Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy // Reddie

one

On a neatly composed bed, a suitcase sits, filled to the brim with clothing and bathroom essentials for an entire summer. Eddie Kaspbrak molds an indent in the mattress when his tensed body sinks down on the bed with his things. His phone is hugged by his small fingers, and he is impatiently bouncing his leg as he waits for a text from Mike Hanlon.

Two young adults roll around in the bed across from his. He watches their legs tangle together and their bodies lap over one another. As the female moans unnecessarily loud, Eddie wonders how people can do this shit in front of someone. Every single day.

Eddie hates his roommate.

When they finish, Eddie's phone is still without a new notification. A guy with blond hair and a painful amount of scratches on his back and shoulders pokes his head out from under his sickeningly dirty duvet. "Kaspbrak, why are you leaving me, man?" he asks as if he didn't just perform a scene from a porno in front of his roommate.

Eddie thinks his roommate is an idiot; he doesn't know how this man... boy... thing was even accepted into college. "I don't know, Henry, " he manages to say without sounding like an asshole. And when another figure with shoulder-length black hair and a strong jawline arises from the duvet, Eddie learns that his roommate was not having sex with a female.

He assumes he was staring at the guest for too long when Henry laughs like a moron and clarifies, "this is Patrick. I know, " he grins goofily, "he isn't like the other guests I bring over."

The notification on Eddie's phone saved him from having to reply to the ridiculousness ridding itself from Henry's mouth.

Mikey: I'm in the left side parking lot. Want me to pull up next to the main doors?

Eds: Yes, if you don't mind. Please be quick I can't stand this guy.

Mikey: Haha will do!

"Okay, my ride's here, " announces the young adult. Converse soles crash on the ground and speed-walk their way to the main floor, where Eddie meets Mike's truck outside of the university.

After fitting his things in the backseat, Eddie slings open the noisy door of Mike's truck and slides in. Eddie is a little guy. The passenger seat in Mike's car serves him plenty of space for a twenty-four-hour drive.

When he looks at Mike, the adult smiles. "It's really good to see you, " he announces with unconditional honesty.

Eddie returns the welcoming flash of teeth. "Thank you so much. It's such a long drive back to Maine from Florida and vice versa, so I'll pay for your gas. I promise-"

Mike's kind laughter interrupts Eddie's frantic rant. "Ed, you don't have to pay for my trip. I picked you up 'cause you need a place to stay, and 'cause I missed you!"

The sigh that the short adult heaves lets Mike know how relieved his friend is.

-

The red pickup dips off of a gravel driveway and into a wooden carport of a small house, surrounded by a vast stretch of land.

"Welcome, " Mike smiles and twists the key until the truck powers off, "I'll put your things inside, don't worry."

Eddie nodded. He followed Mike to the back of the truck and eyed the muscles in his back, protruding from his shirt as he reached through the vehicle for Eddie's things. All the work on the farm since graduation is really working miracles on his frame.

Dark skin shines under mother nature's golden hour. Eddie follows the beauty inside of the house, dodging the screendoor with a gasp. "Sorry about that!" called Mike, hauling Eddie's things— mostly toiletry and discarded notebooks— down the hallway.

Eddie is simmered in nervousness when he's fully inside. His jitters run steadier when he spots a familiar figure perched over an island top in the kitchen. Curly hair looks tangled, and a glint from a laptop screen roams across his features.

"Stanley?"

The adult looks up, and through tired eyes, he beams. "Eddie, hello!"

Stanley Uris has separation anxiety. Eddie is aware of this, and when he finishes studying the other's droopy eyelids, false smile, and untamed hair, he can only assume that Stanley has not slept since Mike left.

Stanley is in front of him now, and Eddie leans in for the hug first because he feels bad. "Why didn't he take you with him?" asks the shortest adult.

The act is dropped, and the tall man with kinky hair sighs, "I didn't want to be a burden."

Small fingers nudge Stanley's shoulder playfully, "Stan, are you crazy? He doesn't mind. Don't force yourself to be miserable for two days straight."

When Stan smiles, Eddie feels welcome. "Thank you, " murmurs the taller young adult.

"Of course."

"Anyway, " Stanley's hand glides over the small of Eddie's back. Long legs stride next to short ones and take them on a house tour. "This is our home. It's small, but we like it."

They're in the living room. The walls are a pleasant cream color, and they run satisfactorily to the Walnut floors below them. The yellow curtains almost look as white as the lace drapes melting neatly over them.

Bricks stack up against the wall as a fireplace. Eddie notices the wood in the holder is real and has to stop himself from worrying about his oak pollen allergy.

When he diverts his gaze from the bricks and wood, he sees a miniature bookshelf beside a sofa, which matches the walls but is a smidge darker.

The entire house carries the same aesthetic. Eddie can admit that it is an ideal area to live in for most people. Maybe not his type of living space, though. He feels like he is staying in a sixties farmhouse. An advantage to this home's interior design is its brightness; it makes Eddie feel warm, and he knows that the bright colors, cute paintings on the walls, and the plants in the windows will make him optimistic throughout his stay. He can only imagine what the sun looks like, gleaming through the lace drapes of the kitchen window, above the sink.

His fingertips dance cautiously against the fabric of the sofa, "it's nice."

Stanley is wearing a long, thin sweater. He tugs on the openings and pulls them shut around his torso. "We love it here, " he tells Eddie, a hint of passion in the back of his throat. The college student can tell that his friend enjoys the comfort of his home with Mike. They have only been living here for one year and eight months. "I hope you do, too."

Eddie smiles at that, "I'm sure I will, " his palms suction around Stanley's shoulders and he begs, "now, please, get some sleep."

A cloud of defeat blankets the taller of the two, and before heading off to his bedroom on the other side of the house, Stanley points down a hallway, "your room is down there, on the left. I think Mike is in there."

Eddie nods, "thank you."

a/n- hello, long time no see :)
i mentioned this book idea recently, and people seemed to dig it, so here you go !
i have great plans for this story, but i don't exactly have an updating schedule yet because all of the stories in my drafts keep inspiring me to write different AUs lol.
a big goal of mine is to finish this book, though, so you don't have to worry about this one discontinuing! anyway, thank you for reading~

stay safe
- me <3