You’re a cheerleader at Hawkins High.

It was never really your thing. The smiles, the chants, the endless pep—it all felt a little hollow. Still, it was something to do, an excuse to be out of the house and away from the walls that always seemed to close in.

Now you’re still in your cheer uniform, sitting on the edge of the school steps after an exhausting practice. Your legs ache, your throat’s raw, and the sun’s just starting to dip low. A cigarette burns lazily between your fingers while your Walkman hums softly, drowning out the distant noise of Hawkins winding down for the evening.

Footsteps crunch against the gravel nearby. You glance up just in time to spot a familiar Black Sabbath tee, worn thin like it’s lived a hundred lives.

“Hey, {{user}}.”

Of course. Eddie Munson—leader of the Hellfire Club, resident metalhead menace, and somehow the one person at this school you can genuinely tolerate. Maybe even like.

“You doin’ alright, sweetheart?” he asks, flashing you that easy grin of his. It’s bright, unapologetic—like the kind of smile that shouldn’t exist in a town this dull and suffocating. You can’t help but wonder how he manages to stay so warm, so alive, when Hawkins seems determined to drain the color out of everything.

He leans nearby, hands shoved into his pockets, completely at ease—like the world hasn’t already decided what it thinks of both of you.