Back again // stenbrough

13

Stan sighed in relief as he finished his last final; it was finally holiday break and his first semester of college was done. He headed back to his dorm room and groaned as he saw Eddie and Richie practically eating each others faces. 

"Dude! Come onnn." He whined as he rubbed his face. 

The two lovebirds jumped apart at the sudden voice and Richie started laughing. "Sorry, should've knocked." He said with a grin and shrugged.

"This is my dorm room too! I shouldn't have to knock." He grumbled as he made his way to his bed. 

"Sorry Stan." Eddie said softly, his face a little flushed. He looked at the time and gasped. "Shit! I got to get to my final." He exclaimed as he grabbed his bag. He kissed his fiancé quickly and waved by to Stan as he left. 

Richie sighed softly and moved to sit against the wall on his bed. "Bill came by earlier." Was all he said and didn't elaborate when Stan looked at him to continue. 

Stan rolled his eyes a little and huffed. "Okay, fine, don't tell me what he wanted." 

"Well he didn't say! He came by, asked to see you and when I said you weren't here he apologized and left before I could even ask if he wanted to wait here for you." Richie said quickly and sighed a little. "I think he's uncomfortable around me, and Eddie. It's weird."

Stan bit his lip as he listened to Richie. "I'm sure you're imagining it." He said softly but he couldn't completely deny what he said. Bill never seemed to want to hang out with Richie or Eddie. Stan would ask him if he wanted to go to a movie with the couple but Bill always found an excuse to not go. "I'm gonna go see what he wanted, I'll be back later." 

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"Do you not like Richie and Eddie?" Stan asked as soon as Bill opened his door. 

The question took Bill by complete surprise and he stood there for a moment, processing the question. He furrowed his eyebrows and took a step back to let Stan in. "What do you mean?" He asked and shut the door after Stan walked in. 

"Well, Richie said you came by earlier and when he said I wasn't there, you apologized and just left." Stan said as he took his shoes off. He stood up straight and looked at Bill. "What was that about?"

Bill bit his lip and looked away as he shrugged. "You're thinking into it too much, it's nothing. Eddie was there and I didn't want to interrupt their time together." He mumbled and walked over to his bed.

Stan sighed a little and followed him. "But you never want to hang out with them either, you always make excuses." He said as he sat next to him. "They're you're friends too, you know."

"No they're not, not anymore at least. I'm pretty sure you're the only one who still likes me, which doesn't make any sense. You should hate me the most." Bill whispered as he ran a hand through his hair. 

Stan frowned, he'd never thought about that. Sure, he forgave Bill but that doesn't mean everyone else has or wants too. He wasn't the only one he hurt when he left. It all clicked suddenly.

"Wait.. is this why you don't want us to be official? You're still stuck in the past." Stan said slowly as he looked at him. "Bill, I've told you. I've forgiven you. It's time you forgive yourself and until you do, I think we should take a break from whatever we have going on." He stood up and kissed his cheek softly.

"Wait, what?" Bill asked completely confused as he looked at Stan. "Hold on, explain please?" He asked and frowned as he stood up. 

Stan smiled softly and sighed a little. He cupped Bill's face and kissed his forehead. "Do whatever you need to do, to be able to forgive yourself. Go back as far as you need to. I'll be here when you're done." 

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"Tate!" Stan said excitedly as the small boy ran up to him. He had just gotten back to Derry with Richie and Eddie. The three of them had drove down together and had left after Stan had his talk with Bill. 

The toddler grinned and giggled happily as he jumped into his uncles arms. "Stanny!" He exclaimed loudly. Stan laughed softly and hugged his nephew tightly as he looked at his sister. 

"Welcome home Stan. How was your first semester?" Sophie asked as he took his bag and walked to his old room that was now fully Tate's room. 

"It was good." He said softly and a little hesitantly as he followed her. "You're not gonna ask about Bill?" He was surprised that wasn't the first thing his sister asked as soon as he got out of Richie's car. 

Sophie sighed a little and shrugged. "I was going to but Tony said it wasn't a good idea. Something about respecting your relationship boundaries or whatever." She grumbled with a smile on her face. 

Stan rolled his eyes fondly and laughed a little. "Yeah, I believe there is such a thing." He teased and set Tate down since he was wiggling. He ran over to his toys and started playing contently. Stan walked over to his sister and hugged her tightly. "Thank you, for everything. You're the best, you know?"

Sophie grinned and hugged her brother back tightly. "Yeah, I know." She mumbled and closed her eyes. "It's good to have you back, even if it is for a couple weeks."

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I got my wisdom teeth out.