[ He can’t really blame the kid. Dropped into what would be, if not for the goats and occasional human sacrifice, an ideal fantasy world where they just give you things for existing? Hell, he’d think he was dreaming too, if he didn’t know any better by this point.

But Eddie gets it. He gets it. The shock and elation on Dustin’s face twists like a knife in his stomach because he’s well aware that he shouldn’t be here, and he still has no explanation for why he is. He’s just here, uninjured and unscarred with nothing at all to show for what happened in the Upside Down beyond the memory, the trauma, and the occasional phantom pain. There are a couple telltale signs that time has passed, though. His hair is longer, bangs grown out, and he doesn’t have the pallor someone who’s been living on microwave dinners and spaghetti-o’s anymore. ]

Flattered as I am—

[ He rolls his eyes and reaches over to pinch Dustin on the arm—hard, because he’s not going to spend the next hour trying to convince him this isn’t a dream. ]

I’m gonna tell you right now that you’ve got to stop putting logic into any of this.

[ His voice is a little raw, like he didn’t expect to have to do this ever. He and Steve arrived at the same time. They didn’t really have to discuss…well, anything, and he’s never let his hopes get too high when new arrivals filter into the commune. Though part of him always keeps a lookout for a familiar face, be it his uncle, his bandmates, or one of the kids he’s grown so fond of. Either way, he knows Dustin is somewhere in that weird head of his, trying to work out the science and logistics. ]

You’re not dreaming.