cliché || reddie ✔️

thirteen

Fast footsteps thud over Eddie and Stanley's heads. The sneakers squeak as they go down the steps and Eddie twists his back to look between the cracks of the stairs. He hopes to see the scuffed white converse, but instead are met with a flash of black sneakers and long jeans. Eddie lets go of a soft sigh and turns back around as the footsteps hurry to the cafeteria doors.

"I want to go home." Eddie looks to Stanley, then to the floor.

"You say that every day," he comments and Stanley nods, as if his reason is obvious.

"I mean it every day." He lets his head fall back and hit the brick wall he leans on. Eddie can already sense the complaints coming on, so he opens his mouth to smother them all.

"We have four days of school left, counting today. I think you'll survive, Stan."

"Will I, Eddie?" He asks, his eyes trained on the steps above them. "Will I? Finals are next week and we still have these next four days to get through."

Guess Eddie's reassurance didn't do anything to block up the complaints..

"And I can't focus when Richie and his big mouth will be hanging around us."

Eddie lifts his gaze. Something stirs deep within his stomach. He can't pinpoint the feeling, but it's sickening and he doesn't like it. "You don't like Richie?" He asks.

Stanley keeps his eyes on the stairs, then glances at Eddie. "No- wait, yes. Hold on.." he shifts and sits straight, his eyes narrowed in confusion. "I don't don't like him," he says, his eyes focused on something far as he sorts through his thoughts.

Eddie's own eyes study Stanley intently, listening to every word that falls from his mouth. "We're in the same geometry class. He talks too much and gets everyone off topic."

Eddie nods, shrugging his shoulders. "Doesn't Mr. Irwin shut him up?" He asks and Stanley shakes his head, his eyebrows drawn.

"Mr. Irwin gets off topic more than Richie does."

"May-maybe you can juh-join my class," Bill says. Eddie jumps at the unexpectedness, turning to look over his shoulder. Bill's crouching down at the entrance underneath the stairs, a hand reached up to help himself dip. "Next suh-semester." Stanley looks off to the side as he thinks.

"That won't work. Classes switch next semester, remember? So if you do change to Bill's class, you could have it with Richie again," Eddie says as Bill gets settled on the floor. His back slouches with the weight of his backpack still strapped to his shoulders.

Stanley hums. "He's right."

Bill rolls his eyes in that older-brotherly way he hasn't lost. "Alright," he says and shakes his head. "I get it-t."

He pulls his backpack to his side, the straps still clinging to his shoulders. Bill unzips one of the smaller pockets and dips a hand in. Stanley watches, curious, as he searches before pulling out a deck of red and black cards. "I bru-brought Uno." He rolls the deck around in his hands as Eddie grins.

"Nice, Bill! Oh, Stan, you're going to lose again."

Stanley's eyes narrow, a hand reaching over to take the stack of cards from Bill. The edges are starting to curve and bend at the usage, the vibrant red fading down. A rubber band wraps tightly around them, securing them into place. "If I'm remembering correctly, you cheated last time, Eddie."

"I didn't cheat! I was getting water!"

"And walked behind me?"

"Guh-Guys," Bill said, his lips parted as his eyes dart from one boy to the other. Stanley looks over at him and visibly lowers his guard.