Summer of '93 - Stozier

36

Richie was walking near the pharmacy, looking around for Stan without making it obvious.
He felt someone grab his arm and pull him into the alleyway against the wall , covering his mouth. Richie almost screamed until he realised it was Stan.

Stan slowly removed his hand, looking over at the exit of the alley.

"Staniel, this is a very awkward position to be caught in with another boy so-" Richie half-joked, a little tint of pink on his face.

"Beep beep, Richie." Stan hissed, still looking over at the exit. "Shes over there." He nodded towards a streetlamp across the road, they were hidden out of sight behind a dumpster so Patricia couldn't see them unless she was looking for them, but they could see her. "You remember what we're gonna do?" He asked, turning his head back and looking down at Richie.

"Um.." Richie thought for a moment, a bit distracted at the close proximity of their faces. "I- You- Um-"

"Take your time, we've got all day." Stan said sarcastically.

"Shut up." Richie rolled his eyes. "So- I wait here and you go distract P- Her.. and then... um-"

"I distract her, somehow get her to let go of her bag and you grab the photo, easy as that, Richie. Not that hard to remember." Stan sighed heavily, Richie felt it on his face, his breath smelled of peppermint.

Stans lips looked soft, and Richie wanted to run his thumb over them. He almost did- but he'd caught himself and in a failed attempt to make it less awkward, he put his hand against Stans chest, inwardly cursing at himself for being stupid.

"Wh-"

"Yeah- incase you haven't noticed, im still pressed against the wall- and don't get me wrong, in any other circumstance that would be hot, but this alleyway smells like piss and your ex-girlfriend is like- twenty feet away so-" Richie rambled.

Stan stepped back and rolled his eyes. "Beep beep, Richie." He muttered quietly. He checked his watch quickly and then looked back at Richie. "Only grab the photo when she's distracted!" He warned. "Follow at a distance, got it?"

"Yessir." Richie saluted, still cringing at himself.

Stan snuck out of the alleyway, glancing back at Richie before forcing a smile onto his face and beginning to walk towards Patricia, who was looking in her compact mirror and reapplying her dark pink lipstick.

Richie watched from a far as Stan walked over, still hidden out of sight behind the green dumpster, trying not to breathe through his mouth.

"Well, someone looks happy! Whats got you all chipper today, mister?" Patty asked, putting both her lipstick and mirror into her handbag.

"Nothing much." He shrugged, trying to keep his usual glare off of his face. "Just.. happy, i guess."

"Hm." Patty hummed, shrugging. "Well, lets go. I feel like we should at least try and go inside at least three stores today, since most of the time we're just looking through the windows." She looked up at him and gave him a hard glare that he would so gladly smack off of her face. "No complaining today, Stan. Im warning you." She pulled the photo a little bit out of her handbag, before pushing it back in and quickly putting her sickly sweet smile back on her face and turning on her heels, and beginning to walk, motioning for Stan to follow.