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“Good morning, buddy,” Eddie mutters, voice raspy, as his eyes struggle to open in the sun-lit room (he can’t afford curtains just yet).
Silence greets him. As it’s done for the last two months.
He attempts to ignore the pang in his chest as he sits up with great effort, fists clenching his blanket tightly. It doesn’t work. He shuts his eyes and does the breathing exercises Dan recommended, willing the wetness behind his eyelids to go away.
It does. It’s a small win, but he takes it.
He doesn’t know how people can do it.
Live their lives all alone in their bodies, no booming voice telling them what to do or having conversations with them or telling them it wants to eat some chocolate or human heads.
There’s none of that in Eddie’s life anymore. It almost feels hard to believe. He only had Venom for a year and he can’t handle going back to how his life used to be before the best thing that ever happened to him.
It’s all downhill from here. So Eddie tries living like a normal person: wakes up on time, eats whatever breakfast he can afford, goes to his minimum wage job and turns his brain off for the duration of his shift, leaves work and eats whatever dinner he can afford, and goes back home to his shitty apartment.
Every couple of days, he goes back to that pier and looks at the Statue of Liberty as he eats a bar of chocolate. Venom told him to never forget about him, and Eddie takes that to heart. As he looks at the statue illuminated by the sunset, he thinks of his best memories with Venom, not knowing whether he’s laughing or sobbing at the funny ones, his chest tightening at the mundane, everyday ones. Such a simple life they could’ve had.
It’s probably unhealthy, he knows. But that’s never stopped him.
He finds that these visits are the happiest parts of his week.
Grief is such a strange process.
A day can come where Eddie thinks he’s doing better, feels a bit lighter on his feet, and the next day brings him unimaginable pain, the inability to get out of bed, a call to his workplace to cancel his shift.
He still gets terrible headaches. They give him hope when his mental state is particularly bad. Maybe some part of Venom is still inside of him, waiting, or regenerating, or something—that could be the cause of the headaches. Or the way his muscles twitch uncontrollably—could be him, too.
Eddie thinks he hears him sometimes, in the back of his mind. It’s so fleeting, it’s most likely a hallucination, but he doesn’t let that stop him from responding, hoping to hear that voice once again.
He can never forget that voice.
He’s at the pier again.
It’s dark, hours past sunset, and the wind chills him down to his bones despite the hoodie he’s wearing. He decided to stay for a while longer: today marks three months.
The pain is still the same as ever, and Eddie is convinced it’ll never go away. That’s what he’s heard people say: ‘grief never goes away, you just learn to manage it better over time,’ or something along those lines. But he’s sure as hell not managing it any better now compared to three months ago.
He shivers as he sits down, tired eyes on the statue. He’s seen it so many times now, he can probably create a perfect picture in his mind. They wouldn’t even need to be here to see it, if Venom came back.
No, don’t think about that.
He shoves his hands in the pockets of his hoodie, thinking about how much he took the warmth of Venom enveloping his body for granted. It was the perfect cocoon of comfort…
There’s a noise out in the water that’s getting louder, and it’s kind of annoying. He tries looking for the source to no avail—it’s too dark—but it sounds like something big is splashing against the water repeatedly.
Maybe just some overexcited animal. That’s probably his sign to leave. He sighs and stands up, brushing off his pants, but as soon as he takes a step, a huge, velvety black fish jumps out of the water and flops right in front of his shoes, scaring the living shit out of him. He jumps back, wide eyes on the animal, and his heart freezes when he sees the black tint leaving the fish and a dark, gooey substance traveling towards him.
It happens so fast, his racing mind can’t even catch up, and he almost thinks he’s officially gone crazy until—
Eddie.
Eddie’s arms go limp by his sides. The fish continues to flop, thumping against the wood.
A moment later, he manages to find his voice. “…Ve..nom?”
Who else would it be?
Venom materializes out of his chest, his face smaller than it usually is, voice weaker, but Eddie barely acknowledges that. Venom’s alive? Venom’s alive. He’s alive and he’s right in front him.
He’s not dreaming, is he?
A long tongue licks right across his face, and his nose shrivels up at the wetness.
Still think this is a dream now?
“I…” Eddie begins, but he doesn’t know where to start, and his eyes are getting too wet, he can’t see. He holds Venom’s head between his shaky hands and presses his forehead against Venom’s as he sobs, letting out all the anguish he’s felt over the past few months. “You’re alive… You’re actually alive,” he whispers.
Venom pushes against his forehead in a chastising manner.
Did I not tell you ‘Goodbye for now,’ Eddie?
“F-Fuck,” Eddie grins, and he doesn’t think he’s ever felt this happy in his entire life. “You did, didn’t you… But how..?”
A part of me still lived on in a vial at the lab. Venom licks his tears away. A cockroach went near me.
Eddie shakes his head in incredulity. “I’m never hating on cockroaches again.” A pause. “Still killing them, though.”
Why only kill them when they are delicious?
Eddie’s face scrunches up. “Gross. You better not.”
His tears have slowed down now, and reality finally begins to sink in. A quiet moment passes between the two of them as they revel in each other’s presence.
“I can’t believe you’re really back. I missed you so much.” Eddie wonders if Venom felt just as much pain from their separation.
I missed you too. Venom bumps his head against his cheek. A lot. And his other cheek. Too much.
Eddie laughs. “Alright, alright, I get it.” A strong feeling of affection curls in his stomach, and he can’t tell who it belongs to. “I love you so much.”
He’s startled at how easily the words leave him, but that had been the source of one of his regrets for these last few months: that he never told Venom how much he loved him. He knows Venom probably felt it, being in his mind and body, but actually saying it gives it a whole new meaning.
It marks a different point in their relationship.
And I, you, my Eddie. Nothing will ever tear us apart again.
Eddie smiles, knowing the truth behind those words, and leans closer to Venom, the city lights reflecting off his iridescent eyes, and presses a kiss against his teeth, humming pleasantly when Venom’s tongue licks across his lips in reciprocation.
Eddie finally feels whole. The empty space in his heart is complete again, filled by alien black goo, and Eddie can’t be more relieved about it.
No longer will he have to survive, scraping by for an ounce of happiness, feeling like an outsider to the rest of humanity. No longer will he deal with the cold, dark feeling of loneliness permeating into every aspect of his day.
He has Venom now. No—they have each other. And that’s the way it should always be: a mutualistic, interconnected, encompassing kind of love.
Bonus
“How did you find me, anyway?”
I know my Eddie.
“Hm, okay. I’m that predictable, huh?”
I knew you would keep seeing the statue for me.
“…Yeah. How do you like it, anyway? Is it as beautiful as you expected?”
Yes. But not as beautiful as you.
…
“Oh my God, there’s no way you just said that.”
But it is true.
“I really must be dreaming.”
Not!
“You can’t seriously be this cheesy.”
I can be many things!
“Am I gonna have to get used to this from now on?”
Yes.
“Wow, okay… Sorry I ate all the chocolate, by the way.”
We will get more when we leave.
“I don’t really have any money.”
We can—
“We are not stealing. It’s too soon for that… Don’t look at me like that.”
Eddie…
“..What?”
I guess I will have to eat you instead.
“You have got to be kidding me.”