward the driver's door.

Steve didn't expect to be met with such sincerity from someone like Eddie. He seemed genuine. Eddie didn't seem like the kind of guy to take anything seriously, let alone let people know he cared about anything other than himself.

"Hey," he called out again, forcing Eddie to stop in his tracks, freezing just as he pulled his door open.

"Yeah, Harrington?" Eddie said with a little too much force, putting a gap in between his words. He turned to face Steve with pinched lips and a nervous smile, but he still didn't seem entirely trustworthy.

It was obvious that he didn't want to be talking to Steve but he didn't ignore him either. It was strange. A good strange, but strange.

Steve looked back at him suspiciously, sensing deception somewhere in his character but he was unable to prove or pinpoint it. "If you see her," he nodded his head encouragingly. "She's got people who care about... And some of us didn't leave things on a good note before she went missing so... Tell her to be careful, would you?" Steve asked tenderly, staring intently into Eddie's eyes with enough sincerity to make Eddie unnerved.

He stood there in shock, unable to move or even breathe without feeling a sense of anxiety over being caught. He sounded like he knew better than to believe Eddie. He sounded like he knew good and well where she was but at the same time, he didn't act like he knew she was with him either. Eddie didn't know what to do.

Steve noticed Eddie's discomfort and smiled flatly. "If you see her," he reminded Eddie plainly, sounding almost sarcastic as he said it.

"Right," Eddie nodded his head nervously. "Right. Will do," Eddie agreed and smiled weakly. "Uhm, you uh... Take care, Harrington," Eddie said anxiously as he loaded into his van in hopes of escaping Steve's company before he could figure it out. However, Eddie had a suspicion that he had already done it.

"You too," Steve replied just as Eddie closed his door, leaving him unsure if Eddie heard him or not.

Once he joined Lennon inside the van, she remained hidden behind the driver's seat, keeping her fingertips stuck to the floor for balance as she tried not to peek out from behind him to see if Steve had any clue where she was. She didn't even dare speak up until Eddie was back on the street and Eddie did the same, keeping his mouth shut as he pulled the van into drive.

As he sped off down the road, Steve's eyes stayed with him until he disappeared behind the trees.

He was curious.

Eddie had always been someone he didn't feel appalled by but Dustin liked him so he didn't despise the man. He just found it so odd that Eddie cared so little but cared so much.

This would be his sixth year in high school. If he didn't care at all, he wouldn't go. But he did, he still went to school which had to mean he cared. By why?

And regarding Lennon, he acted strange, like he knew something Steve didn't. He couldn't figure him out. Steve wanted to place his uneasy feeling but there was no evidence to back it up.

What was it about him that left Steve so skeptical?

Was he perplexed because he knew better than to have dismissed his gut feeling of Lennon being with him, with someone so malicious and dangerous? Or was it because he secretly felt at ease knowing she was safe with him?