Stars (Reddie fanfic)

Chapter 43: Crumbling

(Eddie)

After my talk with Stanley, I went to Richie's house. I didn't want to knock on his door because of his mom. But he's always climbed through my window so I'll chance it with his.

The moon lit my way up his roof. It was harder for me being so much shorter, but I finally hoist myself up.

I go over to his window and hear music playing. I knock on it and wait.

His brown eyes peel through the blinds, they widen when he sees me. He opened the blinds and pushes the window open up.

"Eddie?! What the fuck are you doing? You could've gotten hurt." Picks me up off the roof and lifts me through the window.

He grabbed me by my sides and I let a squeal slip out, but stifle it quickly. But he still noticed obviously.

"Well that was adorable." He says mockingly

"Shut up!" I try to hide the giggle in my voice.

"But seriously, what are you doing here? And how did you get up? You're so damn short!"

"I climbed up the roof same as you do, thank you very much!" I say insulted, "I just... I really wanted to see you." I feel myself blush.

Richie blushes too, his eyes look down at me affectionately. "I really wanted to see you too... I'm glad you came."

We stared at each other for only a minute, but it felt like an eternity. It felt like the wall was crumbling just by our gaze.

"What're you listening too?" I ask as we sit on his bed.

"It's Strange Days by The Doors. I just turned it on for background."

"I've never heard it... what song is this?"

"Love Me Two Times."

We listen to the song, it's adorable. It's not a slow cuddly song, it has a beat to it that we could dance to, but the words are loving and sweet. "Aww, you're such a big sap!" I say teasingly and play with his curly hair.

He giggles, "shut up!"

I lean against the headboard and continue to listen. He joins me and puts his arm across my shoulders. We listened to the rest of the song in silence.

When it was done and the next song started, Richie looks down at me and says, "actually, can I tell you something about that song?" He's blushing again.

"Yeah of course!" I snuggle my head closer to his chest. This is the first time I've touched him where I didn't flinch. It feels good, I hope it doesn't stop.

"This song reminds me of you..."

"How come?"

"Well, I listened to this song a lot while you were gone. The words made me want to be able to send my love to you even when we were separated too. And even though I didn't know what was happening to you, just imagining my love reaching you was enough to get me through the days you were gone." He looks away embarrassed, but I feel myself start to melt.

I haven't felt that towards him sense I've been back. Whenever the feeling started the voltage came and destroyed it. But this time I didn't let that happen. I needed this feeling. I've missed this feeling.

I look away from him and smirk, but my hand reaches up to the side of his face and pats his cheek jokingly. "See? I was right. You are a sap!"

He looks surprised at me for a second, but then starts to laugh.

He continues to hold me for a while before talking again.

"It's late. Did you want me to walk you home?" I can tell he's asking to be polite, but is sad.

"Do you mind if I stay the night? I'm tired." I say yawning

He looks at me happily, "of course, baby. Do you wanna borrow something to sleep in?"

"Yeah sure."

He goes to his dresser and gets out of of his band T-shirts and a pair of shorts. He hands them to me, "my bathrooms just through that door so you can change." He points to a door connected to his room.

"Thanks." I say, but I only grab the shirt.

He looks at me kinda confused, but shakes his head and chuckles quietly as I walk to the bathroom.

I take off my clothes and slip on his shirt. It's like a dress on me because he's so tall!

I walk out of the bathroom. Richie changed while I was gone. He's now in a pair of grey sweatpants, but doesn't have a shirt on.

I'm seeing his chest for the first time. He's super skinny. Skinnier than I thought. But his skin is like porcelain. It's pale and perfect and looks soft.

He stares at me the same time I'm staring at him.

"Cute, cute, cute!" He says sweetly

I giggle and feel the blush continue down my chest. Thank goodness he can't see that! I don't think I wouldn't been able to take his loving stares in such a vulnerable state.

"I was actually gonna say the same thing about you." I say looking him up and down.

Unfortunately for him, I can see the blush go down his chest. It makes his skin even more beautiful.

He laughs embarrassed. "Let's go to bed." He says

I crawl into his bed, he follows me and throws the blankets across us.

We lay facing each other. The window is behind me, but he left the blinds open. The moon makes his pale skin have a blueish glow to it. With his skin so milky white, each freckle became more dominant. I slowly reach out and run my fingers along his cheek. It was a pretty sight to me until I see the nasty scar from the window shard. This lighting makes it look even uglier. I pull my arm away and hide it.

"Are you okay? Is this too much? I can move to the floor."

He starts to slide off the bed, but I stop him.

"No no, It's not that... it's my scar." I uncurl the arm I just hid to show him. "I hate it. It's disgusting!"

I move to hide it again when Richie grabs it gently. He pulls it towards him and starts kissing it. His lips run the length from my wrist to my elbow. His kisses are light and quick, but it still sends goose bumps down my spine. Not a shock which I'm grateful for.

"Nothing about you is disgusting. This just shows how strong you are. And I know that this won't ever fully go away, but it'll continue to heal and fade until it becomes a distant memory." He says tenderly.

The wall is crumbly faster and faster.

I slide in the bed close to him and nuzzle my face in his chest. He holds me in his arms and our legs intertwine around one another's. I feel warm and safe.

"Goodnight, baby." He coos into my hair

"Night, love." I whisper back