Stand by Us || Reddie [COMPLETED]

chapter 8

"Oh my God, is that him?" Stanley asked, staring at the kid's dead body in front of him.

Bill, Ben, Beverly Richie and Eddie looked at each other, the only ones who knew Will before he disappeared.

"Indeed." Richie answered.

Eddie got closer to him, hiding his body behind Richie's back. The black-haired boy noticed Eddie's fear of the corpse's hygiene and smell of death, so he caressed the little kid's waist.

"W-what do we do n-n-now?"

"What do you mean?" Mike said, surprised about Bill's chosen words. "We came here for this. You guys don't have a plan?"

"We could call the police." Ben suggested.

"With what phone, dumbass?" Stanley aggressively asked.

Ben stepped back trying to reach Beverly, the only one he knew, apart from Richie, who was capable of confronting someone; but more wisely than Richie.

"Calm down, Stan." Bill said immediately.

The Losers Club admired how he didn't even stutter at his words and, more incredibly, Stanley obeyed. Richie tried that for years but he never got the chance to get anyone's attention, not like Bill just did.

Their conversation was gone as they kept staring at their big problem laying in front of them.

"We could look for some long branches." Mike said, as fast as he could think of a solution. "You know, to build him a stretcher."

The rest of the group looked at him with curious eyes, not because it was a bad idea but because none of them had thought about it before they found Will's body.

Maybe it was because none of them wanted their journey to end. And maybe... just maybe... they would have preferred to never saw the body so they could still be together forever.

But now... now it was too late.

"Magnificent idea, Michael!" Richie manifested with one of his voices. "I'm going with Eddie!"

The asthmatic kid looked awkwardly to the ground and muttered:

"Um... I actually would rather to stay here with Bill, if ehm... that's okay with you?"

The unexpectancy of Eddie's words hit Richie's heart like a overwhelming tornado but, as the rebellious and non-serious character he was, Richie just nodded and shrugged indifferently; trying to hide his disappointment as hard as he could.

"Yeah, of course. I mean..." Richie walked towards Stanley and put his arm around the boy's shoulders. "I have Stan the Man here who's going to come with me already, aren't ya?"

Stanley rolled his eyes and glared at Bill before he could say anything.

"I barely know you and I already hate you."

"Well, okay, Birdy Boy." Richie scoffed, friendly. "Let's go see some birds, shall we?"

Stanley froze at Richie's accurately nickname. How did he know he liked birds? Did Richie know anything more about Stanley's obsessions?

"How do you-"

"I heard ya." he said, his sight playing tennis between Bill's and Stanley's figures. "Both of you."

"Y-you-u s-s-spied o-on us?" Bill stuttered more than normally.

All the rest of the Losers noticed too. Their minds creating nonsense paranoias about why should Bill stutter that much or Stanley blush at Richie's words. Something was off but even if they tried hardly, they could never guess what was going on between them.

"Got something to hide, Big Bill?"

"Beep Beep, Richie." Ben helped them out.

"Let's fucking go, Richie." Stanley said, taking advantage of Ben's wise choice of words.

And just like that Stanley and Richie left together and, not later on, Ben, Beverly and Mike also disappeared into the woods with the actual objective of finding some branches.

Bill and Eddie stayed there, taking some distance from their classmate's dead body and sat next to each other on a tree trunk.
Their eyes never met each other's: the awkwardness of the situation started to show up even though they've known each other since forever.

"W-what do you wanna talk a-about?"

"How did you know you liked Stanley?" Eddie bumped out.

Bill's eyes went wide open and he couldn't help but stare at the short boy sitting next to him: Eddie's sight was still focused on the ground.

"Excuse me?"

"I-I don't know." Eddie said, slowly becoming Bill. "Yesterday I kissed Richie and..."

"You kissed Richie?!" Bill's voice raised uncontrollably.

"Shht!" Eddie said, finally looking up at his friend. "Keep it down, goddammit."

Comprehending Eddie's ashamed expression, Bill quickly apologized and pressed his lips together. That's how Richie's trash mouth must feel all the time.

"You... li-like him?"

"Do you think I would have this conversation with you if I didn't?" his almond eyes shined like diamonds in the sky and, for a second, Bill could understand what Richie saw in him.

"W-what's the problem, then?"

"Are you blind?" Eddie asked, sarcastically. "He's a boy!"

"A very dumb one."

Eddie sighed loudly and rubbed his eyes, dramatically. He couldn't believe Bill wasn't able to comprehend his issue, knowing he felt the same thing for Stanley.

"This is serious." Eddie said with a severe voice.

"I'm also being serious. I do not like Stanley. I've known him for two days! That's insane!"

"Fucking forget it." Eddie muttered.

He began to stand up from his seat to get away from Bill's bad energy and lies. He truly believed Bill would be by his side and help him out understand why he was feeling romantic attraction for someone with the same gender as him; especially his best friend. It was repulsive and wrong but... at the same time, so pure and beautiful.

As he stepped away from Bill, he could only hear his mom's voice speaking inside of his head like some personal hell living in his mind.

'Unnatural thoughts are paid with hell'

'You dress too girly for a boy.'

'Kids bully you? That's because you look like a fag.'

'Stop crying! You look like a girl!'

'Act like a man!'

'I swear if one day you come home with a boy you're dead.'

'Take this pills, Eddie bear. They will help with those unnatural mind of yours.'

"Eddie..."

"No!" he shouted, turning around to face anyone. "I'm not ill!"

Mike stood there with branches on his arms and slowly placed them on the floor. He came alone from the forest after deciding he was just threewheeling all the time.

"Wow." he said, clueless about the previos situation. "What did I miss?"

But before Eddie or Bill could answer him, an outcast voice played nearby letting them know they weren't alone anymore.

"Nothing." Henry said walking down the small hill to meet them. "The fun's just beginning."