Why couldn't you just ignore them? You had to go and accept the stupidest dare ever, didn't you? Chrissy muttered under her breath, glancing at the nearest tree.

If she were in different circumstances, she would have actually admired the summer sun streaming deep into the Hawkins woods.

That's a familiar tree. Right, so I came from...there.

She tried to discern one tree from the other, but they seemed identical in every aspect, and the warm glow of the sun had now started to take a more ominous shade through the woods.

Okay, calm down. Jason's going to come looking for you in a while.

Chrissy tried not to give way to the panic that had started to claw at her. She trudged a few steps deeper into the canopy of trees, and was startled as she stumbled across a clearing.

Amidst the eerie chirping of crickets, the wooden table set up in the middle of the clearing was the only sign of human life Chrissy saw.

Who leaves furniture in the middle of the woods? She wondered to herself, walking around the empty area.

Atleast she knew that someone frequented this part of thicket. She peered around at the tall, thin trees that seemed to stand guard around the clearing, offering a strange sense of safety.

For ten minutes alone in the woods, this stupid dare isn't paying off...

A crow's call suddenly echoed from a nearby branch, causing the girl to jump and take a quick step backward.
Before causing Chrissy to bump into someone.

"Woah, sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya," the boy apologised with a guilty smile. Chrissy was still startled and failed to offer a reply, leading Eddie to frown in concern.

"Are you...okay?" He questioned slowly, following the girl's gaze to the branch from which the birdcall had emanated. Chrissy jerked out of her reverie and composed herself.

She smiled at the newcomer. "I'm fine," she assured.

Eddie nodded slowly, the frown of concern still etched on his face. He didn't usually get too many visitors in this part of the woods, and it was hard to imagine what Chrissy Cunningham, the Queen of Hawkins High, was doing here.

"Um, so..." Eddie began as he looked at the girl, who was fidgeting with her nails absentmindedly.

"I'm assuming the famous Chrissy Cunningham isn't here to do a drug deal." He raised his eyes playfully as he sauntered up to the wooden table.

Chrissy's eyes widened as though that very thought seemed unholy.

"No." She chuckled, taking another look at the trees around her before facing the guy again.

"I accepted the most insane dare to enter the woods, and I'm now totally lost." She smiled regretfully.

Eddie nodded slowly, taking in her predicament. He leaned against a tree and considered the situation.

"So you don't really know your way around Hawkins woods, which could be filled with all kinds of dangers, yet you accepted a dare?" he mused matter-of-factly. Chrissy crossed her arms in indignation.

"You're judging me!" She responded in mock exasperation, her eyes wide open in disbelief.

Wow, she's cute even when she pretends to be indignant...

The guy held up his hands in defence, walking upto the wooden table.

"To be fair, I'm nobody to judge," he replied with a shrug. He took of his jacket and laid it on the table, before taking a seat.

"Although I'd assume you'd know your way around this place, considering how often your friends come here." He gazed at her innocently.

Chrissy frowned, walking upto the table. She sat down opposite Eddie.
"Wait, how do you know my friends come here?" She enquired.

Eddie chuckled and took out a box from under the table.
"Well, I'm the only local supplier, and I make a pretty deal," he stated, crossing his arms.

"Plus you'd be surprised as to how addicted some students can get."

Chrissy raised her eyebrows. She shook her head slowly, considering the boy's words.

"So my friends come to you for... To buy..."

"Drugs, ma'am, it's not that hard to believe." Eddie shrugged with a nonchalant smile.

"I could name my clients, but that would totally violate the rules of trade."

The girl's expression grew startled as she looked up at him. So, she had friends who made drug deals with Eddie Munson, and yet pretended to be the perfect people in school. But which one of her friends would stoop that low as to actually get hooked on to drugs?

"Does Jason come here?" Chrissy spoke up suddenly, the very thought horrifying her. Eddie frowned, trying to recall which one of the cheerleader's friends the guy was.

"Oh, that blond athletic dude? No, he's not my client," he remarked. "Not that I'd entertain him even if he did come. Although there are a few others, mostly jocks and cheerleaders."

Chrissy looked down at the grass as she absentmindedly fidgeted with her fingers again. It hit her that she was still very lost in the woods, yet here she was with Eddie Munson, for some odd reason listening to him dish the dirt on her friends.

She looked back up at the boy opposite her, and caught a glimpse of the Hellfire Club logo on his t-shirt. Only a metal head would wear a leather jacket and a denim vest on a t-shirt. Although Chrissy had to admit, he did carry it off splendidly.

"You know... you're not like how I imagined you'd be," she mused with a chuckle, recollecting her previous notions about the "outcaste" student.  Eddie raised his eyebrows.

"Like mean and scary?"

She grinned and nodded.

Eddie smirked. "I actually thought you'd be mean and scary too."

Chrissy wasn't too surprised, as the entire jock and cheerleader squad at Hawkins High had the reputation of the school's elite club.

"You know, this isn't the first time that we've, uh... hung out," Eddie muttered with a smile, a faraway look in his eyes.

Chrissy narrowed her eyes in recollection. "It's not?"

"You don't remember?" He mused softly. She shook her head apologetically at him. He gazed at her for a moment, before suddenly toppling off the bench, causing the girl to gasp and stand up abruptly.

"That's alright, Chrissy," Eddie stated, regaining his posture as he clutched his heart in mock hurt. "I wouldn't remember me either."

The boy brushed away the leaves that threatened to settle in his long hair.

"Do I have something in my hair?"

The girl giggled, and swore she could have killed him for getting her even more anxious than she already was in the situation.

"Okay, it was in middle school. Talent show," he began, leaning against a tree in front of the table.

"We were both in different bands. You played the acoustic guitar, that was pretty cool actually. And I did rock, with my band-"

"Corroded Coffin!" Chrissy exclaimed suddenly, recalling the memory. Eddie snapped his fingers in satisfaction.

"So you do remember!"

Chrissy chuckled with a nod. "With a name like that, how could I forget?"

Eddie grinned, drumming his fingers against the bark of the tree.
"Yeah, we were both in the music room, tuning our guitars before the performance."

"But you looked so... different," Chrissy mused, frowning at the guy's drastic change in image.

"Yeah... my hair was buzzed," he remarked, tilting his head in consideration. "And I didn't have these sweet old tatties yet." He gestured to the Black Sabbath tattoo on his collarbone.

"Still a metal head, I see," Chrissy mused, taking a look at his rings, most of which represented rock symbols.
Eddie shrugged.

"Once a rock fan, always a rock fan," he stated with a grin. He walked back to the wooden bench and sat down again, glancing at the girl opposite him.

"So, do you still play the guitar?" he enquired. She nodded slowly.

"Well, I do when I'm not busy with my school schedule and activities and stuff," she replied. For a brief moment, Eddie thought he sensed a hint of regret in her voice. Regret at focussing so much on her goal of being the perfect student, leaving little time for herself.

"You know, I've always...wondered," Eddie broke the silence as he leaned forward in curiosity.
"About how you guys manage to be the depiction of perfection all the time," he continued. "All you star students, that is."

Chrissy was taken aback by the question.
"I don't..." She trailed off, not sure how to answer that question she had asked herself so many times every day.

She shrugged. "Sometimes it gets... frustrating. Trying to be the perfect person all the time...when you're not that perfect on the inside," she muttered. She looked up at Eddie.

"It's like this constant question, you know. Is your life real or just pretend?"

Eddie's eyes grew wide in amusement as he burst out laughing. He pointed a finger at Chrissy, in between fits of laughter.

"You did not just hit me with a Black Sabbath lyric."

The girl grinned, shrugging casually. "Hey, just because I play acoustic doesn't mean I'm not into rock."

A twig snapped somewhere behind the clearing, abruptly ending their banter. Chrissy turned with a jerk towards the noise.

"Just a squirrel, nothing to worry about," Eddie stated with a calm smile. The girl had a tendency to get paranoid about the slightest of sounds, which he found oddly curious.

Was it simply the fact that she was hanging out with a freak like himself, which was strictly against the Cheerleaders' Code or something?

For a moment, a silence elapsed between the two, each caught up in a dozen thoughts invading their minds just then.

"Oh my god, I didn't check the time!" Chrissy suddenly exclaimed as she got to her feet. She turned towards Eddie with a concerned frown etched on her face.

"Any idea what the time is?" She questioned hurriedly.

Eddie shook his head, playing with the rings on his right hand.
"When you're an outcaste, you don't watch the time," he declared dramatically.

"Time watches you."

A small smile flashed across Chrissy's face again. If she hadn't been in a hurry to get back to a dozen friends who had probably reported her missing, she might have stayed longer with the weird, yet oddly interesting boy from school.

"That's the way out, isn't it?" She pointed in the southern direction from the clearing. Eddie nodded, standing up.

"Straight on, south. You'll be in the main street in five minutes."

"Thanks." Chrissy smiled, trying to etch the directions into her mind.

"I'll see you around, I guess," she added slowly, trying to ease the mildly awkward air that threatened to ensue as they both stood around the table.

Eddie nodded again, accompanied with a grin as he picked up his jacket.

"See you around, Chrissy Cunningham," he replied with yet another dramatic touch.

"Try not to lose your way this time, because I might not be there to save your life."

Chrissy smiled, feigning extreme gratitude.

"I'll keep that in mind, Eddie Munson."

*****

"I think it's Chrissy's turn to pick a dare," the jock replied as they made their way to their lunch table. The lunch break was the one time you could hear assorted conversations, curses and whispers spread across the cafeteria tables.

Chrissy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I'm actually done with your stupid dares, Patrick. Your turn, Jane," she replied, carrying her tray as she followed her friends.

From the corner of her eye, a group of Hellfire Club t-shirts caught   Chrissy's attention. A bunch of high school boys were excitedly talking amongst themselves, and sure enough, with their leader at the head of the table.

Eddie paused midway between a sentence as he caught a glimpse of Chrissy among her cheerleaders' squad. He flashed her a grin. and casually waved at her.

As he did so, Chrissy noticed his rings catching the sun's glint through the window behind him. She smiled and waved back at the D&D leader.

"Did you just... acknowledge the existence of the Freak?" Jason remarked in apparent shock as they laid their trays down on the table.

Chrissy looked up at him.

"I think he's called Eddie Munson. And he's not a freak."