𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡.

𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 | 𝐫

It'd been a day. Richie, to his own dismay, found Eddie sleeping beside him. It wasn't that he was upset that Eddie was with him, not at all - he liked the company. He was more so upset that he had to deal with himself for a few minutes until Eddie awoke. It was an isolating feeling, despite the fact that he knew that Eddie would be awake soon. He didn't know what to do - after all, he'd barely spent any time at all without Eddie the past few days.

Richie had a sense of unrest as he realized what had become of him after the accident - nothing at all. He was just a mess, and had no other purpose than to waste away like all of the other useless pieces of shit in the world. He knew everything he'd done that was wrong, of course he did - he dealt with the guilt and repercussions for years. Just because he realized his actions didn't make up for the fact that he did them, though. It was worse that he knew he was a piece of shit - he couldn't be in denial. He knew everything, yet he did nothing at all to change anything.

He turned his gaze over to Eddie, who was right next to him.

Bedrooms were always something so personal to Richie. Despite the fact that his wasn't nice and that it was rarely ever as clean and as put together as Eddie's was, it didn't matter. Richie thought of a bedroom as something that didn't need to be perfectly put together. It was his space - the only place where Richie didn't have to act a certain way or hold in all of his trauma and burdens. A safe place.

Richie felt the warmth next to him from Eddie, who'd shifted positions ever so slightly and subconsciously inched closer to him.

It was nice to finally have someone to share his safe space with. He'd never let anyone share his bed with him, not even with his ex. That should have been one of the first warning signs.

Despite all the other ones.

Richie's arm hovered over the messy haired slumbering boy. He didn't want to wake him up - he looked so peaceful. It was a nice contrast from 'awake Eddie'. He knew he had to, though. Not only to be a safety raft to deliver him from his own thoughts, but because they had serious matters to attend to.

They were going back to Derry.