Lover - Reddie

one

reddie forever bitches.

the rain scared richie tozier.

most people liked the steadiness of rain and the calm its presence brought, but to Rich, all he heard was chasing footsteps and loud, unbearable noise.

so he slid on his headphones and clicked play on his player. 'space oddity' by david bowie came on, and so richie laid back on his bed and watched his ceiling. of course, there wasn't much to watch. beverly had plastered small, glow-in-the dark stars up there for him a few months ago, and they comforted him. not with their light, but by reminding him of beverly, maybe the only person that truly loved him.

the world began spinning around richie's bed until everything but those goddamn stars and the rims of his glasses were all he could properly see. but that was normal for an anxiety and ADHD ridden teenager. he was constantly spinning and dizzy and

empty.

but that was okay. he was supposed to push those feelings away.

and david bowie and weezer (i freakin love these guys) helped him out with that.

just as richie was about to turn up the volume, he heard a loud crash and a shrill scream that was all-too familiar. rich flinched and instinctively curled himself into a tight ball. he was a tall, lanky 17 year old boy, but he was able to scrunch up so tight that maybe, just maybe, he could disappear.

or maybe he was already gone.

...

richie rarely went to school high. despite what most people assumed, he actually cared about his grades. because in order to escape the hell of his 'home', he'd need a graduation at the least behind him.

"richie," someone called. that familiar voice that belonged to his favorite. his only favorite. "hey, richie, c'mere."

Reluctantly, richie turned on his heels, hiking up his backpack strap. beverly marsh's green eyes roamed over the purple decorations on richie's face; over the bruises under his eyes; over the redness in them too.

"well jeezus, rich." beverly grabbed richie's wrist and pulled him through the crowd and into a hallway that was nearly empty. "walk me through it."

"no way," richie groaned. "no way, bev."

"awe, come on richie. don't do this shit to us, we can't take it. we have to help you."

as if on perfect cue, ben hanscom turned the corner chatting quietly with bill denbrough. bill noticed the pain stricken on rich's face first and instantly jumped to action.

"ruh-richie? who d-di-did that to you?" he tried to removed richie's glasses to get a better look but richie slapped bill's hand away.

"leave it be, you guys."

ben frowned. "how can we? richie we care about you and if something's going on-."

"i said leave it be," richie snapped. he shoved past ben and left his friends in a flurry of confusion and frustration.

...

richie didn't go to class. he was now too angry to deal with people.

he flopped down suddenly in the grassy field, his hands shaking and jaw clicking. it wasn't cold, but his heart was.

richie's senses were overwhelmed; too much was going on. the grass was too strongly scented, the sky too blue, the light too bright, the cars too loud. richie lifted his head and let out a scream. he gathered his things and started running.