2am | reddie

deux

richie couldn't get the thought of the brown-haired boy out of his head. the way that he basically cowered over his desk, his shoulders shaking as obvious tears fell down his cheeks. richie never felt bad about making people hurt, but this boy did something to him that made him feel some sort of remorse.

as soon as the bell rung, signaling the end of the period, he stayed in his seat as he watched everyone else pack their belongings up and basically book it for the door. he noticed the tears that stained the small boys cheeks, the way his hands shook slightly as he struggled to shove his books and binder into his bag. as soon as most of the other students were out, richie stood up. he kept his head down as he walked, hands in his pocket. calm and collected as he walked to the lunch hall.

people parted in the hall as he walked through, a frown plastered on his lips as he ignored everyone and everything surrounding him. richie personally didn't think he was that bad of a person. he just lived a difficult life. he tried his best to be a likable individual but it seemed that no matter he tried, he didn't come off as anything except rough and intimidating. he learned to accept it. he was never going to alter himself to fit the standard norms to make friends, and he was perfectly fine with it.

as he swiftly made his way into the hall, moving as fast as he could to escape the cold and nearly terrified looks from the kids in the hall. he looked around the lunch hall, observing the different groups and where he could sit. the numbing chatter that bounced against the ugly green walls of the room creeped its way into his head, a headache starting to arise as he groaned. he just wanted to sit down.

and that's when the familiar brown-haired poked his head into the room.

richie quickly ducked his way through the sea of students, making his way to a semi-quiet spot int he farthest corner away from the door. he let out a heavy sigh of pure relief as he pressed his back to the cold tile, it cooling his skin even through the several layers of clothing. he slid down the wall -- regretting it soon after as the thoughts of how gross the wall probably is consumed his mind -- and sat on the floor, staring off into the distance as a mixture of questions about the small boy and the dirty wall that his back was pressed up into filled his mind, drowning out the endless drone of chatter surrounding him.

__________

eddie's heart was heavy as he swerved his way through the halls, lucky to avoid his many bullies as he made his way to the lunch room. he couldn't get the feeling of richie's cold words hitting him like a brick out of his head.

"what're you looking at, short stack?" he snapped, frowning as he spoke.

eddie just wanted to cry as the same six words filled his head, repeating and bouncing around, almost eating him alive. he sat down at the same table that he always sat at. it was always empty, eddie started to notice after the first couple weeks of school. he plopped down on the rickety and rusted bench, it sinking under his weight. the whole school was basically falling apart. it was the oldest one in town and every student still, to this day, wondered how it hasn't collapsed on top of their heads in the middle of the school day. eddie set his backpack on the bench right next to him, humming softly to himself as he pulled out the pre-packed lunch his mother always made for him.

woo-ee-ooh, i look just like buddy holly

oh-oh and you're mary tyler moore

i don't care what they say about us anyways

i don't care 'bout that

eddie smiled softly to himself as he started softly singing, unpacking the lunch in front of him. his head rocked back and forth to the silent beat in his head, a slight smile on his pink lips as the song played on. he unpacked his food, starting to eat as he kept quietly humming to himself, tapping his food to replace the head rocking as to avoid choking.

woo-hoo, and you know i'm yours

woo-hoo, and i know you're mine

woo-hoo, and that's for all time

eddie traced shapes into the table as he took a small bite from the apple in his other hand, the song that was playing in his hand now coming to an end. as the song ended, the voices and loud conversations between the rest of the students pushed and shoved their way into his head, causing his smile to drop, but he kept a positive attitude.

the small boy stood up, carefully swinging his legs out from under the bench that, really, sat too low for anyone to be comfortable. he was barely 5'5 and it was almost too small for him, he couldn't even imagine someone like henry bowers sitting at the table. he didn't want to imagine that in the first place. eddie sighed softly as he collected his trash to throw away, zipping up his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. with a slight skip in his step, a smile on his lips as well, he walked to the nearest trash can. another weezer song played in his head as he walked, starting to hum along with it yet again.

say it ain't so

your drug is a heartbreaker

say it ain't so

my love is a lif-

eddie's thoughts, words, breath, and heartbeat were all cut short as he felt himself plummet. his head was somewhere else, detached as he started separating completely from his body until he felt the cold tile floor of the lunch room catch him, his leg stuck on something else.

the boy from earlier.

eddie felt himself relate as one being again, closing his eyes tight before opening them to see the same kid from earlier that day. the song that filled his head with happy thoughts was on pause, the sound of laughter from what seemed like every possible student in the room instead replacing the lyrics he once hummed. eddie felt himself break into a million pieces as he collected himself.

he put his arms out to support his weight as he pushed himself to get up, picking up the trash that he'd thrown prior to his impact. tears brimmed the smaller boys eyes as he sniffled, trying to hold back a sob that was growing inside of him. when eddie got up, facing the trash can that he would've hoped was the only destination (at least before his meeting with the floor), expecting to turn around and see the boy, ready to throw more mean words at him and twist his head even more than it was.

but instead he locked his eyes onto richie tozier blowing a punch at a complete stranger to the two of them, gasps echoing throughout the entire building.