CHAPTER XXVII:
just a late-night swim

( March 1986 )

CLEO HAD KEPT HER HEAD DOWN THE WHOLE TIME WHILE THEY SAILED AWAY INTO LOVERS LAKE. Eddie and Robin had been in their turn of rowing the boat, as much as the two wished to be by Cleo's side.

      "Hey," Steve beckoned to Cleo whose knee had begun bouncing feverishly, and her eyes snapped up to him. "You okay?"

      "Yeah, I'm just..." she searched through her scattered mind for an excuse, her eyes flitting over to Eddie momentarily, but she found nothing to reason with. "I'm- I'm peachy."

Eddie looked over his shoulder at the girl, his nerves jittering at the sight of her bouncing leg. He exhaled sharply and turned in the boat, "alright, Harrington, switch with me."

      Steve furrowed his brows, "what? Why?"

      "Because you're not doing it- I don't know, man. Just switch with me," Eddie had said while not giving Steve any room to argue as he had already been standing and fiddling with the chain bracelet on his wrist.

"Fine," Steve defensively said switching with the boy.

      "Hey, pretty lady," Eddie softly said while taking the seat in front of Cleo. Her eyes went up to him at the name to see his charming smile and she felt her cheeks heat up despite being on the edge of an anxiety attack.

      "Hey, pretty boy," she mustered up with her voice slightly raspy but saying it in the same way Eddie had said his version. Eddie froze in place, his pale cheeks reddening as he processed that she had been the one to call him pretty.

With his bracelet in hand, clearing his mind of any thoughts he had gathered after the name, he held it out. "Do you think you can put this back on? I screwed with it and shit and now it won't go back" Eddie knew what he was doing. He was the one who took it off on purpose and he was nearly the only one who knew how to put it back on with its intricate clasps.

      Cleo nodded and put the cold metal around the boy's wrist, her fingers attempting to work diligently at the clasps but she no doubt struggled. Eddie watched her closely, the spring in her leg had begun to slow as she focused on the bracelet, she bit the inside of her cheek as she worked away and Eddie felt a prickle of pride in his chest knowing that he had taken her mind off of the lake to do such a mundane task for him.

"Woah, Woah, Woah. Slow down, slow down guys," Nancy quickly said. Eddie mentally groaned at her timing as he had finally gotten Cleo to calm herself.

      The boat stopped and the teens all leaned over the compass in the girl's hand. The needle had been spinning out of control. "Woah," Steve muttered watching it move.

      "Guys, what's going on?" Dustin's voice spoke over the walkie. "Come on guys, talk to me."

      Robin rushed over to it and held it close to her, "uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capital 'ahh!"

      Cleodora furrowed her brows watching Steve slide off his shoes and socks, then it hit her what he was doing. "Don't you even think about it," she warned.

      "Steve, what are you doing?" Nancy asked when she followed what Cleo had said.

      Steve took off his socks, "somebody's gotta go down and check this out, unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, then...it's gotta be me. No complaints, all right?" Cleo squinted her eyes at him while he continued to undress. "What?" he noticed her look.

      "I always thought you couldn't swim," Cleo admitted with her hands still holding Eddie's bracelet. Steve gave her a confused and slightly insulted face and she shrugged. "You look like you can't swim."

      "Hey, I'm not complaining. I do not want to go down there," Eddie butted in looking over the edge of the boat.

      Steve stood up in the boat, rocking it as he did so causing Cleo to put her hands on Eddie's wrists to avoid all movement, and he proceeded to take his yellow sweatshirt off. Eddie and Cleo shared a look with Cleo's gentle hands on him, they quickly pulled away once they realized how hypnotized they had both been, no matter their feelings for each other.

Eddie rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a plastic bag, he turned it upside down to empty it out, Cleo giving him a look as he did so, and he put Steve's flashlight in the bag. "Hey," he handed the flashlight to him, "good luck."

"Thanks."

The metalhead turned away from Steve and stuck a cigarette in between his lips and Robin snatched it from him just before he could light the end of it. "Gross," she said while throwing it over the boat.

      "Former asthmatic here?" Cleo motioned toward herself.

      "Steve?" Nancy caught their attention while Steve had been standing at the edge of the boat. "Be careful," she finally said. Cleodora and Robin shared odd looks with each other at the interaction before Steve nodded and dove into the water.

      Cleo braced herself on Eddie and Robin's forearms. "Christ on a cracker," she mumbled at the large rock of the boat Steve had created. "He could've just jumped in instead of being dramatic about it."

      "WHERE ARE WE AT WHEELER?" Robin asked while the group continued to wait for Steve in the boat.

      "Closing in on a minute," Nancy warily said.

      Cleo had been fumbling with Eddie's bracelet again, a suggestion he brought up the second he noticed her leg beginning to bounce and her running her palms over her thighs and knees. Her breath hitched at the minute mark, her hands slightly shaking while trying to keep her mind off of the fact that she was beginning to think that Steve was going to be just like her.

      Her hair had fallen into her face from her hanging her head low and she frustratedly pushed it behind her ear for what had felt like the millionth time since Steve had gone under. Eddie watched her closely, occasionally taking a glance over the edge of the boat for Steve, but noticing the way she had become irritable over the last minute.

Cleo huffed as her hair fell into her face once more but before she could harshly push it behind her ear, Eddie beat her to it and gently pushed the back small strands, gently grazing her cheek with his thumb as he did so. Her eyes went up as her heartbeat sped up but this time in a pleasing way as they made eye contact.

An emphatic splash on the other side of the boat broke the two out of their moment and into fear. "Oh, Christ!" Eddie shouted startled as Cleo dropped his bracelet.

"I found it," Steve heaved from the water.

      "You found it?" Nancy asked.

      "I found it, yeah, I found it," Steve said while swimming over to the boat.

      "Dustin, you are a goddamn Einstein, Steve found the gate," Robin spoke into the walkie.

      "It's pretty wild. It's more a snack-sized gate than the mama gate but still, it's pretty damn big," Steve spoke in awe. But then the boy in the water ducked into the water and nearly brought the boat with him.

      "Steve, what the hell?" Cleo said with wide eyes and her hand gripping Eddie's wrist but Steve only looked confused. That was until he was completely dragged into the water with the group yelling after him as he sunk farther and farther down.

"What the hell was that, man?" Eddie shouted panicked.

"Nancy, really, what happened?" Robin also panicked.

Cleo kept her panic on the inside knowing that if she verbally said anything it would lead to fear vomit or an asthma attack.

Nancy, wordlessly, stood from her seat in the boat and put her hands on the edge leaning over. "Wait, wait, wait," Eddie put a hand out. "You're not going in there, are you?"

"Just wait here," she demanded and before any more arguments could be thrown, she dove right into the water.

"Goddamn it!" Eddie shouted. Then went Robin sitting on the edge of the boat, breathing in and out through her mouth. "No, no, no, no. What are you doing? She said to wait," Eddie said as Cleo's eyes widened and she neared the edge with Eddie.

"Yeah, I heard her," Robin stated not moving.

Pointing a defiant finger, Eddie spoke, "she's in charge."

Robin scoffed, "are you kidding me? I made that shit up." And just like Nancy, Robin held her nose and fell back like a scuba diver without waiting for any argument.

"You're kidding!" Cleo finally shouted. "It was a democracy!"

      "Goddamn it! Lying son of a bitch!" Eddie screamed rocking back and forth frustratedly.

      "Do we have to do that now?" Cleo pointed at the water with wide eyes.

      "Yeah, I would think so!" Eddie sporadically said waving his arms.

      Cleodora's breathing shallowed with his words, her heartbeat pounding in her ears. Abruptly, she stood, the boat rocking as she did so, and she grabbed onto Eddie's shoulders for support. "If..." she tried to speak through her hitched breathing. "If I- if I drown again," she was trying to spit out her words but nothing was coming out as she stared into Eddie's big and round eyes.

      "You're not drowning again," Eddie said while putting his hands on her with his thumbs just before her ears and palms on the sides of her neck.

      "Christ's sake," she finally breathed out frustratedly. Just before Eddie knew it, Cleo put her hands on Eddie the same way that he had done with her and she closed the space between them bringing her lips to his rushed. It was sweet, as rushed as it was. Kissing Eddie was just about one of the best things Cleodora had ever done and possibly one of the last. He tasted like cigarette smoke and the salt from the bag of chips Dustin had shared with him, but either way she was pleased to have experienced it.

      His eyes widened before he could even process it she was pulling away. Her pupils were dilated when she pulled away and stared into his wide eyes while he exhaled air through his mouth in shock.

She neared the edge of the boat. Taking one gasp of air into her lungs, Cleo jumped into the cold and dark water without letting Eddie get a word in and trusting that her old scuba diving days would do her justice.

NOTE. how's everyone after volume 2? personally i think it was the worst thing possible for my mental health but here we are

and guess who officially added mitski to my bone picker playlist as of today 😜 you guys will never guess which song i added first 🤭 (hint: its from the Retired from Sad, New in Business album 😋)