Rcbinbvckleys​:

TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET

© Carl Timpone for TimesTalks

goldenboyrichards​:

Adam braced himself, fully prepared for Cole to yell at him. He deserved it. Ever since they got serious, once Adam knew that Cole was it for him, they had planned on running away together. Hawkins was too small to contain a relationship like theirs - they deserved to go somewhere where no one knew them, where no one could judge them for being together. And Adam just left him. Regardless of how Adam came to be in that commune, whether it was his intention or not, he still left Cole behind. 

But the yelling never came. Instead, Cole threw himself into Adam’s arms and it felt like maybe some of those jagged pieces inside him fit again. For the first time since he’d left the woods with Jack, Adam felt like something in his life made sense. 

Adam clung to Cole, burying his own face in his curls. He’d changed shampoos at some point, but it didn’t matter. Underneath it, he still smelled like Cole. Tears were freely falling down his face now, but Adam couldn’t be bothered to wipe them away. He had no intention of letting go of Cole any time soon; not until Cole wanted him to. 

“Yeah, last time I checked,” Adam laughed wetly, crying still. “I’m so sorry.” He apologized again, holding Cole close to him. “I don’t… I don’t know what happened. They said I’ve been in some sort of commune or something?” Adam explained, shaking his head at the words. He didn’t really remember that - but what other explanation was there? “I didn’t mean to go, I don’t know why I did. None of it makes any sense. I promise I didn’t mean to leave you! I’m sorry.” 

xx.

Suddenly, unexplainably, Cole had a future again. Since Adam died, he had been aimless and drifting; obviously, he’d moved on in the literal sense-- he’d gone to college, gotten promoted, made new friends-- but he had no goals or ambition. All of his plans were tied to Adam; he would take whatever job, move to whatever state necessary just to be with him. Losing that felt like losing part of himself. More than he was confused, Cole was elated and relieved. He felt muscles unclench that must’ve been taut for the last three years. Finally, he was whole again. The closest he’d gotten for the last three years was talking about Adam with Max. 

He had so many questions: how was Adam alive? Did he remember the Mindflayer? Why did he think he’d been in a commune? But Adam’s embrace was intoxicating, the feeling of his face in Cole’s hair was bliss-- Cole didn’t want to ruin the moment with questions, because what if questioning it made Adam disappear? What if this wasn’t real?

Cole laughed, too; It was classic Adam to crack a joke at a time like this. Cole’s brows furrowed together at Adam’s apologies; he really seemed to believe the commune thing, and Cole hated seeing him so wrecked with guilt. “Adam, no... you didn’t run away. You were dead,” he said, his tone gentle. “And I don’t know how you’re back, but you are.”

Tears pricked up in Cole’s eyes again at the thought of Adam gone, but he pushed the thought aside for now. “And can we worry about the details later?” he asked, meeting Adam’s eyes and pushing hair out of his face like he always used to. Tenderly, Cole cupped Adam’s face and pressed their lips together. Somehow, every kiss with Adam felt like magic-- sloppy drunk kisses and rushed kisses in hidden corners alike felt like coming home, and now was no different. Cole leaned into the kiss, holding onto Adam like he was afraid he’d disappear if he let go. He paused, resting his forehead against Adam’s, and breathed: “I missed you so fucking much.”

“I have done nothing all summer but wait for myself to be myself again —”

— Georgia O’Keeffe, in a letter to Russel Vernon Hunter, from Georgia O’Keeffe: Art and Letters (via luthienne)

tessacallovvay​:.

Mr. Sarcastic, as always. Good to know somethings hadn’t changed since high school. And, just like high school, he was doing his own… thing here, at this dingy little music store. Yawn. Tapping her nails on the counter, Tessa smiled, “Just wanted to chat, that’s all. About that little kickback you were at.” She said, glancing discretely around. She’d already talked to Sinclair about what had happened, but there was something that didn’t sit right with her about his answers. It made sense, but… it didn’t feel right.

“What sort of gross prank were you pulling that night, hm?” Tessa asked. She’d asked Lucas and he’d freely admitted to it, though he’d sworn he’d worked alone. She wanted to test a little theory of hers.

xx.

A humorless smile pushed up the corners of Cole’s mouth at her question. Well, at least he wasn’t completely crazy. The recurring nightmare he’d been having about Adam, though... that made him feel like his mind was splintering. Had he hit his head hard enough to cause hallucination? Or insomnia? He supposed both were possible, though the doctor Lucas had taken him to had assured him that the symptoms of the concussion would be gone in about a week. 

Cole’s eyes snapped up to Tessa’s face and offense crossed over his features. A prank? She couldn’t be serious. “You’re fucking with me, right?” Cole scoffed. “Tessa, why the hell would I throw myself into an open grave and give myself a concussion for a prank?” He wasn’t going to go so far as to say something pushed him into the grave, although that’s what it felt like, but he certainly hadn’t fallen in on purpose. 

who: Cole & @goldenboyrichards​​

where: Cole’s hospital room :’) 

Everything hurt: his head, his abdomen, his shoulder, his throat. He blinked, but his eyes were heavy and hard to open. What the fuck had happened? His head felt foggy, and his memories were short and senseless. He saw a flash of the Tunnel of Love ride, some unidentified black goo, an explosion, and... Adam looking angry. At him. Adam shoving him away, telling Cole to ‘leave him the fuck alone.’ 

Cole tried to turn onto his side, to hide his teary eyes from the door, in case anyone walked in. Only, moving was no longer simple-- he must’ve broken a rib or two, because the pain that lit up Cole’s body was almost strong enough to knock him out. “Fuck,” he exclaimed, brows knit together and stars in his eyes. If he could keep his eyes open long enough to look around, he might have seen Steve in the bed across the room or the figure entering the room and nearing his bed.

Lifting his hands to his face, Cole shielded his eyes from the fluorescent lights. “Why are the lights so fucking bright,” he grumbled to no one in particular. He was about to complain about the bed being angled too high when he locked eyes with him. 

His stomach did a backflip and Cole’s mouth dropped open. He desperately searched Adam’s eyes, trying to decipher who he was right now-- his Adam or... whatever he’d been at the carnival? 

“Hey,” he managed, after a beat of silence. Cole desperately wanted to be held, to have some confirmation that Adam was himself again, to push the memories of anyone else to the edge of his mind. 

zccming​:

cole stirred and max jumped up, gasped even. “i’m not fucking crying.” she said, defensive, but the wetness on her cheeks was undeniable. she didn’t care to argue the point though. cole was awake, he was fine as he could be, and that was enough. shuffling on her knees down closer to his head, max gingerly maneuvered her way into a hug, while somehow also avoiding adam. she didn’t apply any pressure, knowing the state he was in, but her arms fell limply and her head hovered above his chest as she explained, “you were so stupid i finally fucking snapped and beat this shit out of you.”

believe it or not, his jokes were appreciated. it was a sliver of normalcy amidst all the chaos, so, she figured, why not try to return the favor? “doc told me you weren’t gonna live.” max sighed. it wasn’t funny, there was nothing funny about any of this actually, but she wasn’t doing it to be funny, she was doing it to match cole’s energy, try to make him feel less alone with the burden of his injuries and the weight of some new trauma. “so thanks for saving me from a life sentence i guess.” she sighed, then finally lifted her body from it’s half hugging position, “how are you feeling?” max asked, then amended, “and don’t say like shit.”

xx.

Despite the pain and confusion, Cole smirked at Max’s defensive response. He looked at her tear-stained cheeks and rolled his eyes; this was always more comfortable than touchy-feely for them. As much as he could, Cole wrapped his free arm around Max to return the hug. “In that case... Fuck, Mayfield, you punch like a dude,” he pressed the ice pack to his sore ribs. 

Cole snorted at her continued antics. “Waking up and seeing you first thing? Not sure I’d call that living.” He reached over and swatted her arm, taking advantage of his status as unwell. At least now she couldn’t hit him back. Cole opened his mouth to respond and clamped it shut at her additional instruction.  “Rumor has it I’ll live,” he managed, before reaching for his water. His throat was dry, and he wasn’t sure the raspiness was sexy at this point. “You were there, too. Are you hurt?” he asked, inspecting her face as he took a long gulp. “What happened?” he asked, voice soft enough to indicate that he was done joking. 

Cole didn’t know Eleven particularly well. He knew of her, because, well, who didn’t? But they hadn’t spent too much time together. He knew she was a survivor of the mall fire, and he could imagine that she was feeling even more uncomfortable than he was. And, like him, it seemed she had been hitting the keg pretty hard.

“Hey, El,” he put out a hand to stabilize her, plucking the cup out of her hand so she didn’t spill more. “You were looking for me, huh?” he chuckled. “Anything in particular I can do for you?” he asked, putting her cup to the side and glancing around the foyer. He knew Max and El were close, maybe he needed to have a backup plan in case El was really not okay to be here. 

WHERE ; Blue Quarry Mall Protest

WHO ; Cole &. El

To say El was lost - happened to be an understatement. Her first time at StarCourt was it’s own experience but now… this was frustrating. “ Have you… ? “ trying to speak over the constant beat from the ‘ boombox ‘. Maybe that fifth red solo cup should’ve been enough. Now fully aware the appeal of this ‘ liquid fuel ‘ being passed around. Stumbling mildly, eyes trying to focus on something other than bodies swarming around them.

Pushing through the crowd, the distinctly sweet scent of the beer spilling over herself and the other. “ Sorry! “ El’s apology rushed with the sudden movements of trying to keep the liquid in the cup. Desperately failing. Finally peeking around for an escape, rushing towards a familiar face through blurry eyes. “ Hey! “ practically shoving as she approached. “ I’ve been looking all over for you! “

“elio elio elio elio elio elio elio”

eddiemcnson​:

+++

his eyes flicked between cole’s - jesus, how did he have lashes like that, it was unfair - as if searching for even the slightest hint of uncertainty that would make him pull back, apologize, would make them part ways. but cole’s hand was still in his shirt, he was still so intoxicatingly close and now he had verbal confirmation, too.

eddie looked around one more time, hating how nervous and paranoid he got everytime he went back to hawkins, a shaky exhale drawn from his lungs, the air was clear. and still he felt himself hesitate, eyes meeting cole’s again, and the thought of how bizarre this was, how this wasn’t even the guy he’d spent his waking moments fantasizing about while sat in the back of ms. o’donnell’s class.

no, no, he nipped that strain of thought in the bed, no, this wasn’t the time to dwell on past crushed. to hell with it. eddie gave a weak nod, grin pulling at his lips. “yeah”, he breathed, “’m sure”, and dove in to connect their lips.

xx.

Instinctively, Cole’s hand snaked around Eddie’s neck, a desperate attempt to pull him closer. Cole sighed into Eddie’s lips, allowing his chest to rest on Eddie’s. Tilting his head, Cole brought his other hand to Eddie’s face, cupping his jawline and stroking his cheek.

It had been a while-- a few months, at least-- since Cole had been kissed, and the clandestine nature of their meeting didn’t help the fluttering in his stomach. He knew he and Eddie would never be together in any real sense, but right here, right now, the future didn’t matter. As far as he was concerned, the future didn’t even exist.

Cole pulled away, just for a moment to catch his breath, and ran his thumb over Eddie’s lips. Lifting his gaze to meet Eddie’s eyes, Cole’s mouth twisted into a smile. “You’re pretty good at this, Munson,” he remarked, pulling his face back to Eddie’s-- daring him to lean in again.