real; reddie

t e n

"so what are we going to do?"

eddie is the one that seems nervous this time. he's pacing back and forth, hands in his hair, while his boyfriend watches.

"you're going to go out with him, i guess," richie replies, and if eddie weren't so frantic, he'd be impressed by his calm tone of voice. usually, their reactions were quite the opposite.

"there's gotta be another way," eddie mumbles into his palm, contemplating options but not coming up with many. "there is no way i'm going out with that bastard."

"oh, watch your language, eds," richie tsks, and he's trying to lighten the mood, but eddie is so pale that he barely hears the words. "hey...hey."

"what in the world is he going to want after i go out with him once? what the hell does he think will come out of it? he knows i hate him, and he knows he has no chance, but i just keep thinking the worst!"

"baby, relax," the smaller boy doesn't listen. "baby."

eddie doesn't stop moving until richie walks up to him, both of his hands rooting themselves to his shoulders to keep him in one place for more than a second.

"here's what we're gonna do, sweetheart," richie coos, and his whisper is so soft and comforting that eddie is actually able to breathe again, even just a little bit. "you're going to go out with will, once, in public. coffee or something, alright? you're gonna talk to him, play nice. then, once you're done, you're gonna come home to me, and we can do anything you want, yeah? make dinner, order in, watch a movie, make a fort, be lazy...anything."

eddie looks like he's about to start crying, that's how stressed out he is. they're not even a week into their plan and they're already being threatened by exposure? and by will, nonetheless?

but still, his boyfriend manages to keep him levelheaded.

"okay," he finally answers, voice soft and exasperated. "okay, that will work."

"yes, it will," richie pushes back all of eds' hair, pressing the softest of kisses to the top of his head. "and we'll worry about whatever else there is to worry about when we get to it. no use stressing over it now."

eddie feels his chest warm up. he knows that richie is upset, that he's angry, that he wants to kill his ex best friend. but the second that eddie shows any sign of weakness, he's there, like a rock, his whole support system, just as eddie is for him when he's fuming and can't calm down. the two of the compliment each other, and bring out the best aspects of their respective personalities.

eddie still feels like he's dreaming when richie's knuckles ghost across his cheek. he still feels like he's dreaming as he pulls rich's glasses off of his face and sets them down on the table. he still feels like he's dreaming as he pushes himself onto the tips of his toes and kisses his boyfriend. because over a year ago, he never thought he'd be able to do so with this boy that he had grown to adore so much.

he still feels like he's dreaming as richie's hands hook around his legs to lift him up, and he still feels like he's dreaming as he lands in the cloud that is their soft, shared bed.