𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡.

𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 | 𝐞 & 𝐫

E

Eddie didn't think much of the statement, figuring it was just Richie's normal pattern of switching from cocky to self deprecating in the blink of an eye.

Brushing off his words, Eddie exhaled softly, sitting up more straight in his seat because of the hint of tension pressing on him.

Even if there was nothing to be particularly stressed about, Eddie always felt some sort of tension or stress. And it didn't help when he was still figuring out himself, but adding another person into the equation as well. He wanted to be with Richie, he really did, but Richie could be... intense, sometimes. Eddie knew he had rapid mood changes and spirals, and not to mention his habit of... being himself, to say the least. Richie being Richie was something Eddie both loved and hated about him. He loved that he could almost always say exactly what he wanted to say, but he hated the way the words came out sometimes. He loved that he wasn't afraid to be emotional, not anymore, but he hated his neurotic tendencies in overthinking everything. Not that Eddie didn't do the same thing, but Eddie wouldn't let it show. Richie's feelings would often just loosely come tumbling from his lips, not eloquent, but getting point across, atleast. This is how Eddie could sometimes tell immediately when something was wrong.

Richie was very open, especially towards Eddie, but there were obviously some things that he kept to himself. Trying to figure out what these things were could consume Eddie's thoughts sometimes, but in the end, he'd give it up. He didn't know how someone could be so open yet so reticent all at once.

Richie got up, sending Eddie's thoughts gliding away like a graceful ice skater upon polished, unmelted ice. As Richie walked, Eddie could hear the shrill creaking of the floor. An unpleasant sound, but one Eddie would have to grow used to for the week. Eddie watched as Richie's midday shadow followed behind him as the boy knelt down and looked through the cabinets.

R

"This place doesn't have coffee?" Richie said, still opening and closing all of the old wooden doors to find nothing but a bottle of alcohol, which Richie surprisingly did not place there, a bag of lays chips, and some sort of fruit juice. "What?" Eddie said, perking up from the couch.

Well, there was a common thing the two of them shared - they couldn't get enough of caffeine.

"Yeah. Nothing. Not even decaf." Richie said, slightly annoyed at the severe lack of variety provided for them. "Well, there's no food either. Maybe we should go to a store?" Eddie suggested, standing up from the couch. The light illuminated his face, particularly his light umber tinted eyes that almost seemed to shimmer like pure crystals in the light to Richie. "I guess, yeah." Richie said, realising it was actually a good idea.

E

Eddie walked over to the door and fixed his socks, beginning to put his shoes back on again. "What are you doing?" Richie said to him. "I'm... putting my shoes on? You meant now, right? What else are we gonna do?" Eddie questioned back with a curious and confused look. "No, Eddie." He heard Richie walking towards him and felt his presence without even looking to see that he was there. Eddie stopped tying his shoes and stood back up, looking up at Richie in confusion still. "I'll go alone." He said to Eddie. Eddie made a slight noise, but tried to hide his disappointment. He didn't want to be apart from Richie. He wouldn't feel safe anymore. "Why? I mean, are you sure?" Eddie said, clearing his throat to shift his scared tone from saying 'why'. Richie gently touched Eddie's right shoulder, sending an array of feelings throughout Eddie. "Yeah. I want to take care of you, Eds."

Eddie almost felt physically sick for a second. The words were kind, and his face went into a gossamer scarlet tint from blushing. It just reminded him too much of his mom. And he definitely didn't want to think of Sonia Kaspbrak when he was supposed to be thinking about Richie. Deep memories that he thought had been locked away flooded Eddie's mind, soon feeling the pigment leave from his face. The thick, cloying smell of cherry cough syrup filled the air again, and Eddie's facial expression soured a bit.

R

"Yeah. I want to take care of you, Eds." Richie let slip out. As soon as he saw Eddie's expression change the second time, he wished he could swallow the words again and never let them see the light of day. 'Shit, you dumbass fuck. Why would you say that?'

It wasn't that it was not true, of course Richie wanted to take care of Eddie. He wanted him to feel safe. Cared for. So that he wouldn't feel as unloved as Richie felt that night in the gas station bathroom. It was just that the words came out far too brash. 'That was the worse word choice I could possibly use.'

"I just mean that..." Richie started talking, trying to rephrase it. "Yeah. Just stay here." Richie said, quickly putting his shoes on. His hands were anxiously shaking while tying the threadbare, faded white laces as he could tell that Eddie was staring at him still. He sped up his pace even more, grabbing his bag that had only five dollars left as for cash in it because of his previous venture of buying fucking seven dollar and fifty scent cigarettes. He held the bag, quickly rushing out and shutting the door without a good-bye. 'Why did I have to make things so awkward?' Richie thought to himself, mentally cursing himself out as he walked out on to the rocky pathway to his car.

E

'Why did I have to make things so awkward?' Eddie thought, sprawling out on the couch with a sigh of relief and covering his face with his hands out of embarrassment. 'Why would you think of your goddamn mother while talking to the person you love the most?' He felt the guilty feeling that had only just faded away creep back in once more. "He didn't even say goodbye. Look what you're doing to yourself." Eddie said, this time out loud from fear of having his mind explode from all of the thoughts piling up inside of it.

Eddie heard a small noise, which was probably just the settling noises from the old house. Turning around, he didn't see anything, but he did notice that Richie had left the cabinets open from when he was looking for coffee. Groaning a bit from annoyance, mainly with himself, he walked over to the kitchen, which was a rather short walk. He knelt down to close the bottom cabinets, seeing a bottle of alcohol there. It couldn't have been Richie's... was it? He reached in for it and pulled it out, seeing that it was a tall bottle of chardonnay with an olive tinted bottle. There was a soft luster on the bottle, but it was translucent enough for Eddie to notice that it was filled to the brim. He touched the top of it, running his fingertips over the ridges and it's connection to the bottle, seeing that it was untampered with. It hadn't been opened yet.

Eddie put the bottle of the counter with a 'clink', which turned out to be louder than Eddie would have expected. His curiosity led him down a path of thoughts as he stared into the bottle. 'What does Richie see in any of this? The drugs? The alcohol?' He felt the bottle and how smooth it was. Its growing spirit of inquiry led him to open the bottle, which immediately filled his senses with a fizzy, tropical aroma. It's smell was appealing, that was no lie. Eddie didn't know what led him to take a swig of it, probably a feeling of impulse and teenage rebellion. Something he tasted immediately was it's smoothness.. Eddie was caught off guard by how strong it tasted to him, but then again, he was certainly no expert in alcohol. He'd barely had it three times. A few memories came surging back to Eddie, with Richie talking about how certain things would make him feel. Remembering this, Eddie took a few more sips. He remembered his embarrassment and shame, and everything that he'd had built up inside him for a while. With that, he drank even more. The smell of cough syrup slowly began to dissipate from the air.