𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫

✩ 𝚠𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚊 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚎, 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚊 𝚖𝚞𝚜𝚝 [𝚙𝚝 𝚒𝚒] ~ 𝚛.𝚝. ✩

pairing: richie tozier x (fem)(older)reader

warnings: none

word count: 1361

song preference: we become we, milo manheim

requested? [yes] [no]

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ɪᴛ ʜᴀᴅ ʙᴇᴇɴ ʏᴇᴀʀꜱ since Richie had spoken to [Name]. After a heavy time in his life, he found something he enjoyed doing; track. Richie would run for hours every day, sometimes with friends but mostly alone. He wanted nothing more than to get her out of his mind.

That day in freshman year had been a nightmare for Richie. But after a week or so, it began to hurt less and less. He stopped feeding into her empty flirts and soon completely ignored her. It wasn't like [Name] minded too much, after all, they hadn't really been friends in the first place. Still, she kept that note on her nightstand, glancing at it every so often. We were a maybe, never a must. She figured out in time it was from Richie, but she never brought it up. That friendship had long since sunk.

Richie was a junior now, and [Name] would be going off to college in a few months. Thanksgiving was a few weeks away, and Richie began working out on the treadmill instead due to cold weather.

"Richie, honey!" his mother called. The boy stepped off the treadmill and turned it off, wiping the sweat from his brow and taking a swig of water.

"Be there in a second!" he shouted back, toweling off his sweating arms and legs. He had been running for who knows how long, just listening to music and thinking. He pulled a t-shirt on and thumped down the steps in only his socks, readjusting his glasses. "What's up?"

"You know how we usually host Thanksgiving?" his mother asked, and Richie nodded in response. He cringed a little at the memory of his aunts and uncles crowding his small but homey house, all laughing and a little tipsy, their kids running around without supervision. "Well, this year, the [Last Name]'s have invited us over for Thanksgiving instead! Isn't that awesome? You get to see [Name] one last time before she goes off to college."

Richie's heart sank a little. "Yeah, Mom. That sounds awesome," he said, sounding less than enthusiastic about the whole ordeal. Seeing [Name] wasn't something to dread, nor something to look forward to. He would simply have to deal with it.

"Now get showered or something, you've been running for almost an hour and you're stinking up my kitchen," she grinned, shooing her youngest son away. Richie rolled his eyes and did as he was told, all the while thinking about Thanksgiving. What would happen? Would he just ignore her like always, or would he rekindle his affection for the girl? It was all so confusion, and Richie just wanted a break.

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʏ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴜᴘᴏɴ them. Thanksgiving. Richie tugged at his dress shirt and looked up at his older brothers, Max and Seamus. They were both so tall and handsome, looking like a perfect blend of their parents. Richie felt awkward and short, still not done growing and looking next to nothing like his mother and father.

Mrs. [Last Name] was the one to answer the door. She smiled kindly at the Tozier's and beckoned them in, giving them their own special greetings. When she saw Richie, she smiled extra wide.

"Oh, it's so good to see you, Richard. You know, I can't believe you're already a junior. [Name] has been talking about you recently, too. You can go upstairs and see her, if you want," she smiled, giving the boy an awkward side hug. Richie blushed when he heard that his old friend had been talking about him, nodding and doing as told. He took his shoes off and marched upstairs, the pit in his stomach growing deeper with every step. What if she hated him? What if she told him to get out? What if she didn't even remember him?

Truth be told, Richie still really liked [Name]. Ignoring her for two years and focusing on school, his friends, and track had all given him a big advantage, but he wasn't over her. She was still gorgeous, and amazing, and funny, and cool. But she had also broken his heart.

He turned the corner on the staircase to the landing, where he saw her door slightly ajar. He peeked into the room and saw her scribbling something on a notebook, her brows furrowed in concentration. He cleared his throat and she looked up, blushing at the awkward energy that filled the room.

"Oh, hi! Sorry, I didn't hear you guys come in," she said, smiling sheepishly. Richie shook his head and waved her off, entering the room fully. [Name] smiled and patted the bed, inviting him to take a seat. He did so, awkwardly, and she shut the notebook.

"How have you been? It feels like forever since we last spoke," she said.

"It has been," Richie said, making her laugh a little. "But uh, I've been good. You know, I started track and stuff."

"That's good. You like it?" [Name] asked, and Richie nodded. A silence filled the space again and Richie couldn't bear to ignore the elephant in the room staring him straight in the face anymore.

"How's . . . How has Henry been?" he asked, talking about her boyfriend. The infamous Henry Bowers, a total douchebag and a bully to pretty much everyone. He was in college now, and as of late, Richie had assumed they were still dating. He was the boy Richie had seen [Name] kissing in the stairwell all of those autumns ago.

"Oh, we broke up ages ago," [Name] said, rolling her eyes and swatting at the air. "He called my sister a pig so I smacked him and we broke up."

"You hit him?" Richie asked, his eyes wide in bewilderment. "And you got away with your life?"

[Name] laughed and shook her head. "No, silly. I just cussed him out and we never spoke again." She looked down at her blanket and pulled at the covers, blushing a little as she said the next words. "I told him to quit messing around with you, too. I hated it when he teased you."

Richie flushed pink and smiled. "Thank you," he said softly, making his friend look up at him again. She returned his grin and they sat there for another moment.

"I'm sorry for being such a douchebag to you," [Name] spoke, looking guilty. Richie bit his lip and adjusted his glasses, seeing how hurt [Name] looked at the memory. "I thought I was cool. and it would be funny if you liked me. My friends thought it was funny, too, and that only boosted my ego and . . ." She put her head in her hands. "And I'm such an asshole. You don't have to forgive me."

Richie only smiled. He gently leaned over and pulled her hands away from her face, smiling softly. "You don't have to be sorry, [Name]. I forgave you a long time ago." He glanced at her dresser, where the note he had left in her locker two years ago still sat, his chicken scratch handwriting prompting something cheesy and cringeworthy.

"God, you still have that?" he asked, laughing nervously. "That was so weird of me."

"I thought about it, and . . ." [Name] trailed off, picking up the note from the dresser and holding it fondly. "We should have been a must."

Richie's expression dropped off his face and he blushed heavily, the heat climbing up his neck and making him blotchy and flustered. He swallowed thickly and, adjusting his glasses again, poured his heart out like he almost did in freshman year. "I still like you. And I know it's really weird because you're, like, a year older than me and totally way out of my league. And you were right, you were kind of an asshole to me. But I forgive you, and I still love you just the same as I did when we were younger."

[Name] went quiet for a moment, and Richie was certain he had just blown his chances. She hated him even more now, he was certain. But no. She lifted her gaze from the note, her cheeks dusted with pink, and smiled. "Maybe one day I could learn to love you, too."

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hope yall liked this one! it was a little rushed but i liked how it ended :) btw, i just updated my miniseries and it's now under "part two" and the gifs are under "part three" (in case you're reading this in publishing order) please go check it out, theres more info in my other chapters :) (no pressure btw, i feel like im on my hands and knees begging you dont have to read if you dont want to) anyway go drink some water and get your rest, cutie <3