Reddie or Not

Chapter Twenty-One - Number Six and Seven

Eddie's whole body froze, his breathing stopped mid-inhale, his eyes wide. There Richie was, naked as the day he was born, in their bed with some- some redheaded skank wrapped around him. His instinct was to scream, but Eddie didn't usually act on impulse. He weighed the consequences, he thought things through. Usually.

"WHAT THE FUCK!" he bellowed, his voice unnaturally deep for a boy his size.

The girl screamed, quickly pulling the blanket over herself. Richie's eyes fluttered open lazily and he groaned.

"What are you doing here, Edward?" asked Richie, then turned to the girl. "You stayed the night?"

She grabbed a few things from the floor and hurried out the room without a response.

"What am I doing?" scoffed Eddie. "Who the fuck were you doing?"

"Her? She's, um..." he shrugged. "Just call her Number Six."

"Six?" repeated Eddie furiously. "What are you playing at, Richie? You don't even like girls!"

"Yeah," said Richie, swinging himself around to sit on the edge of the bed. "That's exactly the problem. See, someone told me that I was 'sick'."

Eddie spluttered. "But- I-"

"So I took someone else's suggestion," said Richie, sliding on his bunny slippers. "They said I could just fuck the gay out. I think it's starting to work, too. At first I had to get blackout drunk to do it, now I just need to get hammered."

Eddie pursed his lips. "This isn't you, Richie."

"You wouldn't believe how many girls want to 'cure' me." The front door slammed. "There goes Number Six. I'll miss her."

"Richie, stop it." said Eddie, his lip shaking. "Don't do this."

"Don't do what, Edward?"

"Call me Eds for fuck's sake!" cried Eddie, stomping his foot. "I want you to call me Eds or Eddie Spaghetti or even just Eddie, but stop calling me fucking Edward because it's not right!"

Richie pushed by him. "Whatever."

"Why are you doing this?" asked Eddie.

"Why am I?" growled Richie. "God, Eddie, that's unbelievable."

"What-"

Richie turned around and grabbed Eddie so suddenly that he would have fallen had Richie's arm not been wrapped tightly around his waist. He pressed their bodies together, their faces so close that Eddie felt his warm breath against his cheeks. He didn't even mind that he hadn't brushed his teeth.

"Tell me you're straight."

"I'm straight." breathed Eddie, his eyes locked to Richie. "I- I like girls."

"So you're telling me," Richie leant down, his lips brushing against Eddie's ear as he spoke softly and slowly. "If I pulled your trousers down, and sucked your cock, you wouldn't like that?"

"No." said Eddie stiffly. "I wouldn't."

"You're such a liar, Eds." smirked Richie. "Know how I know?"

"I'm not lying." said Eddie firmly. "Why do you think that?"

"Because you're hard."