take me away (reddie)

twenty-one

august 30th, 1993

eddie found himself staring at an open luggage laying on his bed.

eddie couldn't believe that he left later that night to fly all the way to california. to leave his childhood home. to leave his friends...and richie.

eddie swatted the thought away, trying to keep himself from crying for the millionth time that morning about richie. his heart felt heavy, and he had a massive headache due to the amount of fluid that has been draining out of his head. he finally got all of his schoolwork done tuesday evening, and when eddie told sonia, she rushed down to the school to show them.

when sonia got back, he received his high school diploma in a frame. his mother presented it to him with a smile, giving him his dialup phone back along with a plane ticket to california (in which she was supposed to go with him). eddie took everything with a grain of salt, no smile or any emotion appearing on his face.

there was no turning back now.

after eddie packed all of his clothes in his luggage and belongings in boxes, that would be delivered to california by movers, eddie found himself calling stanley's number.

"eddie? is that you?"

eddie smiles a bit at his best friend's voice before hearing another.

"eh-eddie!"

eddie laughed a bit. "hey stan, bill." there was a silence as eddie sighed quietly. "i'm leaving soon," eddie said softly, tears already threatening his eyes.

"leaving?" stanley said from the other side, a bit taken aback. "for college? eddie, why so-"

"i managed to get all my credits in early," eddie croaked out, wiping the tears. "isn't that just great?"

stanley felt tears fall down his own face as he turned to his boyfriend who was sitting on the bed. bill was trying to blink tears away, eyes darting all over the room.

"yeah, eddie. are you going to come see me? before you leave?"

there was a long pause.

"no, you know ma won't let me." eddie said with a small stutter in his breathing, crossing his legs on his bed as he covered his mouth, trying not to sob into the phone.

"so you're just leaving me? just like that?" stanley muttered, a bit angered now.

"i love you, stanley. tell bill the same."

before stanley could reply, the phone had already clicked from eddie's side. stanley slammed the phone down, pulling it out of the wall. bill got up immediately, engulfing him into a hug. stanley sobbed loudly into his shoulder. he just lost his best friend.

eddie wipes his eyes as he gets off the phone with stanley. "we'll see each other in the future," eddie kept whispering to himself as he tried not to cry anymore.

he started to dial another number on his phone.

"e-eddie? babes, how's it going?!" a female's voice said happily from the other side.

eddie smiles softly, ignoring the question, "who are you with?"

"richie. is there something wrong?"