𝓡𝓪𝓲𝓷 || a Reddie fic

𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞

"fuck Eddie!" Richie hissed as Eddie dabbed an alcohol wipe over the gash on his chin, his shoulders bunching like taught springs, "Rich quiet the fuck down!" Eddie quipped back as he dabbed the remaining blood and dirt off of the cut. "what the hell did you do anyway?" Eddie asked, looking at Richie as he placed the wipe down and made eye contact with him, Richie huffed out a small laugh "oh, y' know. just the usual run-in with bowers." eddies brows furrowed as he looked at Richie. "you need to stop this, Richie"

Richie's gaze softened as he sighed and looked down, unable to maintain eye contact anymore. " I know eds." Richie shifted a little as the words left his mouth, he hated it when he made Eddie upset, Eddie looked at Richie sympathetically as he placed two fingers under his chin and lifted his head so Richie could see him. Eddie gazed at Richie, transfixed in his dark orbs.

Richie looks a lot different from how he did when they were fourteen, his hair is slightly grown out and curling, in grade ten he hit a massive growth spurt and still, two years later, he towers over almost everyone In the grade, his glasses aren't as bulky as they used to be, but the lenses are still extremely thick and magnify his eyes to a point where it looks cartoonish, People liked making fun of him for them, which usually ended with Richie sending some snarky reply back and getting punched, -it is a little bit his fault for making a comment on fucking someone's mother though-.

He'll always be beautiful to Eddie though

Eddies cheeks bloomed a light pink at the thought, and he was quick to subtly shake his head as if he were to get rid of the thoughts with the small water droplets that fell from his hazel locks, it wasn't right to think about boys like that, Eddie had been told that previous amounts of times by the pastors at his church. But he's always had that feeling around Richie, it wasn't anything new. And it isn't like eddies the only person to think that. half of the girls swoon over his ebony locks what curl just at the tips and his deep honeysuckle eyes and his constellation of freckles that dust over his pale skin and those perfectly tinted lips and-

"Eddie!"

Eddies eyes shot up to hold Richies gaze again, Richies brows furrowed and his head tilted to the side in confusion as a small smirk played at his lips

"Zone out, spaghetti head?" Richie asked using an amused but slightly concerned tone, Eddies stomach churned at the wave of guilt from making Richie worry, Richie didn't need to worry about Eddie, he had his own problems and Eddie respected that, so naturally, Eddie forced a smile into his face as he felt the words he wanted to say in the back of his head seep down into his stomach, destroying everything in its path and leaving Eddie feeling empty.

Eddie shook his head again, another attempt as to skew these dangerous thoughts away as he let out a breathless laugh, when he met Richies gaze again though, sheer utter concern closed Richies irises.

"Hey, Ed's. Are you okay?" Richie asked, a pleading look in his eye to please tell the truth. Eddie ignored the question and just let out a sigh as he sat back and turned his head to look out the window, buckets of rain splashing over the town they were occupying, this horrible, terrible town that could never understand human decency.

"Yeah rich, I'm alright," Eddie said after a while, a sincere look in his eye as he turned back to Richie and continued to dab down his wounds, Richies shoulders visibly slumped in relief at Eddie's answer.

They sat there listening to the pitter-patter of the rain from Eddie's room, the odd claps of thunder soothing their nerves and giving some relief to the quiet. Eddie looked back down to Richies wounds and then stole a quick glance before speaking again. "You know I care about you, right chee?" Richie seemed a little taken aback by Eddie's random comment, but decided to let him finish talking before interrupting his train of thought. Eddie sighed and continued," I just mean- I care about you, and when you show up at my window looking two seconds away from death, it-," Eddie had to take a deep breath as he felt tears prick in his eyes, he didn't know why he felt like crying, but he shrugged it off as hormones or something,"-it just, really scares me." Eddie looked up from Richies hip bruise to his eyes, they seemed glossy and held an unknown emotion. Richie looked down to his own wounds and slowly nodded his head, "I know you care Ed's, and I'm sorry I always come to you when I get into these situations, you're just-" Richie was abruptly interrupted as Eddie began speaking again,
"No, no, stop. That's not what I mean. I'm happy you always come to me, 'cause at least then I know that you're safe and well-cared for. I just mean, what if something happens and they hurt you to the point where you pass out, or can't walk or-"

"Ed's." Richie chuckled, Eddie opened his mouth a few more times as if he were deciding what exactly he should say, but instead, he decided to just keep his mouth closed and his eyes trained on his grey comforter. Richie slowly moved his hand underneath Eddie's chin, he cupped it gently while moving his other hand to push back some stray hair that had fallen over his eyes, Eddie slowly looked at Richie, and Richie took in every detail of the small boy in front of him. His freckles dotting his nose and under-eyes like watercolour on a canvas, his hair was soft and silky, and his eyes were a deep honeysuckle brown, pooling with curiosity and innocence. Eddie was absolutely breathtaking, and Richie smiled to himself more at the thought, Eddie kept his eyes transfixed to Richies while he subconsciously nuzzled his head into Richies calloused hand. A small smile played on Eddie's lips, baring his pearly white teeth, which only made Richie grin, "Eddie spaghetti," Richie started, causing Eddies nose to scrunch up at the nickname " I can reassure you, that when I get my ass beaten to a pulp by those meatheads, you are the only person I truly ever hope to see afterwards." Richie stated while rubbing his thumb over Eddie's cheekbone, Eddie just smiled and nodded, happy to be in the presence of his best friend. "that isn't an excuse to get into fights, chee" Eddie said while laughing breathlessly. Richie chuckled " I know, Ed's."

Eddie reached his hand up to cup it over Richies, the two not breaking eye contact for a second, "okay dumbass, let's finish cleaning you up" Eddie said before moving Richies hand from his cheek down to the mattress.

It took them another good ten minutes of silence and Richies soft hisses and curses to actually finish cleaning his wounds, Richie had a few pink and green band-aids littered on his arms and legs now, while one large peach coloured one was wrapped around his jawline were the large gash sat. Richie sat his -thankfully not broken- glasses down on Eddie's nightstand and curled up under the covers while Eddie put away all of his supplies and slid it back under the bed with little effort.

"You don't mind me staying here, right spaghetti man?" Richie murmured into Eddie's blanket, a sleepy haze already falling over him causing his words to be slurred, Eddie decided not to pry at the nickname at the moment and slid under the grey blankets with Richie, Richie instinctively flipped around so he was facing Eddie and wrapped his long arms around his torso while resting his chin in Eddies soft hair, Eddie blushed at the close contact, which was strange considering this wasn't anything new, and yet there were butterflies swarming his stomach, he smiled dopily and nuzzled his head into Richies chest, getting lost in the strong scent of cigarettes and mango hi-chews that was Richie Tozier.

He was content here, he was happy here, wrapped in the embrace of his best friend as the soft sound of rain filled the room, he eventually dozed off into a deep warm sleep, Richie shifting ever-so-often but never actually letting Eddie out of his firm grasp. And Eddie Wouldn't have it any other way.

- Trin💖