Brushstrokes (Reddie AU)

Best Friends

The most glorious thing about spray painting on the wall of everyone's least favourite teacher is that we didn't get in trouble. For sure, she got the message. She made her first period class paint it over. A fucking rainbow. She's insane, but I guess Eds and I just stop caring about what she things. And it's phenomenal. He's happy.

He's even gotten to clear things up a bit between him and his mom. They met for a brunch one day, and Eddie thought it would be best if I didn't come. But apparently she apologised. And she changed her mind. So he's moving back in with her.

I know it's selfish but I'm going to miss sharing a twin sized bed every night. We still see each other everyday, and put up with each other's bullshit. It's such a beautiful fucking relationship. If I didn't have him, I don't know what the fuck I'd do.

But then there's a knock at the door. And I'm home alone, so I must admit, it was a little upsetting. Eddie wouldn't knock, he'd just walk in. I stand up and walk over to the door.

Fuck.

It's Stan.

And I know something is wrong from the minute I see him. I gesture for him to come inside. He sits down. "Rich, we need to talk."

"You're breaking up with me?" I tease, but he doesn't even crack a smile. Something is wrong with him, even more than I initially thought. I sigh and sit closer, wrapping my arm over his shoulder. "Is this over a girl? Or...a boy?"

"It's about Tuesdays, Rich," he mumbles. "Every Tuesday you drive me to school. I didn't think something like that would be so easy for you to forget. But ever since Eddie... you've moved on. And I'm not the kind of person to get jealous. I'm not. I just miss my best friend. I'm sorry."

Fuck.

I am the world's shittiest friend. "I'm sorry. Tell you what, let's blow off Eddie and this whole fucking town. Yeah? We can drive to the beach. Or I can, and you can actually navigate us so we don't get lost."

"Like last time?" He's teasing me now. That's better. At least he's in the headspace where he can tease. He's not unbearably mad it seems.

"That wasn't my fault! You said Sunshine Drive, I turned on Sunshine Road. How was I supposed to know that those are two different things? They have the same fucking name!"

"They were in two different towns, dumbass." He smiles.

"Same street name." I pause. I need to warn Eddie that I'm busy. We were going to go back to the diner, but now I can't just push Stan away. Not after he came here to reach out to me. I would have to be the worst friend in the world. And that, I am not.

"Just let me text Eds that I'm not around so that he doesn't show up at my door like an idiot," I say. It's only a tiny bit of a lie. But Stan doesn't need to know that we had plans.

I send Eddie a quick text. It reads:
Sorry to cancel, Stan is having a bad day. I'll make it up to you. I love you. I just need to be a good friend.

I'm praying that he won't get angry. He has never gotten seriously angry with me before, and I fear that this message will change that statement. I'm afraid that for me to be a good friend, I have to be a shitty boyfriend.

"Thank you for this," Stan smiles. "I just have no one to tease when you're not around."

I stand up and play with my keys in my hand. "Come on, let's go. The beach waits for no one and you know it!"

He laughs and we take off.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

There is no one at the beach. It's surprising, because it is so early into the school year and the weather is still warm. But I'm not complaining. We find a nice place to park near the pier and get out of the car. He looks at me funny because I'm wearing my swim trunks. He didn't actually think we would be swimming. He imagined playing games, eating greasy food, and going on run down rides at the pier. Little does he know I can swim in any weather, even that of early fall. We'll still do all that boring pier stuff, but swimming is also a required activity.

We walk along the boardwalk to the front entrance of the pier. There's a street performer, juggling shit. I chuckle. "Be careful, Stan, he looks like Mr. Franklin!"

Stan laughs but then cuts himself off. "You're such an asshole Richie. Come here." He pulls me aside and points to a game. You have to spray water into the mouth of a clown to win the game. When you win, you get a stuffed clown. It sounds like a pretty good game, right? Especially because I am the clown. Richie fucking Tozier, the clown that fell in love with the most glorious boy. I feel like shit for thinking about Eddie on my night with Stan. But Eds is always on my mind.

We sit down and start the game. I spray fast and right towards the center, but so does Stan. I think he notices me glancing at his playing. But then the game dings. The man working the game, a depressed teenager it seems, looks to me. "The kid in the glasses won," he explains. My clown's face lights up.

Stan smirks. "Give the clown to Eddie." He smiles. After I receive the little clown thing, we move on to the next section of the pier. We get ice cream cones, since it's too late for lunch but too early for dinner. We sit on a bench as he eats his strawberry and I eat my vanilla with rainbow sprinkles.

"Richie, I need to tell you something," he begins hesitantly. "I know you've always thought of me as this guy who could never get a date. But the truth is, I met someone. Someone I'd like for you to meet."