Lover | Richie Tozier

Chapter 64.

"Y-You guys can crash in th-the living room, ih-if you want."

The Christmas tree next to Bill dazzled with trinkets and glitter, winking off of the frosted glass pane next to him. As the light deflected away from the window, it threw itself onto the side of his face in a kaleidoscope of multicolored lights. Blushes of pink, green, red, and ivory all settled around his features and haunted the edges with a kind of vivaciousness that was nothing short of beautiful.

Elle sunk in on herself, looking up and meeting eyes with the welcoming boy unsurely. "You want me to stay for the sleepover?" She asked distantly. "But I'm a girl-"

"Doesn't matter," Bill interrupted. "Th-The holidays are h-hard for my parents. Eh-Especially my mom. The more the m-merrier," he insisted. His eyes twinkled, but not with the light from the tree. Instead, they flickered with the gleam that was his little brother. Was.

"I'm pretty sure that's how orgy's start," Richie joked comfortably.

As much as he tried to fight it, he smiled. Really smiled. For one night, he would try to forget. Just one night that he'd take the form of falling snowflakes and blow away into transparency.

As Elle heard the joke, her lips formed into a smile of her own. Streaks of blush scorned her cheeks and she turned to Richie while walking closer to him. "Beep beep, Richie. She pressed the bed of her finger against the tip of his nose softly.

His smile, sweet and gentle, embellished his face. "So what do you say? Are you staying the night or not? You can sleep on the couch, we'll all take the floor." He looked around at the others through the lenses of his glasses, making the decision for them. They would all sleep on the floor so that the 'princess', in his eyes, could return to her pedestal.

Eddie's classic objection rose to the surface without fault. "You want me to sleep on the floor? No way. That's gross, dude. No offense to Bill, but I'm pretty sure there's still germs in his house no matter how polished it seems."

He looked over the floor underneath him and pressed his socks further into the carpet. A shiver danced over his skin, not yet accustomed to the fact that bacteria wasn't after him like he always believed it to be.

"You can take my extra blanket if you want, Eddie. To protect you from germs," Mike offered, a beautiful smile on his face. "It's really good quality," he explained.

The thick cloth Mike clutched between his palms was the last piece of his parents that he had. But if it meant keeping the smaller boy warm during the chill of Christmas overcast, it seemed well worth it. He passed it over and Eddie tucked it into his chest.

"What the hell, what about me? I'm not allowed to use your fancy blanket?" Stan moved curls out of his eyes. His hands stuck out to his side and he beckoned towards himself as if he'd just been cruelly forgotten. "Rude."

"We can share," Eddie invited, spreading the textile over the blanket he had already laid out. He pulled the corners to meet those of the fabric underneath neatly. Stan's eyebrow raised at the precision being put into making the blanket perfect, but he agreed to keep Eddie company anyways.

"I'm going to help Bill with the hot chocolate," Elle addressed. "Stan, would you get the fire going please? I know all of that time spent birdwatching must pay off with some aspect of nature expertise." She gave him a smug smile, coaxing him with the glow touching her face.

His element.

"Sure," he nodded obediently. "Richie, care to help?"

Richie was so invested in watching Elle that the question wasn't even processed in the slightest. Her walk demanded his attention. "Uh-huh," he uttered, completely unsure as to what he had just agreed to. He stayed on Elowynn until she became one with the light emitting from the kitchen.