Zccming​:

@goldenboyrichards

Sufjan Stevens | Fourth of July April Base Version

eddiemcnson​:

+++

his thoughts were spiralling, dizzy with how close they suddenly were to one another. a contact high, if you will, eddie thought and nearly chuckled at his own joke that he had cracked, to himself, in his own head. decided against it because he had a strong feeling that that might ruin the mood. and after his love life had been a big heap of, well, nothing, these past few months, eddie was definitely not trying to do anything that could potentially ruin the mood.

eddie watched, enraptured, as cole’s eyes stuck to his lips and is own darted down to cole’s. and man, while he hadn’t taken much notice of him in hgih school, he now wondered why - cole was pretty. like, very pretty. the relevation hit eddie hard, made his breath hitch. shit.

his heart skipped a beat, stopped for a second, he thought, as he felt cole tug on his shirt. he bit his lip as his eyes flicked down to cole’s lips, god, they really had to get out of there, stat. so eddie nodded, hummed in agreement. grabbed hold of his wrist and looked around for a moment before he dragged him off around the corner, pressing him up against a marble pillar.

nervous eyes searching is. “uh…you, uh, sure about this?”

xx.

Since Adam had died, Cole had been chasing the feeling-- the euphoria-- of connecting with another. That’s not to say he was looking for a relationship... no, he was too closed off for that. He was looking for a reminder that he was still capable of connection, maybe even love. One day.

And today, this chance encounter with Eddie was exactly the feeling he’d been wanting. He’d always noticed Eddie in school-- how could he not, the way Eddie seemed to fill up every room? But he’d never seen Eddie like this: nervous, but sure. In control. And Cole was loving it. 

Cole’s stomach leaped when Eddie took him by the wrist and pressed him against the wall. He could feel the heat coming off of Eddie’s body, he could practically taste Eddie’s words. Fluttering his eyes, Cole looked up at Eddie, hand still gripping the other’s shirt.

“I am. Are you?” 

elevcnhops​:

xx

A dark and secluded area, Eleven hiding within the darkness. This whole night had been nothing short than a disaster. Mike’s rejection stinging more than she cared to admit, it was the first time things felt.. aggressive between the childhood sweethearts. Now, she was alone and rethinking this stupid decision to come along. Maybe it was the normalcy of it all. Her first time camping and pitching a tent all on her own was somehow refreshing in a way. Sure, she inquired for help with the poles of the tent, but otherwise, she felt confident that Hop would be nothing short of proud.

After cleaning herself off in the lake, trying to scrub off the experience of having to kiss another. Another that was not Mike Wheeler. Shaking that thought with another sigh, desperate and planning an escape back into the woods. But she was so very welcome for Cole’s sudden appearance.  Gently lifting her hand to return his wave and greeting, “ Hello, Cole. “ the whisper light on her lips, masking the scowl that was recently a fixture for the night. The mention of ‘ s’mores ‘ causing her head to tilt to the side, a question now replacing her indifference. “ S’mores? “ echoing back to him, “ What is s’mores? “ without waiting for his answer, Eleven perked up. Forcefully shoving herself up into a standing position, nearing the fire and taking his offering with a hesitant grasp. Sitting next to him lightly, “ Now what? “ looking from him to the marshmallow that had been penetrated by the silver rod. Flipping it around in her grasp, prodding at the soft sugar treat with her fingers. 

“ Everything has changed. “ the whisper was so sudden upon her lips that she wasn’t sure Cole actually heard it. 

xx.

Grateful for something other than the ‘lake incident’ to focus on, Cole’s eyes lit up at El’s question. “Oh, you’re going to love S’more’s.” He enthusiastically stood up and took his own skewered marshmallow in one hand. “First, we have to melt the marshmallow. Some people like it extra burnt-- like me-- but it’s up to you.” Cole stuck his marshmallow into the middle of the fire, welcoming the warmth of the flames licking so close to his outstretched arm. 

He pulled the iron back suddenly when his marshmallow caught on fire. “I always do this,” he groaned as he blew it out. The half that wasn’t charcoal was the exact type of gooey he liked. “Then, once you’re satisfied, we take the graham cracker and chocolate like so,” he demonstrated, taking the graham cracker chocolate combination he’d prepped and using them to pull the marshmallow off of the iron’s end. “Et voila! C’est magnifique,” he exclaimed, taking a bite of the sticky dessert. 

At the least opportune time, she spoke up. Cole attempted to gulp down the comically large bite he’d taken to answer her. “What do you mean?” his words were slightly muffled, and he attempted to swipe the stickiness off of his face.

@zccming

“I sorta spent the last few days hangin’ out with Elliot.”

joycefm​:

    hand  freezes  on  the  refrigerator  handle  at  cole’s  words.  again,  she’s  not  surprised  at  all.  lonnie  had  always  tested  joyce’s  trust  -  she  wasn’t  stupid  nor  was  she  blind.  she  saw  how  people  looked  at  him  in  high  school  and  she  chose  to  ignore  it..  simply  because  she  thought  she  was  head  over  heels  in  love.  and  well…  she  definitely  was  at  the  time.  there  was  a  lot  of  love  there  at  one  point  but  the  idea  of  happily  ever  after  with  lonnie  didn’t  last  long  when  she  started  catching  him  out  on  lies,  multiple  fights..  she  could  go  on  and  on.  “i  mean..”  she  started,  a  small  shrugging  following  as  she  moved  back  towards  cole  to  take  a  seat  next  to  the  other.  “i  thought  there’d  be  more  of  you,  honestly.”  there  probably  was.  joyce  knew  well  that  lonnie  was  up  to  no  good  —  it  was  more  surprising  to  her  that  lonnie  had  been  cheating  on  her  way  before  she  picked  up  on  it.

    “it’s  fine,  cole.  you’re  fine.”  it  wasn’t  like  you  could  chose  your  parents  -  lonnie  byers  certainly  shouldn’t  have  been  anyone’s  first  choice.  “he  sucks  even  more  for  not  being  in  your  life..  you’re  a  good  kid.”  it  just  reminded  her  of  will  -  it  wasn’t  like  lonnie  was  around  much  for  him  either.  not  to  mention  the  name  calling  and  the  fights  that  came  along  with  all  that.  “either  way..  i’m  not  surprised  at  all  and  i  promise  you  that  you  aren’t  missing  out  on  anything  with  him.”  hand  reaches  out  towards  his  shoulder,  giving  it  a  small  squeeze.  “but  that  also  means  you’re  family  now.”  joyce  smiles  wide,  looking  for  the  positive  in  the  whole  situation.  “have  you  told  jonathan  and  will?”

Cole kept his eyes trained on Joyce, watching her hand freeze and looking for any indication of what was going on in her head. He’d imagined this moment dozens of time in the last hour, many more in the last five years. He knew he couldn’t expect her to welcome him with open arms; even if she didn’t love Lonnie anymore, Cole’s existence was evidence that Lonnie had been running out on her for a long time. That was enough of a reason to resent someone, in Cole’s mind. When she finally spoke, Cole let out an involuntary sigh of relief. If it weren’t so fucked up, Cole would’ve laughed at her comment-- I thought there’d be more of you. What a fucking asshole. “I know it wasn’t me, but... for what it’s worth, I’m sorry he was such an ass. Sorry that you all had to deal with him.” 

And then, Joyce offered the thing Cole hadn’t dared ask for: acceptance, permission to exist without guilt. He felt pressure behind his eyes and tried to blink it away; he so desperately didn’t want to make this a thing. “Thank you,” he breathed, glistening eyes meeting yours. Cole laughed at himself, swiping at his face, “I don’t know why I’m crying.” But he knew; he had never, in a million years, expected that he’d be welcomed into a family that, for all intents and purposes, wasn’t his. Should have never been his. He never even thought that anyone other than his mother would consider him family or look out for him, and in one single moment he was offered an entire family unit. 

Joyce’s remark shook Cole out of his thoughts. He nodded, readily agreeing that he wasn’t missing out on dad of the year. Eyes dropping to his hands, Cole shook his head. Then, lifting his gaze to meet Joyce’s eyes, he explained: “No.. I wanted to make sure you knew first. And, I guess, ask for your permission?” That sounded weird. “Like... if you didn’t want me to tell them, I don’t have to,” he shrugged. Cole didn’t want to give more detail if he didn’t have to; he knew he had a certain reputation around town, not a bad one, but one that everyone wouldn’t appreciate... and he wasn’t sure how Joyce would feel if he got close to Will and Jonathan and started bringing his ‘best friend’ around. But that felt like a conversation for another day; there was no need to spill every one of his secrets today. 

chancecunningham​:

🍻

“in your dreams, player,” chance said with a light scoff as he plopped down into the visitor’s chair and loosely joined his hands in his lap. he took a second to inspect his classmate. cole looked pretty banged up…like aside from steve, he’d maybe gotten the worst  but still, despite being tattered and broken, cole maintained his attitude. “your sense of humor sucks. even on your…” death bed. his words trailed off before he delivered his own shitty punchline, figuring cole didn’t need to be verbally reminded of his injuries. 

chance waved off what he was going to say and quickly shifted gears to what he’d actually come to discuss once he got the okay from cole to talk. “i know you’re probably sick of hearing about this shit,” he began, clearing his throat as he leaned forward so he could be closer to cole and therefore keep his voice low, “but at the carnival…you said…something about adam dying…” a beat, “again.” 

out of all the people chance had spoken to since his sister and best friend came back from the dead, cole was the only one that had ever corroborated his reality. “did you mean like…literally?” chance asked, anxiously fidgeting with the bandage above his eye brow, “because….i….no one else remembers…except you.”

leaning back in his chair again, chance closed his eyes and let out a sigh. “i know i sound fucking crazy,” he breathed out as he shook his head slightly, “but i don’t know who else to talk to about this…my mom says it’s the devil in my fucking brain…nobody wants to hear it.” he opened his eyes slightly and peeked at cole through his lashes, “but i know this forest commune thing is bullshit…right?”

xx.

For a brief moment, Cole panicked at Chance’s use of the word ‘player.’ What did he know? Who had told him? But when the other moved on as if it was nothing, he figured it was just Chance being stupid. Cole traded grim smiles with his sort-of friend. “Death bed?” he finished for him. Truly, Cole knew he could’ve died, but it didn’t scare him like it probably should. The realization pulled his lips taut in a grim line and he felt a burning in his throat that only an ice-cold beer could soothe.

Cole wanted to flinch when Chance leaned towards him, an old habit, but he remained still, stoic. He remembered exactly what Chance was talking about-- the moment Adam’s eyes lost their shine, when he looked like he did before. For a moment, he entertained the thought of denying it, telling Chance he was being crazy. But, Chance was Adam’s best friend. He deserved to know, too.

Before he could explain, Chance’s nerves played out before him, and guilt settled within Cole’s chest at not having told him the truth before now. “Literally,” he confirmed, his voice barely louder than a whisper. “Yeah. He died, dude. And everyone knew that until... until he came back.” Cole remembered the funeral, remembered clasping Beth’s hand so tight she winced, remembered seeing Chance slip in the back with what he suspected was a flask in his suit jacket.

The cocktail of guilt and fear wrapped its fingers around Cole’s throat for a moment, forcing him into silence.  He lifted his eyes to Chance’s with a grimace and shook his head. “You’re not... crazy. I thought--” he paused, shaking his head at how stupid he’d been. “I thought if I didn’t ask questions about how he came back, it would be like before. I didn’t think... this would happen.” Running a hand through his matted curls, Cole sighed. “I’m sorry I never told you.”  He kept his head angled low, at his hands, to avoid Chance’s gaze.

byersphotography​:

TW: FAMILY ABUSE MENTION

————————————————————————————————-

“I’m fiiiiine.” 

Cole’s assurance didn’t strike confidence. This guy needed help. He sighed, exasperated - the best course of action would be to drive him home. Where did this dude even live? While Jonathan had plans to go downtown and investigate Barb’s return, he couldn’t leave Cole stranded on this patio … even if it meant cleaning vomit from the carpet of his passenger seat. “Come on.” He shrugged towards the patio stairs. “I’ll take you home, man-”

“Lonnie, dude, he’s my daddy too,”

Cut off - the realization dawned on him. Lonnie. He hadn’t heard it aloud in a long time. Cole really couldn’t have come up with a more shocking way of saying – Surprise. Your dad fucked my mom. We’re all alcoholics in this family.

He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. This couldn’t happen here. Right now. Jonathan’s stomach sunk seeing Mike blast by the door. He did the only logical thing and sprung into action, calmly pulling Cole by the sleeve of his shirt to a corner of the patio, lowering his voice. “Are you fucking with me right now?” He knew Will was somewhere in the Wheeler house. Lonnie was virtually dead to him, but his mom and brother always seemed more affected by his antics. He wasn’t sure how they would react to this news. His own relationship with Lonnie was terrible. Fighting, yelling, neglect – it had all been tucked away in effort to keep the family afloat, but his dad had also been gone for a long time now. Things were good now. The Byers household didn’t need Lonnie’s legacy resurfaced for all of Hawkins to see – especially on his ex-girlfriend’s front porch, in one of the most pristine neighborhoods in town. “Who knows about this, Cole?” Jonathan remained calm but close to Cole, arm still on his shoulder, trying to decipher his drunken expression.

If only he could go back five minutes in time to the peace of Nancy’s bedroom.

xx.

Cole wasn’t sure how he’d gotten so tipsy-- were he thinking straight before the barbecue, perhaps he would’ve eaten something before playing several rounds of beer pong-- but he’d been so anxious about the conflict between he and Adam that he didn’t know the last time he’d had more than a few crackers. And unfortunately, Jonathan was experiencing the brunt of his thoughtlessness.  

At Jonathan’s offer to take him home, Cole shook his head furiously. “No, no, it’s okay, dude--” he paused, dizzy from the motion. “My boy... best... friend is taking me home,” he smiled at the thought of Adam. “Don’t worry, can’t drive anyway,” Cole murmured, picturing his mom’s wrecked car, a side effect from the last ‘party’ Cole had attended. 

There it was again, that look. Cole scrunched up his face, peering at Jonathan’s. Before he could ask if there was something on his face, Jonathan was pulling Cole away. In his less-than-coordinated state, Cole stumbled into a planter. “Fuck!” he exclaimed, as the snake plant toppled over. “Sorry, Karen,” he called over his shoulder, into the darkness. “’m not fucking with you, ‘m sorry... didn‘t mean to kick the plant,” he answered with a deep frown. Leaning down, Cole made a valiant attempt to right the planter, instead pushing too hard and sending it toppling to the other side. “Well, shit,” he stared at the feat of gravity. 

Jonathan repeated himself, causing Cole to raise on wobbly legs and look at him. “--the plant? I dunno, dude, there’s no one out here?” He scratched his head, nevermind the potting soil on his fingers. When Jonathan’s arm reached out to steady Cole, he stared at the other’s hand. Lonnie. Right. “Your mom,” he offered, leaning into Jonathan’s stability.  “Told her... a few days ago...” he struggled to remember what day it was, when he’d talked to Joyce. A warmth crept through his body at the memory of her acceptance. 

Suddenly insecure and unable to read Jonathan, Cole’s expression drooped. “Are you mad at me?”

eddiemcnson​:

+++

droplets of nervous sweat starting to appear above his brow, eddie’s eyes darted down to where cole pulled out that blasted bandana before he took both the cigarette and lighter from him. he clicked it a couple of times, no light appeared, eddie nervously glanced back up at cole, down at the lighter. violently shook it around for a moment, another attempt - it thankfully lit this time and he handed it back to cole.

he was a bundle of nerves. the previous pleasant buzz from the alcohol had almost entirely disappeared, he flicked  the cigarette’s filter repeatedly, fidgeted with his rings on his other hand. as if he was almost….waiting for cole to ridicule him. instead, however, he said something completely unexpected and eddie chocked on his own breath, sputtering cough.

he looked up to lock eyes with him. i am, too. the fuck did he mean? and ‘too’? was this some sort of trap? or was he literally genuinely saying what…eddie thought…he was saying? hadn’t he not gotten any of his surely widely popularly used phrases moments ago? he quirked a brow, took a drag once his coughing had subised. “you are….what?”, eyes narrowed, voice low in case this was, indeed, a trap.

adam richards was mentioned and, oh, jeez, it all made sense. eddie almost instantly felt bad, a guilty nauseau creeping up on him. way to go, munson, way to go. “your best friend, wasn’t he?” brows pulled together, lips twisted into a sympathetic smile. of course, max hadn’t been the only one who’d lost someone on the very ground they were standing on. “listen, man, i’m so…sorry - like, that’s gotta be rough, like, being here and everything. sorry. i can go and  leave you alone if you want to.”

xx. 

Cole didn’t waver under Eddie’s gaze. If he was correct, Eddie’s behavior made sense. Cole felt it too, the fear of being found out by someone who wasn’t safe. It was the reason Cole and Adam snuck around for the three years they were together-- to avoid the football jocks and the band geeks and the teachers berating them and calling them names. Only it never stopped there; it often got physical, violent. Of course Eddie was afraid.

It was like they were playing chicken, like they were standing in front of a train for as long as possible and pulling back at the last second-- exhilarating, maybe, but not satisfying. Something about being in the mall, all his thoughts about Adam... it was the perfect concoction for a confession. “I like guys,” he said, meeting Eddie’s eyes again. “Adam was my boyfriend.”

And then: relief. Cole felt like he’d recovered part of himself, like he’d regained a phantom limb. He hadn’t been able to talk about his feelings this openly since, well, Adam. It was refreshing, rejuvenating even. “If you want, I’ll prove it,” he teased, giving Eddie a once-over. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so open about it, but what’s the worst that could happen?

For the first time in his life, Cole was thankful for the mundanity of his job. Usually, by 11 a.m. he'd be bored out of his mind, hoping that anyone would walk through the doors; but after what happened at the cemetery, he'd rather not speak to anyone. His mind was too busy playing the 'vision' over and over again. As he plucked the string of an acoustic guitar, he wondered if he was going insane... and if he was, if anyone would notice.

Hearing the door jangle, Cole stifled a groan and was at the counter in two long strides. Pasting on a smile, Cole surveyed the customer. Tessa. He'd known her in high school, of course, but they'd never really spoken... until Robin's 'kickback.' A pit formed in his gut as he wondered if that's why she was here; or, worse, if she hadn't experienced anything at all and needed help finding a guitar pic, or something.

"You got lucky, we're usually slammed this time of day," he said, dryly. "What can I do for you?"

Who: @tessacallovvay & @colemontgomeryx

Where: the music center

Locking her car, Tessa's heels clicked against the sidewalk as she made her way towards the grimy looking Music Center. Some cross between a music store and a record store, Tessa didn't really know much about it other than the fact you could hear it down the block. And the fact that one Cole Montgomery worked there. The know-it-all boy from high school. And one of the five other people who'd been there at Robin's disastrous attempt at a party. One of the people who'd... seen something.

Memory of blood running down her back, covering the frills of her dress, slipping over her face and streaming down her eyes-- Tessa paused at the door, shaking the visions away. Mm, no. No, thank you. Pushing through the grimy door, Tessa scanned the rows of guitars and other instruments before spotting an unfortunately familiar face. Walking to the main desk, she smiled wide at him, "Cole. Have a minute to talk, hon?"

zccming​:

cole might not have known about the truth about upside down, the mall fire, or the flayed, but he did know the truth of loss. he understood better than most the weight of grief and how it could change a person. at least, cole understood it in some of the ways max understood it. regardless, as soon as she started feeling jittery about everything she searched for cole. naturally, he met with an argument, which only made her scoff as she moved to refill her cup, “i wouldn’t trust you to remember how to spell your own last name, let alone cups.” max assured him, then took a drink from her cup as a vow of don’t worry, i will. 

swallowing the last of her sip, she took a couple of step backwards, “come on, i have something better.” max turned around and proceeded to lead cole halfway down a stopped escalator. they sat overlooking a fountain on the lower level, it’d be almost pretty if this entire place didn’t feel so eerie. she fished around in her pockets, shoes, then bra to a produce a baggie, paper, and zippo lighter. “gotta get this off me.” max insisted, like it wasn’t perfectly clear why she had pulled cole aside. it wasn’t often max and cole got vulnerable with one another, but it happened enough that they managed to stay friends throughout all the bickering. a trauma bond ( and then some ) or whatever.

max got to rolling, throwing her trash off the side of the escalator as if to say fuck this mall as she went. all finished up, max sighed, “are you as miserable as me right now?” she asked bluntly, extending the joint to cole, then the lighter. max placed her hands on her knees  and shook her head, “like, this is super messed up, right?” 

xx.

"In my defense, my last name is long," Cole teased, trying to lighten the mood-- but the smirk on his face felt wrong, like he was spitting on Adam's grave. How dare he be happy in the place he had died? Cole finished his cup and set it on the ledge nearby, taking a long drag from his cigarette in the process.

When Max told him to follow her, he did so without hesitation. She was one of the few people in this town he trusted fully, oddly enough. Their friendship, however unorthodox, was a natural one: after running into her at the skate park a few times, he started bringing snacks for them and they just clicked. He could tell they were similar: both of them carrying around a pain they didn't know how to handle, and both of them unwilling to burden another with it.

Upon seeing her stash, Cole put out his cigarette on the side of the escalator, following suit and launching it over the side. Fuck this mall, indeed. Cole laughed, though it was more a breath than anything. "Oh yeah. Let's go throw a rager to memorialize the place our friends and family died. Nothing weird about that," he remarked, taking the blunt and lighting it behind his hand. He took a drag and handed it to her.

"It's just... do you ever feel like it should've been you? Like, why did all those people die and not me?"