Breathe ⭐️ Reddie

05

Richie's mind was fuzzy and his head throbbing. All he remembered was getting kicked out and then there was a van. He got hit by it, then everything was dark.

That would make sense, as he was achy all over. No way his dad beating him could hurt that bad.

He opened his eyes, but everything was dark. Richie tried to sit up, but felt a burning in his arms.

"What the fuck?" Richie thought to himself.

He tried to pull his arms apart, but started panicking. Something was holding his arms together, he couldn't see anything, and he didn't know where he was going.

Richie felt vibrations, so he assumed he was in a car. Then he heard talking.

He let out a terrified yell without really thinking. Then, the voices got quiet and Richie realized his mistake.

"Fuck they know I'm awake. They're gonna kill me or some shit like that," he thought anxiously.

He felt his wrists tear open and bleed as he struggled to get out of the ropes holding his arms. Then, he stopped.

Through his blurry vision, he saw a curtain like thing open a little. Light from what he thought to be the front of the car shone through. A small figure climbed through and sat across from him.

The person was wearing a ski mask so Richie couldn't identify who they could be. The person closed the curtain again so Richie couldn't see what was in the front of their car.

"Where am I?" Richie asked quietly, voice scratchy and confused.

"Doesn't matter. What's your name?" the person asked.

Richie could tell the interrogator was a boy, but it seemed like he was trying to make his voice deeper than it naturally was.

"Richie. What's yours?"

"Doesn't matter. Got any family or friends that'll notice you're missing?"

Richie nodded, hoping that he could trick the person across from him into letting him go. "Yep, tons of friends and a big family. They've probably already figured out where I am and are on their way."

"Hmm." The boy didn't seem nervous at all. "Then why did you pack a whole bag of shit?Seems to me like you were trying to run away."

"Nope, I was going to stay at a friends house."

"Who the fuck brings a pocket knife and twelve dollars worth of change to a friends house?" the boy sounded amused, realizing he had obviously caught Richie in a lie.

"Uh, you never know. It's New York City, and people are crazy. What if someone had mugged me and demanded twelve dollars in change?"

"If anyone even considered mugging you, they've obviously reached a new low. You look poorer than me and I've spent the last few days sleeping in a van."

"It was you that hit me?"

The boy didn't respond, but shook his head a little.

"Also, you don't think someone would want to mug me?" Richie asked, smirking a little bit.

The boy seemed like he was young as well, based on his tone and his sarcasm. Despite the situation, Richie didn't necessarily feel scared anymore.

"We're getting off topic. Why were you running?"

Richie sighed. No point in lying if the boy didn't believe him anyway. "My mom kicked me out."

"Why?"

"Because I'm a disappointment."

"Oh."  The boy shifted uncomfortably, like he didn't know what to say next.

"Where're you taking me?" Richie asked, hoping he'd get some kind of answer.

"Doesn't matter."

"Why not?"

"Stop fucking talking. I hate the sound of your voice."

"That's not what your mom was saying last night."

The boy snickered, but tried to play it off as a cough.

Richie smiled. He should've been afraid, but clearly the boy was close to his age if he laughed at a your mom joke.

They sat quietly for a few more minutes before there was a shout from the front.

"Six more hours, guys!"

"Who was that? Where are we six hours from? Is the weather nice there?" Richie asked, hoping he was irritating the boy.

"Stop asking questions or I'll duct tape your fucking mouth shut," the boy snapped, climbing back through the curtain, looking back at Richie.

His dark brown eyes were serious, but Richie refused to take him seriously.

"I'll stop asking questions if you tell me your name."

The boy glared at him, but Richie could tell he was debating whether or not to tell him. Richie knew he was annoying, and hoped he had annoyed the boy enough into giving him the answers he wanted.

"It's Eddie."

"Well, Eds-"

"That's not my name, asshole. It's Eddie."

"It's my nickname for you."

"Eddie is already a nickname. You said you'd shut up if I told you my name."

"I said I'd stop asking questions. Never said I'd stop talking," Richie said with a grin.

Eddie glared through his ski mask, making Richie grin wider.

"Stop fucking talking or I'll hit you with my van again."

"So it was you? Wow, Eds, thought we were friends."

"It wasn't me personally, I was just in the van. But that seems to be the only way to shut you up."

"I can think of more fun ways to shut me up," Richie said with a wink. "Bet you're cute under that ski mask."

Eddie simply rolled his eyes and closed the curtain, leaving Richie alone in the darkness.

"Don't leave me back here alone, Eds! You're breaking my heart!"

Richie didn't receive a response, but he wasn't really scared anymore. It didn't seem like Eddie wanted to hurt him. Sure, he was technically a kidnapper, but other than the ropes on his wrist, he hadn't actually done anything.

•••

Eddie sat next to Mike, ignoring Richie's whining from the back of the van.

"He's flirting with you," Mike said plainly, not looking up from the book he was reading.

"Shut up, Mike. He's only doing it so I'll let him go," Eddie hissed quietly so Richie wouldn't hear. However, Eddie felt a warm blush cover his face.

"What'd you learn?" Bev asked quietly. They all decided to speak quietly, knowing that Richie most likely wouldn't be able to hear them if their voices were low.

"His name is Richie, he never stops fucking talking, and he makes your mom jokes."

"That's it? Seriously?" Stan asked.

For some reason, Eddie didn't feel right telling his friends about the reason Richie had been out of his house. So, he nodded, earning a scowl from Stan.

"Why'd you need to spent twenty minutes back there if that's all you learned?" Stan asked. He knew Eddie was hiding something.

"Pay attention to the road before you hit something else," Eddie said aloud, ignoring the question.

Stan glared at Eddie when he heard Richie laugh from the back of the van.