.: Friday I'm In Love :|: Reddie :.

See You Around, Loser

Richie's entire world was ending because of one statement. He hadn't cried, or screamed, or thrown punches. He just turned and calmly walked away from Bev.

The Derry local hospital was on the opposite side of town from the part of the Barrens where the search was happening. If he ran, it would still take him a while to get there. He broke into a jog anyway, ignoring the stiffness and the ache in all of his muscles. He was about halfway down the street when Bev pulled up beside him, and he decided to just get in the car. She would take him there, he trusted that much.

Neither of them spoke. She knew how to handle him in every situation. He had never been silenced before, but Bev knew Richie, and he wouldn't want to be forced into talking once he had finally shut up.

In the car it only took five minutes. Richie practically leaped from the moving car the second the woods were in view and he started running, ignoring his friend's shouts of 'wait' and 'hold on'. He dashed down through the trees and bushes and thorns, probably getting a few more minor scrapes. There was a path of medics and policemen and firemen and basically everyone flooding the scene. Richie ran over to the area where he knew the pipe was, and what he saw next from standing behind a wall of police officers made him the most relieved person on planet Earth.

Eddie, his Eddie, his Eddie Spaghetti, his Eds. He was out, and he was standing there in all his glory, with one of Richie's old sweatshirts on him. It was so big that it was hanging off of one of his shoulders and it completely covered the fact that he had any pants on at all. Richie felt his face heating up slightly and began pushing and shoving. Eddie hadn't seen him yet. That boy needed to be covered up, Richie thought, and that was all he could think as he broke through the wall of officers and watched with huge eyes.

Beautiful, dark, and tear-filled chocolate brown eyes focused on him.

Then suddenly Eddie was running, though it was more like a lurch, and he jumped into Richie's arms, his legs wrapping as tightly as they could around Richie's waist and his arms locked around his neck so tightly that Richie could barely breathe. But he hugged his best friend back just as tightly, supporting his waist so he could stay hoisted up. The paramedics were trying to tug him away.

"Just give me one fucking second with my best friend! Jesus Christ!" Eddie practically screamed, and if that didn't make Richie cry, nothing did. He laughed, too, though, so it was more like a pool of laughing and salty tears running down his face and just pure relief and happiness as Eddie buried his face into Richie's neck.

"Excuse me, Spaghetti, but I believe you are missing a few articles of clothing. Such as, a shirt that will actually cover your body, and pants that don't show off your ass for the whole world to see." Richie smiled through his tears, and Eddie pulled back with a flash of indignation in his eyes.

"Oh, fuck off, Richie. I was only supposed to be out for like an hour or two, and it was late at night. If I was lucky, you were the only one who was gonna have to see me like this, anyway, so it wouldn't have mattered. Obviously it mattered." He smiled, ducking his head down a bit so his forehead touched Richie's. The curly-haired boy lifted his chin and placed a soft kiss on the tip of Eddie's nose, just like he had been longing to do for nearly a month. Eddie's breath hitched, and they both hesitated. Their eyes met for a quick moment, both reflecting the uncertain desire that each held for the other.

Simultaneously, they both leaned in so now their noses were touching instead of their foreheads, and any closer, they would be kissing.

"What do you say we finish this conversation another time, when I can actually hold you up longer and you aren't naked and practically dying in front of a bunch of reporters?" Richie grinned sheepishly, and Eddie's eyes sparkled with amusement and adoration.