[ the sound of julie's voice registers before the familiarity in it does and eddie reacts on instinct and impulse. the second he's alerted to someone else in the building - the second he picks up the sound of a footstep, his hands drop and he reaches for and snatches up an empty beer bottle from near his foot by the neck, standing and turning and smashing the end of it against the brick around the fireplace in one quick motion. eddie's not naive enough to think he has any chance against a killer on their own turf, but he's also not jaded enough to not put up some kind of fight even in the face of shitty odds.
it clicks for him, as he stands there on the bottom floor with his arm extended toward the landing and a broken bottle in his hand, staring up at a mask he's maybe a little too familiar with, that he knows the voice behind it. or that was behind it. julie takes off her mask, and once eddie's confirmed that it's her, he immediately relaxes, arm dropping, bottle falling out of his hand. maybe it says something about him that he's so quick to let his guard down, knowing that it's her, but that's - something for him to think about later. or never. probably never.
eddie sits back down, this time on the arm of the couch. he brings an unsteady hand back up to his face, presses his thumb and two of his fingers against his eyelids and pulls inward until he's pinching the bridge of his nose. on the one hand, he's relieved that it's just julie. on the other hand, he doesn't like that he's been caught partway into - what? an anxious meltdown? on his third mutant hand, needed for this point - being at the campfire and trying to keep his shit together felt worse than this, so.
he drops his hand, lips pressed into a tight line, eyes still squeezed closed. eddie doesn't answer julie for a moment, has only really barely registered that she's come down the stairs just by the sound of it, but he turns his head away slightly. after a beat, he lifts the same hand he drops and waves it kind of vaguely, like he's brushing something off. he shakes his head, opens his eyes, takes another second to inhale. ]
I, ah - it's. [ he exhales, tries not to think about the sound of breaking bones. how the fuck does anyone get used to that shit? why does it keep happening right in front of him? when is he gonna catch a goddamn break? eddie swallows around a strangled note of frustration and shakes his head again. he still hasn't looked at julie directly now that she's taken off her mask. ] It's nothing, man. I just - I don't know, I needed to get outta there and I guess I just - [ quieter, more to himself: ] What the fuck?
[ he looks at julie, finally, and he just looks all kinds of roughed up, both physically - there's still blood on his shirt from his trial, though most of it is not his - and mentally. with zero context, he pleads: ]
What is she? Jesus Christ, give me a goddamn break already—
i sat down with the goal to make this short and still failed
it clicks for him, as he stands there on the bottom floor with his arm extended toward the landing and a broken bottle in his hand, staring up at a mask he's maybe a little too familiar with, that he knows the voice behind it. or that was behind it. julie takes off her mask, and once eddie's confirmed that it's her, he immediately relaxes, arm dropping, bottle falling out of his hand. maybe it says something about him that he's so quick to let his guard down, knowing that it's her, but that's - something for him to think about later. or never. probably never.
eddie sits back down, this time on the arm of the couch. he brings an unsteady hand back up to his face, presses his thumb and two of his fingers against his eyelids and pulls inward until he's pinching the bridge of his nose. on the one hand, he's relieved that it's just julie. on the other hand, he doesn't like that he's been caught partway into - what? an anxious meltdown? on his third mutant hand, needed for this point - being at the campfire and trying to keep his shit together felt worse than this, so.
he drops his hand, lips pressed into a tight line, eyes still squeezed closed. eddie doesn't answer julie for a moment, has only really barely registered that she's come down the stairs just by the sound of it, but he turns his head away slightly. after a beat, he lifts the same hand he drops and waves it kind of vaguely, like he's brushing something off. he shakes his head, opens his eyes, takes another second to inhale. ]
I, ah - it's. [ he exhales, tries not to think about the sound of breaking bones. how the fuck does anyone get used to that shit? why does it keep happening right in front of him? when is he gonna catch a goddamn break? eddie swallows around a strangled note of frustration and shakes his head again. he still hasn't looked at julie directly now that she's taken off her mask. ] It's nothing, man. I just - I don't know, I needed to get outta there and I guess I just - [ quieter, more to himself: ] What the fuck?
[ he looks at julie, finally, and he just looks all kinds of roughed up, both physically - there's still blood on his shirt from his trial, though most of it is not his - and mentally. with zero context, he pleads: ]
What is she? Jesus Christ, give me a goddamn break already—