Richie had woken up around three in the afternoon, Eddie still fast asleep next to him. Richie didn't want to move; he loved how tight Eddie was clinging to him, how peaceful he looked when he was asleep. Unfortunately though, he needed to speak with his mother.
Richie slid his arm out from under Eddie, pushing a pillow where he had been laying to mimic a person. Eddie deserved to be comforted when he slept, and Richie was going to make sure he had it, whether he was there or not.
Eddie didn't move in the slightest, clearly exhausted from everything he had been through in the past day. With one last glance at the sleeping boy, Richie jogged downstairs to where his mom sat in the living room reading a book.
"Mom?" Richie asked, not wanting to disturb her if she was at a good spot in her story. He loved her with everything. She cared so much for him even though her life was a mess.
"Hey, Rich. Where's Eddie?" she asked, closing her book and smiling.
"Asleep." Richie stood quietly for a minute before climbing next to his mother on the couch, leaning his head on her shoulder. "Can I talk to you?"
Maggie looked at him in surprise. She had always said he could talk to her, but he almost always said 'okay' then left the room, keeping everything to himself. "Of course, sweetie. What's going on?" she asked, wrapping her arm around her son and running her fingers through his curls.
"It's Eddie," Richie mumbled. He knew it wasn't his story to share, but he was so worried about the boy.
"What about Eddie?"
"He... he lives a shitty life, mom. Like really bad. Ours isn't amazing, but you and I have each other, and even dad sometimes. Eddie has no one."
Maggie nodded, remembering how much Eddie struggled to say anything about himself earlier. "His mom isn't home a lot, right?"
Richie nodded, before shaking his head. "Sort of. He likes it more when she's gone. She's mean, mom."
"How so?"
Richie suddenly felt guilty about telling someone all of Eddie's secrets. He mentally scolded himself. "I... it's not my business. But he just can't leave home a lot, and when he does he can't tell his mom. I just... I just wanna know, that if he's not at home, can he come here?"
Maggie realized her son didn't want to open up anymore. She didn't push, instead pressing a soft kiss to his head. "Of course, honey. He seems like a sweet boy. I'll let you know if there's days that aren't good for him to be here, but yes, he's always welcome."
"Thanks, mom," Richie said, cuddling into her side.
"So... did you kiss him?"
Richie shot away from his mom, going bright red, his eyes wide. "Uh... what? Wh-why would you think that, I mean..." he tried to play it off as a joke, only to get an eye roll from his mom.
"You came downstairs blushing and you weren't very secretive when you came home. I can read you well, honey, just like you can read me."
Richie knew there was no way he was getting out of the accusation. "Fine, maybe I did," he mumbled.
Maggie smiled at him. "Keep him then, kiddo. I may not know him, but he's a good one. Alright?"
Richie nodded, feeling slightly less embarrassed. "What about dad?" he asked, knowing his dad didn't know that he liked boys and girls both.
"I'm not sure, Rich. If you tell him and he gets mad, we won't stay here, alright? Don't tell him unless you're ready."
Richie smiled at her, getting up and hugging his mom tightly. "I should get back to him. I don't want him to wake up and think I left him."
