reddie oneshots

wipe away your tears

Eddie wasn't weak. All the Losers knew it. But as he ran down the street, further and further from his house, he couldn't help but feel cowardly. Then the tears came. They rushed down his face and sobs escaped his lips as he ran. He brought his inhaler to his lips to try and calm down, usually the feeling of running was a good one. But not when he was running away from something. From his mother.

He should have believed his friends. They'd told Eddie his mom didn't care about him. Eddie had always just blown it off, telling himself they had bad home lives and wouldn't know. He knew they cared, but god why did they have to be right?

Eddie had no idea where he was running to until he found himself at Richie's doorstep. His mind was racing so fast, he never even thought about Richie's parents being home as he knocked on the door frantically.

Luckily, Richie came to the door. His annoyed expression quickly became concerned as he pulled the trembling boy inside.

"Eddie- what happened?" Richie blinked and stared at him.

Eddie began to speak, but he was crying too much. He took sharp breaths and frequent puffs from his inhaler.

"Okay come on... let's get you into dry clothes." Richie led him upstairs.

Dry clothes? Eddie looked down and realized he was soaked. A mix of rainwater from his hair and tears had soaked his face and his clothes were dripping and starting to stick to him uncomfortably. He hadn't even noticed it was raining. Richie handed him a pair of soft gray sweatpants and a plain white shirt.

"These won't fit..." Eddie sniffed, looking at the clothes "you're too big..."

"That's what she-" Richie stopped himself and shook his head. "They'll be a little big but it's better than wet clothes."

Eddie nodded and changed in the bathroom. The warm clothes made him feel a lot more comfortable, and though he wouldn't admit it, so did Richie. Eddie walked back out and Richie looked up, a small smile crossing his face at how adorable Eddie looked in his clothes.

The two had been practically in love with each other since they met, and everyone knew it. But neither of them would admit it. So instead, Richie motioned for Eddie to sit with him on his bed. Eddie did, and they sat close together against the headboard.

"Tell me what happened..." Richie looked at the smaller boy to his right, his voice soft.

And Eddie did. He was crying again, spilling everything to Richie between sobs and puffs from his inhaler. How he'd finally stood up to his mom, how angry she'd gotten, how she'd hit him...

At that, Richie tensed. No one hurt his Eddie. Richie had tried to warn Eddie about his mom, and the fact that it had to come to his for Eddie to realize broke Richie's heart.

While Eddie was talking, Richie wrapped his arms around the smaller boy's waist, bringing him close. Eddie relaxed in his arms, his small frame fitting perfectly into Richie's. Eddie wrapped his arms around Richie too, laying his head on his chest. The feeling of Richie's soft steady heartbeat calmed Eddie.

"I'm so sorry baby..." Richie whispered, running his fingers through Eddie's hair softly. Eddie's cheeks grew warm at the name, and he felt Richie's heart rate pick up slightly.

Eddie's hand found Richie's, and he squeezed it softly as if to say it was okay for Richie to call him that. Richie continued to stroke his hair gently with one hand, rubbing circles on his back comfortingly with the other.

Later, Richie looked down to see Eddie asleep on his chest. His face had relaxed, and aside from the puffiness of his eyes he looked peaceful. Richie sighed and kissed the boy's forehead softly, pulling his blanket over both of them. He continued to rub small circles into Eddie's back, until he felt his own eyes get heavy. With a final kiss pressed to Eddie's head, he whispered a goodnight and fell asleep holding the boy he loved.

here's some fluff dedicated to alosersworld