Everybody's got two hands - @spikedbats

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Spring break had been... eventful.

As it turned out she hadn't been losing her mind, but she had been under attack by an actual dark wizard, or something like it. It also turned out that the people who liked to say that Hawkins was cursed weren't entirely wrong, either. Both of which were things that she wanted to forget but knew she wouldn't be able to. The curse of knowledge or something like that.

But Eddie, with the help of Max Mayfield of all people, had actually saved her life. Of course, the fact that she was in the hospital recovering for the rest of the week afterwards -one ankle broken, the other sprained, and a dislocated knee, not to mention the jammed wrist and elbow that had happened when she fell- she hadn't been able to say so, or, rather, she had, but her mother refused to believe it, insisting that she'd hit her head and forgotten, or simply blocked out the trauma of 'that boy' trying to kill her.

But, with a shocking lack of actual evidence to that point, a stack of personal testimonials to the contrary, and Jim Hopper returning from the dead -something else that had happened while she'd been in the hospital- to shake some sense back into the Hawkins police, they'd been forced to conclude that it had been an accident and nothing more.

She'd been discharged from the hospital within hours of being admitted, and while she was still mostly unaware of what had happened with everyone else while she was recovering -aside from the brief moments she'd seen in her dreams and the even briefer explanations she'd been given- she was actually alright with that, given the state Eddie and Max were in when she'd managed to visit them during her own follow-up appointment.

But in the days and weeks that followed, things changed almost as much as they stayed the same. The town suffered what everyone was calling an earthquake, but had, apparently been caused by the death of the dark wizard that had been hunting her and had also caused the Creel Murder House to just collapse in on itself into a sinkhole that no one had known was under it.

She also reconnected with Steve Harrington, who she hadn't fully realized she'd missed until they were back in each other's orbit, and more than that, the two of them devised a plan to make sure Eddie graduated, because as far as she was concerned it was the least she could do in return for him saving her life.

Mostly what this meant was a lot of afternoons and even evenings spent at the Harrington house over the next couple of months, and while they were cramming Eddie full of all the information he was going to need, sometimes the three of them just talked, and that was even better because as it turned out, she wasn't used to having friends, though a few of the girls on the squad still stood by her after everything, and that was good too.

Surprisingly, the plan worked, and Eddie had graduated, by a very narrow margin, but that still counted. After that had been Chrissy's birthday and her first act of adult rebellion had been to cut her hair. The second had been to quit choir -she'd already dropped out of cheer after the spring break injuries- and while she knew she was going to pay for both those things, as she was still very much living under Laura Cunningham's roof, she couldn't really bring herself to care, because she felt free and a little reckless for the first time in her life.

Of course, as soon as her mother found out about her quitting choir, the ultimatum was that she shouldn't even come to church that Sunday, to which she'd replied 'alright, I won't', and that was what led to a rather cryptic invitation from Steve that she should come over because he 'knew she hadn't had an actual birthday in a while' which had mostly made her laugh, but she wasn't really opposed to it, and was entirely unsurprised to find Eddie's van already out front when she arrived, though with no other vehicles, she wasn't entirely sure what to expect as she stepped up onto the porch to knock.

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[spikedbats]

Being that this wasn't Steve's first rodeo by any means, as soon as the business with Vecna was over and everyone started moving on with their lives, Steve took it upon himself to make sure nobody was left behind. He remembers the devastation he felt after the first time, and he still technically had Nancy to help him through all of it. But back then, he took it all for granted, and now he still bears the scars of loneliness as a result.

It had been easier with Robin. She didn't even so much as try to push Steve away after the business with the Russians. The two had become borderline co-dependent. But something shifted after Vecna. It's not that Robin pulled away from Steve, and even if that was the case, Steve knew they couldn't be that attached. Robin was going to leave eventually, and better to get used to the idea now rather than later. So Steve watched Robin drift closer to Vickie, and he supported her through all of it, being the best damn wingman a guy could be.

At first, Steve thought maybe Eddie and Chrissy would just naturally drift together. Maybe he assumed it would be like with Jonathan and Nancy, being bonded through trauma. If there were any lingering feelings of jealousy, Steve could pretend it still had to do with Dustin, or that he was really jealous when it came to Chrissy, and not Eddie. He's gotten good at pretending by now.

But that doesn't stop Steve from reaching out to them both, almost constantly. Eddie, because he knows what it's like to need someone around his age who knows what he's going through around to reassure him that he's going crazy. Besides, Eddie needs to graduate and Steve knows what it's like to suddenly find himself struggling with finals and nightmares of the Upside Down. And Chrissy, because he can tell she needs it the most right now, can recognize her going down a similar path he had once chosen when he rejected his friends, the popularity, everything that had previously been nothing more than a security blanket holding him back.

So if he invited both Eddie and Chrissy over while his own parents were out, it had less to do with him and his own loneliness, and just making sure they both had a chance to feel normal for even just a little while.

Steve answers the door with a towel around his neck, hair damp and shockingly not styled, with one of Eddie's t-shirts on that he haphazardly grabbed thinking it was his, and a pair of sweats. With a charming smile, he steps aside to let her in and shakes his head.

"Thanks for coming, glad you could make it. You just missed Eddie pushing me into the pool." He pauses to turn his head, yelling over his shoulder and back to the kitchen where Eddie is supposedly throwing together some snacks for their impromptu gathering. "Traitor!"

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Chrissy wasn't entirely sure what was going on between Steve and Eddie, and she wasn't going to ask, she enjoyed their company both individually and together, and wasn't going to overstep anything while she was still sorting out what she actually wanted, instead of what her mom had planned out for her.

She just grinned at Steve's appearance, though, looping an arm around his waist in a quick sideways hug on her way past and into the house, "Oh is that the kind of party this is?" She leaned sideways then so that she could be sure Eddie would hear her as she said: "Couldn't even wait for me to get here to see it, some friend you are." Even just a few weeks before a statement like that would have immediately been followed by some kind of flinch and then by an apology and a reassurance that she hadn't meant it, and though she did tense a little like she wanted to apologize, she didn't actually do so, because she knew by now that Eddie would understand it was a tease.

Which, given as how he snorted a laugh as he emerged from the kitchen, bowl of chips in one hand and bowl of freshly-made French onion dip in the other, he had definitely understood, already replying, "You can shove me in later, you get one freebie, call it a birthday gift..." That was as far as he got before he actually registered how she looked, startling briefly, "Oh, shit, new hair, very Joan Jett. It suits you."

He jostled the bowl of chips in Steve's direction then, "We setting up out on the deck or in here?"

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It wasn't until Eddie pointed out Chrissy's new hairstyle that Steve noticed. Maybe it was just that it worked so well for her that he hadn't even picked up on the stark difference between her former, more traditionally feminine style. "I like it," he commented, corralling everyone back to the kitchen and away from the foyer.

"Speaking of birthday gifts, now that the birthday girl is here we can really start to party. Which..." he trailed off, turning back to both of his guests. "The birthday girl should decide. Did you want to hang out by the pool, or...?"

It was nice, to have a party here and not be immediately reminded of the last time he had guests over. It had taken him a long time to feel comfortable around the pool again, once he found out what really happened with Barb. And with the Upside Down long behind him, swimming was something he was letting himself enjoy. Although he still tended to stick with letting his feet dangle in the water over actually submerging himself more often than not.

"I was gonna order a pizza, by the way, so don't fill up too much on chips and dip."

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She reached up reflexively to touch her hair with one hand, only barely managing not to look like she just wanted to shrink away from the compliments, "Thanks, it took forever to find someone who would just do it without arguing with me, Amber, from cheer squad, actually ended up taking me to see the girl who does her hair to get it done." She shook her head then, realizing she was going off on an unneeded side tangent, smiling again and adding, "Outside though, please? It's nice out and I'd like to take advantage of it."

Her brow creased a little, biting at the inside of her cheek just briefly as she let herself be herded back into the kitchen, following in Eddie's wake, "And, um, is there anything besides chips and upcoming pizza?" She'd manage if there wasn't, she was getting better at letting herself eat things that had previously been forbidden, but it wasn't as easy as it should have been, and the fact that Eddie just smiled at the question was a relief, even before his reply of: "Yeah, got your rabbit snacks on the counter, just only have two hands to carry things with is all." He cocked his head towards the bowl of carrot and celery sticks, "Grab that one Steve, looks like we're having a garden party, birthday girl's orders."

[spikedbats]

Steve understood all too well the pressures of keeping up a certain diet. When he was on the swim team, and when he led the basketball team, he had to watch what he ate, sometimes to an unhealthy degree. Now that he had let go of any dream of sticking with athletics, he relaxed a little bit. It would take Chrissy some time before she got to the same place. "Yep, I've got it."

He swooped in to grab the crudites and did an exaggerated bow in response. "At your service." Clearly he was taking cues from Eddie. The three of them just complimented each other so well, that it was all too easy to find a sense of camaraderie. It felt effortless, like Eddie and Chrissy had been a part of his life all this time, even if it took something horrible for him to realize just how important they were to him.

"I've got spinach and artichoke dip, too, if you want. If not, well, more for Eddie and me." He grinned as he got the door slid open leading out to the pool. "You two want anything to drink? Water, lemonade, soda, beer?"

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She couldn't help the bright laugh at Steve's bow, shaking her head even as she slipped past Eddie who was holding the door open for both of them. She took the chair that was in full shade, folding one leg under herself as she sat, as if she had to physically remind herself that she didn't need to be ready to bolt at any moment.

Eddie shook his head at Steve's offer, commenting, "Save the beer for when there's pizza." Even as he set down both the bowl of chips and the bowl of dip where, theoretically, they could all reach, "But I'll take a soda." He raised both brows at Chrissy, "Soda?"

She nodded, smiling broadly, "Soda's good. And yeah, I like spinach and artichoke dip, even with the stupid crumbly whole grain crackers my mom gets. It's definitely better on triscuits though, or ritzes." Her brow furrowed, "Or is it just 'ritz' for one and for plural?"

[spikedbats]

"Soda it is," Steve replied saluting once he placed the food down on one of the poolside tables. "Triscuits, I think I've got those." He chuckled at Chrissy's question. "That is a good question. I don't think I've ever heard them not specifically called Ritz crackers, though, so that might be why."

He shrugged as he left Eddie and Chrissy to humor themselves while he finished playing host, putting out the spinach and artichoke dip as well as grabbing three sodas. While inside he also took advantage of the pair being distracted by putting on some music that he at least hoped the three would agree on, as well as placing a birthday gift on the coffee table for later, probably when they moved on to pizza.

Finally he reappeared and plopped in a chair next to the both of them. "So, I know it's pretty tame as far as the parties usually are here, but uh. Enjoying ourselves, I hope?"

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By the time he returned, the discussion had moved on to whether 'Twix' was plural, singular, or both, with Chrissy on the side of 'both', because Eddie's argument of it being plural with a singular bar being 'a twig' was ridiculous, but there was no actual venom on either side, they were both just having a good time.

Chrissy smiled at Steve's return, giving a quick: "Thank you." Before shoving the carrot stick she'd been pointing at Eddie with into her mouth so she had both hands free to open her soda, just continuing her point of: "And besides, there's already a snack called 'twiglets' in England, so there's no way a singular Twix would be a 'twig'." It was a point that just had Eddie lifting both hands in something like surrender before accepting his own soda, though he was laughing as well, "Okay, okay, that's a good point."

Chrissy washed the bite of carrot stick down with a quick swallow of soda before shaking her head at Steve's near-apology, "It's still more of a party than I would have had at home, so thank you."

[spikedbats]

It really was nice to see them all under his roof. That meant they were safe, and whatever treachery Chrissy's parents or the general townspeople of Hawkins had against Eddie couldn't get to them here. At least, not without going through Steve first.

And seeing them both happy made him happy. It felt like enough, to call them both his best friends along with Robin, even though the latter often voiced concern that he had given up in the romance front and maybe there was someone still out there. Maybe there was, but Steve thought it a waste of time when he felt fulfilled right here, sandwiched between Eddie and Chrissy.

"Eddie arguing over Twixes again?" Steve teased, grabbing one of the chips and reaching over to ruffle Eddie's hair, because that was a thing he was allowed to do, and managed to not feel weird. Learning that it was okay to touch, that it wasn't weird, had been a long process, but he had finally come to accept that Eddie was just one of those people who delighted in ignoring personal boundaries, and that Steve was actually okay with that.

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Eddie just grumbled, very nearly a purr as he leaned up into that touch, though it coalesced into something that definitely sounded like: "Not fair." Even as Chrissy arched a brow, "Oh, so this is a common argument I managed to get myself caught up in?"

She tutted, shaking her head, "Christine you really should know better." The statement was immediately followed by wrinkling her nose and shaking her head again, "Okay no, that felt wrong, never doing that again, ugh."

Eddie had, apparently, recovered enough to grimace faintly at the statement as well, nodding at the recovery, "Yeah that was weird to listen to, so good call on the never doing it again conclusion. But seriously though, Christine? Is that actually your name, because that's a hell of a coincidence."

Chrissy smiled, shaking her head, "No, it's just Chrissy, I mean, Chrissy Elizabeth if I'm in trouble, but nobody's allowed to be in trouble on their birthday, and birthday parties still count."

[spikedbats]

Even Steve found himself cringing at Chrissy's statement. "That'd be like calling me Steven, which, no, my name also is just Steve. And before you ask, I am not divulging my middle name." He looked directly at Eddie for that one.

It always surprised him, how easy their banter was. While yes, Chrissy was someone he had been at least tangentially familiar with before the Upside Down threatened all of Hawkins and nearly took Chrissy and Eddie with it, just because they ran in the same social circles didn't necessarily mean they were automatically guaranteed to be friends. Especially after Steve's fall from grace.

He liked having this, especially while Robin was getting ready to move onto bigger and brighter things and he wouldn't be able to always depend on her being there when he needed someone. Not that he was ready to give her up entirely. No, this, what he shared with Chrissy and Eddie was something else just for himself.

"Yeah, no, if anyone's gonna be in trouble it's Eddie," he smirked at him and shot him a wink to show he was just teasing. "After all, he did push me into the pool earlier, I feel like that deserves some payback at some point. Birthday girl's honors."

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"Well I was waiting for him to forget about having told me I could." She replied, though she was biting back a laugh even as she did, "So we're just going to re-set that timer." This was said with an exaggerated rolling back a clock gesture with a carrot stick, snapping off a tidy bite of it once she'd used it as a baton, "Which just means we're going to be out here a little longer."

Eddie snorted, "Oh right, like I'm going to forget what I said a birthday gift was, dream on." There was laughter in his tone, too, however, and the fact that he was grinning gave the whole thing away. It still caught him off-guard sometimes, just how easy things were with the three of them. He'd fallen in with Steve far more quickly than he'd expected to, mostly because he'd expected that they'd tolerate each other for the duration of the shitstorm and then go back to ignoring each other like they had in school.

But they hadn't, Steve had been there for everything that happened after, for all the midnight phone calls after a nightmare, for somewhere to just be that wasn't the spot where Chrissy almost died. And Chrissy, that had been a surprise to, whatever he'd been expecting from her was so far off from what he'd actually gotten, he occasionally had to remind himself that this was real and they were both his friends.

[spikedbats]

Steve remembered, how it had felt that first time without anyone to fall back on. He and Nancy had each other, sure, but they were both new at this and had no idea how to cope. By the time Robin was introduced into the mix, Steve had been well seasoned. He could see the signs of people trying to withdraw, mostly because Steve could tell he itched to do the same sometimes and had to fight against that. So it made sense for him to feel like he needed to be there for both Chrissy and Eddie, sometimes even insistently so.

He was just happy that they both let him in. Mostly because this friendship had softened and strengthened into something even more special than anything he had with Carol and Tommy back in high school. While he would never compare it to Robin, he also knew that once she left Hawkins, he at least felt like he wouldn't be a lost guppy when he inevitably stayed behind.

"Stay out here a little longer? Well doesn't that just sound miserable," Steve teased, flashing a look at Eddie first, and then turning to Chrissy with a smirk on his lips. "Besides, I had every intention of staying out here as long as possible."

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"Oh absolutely." Chrissy responded, beaming again, "The weather isn't usually still nice by my birthday, so I say take advantage while we can." The smile tilted a little, "Speaking of taking advantage, you two had better hash it out now who's going to play pillow later, not going to let you just fight over it when the time comes."

Not that she wasn't going to wedge herself in between the two of them on the couch, since the only times she really felt secure these days was with one of them on either side of her. It was something that had thrown her for a little bit of a loop the first time she'd realized it, that it wasn't just comfortable but well and truly safe.

She did, however, occasionally choose one or the other to lean on instead, and while none of the fights about it had been at all serious, she was going to curb the possibility in advance.

The statement got a laugh out of Eddie, arching a brow at Steve, "Now I'm not sure what she thinks she just said, because what I heard was that she wants to watch us wrestle for it."
That, in turn, got a bright laugh out of Chrissy, "Oh my god, Eddie, that is not what I meant!"

[spikedbats]

Steve brightened up at that. It was always light-hearted, the way Eddie and he would butt heads for what Eddie called the privilege of letting Chrissy rest against them, and a lot of times it devolved into an agreement that they would each take turns, but it was always one of his favorite parts of their hangouts. Mostly because even when Eddie managed to win out, Steve still felt like he won because would in turn inevitably end up as Eddie's pillow with the three of them just tangling up with each other.

Of course, Eddie's proposed solution drew out a bark of a laugh from Steve and he shook his head. "If that's the case you might as well just let me win, wouldn't want to embarrass you." Of course, Steve was no wrestler, and he knew that just because he excelled at sports didn't mean Eddie wouldn't manage to wipe the floor with him.

He also didn't want to admit to himself that a part of him was all too interested in the idea of Eddie wrestling him.

"We could always thumb wrestle for it, make it a little more fair." And a little less potentially embarrassing for both parties involved, Steve had to admit to himself.

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"Oh I wouldn't write him off completely." Chrissy replied to the first before Eddie could actually defend himself, even if it had been a joke, or part of one, "He's got reach."
"Thank you!" Eddie replied automatically before actually processing what she'd said, which was when his brow furrowed, "Weird defense, but you know, I'll take it." He tilted his head towards Steve then as if to indicate the new challenge, "How about it, Princess, sound fair?"

Chrissy nodded, managing to school her expression into something thoughtful and serious though there was definitely still merriment glinting in her eyes, "I think so, yes. Best two of three, of course." She straightened a little in her chair, finally smiling as she made a fluttering 'go ahead' gesture with one hand, "Go on, unless you need an official count off."

[spikedbats]

Steve let out a loud guffaw at Chrissy's joke. It always surprised him when she made a joke like that, because she had been so quiet when they first started hanging out post-Vecna. Now it was clear that she was starting to find her niche in their friend group. It made Steve happy and thankful he had gone through such lengths to include her -- to include both of them -- in his time off from work.

"Right, let's do this then. You think you've got what it takes, Munson?" His eyes were glittering with mischief as he held out his hand, thumb up, the rest of his fingers curled and ready for Eddie to grasp so they could begin their thumb war.

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"Honestly?" Eddie answered even as he curled his fingers against Steve's, "I don't actually know. Not a lot of thumb-work involved in guitar, not like banjo. But I'm scrappy, and like the lady said, I've got reach." He was grinning, "Don't know if that applies to thumbs, though."

Chrissy's brow creased a little, considering that as she slowly chewed another carrot stick, "I ...guess it would?" She held the carrot between her teeth to spread both her hands where she could see them, wiggling her thumbs briefly before shaking her head, "At least for some people."

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"So what I'm hearing is you're gonna be fighting dirty," Steve teased, though he wasn't really sure what he was saying at this point. It was all silly taunting in the name of psyching out his opponent, even though in actuality even if he lost it would still feel like a win when they were all curled up together later.

He started off the countdown, wiggling his thumb as was tradition, and then kept his thumb raised at first, his eyes first trained on Eddie, as if sizing him up, smirk on his face, before darting his eyes back down to the so-called playing field and going in for a maneuver that he hoped would pin Eddie's thumb.

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"Wait, there's another kind?" Eddie shot back, mostly managing to sound genuinely puzzled even despite the grin.

Chrissy tutted, though she was smiling as well, "There is if you want to avoid a yellow flag for unsportsmanlike conduct." That was enough, apparently, to distract Eddie who on occasion forgot that Chrissy had been a cheerleader, blinking over at her, brow furrowed, "What?"

The moment of distraction was all it took for Steve to swoop in with a pin, which had Eddie's head whipping back around to look, which in turn had Chrissy very nearly cackling with laughter, counting off the pin while Eddie struggled to free himself.

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Steve couldn't hide how pleased he was with himself when he managed to pin Eddie's thumb. Sure, Chrissy's distraction definitely helped, but he still managed to be successful all the same. "It was a valiant effort, Munson, but looks like I've got you beat."

He waited until Chrissy declared him the winner before letting go of Eddie's thumb and gave a cocky grin in Eddie's direction. "Well? Up for round two or do you want to just concede and spare yourself the embarrassment?" He wiggled his thumb teasingly in Eddie's direction, though he did swoop in for a nudge to Eddie's arm with his elbow, hoping to convey the fact that he was just teasing.

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"It's best two out of three." Eddie replied, "I've still got a chance to turn this around. Besides, can't have you both thinking I go down that easy." This was followed by a waggle of his brows in Chrissy's direction, "Except when I do, of course."

This of course just got another bright laugh out of Chrissy, though she did attempt to keep it in and it was only half-covered by an attempted indignant squawk of: "Eddie!" And was followed by flicking a chip at him with, "Boo, get better material!"

Eddie laughed in turn before turning the smile on Steve, wiggling his thumb, "Let's go big boy, I'm ready for you this time."

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"Jesus christ, Munson," Steve replied, shaking his head at the blatant use of innuendo. "You're gonna scar the poor girl." Even though he was pretty sure that after everything they had been through, it would take a hell of a lot more than that to scar Chrissy.

The use of big boy, though, did catch Steve off guard. It always did, because as easily as he had slipped into this friendship with Eddie and Chrissy both, he was still getting used to being able to flirt with Eddie. It had taken some time before he learned he could flirt back and it would be okay, that the world wouldn't open and drag him down to hell like it had back when he was pulled through the portal in the middle of Lover's Lake.

"Yeah, yeah, don't cream your pants," he muttered to himself as he reached his hand forward, thumb extended up, and prepared for the next round.

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Eddie counted them off the second time, doing the thumb equivalent of bobbing and weaving as he did, which worked to keep him away from an immediate pin.

Chrissy tisked softly, shaking her head, "Steve, you can't go telling Eddie to watch what he's saying if you're going to go saying things like that." She was very obviously trying not to laugh even as she said it.

Eddie grinned, glancing at her again, "Oh I like this 'Steve gets told off too' thing. Should definitely do that more often." And once again 'distraction by birthday girl' proved to be his downfall.

[spikedbats]

Chalk it up to his skills at concentration in the face of distraction, but despite Chrissy's joking chastising about being guilty of the same thing he was telling him off for, he managed to keep his head in the game. All his years on the basketball court and dealing with Billy's attempts at intimidation apparently paid off long enough for him to pin Eddie's thumb once more.

"Careful," he said at a normal volume, before leaning in to brush his lips against Eddie's ear, or at least the hair covering it, trying to make sure only Eddie could hear his next line. "You might just end up unlocking a new kink with that."