#I picked up a hot babe in impressive title and i forget that the kids these days don't play projects made by 1 dude anymore

[bonefall]

For the record I'm pretty sure WCUE on Roblox is safe. 'Safe' in the sense that it won't be taken down, anyway, because I think they bought it. In the official survey they released last week they had all these questions about it heavily implying it was one of their products.

I checked into it, okay, the roblox game is safe. I'll go edit my post and remove that.

I wasn't aware it was official, I thought it was still fan-owned and operated. Sentiment still applies to other unassociated games, though

[grownups-are-the-real-monsters]

C'est La Vie

Summary: “Riding around with the car top down and the radio on. Nobody looked any finer or was more of a hit at the Parkway Diner. We never knew we could want more than that out of life. Surely Richie and Eddie would always know how to survive…” Glimpses into Richie & Eddie’s lives. 

Summary is lyrics adapted from: ‘Scenes from an Italian Restaurant’ ~ Billy Joel. Title from ‘C’est La Vie’ by Bob Seger…

Words:  18,691

Ship: Reddie 

{October, Senior Year}

School was in session. Leaves were falling from the trees, Freshman were trying to get high under the bleachers and the air was beginning to crisp like maple fucking bacon…Richie was having the time of his life. He sniffled because of course, he was already getting his yearly cold…at the start of October.

“The bleachers are freezing my ass, Eds.” He whined loudly but his little partner only chuckled, still scribbling his pen across the notebooks in his lap. 

A breeze passed over them and carried a few pages of Skippy Larson’s chemistry homework across the field just in front of them. The kid darted after them with impressive speed but-‘oh, too much confidence on the catching skills. He misses by a long-shot and falls face first onto the grass!’ 

Richie chuckled and habitually scooped Eddie’s free-hand up to cradle it into his lap. “In a few short months…we won’t even have to worry about…-” He paused to wave his hands around and audibly scoff “-AP Lit homework and shit.” He flicked Eddie’s pen. “Can you believe that, man?” 

Eddie laid his pen down and decided to give his partner the full attention Richie so obviously wanted and in Eddie’s opinion…deserved. “No. I really don’t wanna think about it either, Rich.” 

His sniffles were much cuter than any human beings should be. His nose scrunched up and his eyes got all squinty. Eddie didn’t care much for cold season but it drove Richie crazy. 

“Why not? I’m so fucking excited!” 

“Rich, I’m way too fucking nervous to talk about it. Probably way more nervous than you are excited.” He scoffed, already beginning to shove his books into his backpack.

“Really? Cause I’m so excited that I can hardly breathe!” He smacked Eddie’s hand gently.

With humor suddenly just as dry as Richie’s toast had been that morning, Eddie slowly and obnoxiously reached into his bag for the inhaler and shot himself up to space. His lips were still recovering from the lovely ‘O’ shape he’d had to make but he managed a wide smirk when his chin tilted back down. 

“Funny, babe.” Richie rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but giggle a bit. His eyes drifted to the homework tornado again as a sigh built up in his throat. It wasn’t as if he wasn’t going to miss high school. Because in some ways, he would. Lots of great things happened either in that building or because of it. 

Richie got to film the best student movie in the history of TV Pro which turned out to be collected found footage of the Losers in their natural habitat. Bill managed to write one killer story after another and really started pursuing his passion. Ben and Bev had their first kiss in Mr. Walker’s Algebra class and made history. The day Stan made the fucking baseball team had been one of Richie’s favorite freakin’ days of all time. And Mike organizing a completely made-up 'cinema’ club just to get the library all to themselves with the coolest teacher ever was a close second. 

But the best thing that ever happened within those school walls was during the start of Freshman Year when Richie finally got the guts to ask Eddie out properly. 

They’d basically been dating since they were kids. Hell, their first kiss was in a blanket fort in Bill’s basement when they were like nine. Eddie didn’t like to count that but Richie held it close to his heart because it was funny as shit. 

Sixth grade had been a big year. Richie would carry Eddie’s books home for him and would stick by him even when the path became out of his way. They took the path that would lead them past the Neibolt Street Church so Eddie could hear a bit of that music he liked so much. 

But it wasn’t until Freshman year when the true magic happened. The fact that Eddie agreed to the proposed date nearly killed Richie on the spot that day.

Richie smiled to himself before glancing at his partner who was now following the wind of paper from Skippy Larson too. His eyes were speeding fast to follow every moment of the twirling disaster. 

They’d gone to that drive-in root-beer place that Richie had always been dying to try. It was across the street from the now abandoned 7/11 that used to be a CVS where no one had ever shopped. He’d ordered a hot-dog and Root-beer Float that became hard to keep down when all his nerves started shaking him. He remembered being scared that he was going to waste the date just worrying he might blow chunks onto the bright orange vinyl chair. “Honestly Eddie, why did you give me a second date? I mean that first one was so…I mean, you watched me dip my hot-dog into my Root-beer Float.” Richie chuckled, legs jittering up and down. 

Eddie quirked his brow and paused. “Yeah and you watched me nearly fight that worker for dropping that order of fries and trying to shove them back on the tray before anyone noticed.” 

“Yeah but that was hot.” Richie smirked

“Well, maybe I thought the hot-dog thing was hot…” Eddie shoved some of his papers away and finally gave his boyfriend full attention. 

“I’m sure the puke was hot when you slipped on my chunks in the parking lot, ‘member?” Richie smirked and Eddie gagged at the memory. 

“Never bring that up again, asshole.” 

The two of them playfully smacked each-other around for a couple minutes before a peaceful silence fell over again. From his place above, Richie saw Skippy pick up his remaining papers and high-tail it outta the football field before any players decided practice started early. The question from before still bounced in Richie’s mind like those boxes never quite hitting the corner in those DVD wait screens. ‘Honestly Eddie, why did you give me a second date?’

“What’s your mom making for dinner?” Eddie laid his chin on his palm and smiled in that soft, genuine way that poked at Richie’s heart. In some ways, he felt they were like an old married couple. And he wasn’t using that term to excuse any nasty bickering like some other high-school phase couples. No. 

It was just…-He and Eddie knew each other. They were so familiar and extremely comfortable with everything they did. “Mmmmm, Chicken Parmesan.” 

They smiled at each other, just thinking about the calm rest of the day ahead of them. 

                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eddie followed Richie inside the Tozier household, taking his shoes off at the door and setting them next to the others as Richie breezed past it, forgetting like usual. Eddie grinned to himself, shaking his head. The home was nothing special, sort of small but fleshed out. Photos on the wall in frames that were carefully thought out as they were purchased at some home goods store. It still put a smile on Eddie’s face to see that he was featured in some of those pictures.

He briefly passed by his favorite that was in the blue frame, the one that was chipped in the corner from when Richie dropped it. It was taken sometime during last Christmas, Richie and himself were having some sort of conversation that must’ve been highly amusing, what is was about Eddie doesn’t remember, but they’re laughing hard enough that Richie is falling forward onto his shoulder, The Tozier parents were actually looking at the camera with grins. Eddie smiled to himself as he glanced at it.

Mrs. Tozier  was pouring a few drinks as they entered the kitchen, a warm grin on her face.

“Hello boys.” She smiled sweetly and handed them each a glass of water as she slid a cup of coffee to Mr. Tozier as he came in the room with a smile.

“How’s my favorite son?” He asked in that dad tone of voice that Eddie had only come accustomed to through him.

Richie swallowed a large slurp of the water and set it back on the table, the sweat dripping onto his hand. “I’m your only son…” He tilted his head with a confused but amused expression.

Wentworth blew down into the mug, the steam rising and spreading. “I was talking to Eddie.” He looked up just in time to catch Richie’s gasp of offense. He chuckled, picking up his mug and patting Eddie on the back as he passed him. “Which reminds me Eddie, I’m working on the garage again, can I count on your help-?”

“While I am flattered that you complimented me to butter me up before you asked but-” Eddie smiled, hand over his chest. “I can’t.”

“Ed’s and I are have a special date night tonight, pops.” Richie slapped Eddie’s back gently and stirred his water glass like it was a proper drink. 

“Oooh, yeah.” Wentworth shared a small grin with his son and took down some more of his steaming hot drink. “You two kids have a great time. I’ll be all by my lonesome down there and I’ll probably break that damn car…” He pointed towards the garage door with exaggerated glum. “Unless one, Mrs. Tozier would come visit me, later?” He bumped Maggie’s elbow and she chuckled. 

“I’ll bring you some dinner later. Make sure you take the laundry basket up to my room before you go off.” Maggie gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before he left that Richie mimicked on Eddie for chucks. It always made his mother giggle, anyway. 

“Ok, so Chicken Parmesan for dinner….” Maggie gestured to the oven and smiled. “I’ll let you know when it’s done but for now…” She paused and picked up a dirty old box from the floor behind the counter. “I have some Halloween Decorations, would you boys help an ol’ mother out?” 

“Sure thing, Mrs. Tozier!” Eddie stood on the tips of his toes to peek inside while Richie took the ghost string lights out and threw them around his neck like a scarf. With a salute, Richie took off with the box and Eddie darted after him. 

                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Mrs. Tozier, Maggie, rooted her hands through the sock draw and occasionally pulled out a few pairs and folded them together. Her nails caught on the thread every few minutes, she’d pull and pull until the thin string would just snap. But on the eighth time she grew a little bit restless and snapped the string but quickly shut the drawer afterwards. “Wentworth?”

She turned to her husband, who was still lazing around with his coffee and blowing on it as if it was still hot. She gave him a small smile and walked towards him, putting her hand on his back. He looked up at her, waiting for her to speak what was on her mind. “Do you think-” She paused for a second before shaking her head. “Never mind, it’s stupid.”

Wentworth smiled up at his wife and chuckled, swallowing his first tedious sip of coffee. “I say a lot of stupid things, I won’t mind.”

Maggie gave him a look a lot of wives give their husbands. One of amusement and familiarity. “Well, I was just wondering…” She began again, going back over to the drawers to root around for something to wear to work the next day. “Do you think the boys are starting to get serious?” She asked, a little unsure of herself.

Wentworth cocked his head to the side and looked lost. “Like how?” He asked, swirling his coffee in his hand. Maggie sighed and leaned back on the drawers behind her. Clasping her hands together, she spoke again.

“I don’t know really.” She frowned and folded an old t-shirt from Richie’s younger days…her eyes got a sad little glaze. “They seem….-they remind me of us in our good ol’ days, huh? When we were about to leave home, so in love…” There was a small hole in the shoulder of the yellow dinosaur shirt. 

Her husband turned the soap opera off the box TV and crawled closer to where she stood at the edge of the bed, taking her hands. “Richie’s getting older, honey-” 

Maggie surprised the both of them by bursting out with a small sob. In embarrassment, she stole a hand back to cover her mouth. “I feel like every-time I-” She broke again and Wentworth rubbed her skin softly. 

She collected herself, tilting her chin to the ceiling fan and letting the loose tears fall. “I know that…when we planned this, I had the idea of a girl, you know?” 

Wentworth nodded. That was a topic they never truly discussed but for a long while, they were both well aware of in those early days. 

“But…He’s my boy. That kid…” She looked towards the door. “He’s what I had been waiting for and I didn’t even realize it. And now it feels like our time together is winding down with his high-school days close to over and Wentworth, I’m not ready to let him go.” Her lips trembled. 

He gently shook her arms and rubbed up and down her skin until she grinned through the tears. “He’s still a teenager, sweet-heart. We got time left yet, huh?” He laughed which she returned. “Side-note, we are definitely still in our good ol’ days. As long as I’m with you.” 

He stood up, putting his coffee on the old dried up water ring mark on the dresser. Maggie smiled at the back of his head, her hand on her heart as she sighed with pleasure before she stood to walk him to the garage.

                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richie still had the ghosts tied around his neck except now they were plugged into the wall behind him and slightly burning his neck. Eddie was digging through the box and pulling out all kinds of Halloween decor that Richie admired as a personal collection of his childhood…their childhood even. Eddie had just as much a right to claim memories to this shit as Richie. The other losers as well with how much time they spent at his home.

“How come people don’t send out Halloween cards…Y’know like Christmas Cards?” Richie pursed his lips and flipped the switch on an old light up haunted house. 

Eddie shrugged. “People don’t really do Christmas cards anymore either…” He drifted off in thought. “We should though. It’d be really fucking idiotic.” He giggled and Richie smiled. 

The two of them openly discussed their future together many times. It was just always part of their relationship and had never phased them. Maybe some thought of that as childish considering they were still high-schoolers but…it never seemed that way to them. 

“Yeah. We’ll send it to all five of our friends.” Richie chuckled. 

Eddie handed over some stuffed pumpkins and let his hands rub down his jeans as he sighed. “I can’t wait to annoy you in our own house one day.” He pinched Richie’s arm and handed over the hand-made paper Bat. 

His boyfriends heart melted at that, his eyes absolutely worshiping the sight of Eddie. “Shit, Ed’s. Me too.”

Usually there’d be more said between them in moments like this. Maybe a discussion about what their house would end up looking like. But this time they just reached out for each others hands and gently swung them a little with soft smiles. “One of us has to learn to cook.” 

“God, yes.” Richie nodded. “I love it but I can’t live off McDonald’s for long. Maybe my mom can teach me some shit. I can’t imagine it’s too hard.” He shrugged, letting their hands fall apart again to get rid of his ghost necklace. Their was a tiny burn mark on the side of his neck that made Eddie chuckle. Richie slapped the spot he was staring at with mock insecurity and a dazzling smirk. 

The boy opened his mouth only to be interrupted his mother who came strolling in with a dish towel over her shoulder. Richie let his hand fall from his neck without thinking what that spot might suggest with Eddie sitting so close to him. Maggie raised a brow-

“It’s not what you think, Mrs. Tozier. Richie just burned his neck on the ghosts.” Eddie laughed and leaned over to hold the string-lights up again.

“Yeah, I can buy that.” Maggie rolled her eyes and laughed. “Can I borrow you for a minute, Rich?” 

Richie nodded, hopping up and exaggerating a little spill from tripping on Eddie’s legs. He ruffled a hand through Eddie’s hair and followed after his mother. 

Maggie messed with some dishes as she waited for her son to trail in and hoped her eyes weren’t still red. But as little Richie (called little Richard affectionately by his father for years) stopped in front of her, she found herself getting choked up again which was just silly. “You alright ma’? You seem like you might pass out or something.” He giggled and took a grape from the bowl on the counter to stuff into his mouth. 

“Would you two be ok if your father and I went out tonight?-”

“Hot date?” He laughed and Maggie felt her heart tug. 

“Yeah, sure.” She shook her head. “Hot date. Anyway, foods in the oven and should be done soon enough.” She rubbed the pad of her thumb against her nose. “You can make cookies for dessert, you know the number to call if you should accidentally start the house ablaze, do you love your father more than me? And we’ll be gone a few hours.” Maggie rushed her speaking and cringed. She was about to escape the room when Richie realized what she’d snuck in there. 

“Wow, you pulled a real Richie Tozier with that ramble, ma. You know I’m the champion at those.” He started with an awkward laugh before raising his brows. “But um, you don’t really think that..do you?” 

Maggie felt ashamed for bleeding this insecurity on her son but she sighed. “No. It’s just-…sometimes I worry that our relationship is a little rocky sometimes. I shouldn’t have…” She gestured to the garage door where her husband was and then to the living room where Eddie sat. “Bad timing.” She laughed. 

“Ma…..” Richie had never been known to handle serious things very well was panicking a little. “That’s not-…”

“I just let so much precious time go by…not really understanding you quite like your dad does. I’m sure you must have felt it and I hate to think about it.” Maggie frowned, running the towel through her fingers. 

Richie looked to the floor and rolled his lips together which was confirmation enough. 

“Never-mind this, Rich. Go on back, ok?” Maggie attempted to laugh the conversation off like any good ol’ Tozier knew how. “We should be back later tonight.” With that, she pressed a kiss to his temple and sent him back to the living room. 

Richie walked off with a dazed expression and tried to shake his mothers words but found them to be burying deep into his mind anyway. 

His eyes met Eddie’s. His boyfriend was just sitting on the old plaid couch, the one where tiny-tot Richie had once fallen from and knocked his front teeth out, and a rush of love went through his body at once. It didn’t cover up the memory of that conversation but it relieved Richie of the guilty feeling some. 

So he did what any sane person in love would do, throw his entire body atop Eddie’s. One of them let out a shocked sigh and their voices were too molded together to pin it. “Get off me, asshole!” 

Eddie folded his body in such a way that it knocked Richie off him and onto the carpet below the plush couch. He peeked at him from the edge and giggled. 

Richie ended up laying there for quite some time after his parents left, playing with Eddie’s legs as they hung over him and occasionally rubbing the soft skin of his ankles. Though he’d realized almost as soon as he started that it was sort of a trap. Every-time he’d take his hand away, Eddie would wiggle his feet again just urging Richie to start on again. And if he refused, he’d make that soft little whine. How could he say no to that? 

It lead him to memories of being that tiny-tot version of himself again. On movie nights when Richie would glance through the corner of his eye, away from the show of ‘Aladdin’ to his parents to make sure they were watching. Maggie Tozier’s feet would always be shoved into his old man’s lap and she’d be insisting that he rub them. Though he’d complain, Wentworth always did it. 

Richie rubbed another circle against Eddie’s skin and leaned his head against his jean covered leg. When his partners hand came down to run his fingers through his hair, Richie was in such bliss that he missed the first ten beeps of the oven timer. 

“Rich, one of us has to get the dinner.” 

“Set up the dishes?” Richie tilted his chin up, getting a bit of a static shock from Eddie’s jeans. The boy nodded and they went off. 

This was a familiar routine that they had come to know for some time now. Since the beginning of the romantic side of their relationship, Eddie came over for dinner often. The Tozier’s were happy to have the company. 

Richie plated their feast once the table was set and they took their favorite chairs across from each other. It was during these little dinners that Richie finally understood the no TV at the dinner table rule. There was no need for a distraction. 

“How did none of your mothers cooking talent bleed into you growing up?” Eddie hummed happily as he slid his fork out from his lips. 

“You’ve basically known me my whole life, Eds. You know I don’t have the attention span to learn.” 

Eddie rolled his eyes and Richie poked his hand with the back-side of his silverware. “How are things with my dads car?” 

Eddie hummed again. He’d taken up fixing up the thing with Mr. Tozier some weeks ago as a little hobby. He’d always had a fondness for fixing shit up like that and Wentworth had been thrilled to have a good hand around to help him because after all, Richie was not the best at that. “Good. I mean, I’m not car-genius but…I think we���re getting somewhere. Your dad seems excited but then again…he’s a lot like you.” Eddie giggled.

“What does that mean, Kaspbrak?” Richie reached over to pinch at him. 

“Just that he’s excitable-” 

“It’s a cuter look for me, right?” Richie teased and Eddie smacked his hands away. They went at it for a solid five minutes before settling back into their dinners. 

Silence fell over them, all except the sounds of their dishes. “Hey, Ed’s?” 

The boy glanced up, some strands of hair falling over his eyes as he hovered his fork just under his chin. A stray scent of the purple glue they used in their shared second grade class flew past Richie’s nose as their eyes met. “What’s say you & me go on a little road-trip right after graduation? Like the minute it’s done?” 

“Little early to plan that. Just you and me? What about-?” 

“I’d love to go on a big Losers Club trip but I have this idea…for just the two of us, right? Could be cool.” He waved is fork around and it kept catching the orange light of the hanging lamp above them. 

“What kind of idea?” 

“Well…hold on to your seat, baby. This might be too big of a kicker.” Richie giggled but it was soaked with nerves. Eddie rolled his eyes and made an exaggerated play of holding onto the chair with a wide smirk. They giggled together. “I was thinking that you and I could drive up to Castle Rock-”

“Ahhh the spot of romance.” Eddie let go of his chair to take another bite of chicken. 

“There’s some cute tourist-y trap shops…” Richie started and he’d kinda been hoping for another interruption but Eddie just kept on looking at him. “But there’s also a cute little Chapel…?” 

There was a small clink as Eddie dropped his fork onto his plate. 

“Ed’s, baby. You’re…” He paused when his stomach turned painfully with nerves. He glanced down at the food. “You’re the guy I gotta be spending the rest of my life with. I can’t imagine a future without you in it and I think that’s reason enough to cut to the chase and get hitched sooner rather than later.“

Richie was expecting one of his partners famous ‘fast talking rambles’ but Eddie stayed silent and instead picked at the chicken on his rose colored plate. 

“I mean the backseat of my car is no honeymoon suite but I’m sure it’ll be nice to us, you know? After all, we’ll still be running on our Wedding High.” Richie laughed but it was oh so painful to get out when Eddie wasn’t even humoring him. “Sorry. Fuck. I don’t know what I was thinking. It was a stupid thing to pitch-”

“Let’s do it.” 

Richie hiccuped and choked on the forkful of food he’d just shoved in his mouth to keep quite. “What-?”

“I said, let’s do it asshole. I wanna marry you.” Eddie smiled, wide and genuine. Richie would never openly pursue this dream if it were anything but. He knew all of Eddie’s smiles and this one…oh it was his favorite. 

“Holy fuck.” Richie let out a long breath and giggled. “Shit, I-…Ed’s-” The boy couldn’t find the right words so he just shoved his way off his chair and rushed to his boy. 

Before Eddie could fully process it, Richie lifted him into his arms and he had to wrap his legs around his waist to keep balanced. “Everyone’s gonna say we’re idiots, you know?” Richie mumbled into his neck. 

“I don’t care.” Eddie decided. Because for once in his life, he was 100% sure that this was something he wanted. He’d fight for it with no problem if it meant keeping the Loser in his life forever. He’d fight for it just like he’d always fought for his friends. “We don’t have to tell anyone.”

Richie nodded. “Just between us. Our little secret.” 

They agreed to that knowing it would truly be a hard task. They told their fellow Losers everything and how could they not share something like this? Something so amazing? But they knew it had to stay a secret until the actual day was done. 

A laugh bubbled in his throat and a comment escaped his lips without flickering thought. “I’m so glad I met you, Richie.” 

“Me too.” Richie’s voice was a little too soft to not be emotional so Eddie kissed his hair. “If I call you tomorrow and ask…are we still gonna be engaged?”

Eddie pulled his chin back and nuzzled his nose into Richie’s curls. “We’re still gonna be engaged, Rich. All up until Gradation, like ya said.” He could feel the blush dusting his cheeks and the sense of pure joy was just too intoxicating. 

                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{December, Senior Year}

Richie and Eddie didn’t really bring up their engagement again until the fall leaves started turning to winter snow. 

Richie shut his front door behind him as he stepped outside, glancing down at his shoes as they walked down his broken concrete steps. He hopped down the last stair, the one with the chip that was just waiting to become an avalanche of rock. He pulled aimlessly at his jacket when he felt the sudden jolt of the wind being knocked out of him and legs wrapping around his waist. He didn’t need to look to know who it was.

"Ed’s, you can’t just jump on a guys back without warning.” Richie tried to glance up, as best he could as Eddie shifted around and looped his arms around his neck.

“As the shorter friend, I reserve the right to get piggy back rides whenever I want.” He heard Eddie laugh against his ear, his feet wiggling.

“Eddie, You’re such an asshole.” He shook his head and tried to hike his boyfriend up so he wouldn’t slip off. 

“Your point?” Eddie hummed. “So…you’re walking to my house, what for?” Eddie smiled and Richie rolled his eyes fondly.  

“To bother you…which by the way, where were you coming from?” Richie glanced his eyes up. Usually whenever Eddie left his home, one of the Losers was with him so he was more than curious.

“I was beating up Bill in the park.” He felt the boy shrug. -”And before you ask, he deserved it and he’s fine.” Eddie laughed again and Richie could see the incident now. Bill loved to mess with Eddie like he wasn’t aware what the little asshole was capable of. 

Bill would make his fun and let Eddie charge him for a round of play-fighting like a couple of brothers in the living room of their childhood home. Man, did it make Bill happy. He’d light up like a damn Christmas tree. They all knew why and they never mentioned it. Georgie had passed away some time ago, an out of the blue accident. Such a shitty world sometimes. 

“I was going to visit your mom, anyway-OW!” Richie felt Eddie pinch his neck. He chuckled. “Jealousy is not a flattering color for you.” 

Eddie hopped off his back and started to walk on Richie’s left side. It was a habit from their younger days that just never faded. Little Richie used to wander towards the street from the sidewalk because his strut was for some reason…a little tilted. Not so much anymore. But Eddie, Bill and Stan still planted themselves to his left like the memory was still taking place. Richie thank God that Ben, Mike and Bev didn’t have to remember how dumb he was back then…just how dumb he was now. He laughed to himself. 

“I was walking over to pick you up. Us Losers are taking a holiday trip to Mike’s place. I wanted to give you your gift before we see our favorite people.” Richie tapped his pocket and Eddie nodded. “Hey, now that I’m looking at your face…” Richie made a show of tilting his head and waving a hand in front of Eddie’s crinkled nose. He got his hand slapped away.

“You look a little glum, baby.” 

“That’s a stupid word-” 

“Melancholy? Sulky? Morose! You look a little morose, baby.” Richie pulled at Eddie’s arm and wasn’t pushed away this time so he rubbed up and down the boys jacket sleeve. 

“You look like a moron, baby.” Eddie mocked and Richie giggled. “Sorry, I’m pissy today.” 

“I got that, Ed’s. But why?” 

Richie got another light shove. “I couldn’t sleep last night. Felt like I couldn’t breath and…” Eddie tapped his own pocket where his inhaler was once again. “Shit, Rich. I know it’s all in my head but…that doesn’t stop me from re-creating that feeling whenever I get the slightest bit of anxiety about something.” 

Eddie sighed, sounding like a tired man some years their elder. “It scares the shit outta me that I just subconsciously do this to myself. How do you stop a thing like that?” 

“I don’t know.” Richie shrugged with an honest tone and wrapped an arm around his partner. “But, I know that you’ll get there. Maybe not today…maybe not tomorrow but soon, baby.” 

Eddie nodded but didn’t seem to believe him. Man, Richie really hated Sonia Kaspbrak for the shit she had pulled all throughout this poor kids childhood. “I got your back through and through, Eddie my love.” He shook him playfully and pulled back to get the small gift-box from his jacket pocket. 

Eddie stopped in front of him and sniffled cutely. “I feel bad. I should get your gift from my house before you-” 

“Nah, Eddie. I really wanna do this now.” Richie smiled and handed over a small box. It was wrapped in brown paper covered in mini-vintage Santa faces. There was an obnoxiously large ribbon atop it that he knew Eddie would keep for some odd reason. It was just one of those things he did.  

As he tore into the package, Richie nervously rolled his lips together.

Inside was a velvet box that when tilted open, allowed a small silvery band to come into view. It glittered in the winter air and Richie got down on his knobby knee like a true gentleman and smiled up at his man. “I thought I should get you a little ring for our engagement, you remember right?” He teased but surely meant the question at least a little bit. 

“Rich-” 

“My mom helped me. And don’t worry you’re pretty little head, I told her I was getting ya a promise ring.” He waved his hands a little. “So it’s not a true engagement ring, per se but-” 

“I love it.” Eddie slipped it on and slowly kneeled down to help Richie off the icy ground. “Get up and hug me, asshole.” 

Richie happily obliged. 

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{May, Senior Year} 

From then on, Richie and Eddie kept on like normal but there was some kind of glowing secret between them. The Losers noticed something, as well they would because they knew their friends too well. But none of them could quite put a finger on what was so different between them. 

Eddie was perched on Richie’s desk in Honors Lit. witch was about the only class that every Losers Club member had together. It was the last normal day of school before Graduation Day so the Senior class was basically free to do whatever. 

Eddie was whispering things that Richie would seem to consider before writing down on his pad of paper in a list or something. Ben watched them with a curious smile but didn’t ask. 

“I say we all drive to Graduation together so we can drive up to the Haunted K-Mart in the town over afterwards.” Bev smiled from her seat. 

“Why t-t-there?” Bill asked. 

“This might be our last chance to catch a spirit there!” She gestured her hands like that might impress them. “And there’s a Steak ‘N Shake right across the street.”

“Ahhh, the real reason she makes such requests.” Richie snapped his fingers and Bev shrugged. 

“Any takers?” 

Richie and Eddie shared a private worried glance. They both knew now that if the group agreed to go with this plan, they’d say yes too. They loved their friends too much to avoid plans with them for a big secret wedding they didn’t even know about. Especially considering Graduation night was sorta a big deal for them because soon enough, they’d separate. 

It wasn’t so bad. Eddie, Richie and Bill were all headed to the University of Maine campus. Mike, Ben and Bev were all going to another 4-year just around twenty minutes away. But….Stan….he was shipping out to one in Vermont which was a cool, crisp…4 hour drive. 

But they still had a whole summer to look forward too. At least that was something.

“Sorry, I can’t. My dad and Grandpa have been planning a dinner celebration at home.” Mike smiled sweetly as he thought about it and gave Bev a small shrug. 

“Me t-t-too. My parents want me home.” Bill frowned and they weren’t too sure ol’ Bill was going to have such a great time. 

Beverly sighed and turned to Stan who gave her a soft no for just about the same reasons. 

“And count us out! Eddie and I will be feasting at the Tozier’s.” Richie slapped Eddie’s nervous hand and they both felt swept under the instant relief. 

“My mom would love to have you over for dinner, Bev. She’s been keen on it for sometime.” Ben smiled again and a soft blush took over his cheeks just the same as it did on Beverly’s when she accepted this offer. 

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{May, Graduation Day}

“Eddie, don’t be alarmed but…there’s an old man sitting in the passenger seat of my car.” 

Richie narrowed his eyes and shook his head so the tassel on his cap would get out of his eyes. The sun was shining down onto the crisp green summer grass and had provided them comfortable Graduation weather all the day. 

The ceremony had been a mess of Losers Club tears and a solid thirty minutes spent afterwards just hanging out in the field in front of the building. They talked to each others families, hung-out and maybe he and Bev smoked a little. There was also the moment where Richie hugged Stan and proceeded to refuse to let go when he had to go with his parents. It took the Losers a good five minutes to get Richie off. Stan pretended he wasn’t having fun and saluted Richie with a middle finger and spun off to his parents car.  And soon after, all their best friends had gone off with their families. 

The Toziers came for the ceremony but allowed Richie and Eddie some extended time for a ‘date’. 

Eddie quirked his brow and crossed his arms. “No…are we sure that’s your car?” He saw the old man but it was still quite far from where they stood. Maybe it was just a similar-

“No, there’s the ‘Honk if you love Bruce Springsteen’ bumper sticker.” He pointed with his spindly finger and Eddie stepped back with confusion. 

There was in fact, an old man chilling in the passengers seat of their ‘Honeymoon Chariot’ as Richie had been calling it the past few hours. “Oh, Richie…maybe he’s just confused?” Eddie frowned, eyebrows knitting together in concern. With that, he started walking over to the vehicle. Richie hung back because he wasn’t very good at confrontation or conversation with older people. 

Eddie paused a bit in front of the passenger door and smiled. “Excuse me, sir?” 

The man was small, wrinkly and kind-looking. He had a baseball cap atop his surprisingly thick curly gray. “Oh…is there a problem? Should we not be parked here?” 

Richie stepped a little closer while Eddie dealt with the situation like a pro. 

“Oh no, nothing like that.” Eddie inched closer and gave the man his warmest smile as the sunshine cupped his face. “I think maybe you’ve confused this car with your own…?” He made a salute motion to block the harsh sunlight and to maybe to offer a warm look in his eyes that the old man could relate to. Eddie had this kind, sweet nature to him when he wasn’t truly thinking about it. It was a gift blessed onto Mike and Ben too, though Eddie’s wasn’t anywhere near the level of those two. 

“Oh…is this your-? I’m so sorry, my…I’m getting pretty forgetful, aren’t I?” The man made for the door and Eddie backed up and grabbed onto it when it opened to make sure there was no swing back. “It looks so much like my wife’s car.” He laughed, an old worn kind that Richie loved. 

“Understandable. Once, I was visiting my aunts place right? And I went out for a smoke. When I went back inside…” Richie chuckled, hand on his stomach “It was the wrong house. Boy, were those people freaked out to see this gangly teenager walk into their home flicking a lighter.” 

Richie enjoyed the familiar way Eddie smiled at him under the sunshine, he’d heard that story a few times himself. The older gentleman also seemed rightly amused. He took off his baseball cap and waved it as he laughed. 

“That sure kicks me out of lonesome town, huh?” He wiped under his eyes which Richie might’ve been ashamed to admit made him feel really good. Not many people laughed that hard at his shit. “Good to know I’m not the only guy making himself a fool, son.” 

Eddie happily grinned towards the man as he reached out to shake Richie’s hand. “So where’s the lucky gal who loves you, ol’ buddy?” 

The man lit up, smile widening. “Should be on her way to wherever the hell it was we parked. Had a few words left yet to say to our grand-boy.” He stood on his tip-toes to catch a peek of the crowd. 

“What’s say we walk you over? A car that looks like mine…should be easy to find, huh?” Richie tipped his chin to Eddie who nodded. So Richie offered his arm. 

“What’s your name, sir?” Eddie asked, strolling over to catch up. 

“Oliver…” He grinned. “The wife, she’s called Michelle…like that Beatles tune, I always say.” He chuckled. Richie and Eddie leaned a little forward to steal grins from each other. “She’s a real funny gal that kid.” 

“Gotta love the funny ones, huh?” Richie bumped him gently and Eddie shook his head, most likely pairing it with a roll of the ol’ eyes. “We sure can make it hard, sometimes.” He laughed again and Eddie carefully reached over to smack the back of his head. 

Oliver must have thought that was hysterical because he started joyfully laughing again. It warmed the boys hearts. “Sure can. Michelle…she does this little bit where she takes the quarters outta my ear…magic and all that.” Oliver rolled his eyes but not with annoyance but fond and genuine love. It was a look that Eddie knew oh so well. “Then she turns a whole bouquet of flowers out from her sleeve….” He paused. “No one else for me in the world except Michelle.” 

Richie felt himself blush at the mere thought of how he felt just the same about Eddie, who was walking peacefully in the grass with the tassel hanging over his eyes. 

“Oh! There’s the ol’ girl now.” Oliver let go of Richie’s arm and started to happily stroll over to the car that did look pretty similar to Richie’s. “Thank you, boys! Been too kind!” He waved and looked like he was far too excited to get back to his lady to stay any longer. 

The sky was gold and a breeze was passing through the remaining crowd of graduates. Red gowns blew in the wind and families huddled together for pictures. 

Richie leaned closer to his boyfriend. “Remember that old videotape we found in your room? The one from our dumb classroom Thanksgiving play?” 

Eddie blinked at the abrupt memory but nodded. That seemed like a million years ago yet didn’t feel very far from them at all. The years bled together these days but that had been the age where the town of Derry felt like the whole world (and what a shitty world). Eddie could still hear the sound of Bill’s father coming home at 6:00 in his head, plastered there from all their sleepovers. Richie turned to fully face Eddie and kicked his leg gently so he’d turn too. 

“I’ve been feeling for you, what he described with his wife since about then.” 

Eddie felt his heart melt. “Rich, we were like six or seven. There’s no way-” 

The man’s eyes were swelled with tears like a gutter full of rain which made Eddie stop in his tracks. Of course, Richie meant that sentiment. He was always so painfully genuine. “Please, kiss me and then drive me to our damn wedding. I’m so ready to be your husband.” 

Richie didn’t need to be told twice. 

                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{May, Castle Rock’s finest Chapel}

“At least if your face turns blue, we can check ‘something blue’ off the wedding list-” 

Eddie lowered his inhaler and smacked Richie playfully on the arm but soon pulled it back to wrap around his body. The summer breeze seemed somehow colder in Castle Rock. They had both paused on the steps of the Chapel, knowing they were feeling the empty spaces of their friends. They should be here but…they weren’t. Because at the time of planning, it seemed to be for the best. But they missed them.  

Richie glanced down at his boy. “You ok?”

Eddie clutched his inhaler once more for something like comfort and shoved it back into his pocket. “I’m peachy.” He smiled. 

The sun was near setting behind their heads and draped a rose colored light over their bodies. “We can back-out, you know? Just because we said we would, doesn’t mean we have to follow through on anything, Eds. If you want to go home just tell me.” He pulled him closer and laid his chin atop Eddie’s hair. 

Eddie pulled off of him, kissed his cheek and took his hand. 

They ran into the Chapel and lived a moment they’d hold close to their hearts forever. A private kind of memory. Just for the two of them to share. 

Some ways away in Derry, in a car that looked an awful lot like Richie’s, a radio played ‘Michelle’…

                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{June, Derry. A week later}

The young lovers had been planning to share their news since the big day last week but each time a chance was gifted to them…they both backed out. They were classic chickens. 

This night brought all the Losers together and stuffed them into Bill’s car, fresh from a fun little time drinking in his basement. They were all a little buzzed apart from Stan and Richie, who didn’t drink a sip. 

Eddie was practically vibrating in his seat yet his eyes kept drifting shut. He usually got sleepy in cars, Richie pulled him closer and asked for the radio to be turned up. 

It was getting late and they all seemed a bit restless. Beverly and Mike were having a hushed conversation about a deer they’d just seen on the side of the road and Ben mindlessly caressed Beverly’s hand. “Shit, I’ve been meaning to ask-” Bill started. 

“I went over to your house after my dinner on Graduation, Rich. Your parents said you and Eddie weren’t around-?” 

Richie glanced up at Bill’s eyes in the mirror and rolled his lips together. It wasn’t hard to just make shit up but he did not want to lie-

“Richie and I drove up to Castle Rock and got married.” Eddie mumbled, his voice in sing-song and his forehead pressed against the window. 

“WHAT!?” 

The whole car screamed and Bill accidentally hit the brake much harder than he intended to at the stop sign. The group all flew a bit forward from their seats and caused a chorus of restrained choking coughs when the seat-belts pulled. Richie tried to collect himself before Eddie but failed. 

“We’ve been engaged-” He hiccuped and pulled out the ring he’d been hiding in his pocket. “Since October.” 

Bill drove on, foot hitting the gas pedal with much more grace than before. The car fell silent until Beverly turned from the front seat…a most awful look of confusion on her face. “Eddie, tell me that Richie has just rubbed off on you and that’s a very weird joke.” 

Richie scowled. “It’s not a joke. We got married at the Chapel in Castle Rock just like he said.” 

Again, the car was full of tense silence apart from the sound of the wheels on the street. “Engaged….since October and you didn’t tell us?” Bill asked from the drivers seat, glancing at them in the mirror every once in a while. 

Eddie fell against Richie’s shoulder like he was about to drift off into sleep again so Richie slowly wrapped his arm around him and ran his hands through his hair when he began to speak. “We thought you guys would talk us out of it-”

“Rightly so.” Stan spoke up and Richie snapped his head over to look at him. “Engaged? Married? You guys are eighteen years old.” He shook his head. “And before you go for a low blow, you know everyone in this car agrees that you two are meant to be together but…” Stan paused to find his wording but Richie wanted to jump down his throat. 

“But what exactly?” He covered Eddie’s ears accidentally on purpose when he shifted but he figured the boy needed some sleep. 

“Jumping into marriage that young is not going to work out. It could very well hurt you two.” Stan’s voice lowered into soft concern but Richie was heated up. 

“And you got married.” Beverly turned in her seat again, this time with a nervous cigarette in her hand. “Without us.” 

Richie’s stomach turned as a fresh wave of horrible guilt hit him. He really had nothing to respond to that with so he shrank back into his seat. The radio blanketed the riders with a loud distraction. 

‘Heard it from a friend who Heard it from a friend who Heard it from another you been messin’ around…’

“All I’m trying to say here, Rich, is that getting married that early on can cause strain on a relationship.” Stan looked down at his hands but it only steamed Richie back up once again. 

“You don’t know that, Stanley. You said it yourself, Eddie and I are supposed to be together-” 

“Fate doesn’t matter if you make a bad decision, Richie. It’s only plain logic. You two barely know what you’re going to be doing in the very near future! Eddie, you told me back in September that you weren’t even sure you wanted to go to the University of Maine. What happened there? Any of that get resolved before this wedding?” Stan reached out his hand to gesture to Eddie but the boy was looking much paler and more and more like he might break into a sweat. Mike kept a close eye on the kid while the others kept with their noise and the radio grew more intense. 

Richie glanced at Eddie and frowned. “You don’t know shit about our relationship-” 

Stan looked offended. “Shit, Richie, everyone in this car knows your relationship almost as well as the parties involved.” He flicked his fingers at the happy couple. “You know that. The Losers, man. We’re in this life together, asshole.” He narrowed his eyes. “I’m trying to help you. I don’t wanna see you-” 

“Too late, Stan! We’re already married.” Richie laughed, full of pain. 

“And happily too, it sounds.” Stan rolled his eyes.

“Hey Fuckhead! We were happy before we told you-!”

“You didn’t even tell us, your best friends, until after the fact. PLUS, Eddie only broke it out cause he’s drunk!” Bill suddenly piped up from the front seat. The screaming match suddenly involved everyone in the car. Though Mike and Ben were trying more so to calm everyone than yelling. 

Eddie felt his chest pounding with anxiety, the familiar sensation of a lack of air built up. “Stop the car.” He mumbled, covering his mouth. No one seemed to hear. “Stop the car!” He tried once more with a hiccup of leftover alcohol bubbling from his throat. 

Mike glanced over and finally, someone noticed. 

“Stop the car! I’m going to throw the fuck up!” Eddie screamed at the same time that Mike shouted a strong ‘STOP THE CAR!’

Bill hit the brakes extremely hard again though the yelling continued even as Eddie opened the car door and hopped onto the curb. He kneeled over himself, palms pressed onto his knees as he dry-heaved. He glanced back into the car at all his friends screaming and bit into his lip…

The sound of loud feet hitting the pavement broke the screaming. The Losers all looked up just in time to see Eddie quite literally take off like a rocket. Richie could almost hear the gun blast signaling a race because the kid was sprinting faster than a speeding bullet. “Holy shit.” Beverly tried to open her car door. 

The six of them all hopped out once Bill actually parked on the curb and started off after him. But the thing about Eddie was…he was fucking fast. Richie had a lot of energy but was no sport champion. He so desperately tried to push himself that he almost felt fire coming off his feet. 

Mike seemed to be the one outta the group to get the closest but he turned the corner and skidded to a stop. It was so sudden that they almost all crashed together. “He’s gone.” Mike sighed, hand to his forehead. 

They all started attempting to catch their breath, hands either over their chests or pressed to their knees like Eddie’s had been. 

Richie stumbled and landed his ass on the middle of the street. “Fuck.” he spoke to the sky in his horrible exhaust. A hand hovered above him which turned out to be Stan’s. There was a bit of hesitance but Richie accepted the help up. “Let’s split up. Cover more ground. Our Ed’s is a speedy Bastard.” 

Beverly played with her hands which meant she was either nervous or scared. Maybe both. But she nodded like this was the most import mission in her life. 

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ben happened across Eddie first. His friend was sitting on a bench in front of the Gazebo in the park. Ben’s heart melted at the sight of the poor, tired and drunk kid. 

“Hey, Eddie.” Ben gently approached like he was a skittish dog or something but Eddie didn’t seem to mind. He just scooted over to make some room on the tiny bench. “I know things got…pretty intense in the car-” 

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Yeah. I shouldn’t have opened my mouth. I just…-yeah, I’m buzzed but I’m excited, Ben. So fucking excited about this and I just wanted to tell you guys.” He sniffled and Ben scooted closer. “We really didn’t mean to be such shitty friends. You guys always want whats best for us…so we knew you’d try to talk us out of it.” Eddie glanced up with wide, innocent eyes. Ben opened his mouth. 

“So yeah, I admit that we knew it was kind of a dumb enough idea because we made that decision to keep it from you. We had to be aware enough to do that.” Eddie shrugged, his jacket now pooling at his elbows. He wasn’t completely sure that he was making any sense. “But it made us really happy, Ben. I love him…so much.” 

Ben threw his arm around Eddie and sighed. “I know, Eddie. Trust me on that word. I do.” He rubbed his arm slowly and felt Eddie nod. 

“And I feel his love for me every fucking day. Richie loves with his whole being, Ben.” Eddie giggled like the thought of it was enough to send him into a blush. “No one is gonna be in love with me the way that he is. So what’s the point in waiting?”

Ben went quiet because the sentiment was so genuinely lovely that it became hard for him to argue…

The two of them sat on the park bench, not knowing how to move on from the moment. 

                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{October, Freshman Year of College} 

There was nothing even close to a falling out between the Losers Club after that horrible night. That was just the kind of magic that came with their relationship. Far too much love to ever let them drift away. Though besides the screaming, the other thing to be forgotten after that night was Stan’s statement about Eddie confessing he might’ve been unsure about the University of Maine…

Tension rose on occasion but the happy couple seemed satisfied enough. The Losers were happy, as long as they were. 

The Toziers were still not aware that their son had gotten hitched but Richie intended to tell them after completing at least one year of school. Sonia Kaspbrak….well she tried so desperately to keep Eddie right at home and to dig into his personal life. Eddie wanted nothing to do with that. So she also had no clue, Eddie would be lying if he didn’t say it was empowering. 

The beginning of the school year had been extremely hard because Stan was ‘leaving’ them but 4-hours felt like forever. There’d been a lot of crying and hugs to go around when it came time for him to leave and boy did he wait until the last possible minute to go. 

Richie basically cried his eyes out. Stan took him aside for a few minutes just to reassure him that this made no difference. The seven of them were forever tied together. He even gave him a nice framed photo of the whole group for the dorm Richie and Eddie had applied for together. “Call it a late engagement gift.” He added with a crinkle of his eyes, reminding Richie of an old man. Though there was a still a bit of tension on that subject, he knew Stan might still believe the marriage to have been a bad idea. Richie gladly accepted it anyway because it was a gift filled with genuine love. 

They were all a good month or so into their Freshman years and already developed their routines. 

And at the University of Maine, Richie and Eddie had already become something of a cool topic. Mr. and Mr. Tozier. The married couple in dorm 24. They would be lying if they didn’t say they enjoyed the attention. They were a couple of losers after all. 

“What does he have that I don’t?” Eddie frowned and pushed at Richie’s shoulders. 

“Don’t be jealous, baby.” Richie turned back and smirked. “It’s not a flattering color.” He giggled when Eddie tackled him on the bed, the one to the left of them was almost never used. The Bruce Springsteen poster Richie had been admiring watched over them as they fell into a make-out session.

The sloppier kisser between them pulled back and licked grotesquely up from the base of Eddie’s neck to his ear. From the new spot, Richie began whispering which he knew drove Eddie mad because it was a ticklish feeling. 

“I got a bad desire. Oh-oh-oh, I’m on fire…” Richie mumbled and Eddie tried to kick him off the bed. 

“Don’t sing me the lyrics of the man you’re cheating on me with! You cruel, cruel idiot!” Eddie giggled with insane love and new switched to trying to knee him in the stomach. Finally, Richie rolled off the bed and onto the floor with a loud thud. 

“Oh, you are so juvenile, Eddie my dear.” Richie stayed there on the floor with a smirk. 

“Me? You licked my ear, which is disgusting, and tried to serenade me with Springsteen.” Eddie fell comfortably on the bed, chin just on the edge so that he could look down at his…husband. Which was still odd to hear when it came rolling off their tongues. 

They shared fond looks and Eddie turned to lay back on the bed but let his arm hang over the side so Richie could play with his fingers. “By the way-” Eddie turned his head though he was way above his partner. “Did you fill the gas tank in our car after class last night?” 

Richie sighed. “Our car? I’ll have you know that ‘James Taylor’ has been mine since I was sixteen, Eds.” The smirk was present in his tone and Eddie rolled his eyes. 

“Whatever, did you fill it or what? It was really low and I need it for my Physics class this afternoon.” Eddie felt Richie pause from petting his palm. 

“No, I forgot. Can’t you fill it before class?” Richie pleaded and Eddie ripped his hand away in annoyance. 

“Oh so I can’t call it ‘our’ car but I get to pay for the gas almost every time it needs to be filled. Just cause you don’t like getting out of the damn car because ‘it ruins the mood of your drives.’” Eddie scowled. 

Richie sat up and scooted so that his back would lean against the bedside drawer. “You’re borrowing my car, Eds. It’s only fair for you to fill it when you run the gas.” He shrugged and watched as Eddie hopped off the bed and started getting his things together for his class even though he had plenty of time. 

“You’re parents are the ones who bought it for you. And now I’m paying for gas nearly every-time…so what, pray tell, makes it so wrong for me to refer to ‘James Taylor’-” He paused to roll his eyes “As ours?” 

Richie looked up with a bit of a heated expression and sighed with frustration. 

“Look Rich, if it bothers you so much, I can try and save up for my own car. I wasn’t lucky enough to get one when we were younger cause…well, you know my mother.” Eddie shuddered and threw his bag aside. “She’d never give me a gift that would only be a gateway for my moving on.” He scowled, completely irritated at her yet feeling guilty as she was not there to defend herself. Richie knew that look all too well and tried to convince his husband that it was ok for it to blossom. It was more than ok to be mad at Sonia. But…how do you make someone understand that their mother deserves hatred? Because no matter what, a mother is a mother in the mind of young Eddie. There would always be a shred of Eddie that would try to defend her because of that ‘A mother & her boy’ complex she had pounded in him. 

The air in the room seemed to lose some of the tension and Richie took that as a good sign as he heaved his body off the floor. “No, I’m sorry. You’re right. ‘James Taylor’ is ours.” Richie sat on the other bed and took Eddie’s smaller hand in his own, pulled it with soft shyness and his husband leaned down so he could press a kiss to his temple. “We’re on for dinner right?” 

Eddie nodded and rubbed the pad of his finger into the corner of his eye. “Yeah. We can probably splurge on that cool Shawarma place you like so much tonight, if you’d like?” 

Richie lit up at that possibility and smiled. “Sounds peachy, Eddie my love.” He reached up to steal a quick kiss and twirled off the bed to see his love out the door if he was going to leave so early. 

Richie didn’t have any classes today and thought he’d enjoy such a treasure by calling up Mike because he missed his voice even though they weren’t even that far away. Though, Richie hadn’t seen much of anyone in a while. He and Eddie spent much of their free time trying to get their schedules aligned and making sure they had dinner together in the spots between work and school. The pair of husbands hadn’t had much in the company department apart from…well, each other. 

                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{December, Freshman Year of College}

Bill tightened his grip around Eddie’s body and attempted to tackle him into the snow but the little demon managed to turn the tables and get the advantage on him. He did not let him fall onto the cold snow but was trying to make sure Bill knew who had one this little play-fight. “Alright, I g-g-give!” He chuckled and Eddie backed off with a skip in his step. 

“Ben and Bev s-seemed to have found their ideal apartment!-” 

“So I’ve heard.” Eddie smiled and wiggled his cold toes in his shoes. “I talked to Ben on the phone for like two hours last night. Told me all about their plan.” He rolled his lips together and felt the bit of winter at the tips of his ears. “They got their apartment to dwell in for the next three years-”

“And than off to Chicago after graduation!” Bill chuckled, so excited for their best friends. 

Eddie nodded but fell silent as they stepped into the same pace, walking through campus without a true destination. “How’s the search goin’ for you two?” Bill asked the question he’d been dreading to answer.

“Mmmm-” Eddie hummed and looked off to the side. “It’s going, alright. we’d like to have something to move into by the start of Sophomore year cause the dorm is way too tight. But it’s gotta be in our price range…” Eddie shrugged. The two of them had been doing fairly ok for a couple of college kids. He’d been balancing school and his job at the shop in town. But Richie-

“Man, I’m so fucking proud of Richie, Bill.” Eddie giggled happily at the thought as Bill threaded their arms together so neither of them slipped on any ice. “He’s somehow balancing classes, his job down at the restaurant and he’s doing the radio shows here…” Eddie glanced up at the school. 

Bill shook their grip a little and his smile could’ve blinded. “I’m s-s-so happy for you two. Things seem t-t-to be going pretty smoothly.” 

Eddie nodded, mind going back to the night he and Richie lingered in the radio broadcasting room after his show. It’d been snowing extremely hard that night and neither one of them had been eager to run on back to ‘James Taylor’ when the weather would surely bite and they’d have to wait forever for the car to warm itself up. So they stalled for as long as they could. 

He blushed at the memory. 

                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{May, just before Sophomore Year of College}

The apartment hunt worked it’s magic and the happy couple had been to find themselves a warm building. It was fairly cheap so it wasn’t what one would call paradise but it was miles better then their tiny dorm room. 

Their first year of school had passed them by and gifted them a better perspective on their wants & needs, whether they voiced them to each other was a whole separate issue. They moved in towards the end of June and Eddie had been prescribed his anxiety medication a short four days later. 

Richie had noticed his husbands anxiety starting to come up on a rise the past few months. Eddie got sick quite a bit more often and seemed to hopelessly latch onto it. Making himself believe it’s still plaguing him when it’s more or less been gone. There’d been an incident some weeks ago where his husband got to his tipping point. He’d stayed up all night feeling phantom nausea because of a simple test. It’d never been so bad for him before. 

So Richie held his hand through and through, making an appointment with the doctor who talked with his husband for a long while. And Eddie left with a piece of paper telling him a low-dose of medication to try out would be waiting for him at their local Walgreens. 

“I miss the ol’ gang, we need to get everyone together soon.” Richie sighed and poured Eddie some of the red wine he liked so much, which in moderation was good for the heart, he’d always say. The shorter man took his glass and cuddled up against Richie’s chest and nodded. 

They were preparing for a nice and calm movie night even though they should’ve been spending their time unpacking. The boxes were taking up a lot of floor space but with the messes that they could be sometimes, they didn’t really mind. 

Two paintings from Sears, three from the local thrift store, a funky chair from Ben’s childhood-home basement and a plaid couch from Bill’s were some of their new ‘purchases’. But the apartment was already starting to feel like home, as long as they had each other anyway. 

“Stan passed that exam he was so worried about, I damn well told him that would happen.” Richie chuckled into his own glass and fogged it up while the TV menu appeared. 

“We all told him.” Eddie teasingly tipped Richie’s glass with the tip of his finger when he went for another sip. This was rewarded with a sloppy, wet red-wine kiss being pressed against his cheek. Eddie giggled and tried to shove his husband off. “I love you so much, asshole. You know that?” 

Richie blushed like a lovesick kid and rubbed his nose into Eddie’s hair as he shook his head. “Not as much as I love you.” He spoke genuinely that Eddie felt that familiar melting sensation. So he reached his hand back to pet the man’s cheek and feel his heat. 

“I don’t want to fight on our wedding anniversary but you’re wrong. I love you so much more-!” Eddie was interrupted by Richie shoving his tongue into his ear and his gasp of disgust mixed with laughter he couldn’t help. 

The idiots began shoving and tickling each other without a care in the world, balancing their wine glasses because they were too focused to put them back on the table. They’d just have to risk spilling. 

They might not have been rolling in the money but they had this. And that was all that mattered. It reminded Richie of a song, so he started mumbling the words into the crook of his love’s neck. 

“-And even though we ain’t got money I’m so in love with you honey And everything will bring a chain of love And in the mornin’ when I rise Bring a tear of joy to my eyes And tell me everything is gonna be alright…”

Eddie couldn’t help but sing along with him, eyes glazed over with admiration and true, fine love. 

                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{July , Sophomore Year of College}

The sun was always very fond of Richie, at least Eddie always thought so. The light was consistently complimentary to the man and had this way of making him look like the picture of the sunny 70′s.

“What are you doing?” Richie squinted as he walked briskly to the front of the apartment building where Eddie was sat, hands shoved in his pockets. He’d been gone for a while now and the pair may or may not have left on bad terms…fresh from an argument about something stupid. 

“I went out after you left….-” He pointed his thumb at the door behind him. “Got locked out.”

Richie rolled his eyes fondly and got his own key from his pocket as Eddie stood and followed behind him. “Where’s your key? And where did you go?”

The man behind him went quiet again in that eerie way could really freak Richie out sometimes. “Forgot it here. And I um…-I went to Marty’s.” He shrugged like it was no big deal but he knew for certain that it was an explosion waiting to happen. Richie looked at him with fury as they got to his door.

“You went to the bar to look for me?” He glared and it felt as if Eddie’s stomach was suddenly tied in a huge knot.

“You can’t blame me!” He went straight into defense and followed the guy into their lonesome apartment. The air grew with tension as his partner chose not to speak and instead went about the place doing small clean-ups. This only made Eddie feel even more angry. “You honestly can’t blame me. You’ve been known to go there a lot, Rich.”

“I’m not some sorry man that you need to look out for, Ed’s. I know I can…drink a bit more than planned but…” He suddenly turned from his position at the sink. “I don’t just go out drinking because we had a fight. The place had an opening for it’s open mic night and I thought I might try to get a spot for my comedy, you know?” He threw down a dish-towel and Eddie swallowed a lump in his throat.

“I feel like the asshole of the year” He ran his hand through his hair and sat down on the couch, hoping that the ‘fight’ would ease up. “I just thought…you were so upset when you left and it reminded me of the night I had to pick you up-” 

“I’m sorry about that, Eddie. I…-losing the restaurant job got me all wigged out. I know that’s no excuse to drink myself sick but…it wasn’t that often and that shit is over now.” Richie grabbed Eddie’s hands and kissed him softly. 

“This is not a good period for us, Richie.” Eddie got the hint that the fight had basically run it’s course and they sat down on their couch.

Richie opened and closed his mouth, deciding to just tilt his head back and sigh. There was nothing more for them to say. So they just allowed themselves to enjoy being with the one they loved.

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{September, Sophomore Year of College}

Richie felt a growing pain in his head. It flared every few minutes and he could almost smell the scent of something burning each time it hit him. The quick intensity was becoming harder and harder to ignore considering Eddie pitter-patting the length of their kitchen. There would be a few minutes of soothing silence and he’d think he was safe…just the distant and quiet hum of the television-*Slam* another clatter from the cold cracking dishes. His ache would start from the base of his back, travel up his spine in the form of a chill and then burst into his temples.

“What are you doing in there?” Richie finally broke their record-breaking twenty minute silence. It had been strange and he was glad the opportunity to speak came up. He turned and due to the small space, he could stare right at the other man in the dining-kitchen area.

“The dishes. Y’know. You eat off of them, I clean them. Ever heard of it?” Eddie remarked with snark. That would have usually launched them into a round of their usual playful bickering but for some odd reason, maybe the headache, it just irritated Richie to hear it.

“I do my part around here.” He scowled and spoke harshly, rolling his eyes. Turning back a little away from.

They’d made it through another week and were back at the beginning of another weekend, magically. Richie and Eddie had attempted many times in the past week or so to plan some kind of exciting date night. But the more time went on, they just seemed to forget or become far too busy. It was agonizing and isolating. Sure they had each other but it just wasn’t…fully satisfying?

Richie felt his lunch launch back up his throat, he harshly swallowed it and let himself feel sick to his stomach. And suddenly, he had a burning question in the back of his mind. It had lingered there for the past few nights but he’d been too…well himself to ask it. But it suddenly pained him not to. He turned again, leaning his arm on the back of the couch. “You’re not…mad at me, are you?” He played with his fingers.

Eddie looked up with a confused expression. “Your tone was hardly nice but I’m not mad-”

“No, not because of that, Spaghetti man.” Richie couldn’t help but grin a little. Eddie smiled right back and it was a nice moment. He bathed in it for a few minutes before deciding to explain himself. “I know I’ve been a piece of work lately…”

Neither had spoken that to light but it may have been true. Richie being fired from the restaurant job he loved which had been a whole event had cause some issues. The need for a job search was sudden and a little difficult. And he may have been a little on edge lately waiting for the bar with the open mic night opening to call him back. But Eddie knew the strain was only because Richie was concerned for their life together. In fact, Eddie was more disappointed that Richie couldn’t focus on the radio show at school that he loved so much.

Eddie thought about making another joke but decided against. Rather, he put his dishes to the side and strolled over and slowly sat beside his boy. Instinctively, he reached over to brush his hair back and lingered his hand there.

“And I don’t admit to that…like ever. So, take it while you can.” Richie stole a joke and laughed lightly. But both of them knew he was not too happy and both of them were worried.

“It’s not comforting when you talk like you despise yourself, y’know?” Eddie blinked. That comment hadn’t been one of Richie’s worst in the last week but it sure wasn’t warm. It was hard to ignore the man’s self-deprecating attitude as of late. And Eddie would never want to just ignore it. In all honesty, it was deeply unsettling but not uncommon to hear the other man talk like that.

As long as he’d known him, Richie put on a front that he was some confident, funny man entertainer. It was so smooth and effortless that it was entirely convincing. Hearing him crack jokes and smirk at his own reckless and daring behavior gave the illusion that it wasn’t stemming from insecurity. Eddie quickly saw through the facade after truly getting to know Richie. 

“I’m sorry, Eds.” 

“Don’t apologize, Rich.” Eddie kissed the top of his head and then trailed down to his temple. Not for the first time, Eddie felt a rush of guilt. Part of him felt responsible for the fact that Richie was stuck at the University of Maine instead somewhere like…California. Maybe if he hadn’t just pushed away that conversation with Stan all that time ago. Maybe if he’d voiced his confusion back then…

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Richie sighed into Eddie’s grip. 

“Me too, Rich.” Eddie hugged him as tight as he could and dreaded the moment he’d have to let him go.

                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{November, Sophomore Year of College}

Party streamers were burrowed into the carpeting of the apartment, pounded there from all the dancing. From the neat little window where the tiny balcony sat, the low-hanging sun scattered the room in gold flecks of light. The trees were changing for the upcoming season, Richie’s favorite holiday coming with it. The town was soon to be rid of the deep reds and beautiful oranges. Eddie had a fleeting moment of joy when he thought about the smiles Richie would soon get when observing the scenery. It lasted for a second or two.

The Losers Club had been fully reunited for the best Birthday Party one could imagine. Richie had spent ages organizing everyone’s return for Eddie’s special day. Stanley Uris had got past his 4-hour drive with a smile on his face because seeing all his best friends worth it. 

But now came the end of the night, where the decorations hung with a lonesome kind of drowsiness. The apartment had once been tuned to an exciting F.M. but when the last guest left, the dial turned to the A.M. radio. Not literally, but that’s just how Richie felt about it…hard to explain the shit his mind compared things to. 

It reminded him of the Christmas parties hosted by his aunt that he’d been taken to as a little tot. The holly-jolly music carried all the guests and filled them with their take of Holiday joy. But on the way home, Richie would be long tired and ready to sleep. As he would dowse, his parents played the A.M. stations. It signaled to him the end of fun and that was the energy in their apartment now. 

Eddie started whistling a tune as he dug through their bin of CD’s, eyes never leaving his partners which only made Richie hide his blush behind the large wine glass he’d stolen. 

‘You know I can’t smile without you I can’t smile without you I can’t laugh and I can’t sing I’m finding it hard to do anything…’

Richie faked like he was tired of this song but truly he was on cloud 9. “My lovely Ed’s loves his Barry Manilow.” He smirked and held out his hand so the exhausted love of his life could dance with him. “And please, don’t give me the excuse that it’s only cause it’s what you grew up listening to. You love him, Eds.” 

Eddie pursed his lips and shrugged, accepting Richie’s hand and twirling himself to Richie’s chest. “This song reminds me of you…” He hummed when Richie ran his hand down his cheek. The dying evening sun cascaded in through the window and bathed their bodies in bittersweet tangerine light. They swirled about their living area carpet in the vacuum of dry and unforgiving air because their heater was on the fritz. 

“You requested off work for Christmas, right?” Richie asked and Eddie sighed.

“No, sorry. I forgot.” He spun under Richie’s arm and allowed himself to be pulled right back. Richie softly slapped his shoulder and nodded. They were due back to the Tozier’s household soon. After Richie had told them about that runaway wedding and teen engagement…they’d been fairly pissed. But things were better now. 

“S’fine, baby.” Richie mumbled into his hair as they swayed together.

“Richie?” Eddie sucked in some air and thought it to be a now or never kind of situation. His man looked down at him with wide, loving eyes and gave Eddie hope that everything would work out. They stayed dancing. “Do you remember the night we all fought in the car after we told everyone we got married…when I ran off?”

Richie nodded, opening his mouth. 

“-Remember when Stan said something about my being confused about wanting to go to the University of Maine?” 

“Yeah….why-ummm, why are we bringing this up now?” Richie pulled back a little but they kept swaying as the song went on and on. “Has something changed?” 

Eddie bit hard into his lip. “I’ve been thinking about us lately.” 

Richie was especially good at making himself look smaller. Sometimes, when Eddie looked at him it was hard not to just take the man into his arms. When Richie was upset, he felt it deep within himself just the same. One of the worst parts of this whole mess was having to witness such emotions from the man he loved. Richie was leaning with his back against the couch to better feel the warmth from the sun-spot coming through the window and it was a breathtaking image. Golden sun-rays threaded through his hair and glazed his entire body and there was a peace there that was soothing. As he admired all that it was and all that he would miss, it occurred to him that maybe the man needed to actually hear some of that love that was on his mind.“Richie?”

The man dropped their hands and nodded. “Sorry, sorry. What have you been thinking about, Eddie?” 

Eddie swung his arms around nervously and sighed. “Sometimes I wonder if our friends were right…about our marriage.” 

Richie felt his heart completely shatter. “Eddie, I-”

“Wait, just hear me out.” Eddie held up his hand to gently pause the man he loved so, so much. “I am so in love with you, Richie. I love being your husband.” He saw a quick picture of the face that old man, Oliver, had made when talking about his wife all that time ago. “It’s just…I think our relationship and later…our marriage kept you from going to California like you always wanted to.” 

“Eddie, that’s ridiculous-”

“Is it though? The reason you applied University of Maine was because you wanted to be with me. The reason you ended up actually going was a commitment to our marriage…” Eddie sniffled back some tears and tried not to drown in the guilt. “And the reason I applied was because….I was scared to be far from my mom, not because I wanted to go.” 

Eddie admitted that to his shoes and let out a horrible sob. Richie came over to pull the boy into his arms. “Hey, hey, hey…Shhhh, Ed’s. Take a breath.” He ran his hands through the boys hair and they went quiet so Eddie could collect himself. And when he did, Richie stepped back again. 

“I love you but I feel like our marriage is holding us back, baby.” Eddie cringed when Richie let out his own sob. “I’m so so so scared that I’m gonna need someone to take care of me for my whole life…” Eddie went on and Richie tried very hard to listen. “I’m such a dependent person sometimes and…I-I don’t think jumping from a dependent relationship with my mother to a committed marriage was a great thing for me…no matter how much I love you.” 

Richie’s heart shattered. “Eddie…but I’m not like your mother. I’m not gonna smother you or-” 

“I know that.” Eddie frowned. “Damn sure of that. But the problem is me, Richie.” He shook his head and sort of hated himself. “This situation that my mother created for me has made me too comfortable with always having someone take care of me. I let it fucking happen because I’ve been forced to be dependent my whole childhood…my whole life.” 

“And I don’t wanna live like that.” Eddie broke into a full sub and fell to his knees on the carpet, smashing more dead party streamers. Richie fell down in front of him and hopelessly pulled him in for a hug. 

“Eddie…-”

“I don’t wanna hold you back anymore, Richie. And I gotta…” He hiccuped into Richie’s chest. “I have to get some perspective on life and shit. Be independent for once in my damn life.” 

“Eddie, why didn’t you talk to me-?” 

“I didn’t really realize this shit until a few days ago, Richie. And I was scared you’d think it was because I didn’t love you. Which is Bullshit. I love you more than anything. You’re the one I’m supposed to be with just…not like this. Not in this situation, right now.” Eddie pulled back, a little bit more relaxed and grabbed Richie’s hands. “So I think I should go. We should take a break. I don’t know for how long-” 

“Eddie. We can work this out.” He pathetically begged and tugged his husband’s arms. 

“We can.” Eddie agreed. “Just by ourselves first. Separated.” 

Richie hiccuped himself and shook his head. “No, Eddie. We need to be together..I-.” He frowned. “If you walk out that door, that’s it. Not a break. We’ll be broken up. That’s it.” Richie stood up and looked down at the love of his life hoping to anything that would listen that Eddie might change his mind because of his juvenile threat. 

Eddie looked up with wide, watery eyes. “This is something I have to do, Richie. Something you have to do too. I want the best life for you so if you’re gonna damn threaten me than I’ll have to take it. If being broken up means that you’ll get the life you deserve, well that’s the path we’ll take.” Eddie hopped up and ran to the bedroom, starting to get his shit together in a suitcase. 

Richie felt the wind get knocked out of him as he chased Eddie around the apartment, slowly falling apart with everything he threw in the suitcase. “Eddie. Please slow down. Stop-” 

“I’m going to Bill’s.” Eddie made it to the front door with a suitcase full of random clothes that he hoped would get him through at least a week. He hovered his hand on the doorknob. 

“I mean it, Eddie. You leave and that’s it.” Richie sobbed. Eddie looked at him with all the love in his soul….

He turned the knob and left Richie to crumble onto his carpet and cry his eyes out. 

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{A week later….}

The night was a trying one for Richie. The apartment was practically dead apart from the terribly busy sounding quick taps of a keyboard. And though he was the one making that sound, it didn’t stop it from slowly driving him insane. His stomach turned from the mixture of anger and nerves that were boiling inside. So instead of slamming his head into his palms and letting out the emotions, he composed himself. He sat straight and tall, threading his slim fingers together. He copycatted those relaxing breaths Mike had once taught him. 

He was attempting to get some homework done and treated himself to glass of chocolate milk like he was a child. Just as the last drop splashed in the glass, his phone began ringing. 

“Eddie’s coming over there in like twenty minutes.” Bill’s cool voice spoke from over the phone and Richie’s hopes climbed so high. “Don’t get t-t-too excited. He just wants to p-pick up some more clothes and his medication.” 

Richie nodded and sighed. By now, the news must have traveled to every member of The Losers Club and for once in his life, Richie was glad Stan was far away. He couldn’t face him knowing his best friend had been right the entire time and he had to learn it the hard way instead of hearing him out all that time ago. He’d rather be in his father’s dentist chair than face Stan anytime soon. 

“You ok, Rich?” 

Richie shrugged even though Bill couldn’t see. “Try absolutely heart-broken, Billiam.” 

Bill’s end went quiet until he let out a sigh. “I know this is hard on you guys but Richie, try to understand that this is really i-i-important to Eddie.” Bill echoed Eddie’s sentiment and Richie felt a tear try to escape. He was right. He’d been as jerk to refuse the break Eddie had offered. Living independently seemed like something that meant a lot to his…-to Eddie. 

He hated to admit it but he waited around for Eddie pathetically for the whole twenty-five minutes it took for him to arrive. What really put the nail in the coffin was the fact that Eddie buzzed. As permission to enter the apartment building they were supposed to be living in together. He insisted that Eddie not knock once upstairs, just walk in the damn room.

The front door closed alarmingly soft but Richie picked it up nonetheless and his head snapped up. The sight he took in was to be expected but still extremely painful no matter what. Eddie seemed unable to let go of the doorknob, eyes watered to the point of boiling over. He slowly raised himself off the couch and made his way over. He gently reached out and unclasped Eddie’s hand for him which shocked the smaller man. “Let’s talk? Before you go.” He soothed. He then guided him inside.

The pair made themselves comfortable at the kitchen counter and stood their in silence for a few seconds. Eddie’s eyes dragged over the homework scattered around and couldn’t help but smile at the glass of Chocolate milk. It made Richie blush. 

“I just want to say that I’m sorry for being such an ass.” Richie swallowed under Eddie’s watchful, wide and watery eyes. “You…you were trying to be honest with me and I-….” 

Eddie shook his head. “You don’t have to apologize. I sprung this all on you and just expected you to….-Well, I don’t really know what I expected.” His shrug rolled flawlessly off his shoulders and they both let out a long sigh. 

“Ed’s, I don’t want our life together to start out like this-” Richie gestured between them, thinking of the strain lingering there for some time now. “So if this is what you want…-Something we need then it has to happen.” 

Eddie licked his lips and looked away briefly. “You should get out of Maine, Rich. You belong somewhere…big in personality.” He chuckled a little. 

“Correct you are, Eddie my boy-” Richie habitually grinned before letting it fall off his face. “This place…this school-” He gestured to the homework “They’re not where I should be…where we should be.” 

Richie and Eddie’s eyes met once more but both seemed far too nervous to keep the contact. Both opting to stare off somewhere else. “I was selfish to ask this to be a break-to ask you to wait for me…”

Richie stood up straighter and frowned. “Ed’s no-…I was stupid for threatening a breakup…”

The two of them stared each other down again, both barely holding it together. It was pathetic really-the two of them standing in the crappy kitchen with tears just streaming down their faces. “I want you to live, Rich. That good, fast life that’s meant for you. I don’t want you to be waiting for me-”

Richie remembered some Billy Joel song, it played far off in his head. ‘You’re only standing there 'cause somebody once did somebody wrong. But you’ll be sleeping with the television on…’

“I don’t know what to say…for the first time in my life, huh?” Richie pathetically giggled but choked it down when Eddie grew even more concerned. “So, we thinking a divorce…or…?” Richie tried to be falsely cheer but it only seemed to break him in the last possible way. He hiccuped and bent forward as a sob wrecked his body. Eddie ran to him, he always did so. 

And the two men stood in a shitty apartment kitchen and gripped tightly onto each other. Crying into Eddie’s shoulder or Richie’s chest. Whichever, didn’t really matter because soon that great option would be gone and anymore tears they shed would be coddled alone.

                                                    ~~~~~~~

After Eddie left the place, Richie completely broke down in his living room in a mirrored way to Eddie’s breakdown in Bill’s apartment…though it took them both around an hour to truly let it flow…at almost the exact same time…they broke… 

A small glass of perfume sat on a dresser in the guest room housing Eddie. It was the small and delicate glass with a large daisy stopper blocking any leakage.

It sat there, absolutely still, as a pair of hands quickly picked and pulled from the array of products sat around it. But with that speed came clumsiness and the hands just darted to fast on the pull-back of some papers and down came the bottle. Knocking it off the counter and revealing the ring of dust that had been living underneath it.

Eddie paused for a moment before peeking over the lip of the dresser to find the tiny bottle. The rounded broken piece was rolling just the slightest bit while the rest of the tiny shards bathed in the small puddle of the scent leaking out.

That perfume had once belonged to his mother, her favorite scent. He’d taken it with him upon leaving for school that first time because…it was a sort of comforting smell. Call it pathetic aromatherapy? It gave him a sense of her old coddling. Kneeling down, he intended to start cleaning the mess up but he hesitated. The tip of his finger laid frozen in the burgundy puddle as a wave of emotion fell upon him. He’d been holding back on truly coming to terms with what his mind and body ached for. But looking at the old shattered tie to his smothering mother on Bill’s hardwood floor…the gate was opened without his permission.

A flood of tears finally broke past his eyes again and rolled down his cheeks, the heat from his previous restrain could almost burn his skin. In an instant he was near hysterical. His breathing was rapid and short as it became harder for him to push-back the devastation. More then anything in his life he wanted to call Richie…he wanted him with him. But at the same time he was desperate to shove him away entirely and gain some damn independence…let Richie breathe.

The palm of his hand curled over his mouth in an attempt to block some of the sound from breaching the thin walls of Bill’s home. He did not want Bill to hear any bit of this breakdown, he didn’t need to see him so…sad. He was already taking him in until he got back on his feet and he didn’t need anymore stress so he just needed to be strong, he was usually extremely good at that. It was enough that he’d broken down when facing the love of his life. There’d be nothing more now.

A deep breath or two and he was off the floor and on his way to collect a dust-pan and broom.

But as always, Bill Denbrough seemed to sense the trouble and came to Eddie. 

‘Fuck’ that broke Eddie again. Bill took his second ‘little’ brother into his arms and they both swayed. Bill, who wasn’t scared of anything at all in the eyes of his best friends…feared for these two. He looked up, some of Eddie’s hair catching his eyes, and he hoped to anything that would listen that Richie and Eddie will work it out. The Losers Club had always just assumed they’d be together forever since they were little…just the same as they assumed it for Ben and Beverly when they found each other. 

Richie and Eddie were far too young to be going through a divorce.

                                                    ~~~~~~~

Richie curled up on his couch, going from mindlessly watching the Food Network to sleeping to the sound of ‘Friends’. His eyes burned from all the shitty crying and staring at his laptop screen. He’d even managed to get that homework done. But now he was at a loss. 

Part of him ached to call his parents. They’d know what to say but it gave him the same dread that calling up Stan would. 

If he came to them crying, it only further hammered in the point that they’d been right all along. Marrying your sweetheart in High School was a bad idea. Who knew? 

Richie was awakened by the sound of the buzzer. He shuffled out of bed and let whoever it was come up, hoping it was Mike. He was the best of em’ and he always had something kind to say even if you’d been in the wrong…Mike was always on your side. 

When the knocking came, Richie eagerly walked to the door and…

“Hey.” 

Stanley Uris hiked up a bag slung over his shoulder and smiled gently. Richie kinda wanted to throw up just the same as he wanted to hug him. “Big Bill told everyone, right?” Richie smirked and nodded to himself, bouncing on his feet. “Come to tell me how right you were-? Tell me that if i’d only listened to you this never would’ve happened-” 

Stan took the bag of his shoulder and set it near Richie’s feet. “You know me better than that, asshole.” He frowned but opened his arms wide. It was a sight that drove Richie back into his fucking tears. He fell into the arms of his friend and sobbed again and again until it was time to breathe. 

Stan rubbed a hand through his hair and tried to calm him. “You’re gonna be ok, Rich.” 

                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So life went on the way it always does for The Losers Club. Best friends. Before the start of his Junior year, Richie decided to take a good ol’ road-trip down to California for a small summer taste of it all. With him, he took Michael Hanlon who desperately needed the break. 

But as life would have it, Mike returned to Maine alone. Richie’s summer taste turned into a full-on love affair that lead him to start the hectic process of transferring schools. 

Ben and Beverly waited until graduation but left for Chicago the instant it was over. Both of them had worked internships at offices for their respective career choices and earned themselves singing recommendations. 

Stanley Uris finished up in Vermont, meeting the loveliest girl in the process, Patty. And the two of them flooded off to Georgia where Stan was eerily 100% sure was the right place. And almost instantly, they seemed to fall into the dreamiest of job situations.

Michael went off to Florida. The place which had been calling him since he was young and became a full-time librarian at one of the finest library’s he’d ever set foot in. 

Bill continued with his writing and traveled to New York in the middle of his junior year which funnily enough was where Eddie had been drawn too as well. From there, Bill met and fell for a girl called Audra. 

As Eddie started work at a nice office for Risk Analysis, Richie got his dream job at a California Radio Station. 

There were plenty of visits, phone-calls and group-chats to keep the love flowing. Because after all, Losers stick together…

Even if a once couple…married couple…seemed to drift away from each other. After the divorce papers were signed…Richie&Eddie became Richie and Eddie. 

In desperate fear, they became the most distant of the bunch. Not with the others. No. Just each other. Which was truly devastating when everyone knew how much they loved each other.

                          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

{December, Ten years later}

“-And a real famous cat all dressed up in red. And he spends the whole year workin’ out on his sled. It’s the little Saint Nick. Ooooo, little Saint Nick!”  

Richie Tozier turned right down the next small street and seemed to forget to use his blinker. He tapped his hands against the wheel as if it were his very own drum-set and chuckled to himself. Being back in Derry was certainly a trip. 

But with the Holiday’s, it came time for Ol’ Richie to visit the parents who were still cuddled up in their tiny-town home. Part of him was kind of excited to see the little stop-and-shop piece of shit town again. It’d been a solid couple of years since the last time he’d set foot on Derry’s fine streets. 

“She’s candy-apple red with a ski for a wheel. And when Santa hits the gas, man, just watch her peel-”

Richie hit the brake far harder than intended but the minor choking from the seat-belt was worth it. Right in perfect view was…damn Eddie Kaspbrak walking down the side-walk, hands shoved into his jacket pockets. The night air was a bitter kind of chill and snow was beginning to fall. Richie bit hard into the smirk now coming over his face. 

He pulled the car close to the curb and rolled the window down. Sticking his head out, he did his best cat-call whistle (not that he did that kinda thing-ha ha). Eddie did not spare a glance, just walked a little faster so- 

“HEY ASSHOLE!!” Richie laughed wildly, still cruising slowly. 

Eddie stopped in his tracks and snapped his head to the right, eyes widening almost instantly. “Dick! That you? Didn’t recognize you in that…” He glanced over the supremely nice car with something of wonder…wanting to get his hands all over it. “Sweet car, man.” Eddie strolled forward, Richie felt his chest tighten with joy. “What happened to ‘James Taylor’?” he pouted his lips and rested his hands on the open ledge of the window. 

“Ah, Ed’s my boy. You see….-” Richie tapped the mirror with charm and tried to hide his blush. “When you’re a successful as I am-” 

Eddie hunched over slightly in laughter, bringing their faces much closer together. So close that Richie thought he might lose what little cool he had. “Good to know you stayed just as humble as you used to be.” 

They chuckled together before Richie found himself astoundingly nervous again. “Your mom drag you back here for the Holiday’s?” 

Eddie licked his lips and nodded. “Something like that-” He rubbed his finger into the corner of his eyes. “My mom died, actually. I’m in town for the um-funeral arrangements and all that jazz, baby.” He pathetically waved his hands in a mock dance. It struck Richie as odd, it seemed like more of something that he’d do. 

“I’m sorry, Eddie.” He hoped to sound genuine which in part, he was. But there was that large part of distaste and hatred in his soul for Sonia that only had grown larger over the years. 

“Yeah, it’s fine.” He looked away and shivered a little in the night air. “I was just taking a walk to clear my head.” 

“Wanna clear it in here?” Richie gestured to the empty passengers seat which was far from the picture of calm. The vehicle was decorated very closely to the way one’s home would be for the holidays. String lights around the ceiling and a Little Tree Freshener spun in fake toy-dollhouse lights hung over the rear-view mirror. It made Eddie unbelievably giddy. Such a Richie thing to do. 

“Oh definitely.” Good to know that they were still just as good at ignoring the issues in favor of the natural chemistry they had together. It was a charm that got them into a lot of trouble in the past. But Eddie didn’t mind, he walked around and hopped inside with excitement. 

Richie pulled off the curb and leaned over dangerously to open the glovebox where two Santa hats laid. “Wanna be go for matching?” 

“Oh, hell yeah. Obviously” Eddie shrugged with his toothy grin that Richie had always adored. So they sat in their seats…in red & white holiday hats…like a pair idiots. But Eddie just had to admire this long lost love of his. 

“I’m so proud of you, Rich.” Eddie let that comment slip and Richie blushed. “I watched that comedy special you did-”

“We did the right thing.” Richie interrupted Eddie no matter how hard it was to stop such a delightful giggle. His ex fell silent and time was passed in the company of the sound of the Christmas tunes and rolling tires on loud streets.

“Hey-” 

Eddie blinked up to find Richie pulling closer to the curb again and pointing. “That’s the um-that’s that bench where Bill totally flipped over on his bike. Remember? He was distracted-”

“By you and your impression of that cop. I remember.” Eddie giggled again and the tension was lifted once more. “If you go up the street a little…yeah-” 

Eddie snapped his fingers as Richie followed his direction, the bell at the end of his hat jingled. “That’s where I ran off to that night I pretended that I had to puke…” 

The park looked a little deserted and Richie had to laugh at the picture of his once boyfriend sprinting down the sidewalk, so tipsy.  

“Ben came and got me…” He looked towards the gazebo with love in his eyes. “He was really there for me that night.” He nodded and Richie decided to move on with this fun tour of Derry’s hot-spots. 

The two of them cruised past so many of the Losers Club’s old favorite places and shared everything attached to them again. 

They pulled down a lonesome street and found the sight of the drive-in root-beer place. It was still across the street from the abandoned 7/11 that used to be a CVS where no one had ever shopped. Except now, it was an open Walgreens. Both of them stared down the Drive-in….

“Still open…impressive.” Richie pulled onto the curb a bit and parked. He glanced at his friend who was now opening the car door and climbing out. “Oh, we’re going inside?” 

“Hell yeah.” Eddie leaned back down into the window, eyes wide and hoping. Richie was overcome with a great sense of joy. He shut the car off and followed the man of his dreams into the restaurant that held all their first date memories. 

                                                     ~~~~~~~

“Would it impress you to see me eat AND keep down my hot-dog dipped in the Root-Beer Float?” Richie asked, swirling his airborne dog in the open air over the sweet drink. 

Eddie giggled. “That’s disgusting. Please don’t do that for the sake of my entertainment.” 

Richie set down his dog and leaned back on the orange vinyl, thinking of Skip Larson’s flying homework assignments again. “Why did you give me that second date, Ed’s?” He asked, looking away and at his meal. 

Eddie slurped down some of his drink and grinned. “Easy. I was in love with you. No amount of vomit could change that.” 

Richie covered his grin with his cupped hand. “Thank you for doing what you did, Eddie-”

“I don’t know that I’ll ever feel good about hurting you like that, Richie. For us drifting apart like that. That shit keeps me up at night.” Eddie shook his head and Richie sighed because ‘yeah, that shit sucked’. He set his napkin down and strolled over to Eddie’s side of the booth. 

“The marriage was a mistake…” He nodded. “But you were never the mistake, Eddie.” He stared into his eyes with direct contact for the first time in a long while. It threw them both for a wild shake. “If we didn’t stop it when we did…” He shrugged. “We would have gotten too comfortable with the settling we were doing in Maine. It wouldn’t have worked out.” 

“I still feel like shit-” 

“Ok so, you feel like shit. But look at you, living a damn good life. You’re successful. You like your job-” 

“Love my job.” Eddie added because it was true. It was something he was heavily invested in. 

“Love your job. Got to New York, where you were meant to be…your soul place, I think. And hell, Eddie you’re so fucking independent. The guys talk about how proud they are all the time. I’m proud as shit too. A nice fuck you to Sonia Kaspbrak-” Richie paused, realizing how inappropriate that was considering. But Eddie only nodded in agreement. 

“A nice fuck you.” He repeated in confirmation. There was still some kind of love and there always would be but…he didn’t have to like her to love her. Maybe that was sad.

 “And I-…well, I got my radio show in California and it means so much to me, baby. We never…ever would have got that shit on the path we were stuck on. So yeah, we’ll feel like shit for losing these years but it’s better than the place we were all those years ago.” Richie threw his arm around Eddie and the smaller of the two sighed into it. “Now, I didn’t miss ya much myself-” Richie exaggerated his hand gestures. “BUT My parents, for one, missed you like crazy.” 

Eddie giggled. “How are the Toziers?” he asked, a new fry hanging slightly from his mouth. 

“Oh, my favorite old people are living it up. My mother and I have never had a better relationship, I swear on it. I talk to em’ like every other day. Just can’t get rid of them! Wentworth asks about you a lot if he’s not distracted by the other Losers which the ol’ Toziers begged me to ask them over for the Holiday’s last week.” Richie shrugged and Eddie realized just how much he missed Richie’s folks too. 

“I’m still so crazy about you.” Eddie spoke in soft wonderment and bit hard into his lip. 

“We’re in the same boat, babe.” Richie grinned. 

“Could you give me another chance, you think?” Eddie asked, still believing he deserved for Richie to be mad. “Forgive me?” He added, looking unbelievably nervous. 

Richie dunked the Hot-Dog in the float and grinned. “Eddie, my love, don’t ask such dumb questions.” He took a large chunk of the food and swallowed it down with his happy smile. “I said it before and I’ll say it forever, you’ve got nothing to apologize for. Now please, come make-out with me in the bathroom?” 

Richie held out his hand which Eddie gladly accepted. They’d finally found their way back to each other and they couldn’t wait to share the news with their best friends. 

[camillemontespan]

a week at aunt olivia and uncle leo’s [part three]

Part Two if you want to catch up.

Just some more Leo x Olivia x Lily escapades.

@jovialyouthmusic @fromthedeskofpaisleybleakmore @pug-bitch @sirbeepsalot @moonlightgem7 @emceesynonymroll @burnsoslow @ibldw-main @notoriouscs @of-course-i-went-to-hartfeld @emichelle  @katedrakeohd @drakesensworld  @star-spangled-eyes @dcbbw

***********************************************************************************

Day 4 continued

Leo made Olivia a cup of coffee to try and sober her up before he picked up his car keys and insisted on driving Stacey and Milo back home. Stacey was not fit to drive in her drunken state.

As Olivia took a deep gulp of coffee, she was aware that Lily was watching her by the kitchen door, the bag of frozen peas clasped to her head.

'You okay babe?' Olivia asked. Lily nodded. 'I fell but I'm okay.'

Olivia beckoned for Lily to move closer and she examined her head. 'Ha, barely a bump. You'll be fine.'

Lily smiled and Olivia crouched down, her eyes wide. 'You're actually gorgeous, you know that right?' she asked, her voice slurring. Lily blushed, not used to compliments from Olivia. 'Thank you Aunt Olivia..'

'Honestly, I'm so glad you don't take after your dad,' Olivia continued. 'So glad.'

Lily wrinkled her nose. 'What's wrong with daddy?'

Olivia rolled her eyes. 'Well, he's definitely punching with your mom, that's just my opinion anyway.'

Before Lily could speak, Olivia clicked her fingers. 'Come! Join me in the living room.'

When Olivia was drunk, she adopted a very regal manner. More regal than usual. She strutted into the living room, taking care not to bump into the coffee table, and settled down on the sofa. She patted the space beside her and Lily eagerly curled up, resting her head on Olivia's chest. 'Can we watch Peppa Pig?' she asked hopefully.

Olivia smirked. 'We're not watching that crap.. No, honey, I will pick your education..'

Olivia scrolled through her recordings until she reached her chosen programme. She then grabbed a blanket and tucked Lily in beside her.

The opening bars to the Sex and the City theme tune filled the room.

'What's this?' Lily asked.

'This, darling,' Olivia drawled, 'is the best 90s show ever. See, that's Carrie with the curly hair. She writes for a newspaper.'

Lily nodded, keen to impress Olivia with her quick understanding. She pointed at the screen which showed the episode title. 'What's that say?'

Olivia squinted. 'Politically Erect.'

Lily frowned but continued to watch. She snuggled into Olivia and grinned when Charlotte came on screen. 'She's pretty!'

'Yes, Charlotte York,' Olivia said. 'She's the boring one.'

'Oh.. Who's the best one?'

'Samantha Jones,' Olivia replied. She then paused the TV, suddenly aware in her drunk state that maybe this wasn’t appropriate. But, instead of changing the channel, she tried to negotiate with the four year old. 

'Don't tell your parents you're watching this, okay? There's some adult scenes which I will ask you to close your eyes for and I'll fast-forward them, okay?'

Lily nodded obediently and for the next thirty minutes would close her eyes and Olivia would fast forward whenever Samantha had sex or talked about dildos. It meant Olivia only got to properly watch about ten minutes in total but she didn't mind - anything was better than constant Peppa Pig.

When Leo arrived home, exhausted from trying to stop Stacey from hanging her head out of the window like a dog as she screamed about how drunk she was, while Milo sat in the backseat, petrified,  he found Olivia and Lily sat cross legged on the sofa facing each other, looking very serious.

'So what have you learned?' Olivia asked her.

Lily looked up at the ceiling as if reciting lines. 'Mr Big is a mean man, Steve is nice but a little meh, Aidan is the best guy ever and Smith is a babe.'

Leo stared at Olivia in horror. 'You have shown her Sex and the City?! She’s four!’

Olivia shrugged. 'It's educational.'

Leo closed his eyes and counted to ten. 'Lily, bedtime.'

'But we're gonna watch another one!' Lily protested. Leo sighed and crouched down in front of her. 'If I give you some more ice cream, will you go to bed and promise not to tell your mommy and daddy about the TV show?'

Lily looked conflicted. 'But I.. I wanna see Aidan..'

Leo narrowed his eyes at Olivia who avoided his gaze, instead focusing on her fingernails.

'Lily..' Leo tried again. 'Waffles for breakfast tomorrow?'

Lily grinned. 'Okay!'

She jumped off the sofa then turned back to quickly kiss Olivia on the cheek. She did the same for Leo before skipping out the room.  Leo turned to look down at Olivia who was studiously avoiding his eyes. 

‘Liv.’

Olivia looked at her fingernails. ‘Damn it, I got a hangnail.’

‘Liv..’

Sighing, she looked up at him with wide blue eyes. ‘Yes?’

‘You do realise if Drake finds out, he is going to murder you.’

Olivia waved her hand in the air. ‘Please, he won’t find out-’

‘Babe, he found out Lily had fallen down the fucking stairs,’ Leo said bluntly. ‘I’m in shit now. This-’ he pointed to the paused episode of SATC- ‘is probably even worse in his eyes because you have introduced her to men! And sex toys! And sex! She’s like.. twenty years too young for this!’ 

‘First of all, she already has Milo!’ Olivia protested. Leo threw his hands up in the air, exasperated. ‘Exactly! Alarm bells are already going off in Drake’s head! How’s it gonna look when he asks if she’s been watching bloody Peppa Pig-’

‘Hehe, bloody,’ Olivia giggled, ‘I love it when you pretend to be British, it’s so sexy-’

‘LIV!’ 

Leo sat down on the leather armchair and closed his eyes, trying to think. ‘We just need to hope she won’t say anything, okay?’

Olivia rolled her eyes and stood up, slinking over to Leo. She knelt down on the floor in front of him, moving his legs apart so she was between his knees. ‘Leo..’ she murmured.

Leo looked down at her, his green eyes meeting her blue ones. She stank of wine but God, she looked hot in her low cut top and leather trousers. 

‘You’re cute when you’re worried,’ Olivia teased, nipping his ear with her teeth. 

Leo sighed and let her kiss his neck before she pulled his sweater up his torso and up over his head. Her eyes roamed his golden skin, hungrily studying his broad shoulders and muscles. ‘Olivia..’ he groaned. He really wanted to tell her off but he knew she wouldn’t take him seriously, especially now he was shirtless.

‘Let’s forget about kids and parents for a while and just be us,’ Olivia whispered, kissing him deeply. ‘I want you.’ 

In spite of himself, Leo chuckled and he let her drag him off the chair and up the stairs to their bedroom. He was never good at telling people off, especially when it came to Olivia.

   *******************************************************************************

Day 5

The next morning, Lily dressed up in Olivia’s clothes. She had the day off from playgroup and she wanted to make the most of it, so she asked Olivia if she could play dress up. 

‘Sure, babe, but don’t touch these..’ Olivia said, taking away her lingerie and bondage gear, shoving them to the top of the wardrobe. 

‘Can you help me play Carrie?!’

Olivia blinked. ‘Uh.. okay..’

So, for two hours, Olivia helped Lily find Carrie Bradshaw inspired clothing; tricky, considering most of Olivia’s clothes were red, but they managed. They settled on Lily keeping her own pink chiffon dress on, but she borrowed Olivia’s faux fur stole in red and her black stilettos. 

Lily grabbed hold of Olivia’s hand as she practiced walking in the sky high heels. ‘One, two, three, four, five and twirl!’ Olivia instructed. Lily followed her instructions and twirled awkwardly. 

‘Can I borrow a bag?’ Lily asked. Olivia found her a red snakeskin handbag with a gold buckle and Lily hung it from her shoulder, adopting a haughty pose and began to strut/stumble along the bedroom floor. 

‘I’m meeting Charlotte and Samantha for brunch!’ she called, pretending to be Carrie. ‘I want coffee!’

As Lily became more confident in walking in heels, Olivia followed her around the house, holding in laughter as Lily threw herself into her new role. ‘Aidan is my boyfriend!’ she squealed. 

She passed Leo who was making waffles for a late breakfast. ‘Oh wow, look at you, you gorgeous thing!’ he cried, crouching down to give Lily a hug. Lily twirled around, showing off her outfit. ‘Don’t I look pretty?!’

‘So pretty!’ Leo told her. ‘I love your bag!’

Lily grinned and climbed up onto the chair at the kitchen table. Carefully, she placed the handbag on the table like she saw Carrie et al did with their handbags and smoothed down her hair, trying to appear grown up and fancy. She was so fancy! 

She eyed the waffles and Leo gave her a wink, serving up a stack of them with banana and Nutella. Olivia sat down beside her, rejecting the waffles and helping herself to granola instead.

Leo’s phone rang. ‘Oh no, it’s Drake..’ he groaned. Lily’s eyes lit up. ‘Daddy!’

Leo had no choice but to answer. ‘Hey man.’

********************************************************************************

Camille was trying to wash the Vaseline out of her hair when Drake phoned Leo. Drake had been anxious ever since last night when Lily had fallen down the stairs, which Camille understood, but she also felt he was being a little.. overprotective. Lily had said she was okay, which Camille believed, and Leo’s reassurances had been enough.  But that hadn’t eased Drake’s mind. 

‘How is she?’ Drake asked bluntly. Camille wrapped her hair in a towel and winced at his sharp tone; she wished he was a bit more polite. Olivia and Leo were looking after Lily after all. 

‘I don’t care that she’s having waffles, how’s her head?’ Drake snapped. ‘Uh huh.. uh huh.. she’s not got concussion? She doesn’t seem odd to you? You sure?’

Sighing, Camille grabbed the phone from Drake. 

‘Hey, Leo,’ she said, her voice cheerful. ‘Thank you for looking after Lily, we really appreciate it. Can I say hi to my baby girl?’

‘Um...’ 

Camille’s smile faltered. ‘Leo?’

‘She’s eating waffles, she might be too busy to talk-’

‘I wanna speak to mommy!’ Camille heard Lily’s excited voice in the background.

*****************************************************************************************

Leo swallowed. He hoped Lily wouldn’t land him and Olivia in shit about her TV watching. That said, he had made her waffles as promised..

He handed Lily the phone. ‘Hi mommy!’ she shrieked, grinning happily. 

Olivia and Leo’s eyes met, both of them looking terrified. Olivia couldn’t eat her granola as her stomach was in knots. 

‘I’m having waffles!’ Lily continued, shoving a big piece into her mouth. ‘They’re yummy.’

Maybe it would be okay, Leo thought. Maybe waffles were her new obsession. 

‘I’m playing Carrie today,’ Lily said.

Or not.

‘We were watching Carrie and Samantha and Charlotte and Miranda last night!’ she continued. Olivia groaned loudly and Leo bolted to take the phone from Lily. 

‘Hey, Cammie!’ he hollered.

There was a silence on the other end of the line. Camille soon broke it. ‘Cammie?’

‘Just trying out a new nickname..’ he muttered, turning red. 

Lily giggled. ‘Cammie sounds like Carrie.’

Leo could hear Camille and Drake murmuring in the background, the occasional hiss and swear word.  They were not happy.

*******************************************************************************************

‘I swear, she’s been watching Sex and the City,’ Camille hissed. Drake turned white and pulled the phone from her hand, taking control. 

‘Leo, put Lily on the phone,’ he ordered. 

‘But I want to talk to you!’ Leo tried to persuade him. ‘How’s couple time?’

‘Leo..’ Drake ground out. Leo sighed and gave Lily the phone, admitting defeat. She smiled and her legs swung from the chair happily as she took the phone to talk to her dad. 

‘Hi daddy.’ She picked up her sippy cup of chocolate milk and took a big glug, not caring that she now had a chocolate moustache. 

‘Lily,’ Drake said, trying his best to be calm. Maybe it was okay. Maybe she was having a great time and eating right and playing in the garden and reading and having a proper bedtime and just, you know, being a happy kid. 

‘Are you having a good time, Lily?’ he asked. 

He could hear her eating a waffle before she spoke clearly. 

‘Abso-fuckin-lutely.’ 

[mafiabosstsuna]

This is so upsetting but I'm grateful for all the stories you all wrote on here 😭❤️ I was wondering if you could do a continuation of that one prompt where Tsuna's former S/O dumped her newborn son with her younger sister and just up and left. Leading to Tsunayoshi finding out, wanting custody as well and proposing they marry each other giving the kid looks more like her than her sister ? Once again thank you so much for this blog. It brought me so much joy 😊

((Here is the first prompt of the story if any of you want to check it out. - Admin Nana))

“I’m not saying you should leave him,” his voice calmed you down immediately. “I am saying you should marry me.”

“Are you out of your mind?!”

“Neither one of us want to part with him so the only solution would be to get married. People will assume you are his birth mother due to him looking more alike to you than your sister.”

You couldn’t understand it.

Couldn’t understand him.

He could easily have taken Angelo away from you, could have easily left you bereft and screaming with rage, heart pounding with fear when he would take Angelo (my baby, my baby!) away from you, yet he didn’t.

Instead, he listened, watched as your features twisted into fear at the thought of it, at the idea that the child you had raised after your sister had left him with you, to be gone, to never be seen again. Instead, he offered for you to continue being Angelo’s mother in place of your sister who had long since run away.

It was a kindness that he was offering, but you were uncertain for what.

Your sister hadn’t explained anything, not during her labour nor after. Only that this man before you had been a one-night stand, that Angelo hadn’t been part of the plan, that everything should be erased and forgotten – but you couldn’t allow her to do such a thing to an innocent babe. And it seemed even him, he believed the same, that Angelo was deserving of more than what Bianca had wanted to leave Angelo with – but why?

He didn’t have to take the mantle of a father, but he was.

He didn’t have to marry you, but he was.

Why?

Why?

Why?

Why?

W h y ?

The question was a turbulent storm raging in your head, trying to understand what was the man’s thought process. For what reasons did he have any need for it? He could have simply paid child support, couldn’t he? He could have easily taken Angelo, couldn’t he?

He was the Don of Vongola, he had no reasons to be… kind or even legal in any of this. Yet –

You didn’t want to question him, fearing that he might change his word if you asked too much, demanded too much. He was offering this to you, offering this chance for Angelo stay with you if you did this, a chance for you to stay with Angelo if you did this, as his mother, as your baby, neither of you had to part!

You swallowed all protests and uncertainty that day, yet still, even now you wondered.

You wondered so much that sometimes you’d watch him, watch as Don Vongola would spare precious moments with Angelo, gently holding the child with more care than you expected from a man of his station, and with eyes soft and smile so warm that it startled you. His voice barely a whisper when he spoke to Angelo, a sweet, almost too kind tone of his voice that belayed the sure and strong-willed man that had appeared in your life at the very start, who had bluntly stated he would take back Angelo and insisted you marry him.

There were different parts of him you saw, yet it was only ever with Angelo. You couldn’t say you were surprised, he was his son, and you just a person keeping a title for appearance sake. But it was odd, it was interesting, it was different and before you knew it something had changed.

A feeling deep inside that had forced its way through the suspicion, uncertainty, and blinding fear of the man whose hands you knew are stained with more blood than should be allowed.

The smile on your lips wavered as you watched Angelo squeal in delight when Don Vongola tickled his sides. Your eyes bounced away when his gaze twisted towards you, unable to look at them, unable to stare into the deep rich colour of burnt brown to orange that felt as if it could see more than it should.

He wasn’t a good man, you knew, yet the way he acted towards Angelo, the kindness, the gentleness made you forget sometimes. Even if it wasn’t directed towards you, even if those tender feelings were given freely to Angelo, it was easy to forget.

Perhaps that was why your heart stuttered?

Perhaps that was why it left you with a difficult sleep?

Perhaps that was why it was so easy to give such false smiles and ideas of confidence when all you wanted was to hold on to someone’s hand and be assured that you weren’t going mad for caring for Don Vongola.

Tiny hands latched onto your leg and you glanced down in surprise, seeing Angelo babble happily at you.

His beaming face seemed to erase the grimace on your lips, his laughter when you picked him up, bringing with it your own glow of delight, somehow pushing back the tight heavy feeling buried deeply in your chest. Of uncertainty that promised to take your breath away.

The green of her eyes burned deeply, not at all the soft forest green of Angelo’s own that glowed with sheer innocence.

“You married him.” The accusation in her voice was telling, though unneeded. Her glare could do it just as well.

You simply twirled your spoon quietly, lips pressed tightly as you gave her a flat, narrowed look. You were not certain why you had agreed to meet her, it had been years, not since the day Angelo had been born and she disappeared, not a single shred of regret as she did so, since you had last seen her. She hadn’t even asked for Angelo, had asked only of you to meet her, and immediately accosted you over Don Vongola.

“I’ve been hearing it, of you and him, with a child.”

The venom in her words caused you to stiffen, and you gave a sharp response in turn. “Well, children certainly brighten up the household.”

She snorted, “They never turn off the lights.”

You wondered idly if she even realized that it was her blood child she was speaking as such of; from the way she responded, she didn’t seem to be particularly inclined to even mention any connection with Angelo as if he were your own offspring. You decided that it was better that way, even as you felt certain that if she even dared to use Angelo against you that you’d punch her in the face.

But from the tart tone of her voice, it was also a close thing.

“Is this all? To confirm that I was married to Don Vongola?” You asked, glancing at her. “Because I assure you it had nothing to do with personal feelings.”

“Then why the hell did you even marry him?!”

“I would think that would be obvious.”

The bitter tone of your voice caused her to reel back as if struck. Her eyes watched you, glancing over the unkind smile on your face, the tension in your neck and shoulders as if seeing for the first time. You wondered what sort of conclusions were coming into her head, what thoughts were making her shake her head as if in disapproval.

“You always were too nice.” She said it as if it were a crime, a disgrace of an emotion that should never have been nurtured. “That world will eat you alive. And for what? For a kid? You should have handed him to Tsuna a long time ago.”

You wondered if it would be too much trouble to throw the hot drink in front of you into her face. But you refrained, it was your favourite. Instead, you made a disgusted sound at her suggestion, eyebrows pinching together as you swallowed back the burning curse that wanted to fall off your lips.

If there was one thing that had been taught to you while being Don Vongola’s wife it was that every action was one that counted. Right now, acting on the childish desire to curse your sister was not a good one. You still felt conflicted about hitting her in the face though.

“You should leave them,” Bianca said.

“You seem to be under the impression that I don’t love Angelo. I assure you that I do.” Her gaze sharply returned to you. “Even more, children desperately need to know – and to hear in ways they understand and remember – that they’re loved and valued by their mother and father. To leave now would simply hurt him.”

Her eyes narrowed shrewdly, and for a moment you wondered if she would leave it at that. If she understood that you could not, would not, leave as she had. Your heart was already invested and it would only hurt you too if you left now.

Then her features smoothed out, unsmiling, and eyes dark with seriousness. There was an unnatural stillness about her, and for a moment, for a long moment, she said nothing. Then she looked down at her folded hands, her voice hesitant before she finally took a deep breath.

“You’re only going to hurt yourself, you know. Tsuna is very easy to love.” She didn’t notice you stiffened or if she did, she ignored it. “But he never understands, he can’t. He just… doesn’t go around falling in love with people.” Her expression was sad then. “And one day you’ll look back, look back as I had, and wonder when your regrets had built; when these tears had risen to your throat, and when goodbyes had always been there.”

She shook her head slowly, and you swallowed, wondering why it was so hard to breathe, wondering why it was so hard to say a single thing.

“Oh yes, that’s right. One day. And in that day, you’ll have to make a hard choice, because it’s all we have. It’s all we’re given, but we still have to choose.”

Why was it so hard to breathe?

Bianca stood then, her hand reaching, hesitating before simply falling limply at her side. She left without another word, without another glance back, but for a moment it seemed as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders, and you wondered, for the first time… why had she left Don Vongola?

You hadn’t seen her again since then.

Neither had you heard from her since then.

But it did not mean her words didn’t linger, that it didn’t whisper in the nights when you tucked Angelo into bed. That she didn’t reside in your dreams when you could actually sleep – all the time she was there, and her words never faded. Simply lingered in the deepest crevices of your heart and mind, a chill that left you clinging to yourself and wishing for the horrible rolling in your stomach to cease.

“Tsuna is very easy to love.”

You flinched.

Love?

The word felt like poison burning in your throat. To love him – you couldn’t.

Such feelings were not advisable, it had to be, because if you loved him –

You vigorously shook your head.

There were no ‘because’ or ‘buts’, it simply was!

Don Vongola was an impossible man, and it had always been in your best interests to keep this farce of a marriage as nothing more than a concept, an idea, a title and nothing more.

Care all I like, but never love. You thought furiously. Never love. Yet still there was a lump forming in your throat, your mouth strangely dry, and you could feel an odd heat rising just behind your eyelids.

Your chin was trembling, fingers rubbing away the tears that were making its way down your burning cheeks.

You wondered when your heart had stopped listening to you. When it had it stopped listening to the thoughts that it was Angelo, only him, that you staid within the dark entrenched world of the mafia, for. When had your mind and your heart torn away from one another?

When?

“Our information is correct.” The man said, waving his hand dismissively at the air. “You are the woman who loves Don Vongola.”

“Yes, I am. I’m not denying it.” You answered, fist tightening at your sides.

You had never wanted to accept it, had never wanted to admit that you did care deeply for Don Vongola, as fiercely as you did for Angelo because if you did, it would make it real. It would make it so very real and you didn’t want that, couldn’t afford that, didn’t want to love one-sided –

“But whoever said he loved me back? He’s Vongola Decimo. He doesn’t go around falling in love with people.” You retorted, gaze sharp and levelled at them. “And if you think he’s anything that small or that ordinary, then you haven’t the first idea of what you’re dealing with.”

An undescriptive man spoke up then, over your words, insisting to the pug-faced Don that, “Sir, I assure you, she is the perfect bait. This is his wife, the mother of his child, he’ll come running to save her.”

“Oh, you are a moron.” You said slowly, stretching your words. Your brow rose when the man glared at you. Yet it did not stop you from speaking, from finally accepting what you always knew, what was always the truth because – “No, he won’t.” Even if it hurt.

“He’s probably already here!”

“No, he isn’t. Of course, he isn’t!” Your arms swept in wide, angry gestures, trying to drill it into their heads what you had always refused to think too heavily about. “God knows where he is right now, but I promise you, he’s doing whatever the hell he wants and not giving a damn about me!”

There was an aching in your chest, a deep ache that spread to the rest of your limbs with every drawn, noisy breath you took.

“And I’m just fine with that.” Your voice broke, a whisper that felt so loud in this tiny, cold room. “Because when you love a man like Don Vongola, it’s like loving the stars themselves. You don’t expect a sunset to admire you back. And if I happen to find myself in danger… he is not stupid enough, or sentimental enough, and he is certainly not in love enough to find himself standing in it with me.”

“Tsuna, please.”

You squeaked in surprise at the sudden voice, going wide-eyed when seeing who was standing there in the middle of the open-door way.

He wasn’t meant to be here though.

Why was Don Vongola here?

(He was meant to be out with Angelo.)

What is this feeling of relief at your chest?

(Protecting your child while you –)

He gave a half-hearted shrug, lips turning up into a smile when all you did was blink at him. “I don’t think I feel quite comfortable with you calling me Don Vongola.”

[hopelikethemoon]

I got two really awesome Kastle prompts that involve Frank & Micro and the "mancave" so I decided to merge the two together and write a little smut this Thanksgiving Day! Anon 1: [I can't get over the Micro/Frank sandwich scene and it got me thinking.... could you write something where Micro walks in on Frank and Karen together with Frank's reply being something along the lines of, "if you had only made me a sandwich, too." Because even a while down the line, I don't think Frank's gonna forget the sandwich or lack thereof incident.] Anon 2: [Most random request; Can you do a smut prompt where Frank and Karen have sex in Micro and Frank's mancave, but they try to be quiet so that they don't wake up Micro. Frank being witty about his living situation is a bonus!] And, by popular demand, I extended the smut so that it was a little looooooonger. So, happy Thanksgiving - here’s a little smut to sweeten the day!

title: the mancave rating: M length: 2.5K summary:  Frank brings Karen to "the mancave". link: AO3

”I don’t know whether I should be impressed or horrified.” Karen remarked as she looked around their hideout. “This is definitely a mancave. ”

“So much disdain.” Frank clicked his tongue against his teeth. “It grows on you.” He assured her, stepping up behind her, his hands on her hips, planting a kiss on the crook of her neck.

“I bet it grows on you like a fungus. Which is probably also growing somewhere in here.” Karen leaned back against him, lifting her hand to slip around the back of his head. “So Micro’s here ?”

Frank nodded his head, keeping his face pressed in the crook of her neck. “ Mhm . We’ll have to be quiet.” He smirked, pressing up against her from behind, letting her feel that he was already half-hard in anticipation.

“Who knew the big bad Punisher had kinks .” Karen teased, tilting her head to kiss his chin.

In the pursuit of getting his head on straight again, Karen had been very encouraging to the idea of exploring some of the deep seated desires he had. Most of which involved sex, but some had also involved going out for ice cream and getting some of the best New York dogs in the city, per a list he’d found online. He was trying to figure out who he was now and Karen was more than willing to assist him along the way.

“I am just a man after all.” Frank reminded her, urging her to turn around and face him. “And you haven’t seemed to mind any of the other kinks.” He reminded her with an arched brow.

Karen made a face, scrunching up her nose. “Fair point. “Though, I do feel like I should’ve gotten a tetanus shot for this one.”

Frank chuckled heartily at that, leaning in to kiss her, nipping at her bottom lip. “It ain’t that bad Karen! This shit’s awesome!” He curled his arms around her. “You’re not gonna change your mind are you?”

Karen laughed and shook her head, resting her hands on his shoulders. “I’m here, aren’t I?” She remarked against his lips, curling her hand around the back of his head. “So you better fuck me here.”

“You just gotta be quiet.” Frank arched a brow, “Think you can manage that, screamer ?”

“Ha ha. I only got one citation for noise violation at the apartment.” She pushed him in the chest playfully. “Honestly, I’m more worried about the myriad of video cameras in here.” Karen glanced around the room again, her eyes flickering from camera to camera. “Not really interested in accidentally filming a sex tape.”

“Don’t you worry, sweetheart. They’re not recording. I took care of that.” Frank assured her, running his hands along her sides. “Do you think I’d let that happen?”

“No,” She sighed. “Wait, did you tell him we were going to come back here to have sex?”

Frank laughed nervously, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I might’ve indicated it could happen and to be prepared.”

Karen gave him an incredulous look. “I hope he knows not to come out here if he hears strange sounds! Why is he here at all? Shouldn’t he be at home ?”

“Sometimes he comes here to work on stuff and just spends the night.” Frank shrugged. “Look, we don’t have to…”

“I want to!” She insisted, “I just don’t really want to get caught.” She tucked a lock of hair behind her ears. “Especially not by David.”

“He’s asleep. If you keep quiet, I can promise you that he won’t interrupt us.” Frank assured her, “We don’t gotta do this if you don’t wanna, babe.”

The last thing he wanted to do was make her play into his stupid fantasies, though Frank knew that no one made Karen Page do anything that she didn’t want to do.

“I want to.” Karen tapped her finger against his lips, before she leaned in to kiss him, her fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. She broke from the kiss only long enough to get the shirt off of him.

“So it isn’t the state of the place that’s off putting,” Frank started, fumbling with the buttons of her blouse. “It’s the getting caught part?”

“Oh, trust me. It’s the state of the place too,” Karen patted his shoulder. “But I’m trying to overlook the whole mancave thing and just roll with it.” She scrunched up her nose and leaned forward to rest her forehead against his chest.

“It’s really not that bad!”

“Men never think that their mancaves are awful.” She laughed, playing her fingers over a scar on his abs, before she tilted her head to meet his eyes. “You owe me.”

“Oh, I know.” Frank drawled out, guiding her backwards until she hit the edge of one of the desks. “I promise you, you’ll have fun.”

“I always have fun with you.” Karen shook her head with a soft chuckle, moving to sit on the edge of the desk, hooking her legs around his and drawing him closer. “And you’re sure Micro’s actually asleep right? He’s not going to appear just in time to see you drop your pants?” She questioned.

Frank pursed his lips in thought, just to winder her up. “I mean… there’s a chance.”

“Frank!”

He laughed loud enough at that, that Karen reached out to cover his mouth, silencing his laughter. “Sorry.” Frank mumbled, kissing her palm. “I was just kidding. He’s not gonna bother us.”

Karen leaned in to kiss him, the kiss starting out light and playful, before it shifted into something more passionate. Her hands roamed over his chest, fingers lighting over scars from past injuries. His own hands slid her blouse off, fumbling with the clasps of her bra, wanting them skin-to-skin.

Frank was still pretty damn surprised that Karen had gone for this plan. Though he had a suspicion that she really liked the thrill of potentially getting caught, just like he did.

Karen gasped against his lips as his hands found her breasts; his rough, calloused fingers sparking the fire between her thighs to grow even hotter. She reached down unbuckle his belt and unzip his pants. She slipped her hand inside to cup him through his boxers.

“ Karen .” Frank groaned as he broke from the kiss, resting his forehead on her shoulder, his hot breath dancing over her chest.

She curled her hand around the back of his neck as she slowly stroked him. “Shh.” She reminded him, dipping her fingers beneath the waistband of his boxers, grasping his cock. “You were the one who said we had to be quiet. Remember ?”

Frank gave a strained chuckle at that. “I’m not the screamer.”

Karen dragged her hand along his length, smirking at the way he was gripping at the edge of the desk with white knuckles. “I bet you could be.” She teased, gently scraping her nails down the back of his neck.

Frank shook his head, “Unlikely.” He brushed his lips along the column of her throat, his hips rocking to meet the pace of her hand as she slowlyteased his length. He sucked at her pulse point, his tongue flicking out to brush over her skin, making her shudder in response. “There’s only one screamer in this relationship.”

“As of right now.” Karen retorted with a teasing tone, though she sounded a lot breathier than she had before.

He pulled back to meet her eyes with a heated look, catching her hand and pulling it away from his cock. Karen tried to twist her hand out of his grip, but that was a losing battle. “Too much.” Frank breathed out, seconds before he kissed her once more. His tongue invaded her mouth, deepening the kiss.

Karen moaned against his lips as he released her hand to shove her skirt up around her waist. She slipped one leg around his hip, trying to pull him closer. His fingers trailed over her thigh, slipping between them to tease her through her underwear. There was no denying how aroused she was at that point. There was something very hot about the risk of getting caught. She lifted herself up off the desk to help him slide her underwear down, tossing them aside.

Frank broke from the kiss, pressing his forehead against hers as he slid a finger into her, hooking it in that delicious come-hither motion that made her gasp out his name. “ Shh .” He reminded her, mimicking the way she’d hushed him before.

Karen placed her hands on his shoulders, biting down on her bottom lip to keep from making another sound as he pressed a second finger into her. Her lashes fluttered and she kicked off her heels pressing her foot against the front of the desk to keep herself perched on the edge. “Oh God.” She hissed out through clenched teeth.

“Are you going to come for me?” Frank questioned, his breath dancing over her lips as he held her gaze. “Come on Karen.”

“You’re gonna have to work harder than that .” Karen challenged.

Frank pulled his fingers out of her, his eyes dark with lust as he brought his fingers to his lips and sucked them clean. The look he was giving her made her pulse thump in her ears, her heart picking up its pace.

He lowered himself onto his knees in front of her. He brought her legs over his shoulders, his mouth finding her slick folds. His tongue thrust into her, just as his fingers had, before he lapped at her clit, pushing her that much closer towards her release. He hadn’t shaved in a few days and the prickle of his beard sent shivers down her spine as she pressed her thighs against his cheeks.

It was getting hard to keep quiet. Her back arched, her fingers gripping at the edge of the desk and the back of his head, holding him right where she wanted him.

“Frank!” Karen gasped, a little louder than she should have, but still not loud enough to draw attention to them. “Yes. Yes. Yes .” She whispered with each sharp inhale.

Frank slid one hand up her stomach, palming her breast, his fingers tugging on her nipple, adding just that much more stimulation. That was all it took for her to tumble over the edge. She clamped her lips together tightly, her teeth clenched together, her cry caught in the back of her throat. He didn’t relent either, in typical form, until he had drawn every last second of pleasure out of her and she was trembling in the wake of her orgasm.

“Holy shit.” Karen mumbled as he pulled his mouth away, finally giving her a second to catch her breath. She closed her eyes as she basked in the moment, reaching down to tug at his shirt to urge him to stand up.

“You’re fucking gorgeous when you come.” Frank told her, cupping her cheek as she opened her eyes.

Karen felt color rise to her cheeks, which was ridiculous considering what he’d just been doing. “Thank you.” She smiled, her eyes alight with adoration for him. “You’ve got me all over your face.” She pointed out, playing her fingers over his beard that was glistening with her arousal.  But that didn’t bother her at all.

He brushed his lips over hers just barely and she chased after them as he started to pull back. She pulled him back in, her fingers curling around the back of his head, her lips slanting hungrily over his. She ran her hand down his chest, curling her fingers around his cock as she guided him to her aching center.

Frank leaned her back on the desk, drawing her legs around his hips as he pressed into her slowly . She moaned against his lips, her fingers digging into his shoulders through his shirt. Her inner muscles fluttered around him, still sensitive from her release.

Karen rolled her hips, urging him on, her heels digging into his back.

Frank trailed his lips along her jawline and her throat as he picked up the pace of his thrusts. “ Fuck .” He gritted out close to her ear. “God you feel like fucking heaven, Karen.” He told her, one hand at her hip to hold her steady as his other hand cupped her breast, palming it roughly.

He was angling himself just right as he pounded into her, seeking out that spot within her that he was so good at finding. She could tell it was taking everything in him to hold himself back. His arms were tense, his back rigid, and his jaw clenched as he loomed over her.

“Come on Frank, let go .” Karen urged, her voice breathy and her words strained as he kept hitting that sweet spot within her, making her see flashes of color behind her closed eyes. Her hands slid down his back, gripping at his shirt, nails scraping over his spine.

His thrusts grew shorter, his pace faltering at her words. But still he held himself back. He was too goddamn stubborn for his own good.

Karen moaned something that sounded like his name, her back arching up off the desk as she felt her own release impending. His breath was hot against her throat, his rough, calloused hand still groping at her breast, and his cock pounding into her again and again .

She bit down on her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood as her release hit her, her legs tightening around him, her inner muscles clenching around his cock. That was what it took to get him to let go.

Frank slammed into her one last time as his release claimed him - shouting her name. His eyes flashed open to meet hers, both of them stilling. “Shit .” He hissed, hearing the sound of movement coming from the back of the hideout.

Karen scrambled to get off the desk, her hands trembling and her legs feeling a bit like Jell-O as she quickly tried to dress as the sound of footsteps got closer. “I told you were a screamer too!” She said with a laugh, though getting caught half naked after fucking wasn’t much of a laughing matter.

“You forgot-” Frank lifted her bra off the ground.

“Oh well.” Karen said before he had a chance to finish, buttoning her blouse.

“What are you two…” David trailed off as he came to a halt. “Are you serious ?”

“I warned you, man.” Frank said as he zipped his pants up.

“You did not!” He covered his face. “Karen, I am so sorry .”

“It’s fine.” Karen’s cheeks were burning hot and she covered her face. “Oh my God.”

“You know, David... “ Frank started, turning around to look at his friend. “Maybe this wouldn’t have happened if you’d made me that sandwich.”

Karen slapped Frank in the arm with a laugh. “Are you serious?”

Frank smirked. “Yeah. Maybe.”

David exchanged horrified looks with Karen. “I think… You know… I think I’m gonna head home.”

“Was this really about a sandwich ?” Karen questioned Frank lowly.

“Hell no. I just wanted to make him squirm.” Frank grinned at her, “Sorry about that.” He said gently, resting his hands on her hips. “Did you have fun?”

Karen bit her lip and nodded, “Yeah. That was… something else.” She leaned in to kiss him. “Top three.”

“Top three?”

“Mhm. Maybe even number two.”

“What was number one?”

Karen kissed him again. “The first time.” She smiled at him, “Now, let’s go to my apartment because I’m done with this mancave thing.”

Frank laughed. “It’s not that bad!”

[ruthlessbookfish]

The Boxer By Piper Rayne

March 1

My Review

Tahlia and Lucas have a story with a mix of sweetness, hilarity and sexiness. 

The job Lucas takes over for his friend sets up a great story line. Tahlia has been put through the wringer with her ex, Lucas was the perfect man for her. He was fierce, funny and sexy as hell. I loved it.

 I’m so looking forward to meeting the man who can tame Lennon. I want to read that story so badly!

* I read an advanced reader’s copy of this book* 

Title: The Boxer

Series: Modern Love #2

Author: Piper Rayne

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Release Date: March 1, 2017

Blurb

“Who knew a bad boy could mend a broken heart." What does a girl do after she discovers her fiancé is a cheating bastard? In my case, I performed the ritual implosion of all scorned women. I drowned my sorrows in cases of white wine, wallowed in gallons of ice cream, and ignited a bonfire to burn away every damn remnant of his existence. Six months later, the only result was a permanent impression of my ass on the couch. Adventure Dating my friends dared.

A new and exciting opportunity they said.

I thought they were crazy, but I’m not one to back down from a challenge, so I signed up for the entire four-week deal. That’s where I saw HIM. Lucas Cummings. He isn’t the classic rich boy I usually end up with. The one whose idea of working up a sweat is waiting for his margarita to be served on the beach. Nope. He’s a rough and tough bad boy that all fathers warn their daughters about. You know the type. Cocky swagger, chiseled jaw—the ‘V’. SOLD, I said to myself, until I discovered he was so much more than just a BOXER. Left Hook. Right to the heart.

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AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Free in Kindle Unlimited

Excerpt

My mouth waters as the guy who propositioned me a half hour ago strips off his robe, revealing a set of abs I’m quite positive could wash the panties I just soaked. Jesus, he’s hot, with not one ounce of fat on him. His black silk shorts have a white band of fabric around his waist that says Raging Bull. Lennon grabs my cup out of my hand. “Hey,” I say, reaching for it. “No, girl, you’re gonna want to be stone sober for this one. You don’t want to be like Whit the first night she and Cole got together.” She takes a sip, but I grab the cup back, knowing I need it more than I thought. Especially when he glances down and a perfect set of sparkling teeth emerge, revealing a smile that has me gripping Lennon’s arm for support. Then he bites his bottom lip for a second, and my fingernails dig into Lennon’s bicep. “Damn, I wish I saw him first.” Lennon’s voice sounds as dreamy as I feel. “You better ride him like you’re a fucking rodeo star, girl.” And there’s the Lennon I know and love. The vodka man, now known as Lucas Cummings, turns around, continuing to bounce on his toes. Sammie’s voice rings out once more, and another boxer enters with four bodyguards and a red silk robe. He weaves through the ropes and stares down Lucas. Lucas laughs, egging him on, and my gut twists. “The undefeated Brock ‘Lights Out’ Hayes,” Sammie announces, and the guy jumps around the ring, waving both fists in the air. Lucas turns back toward us, but his attention is focused solely on another guy. A small man rushes in the ring, putting Vaseline on his cheeks and forehead. “This is the real deal.” The excitement in Lennon’s voice increases. Lucas keeps peeking over at me, an uptick on his lips each time. Eventually, the guy who I assume is his manager glances over our way to see what’s distracting him. Whit tugs on my arm and leans in close. “Someone has caught the boxer’s attention,” she whispers and I wish my cheeks didn’t heat like they are. “Because he’s thinking of all the ways he’s going to fuck her later,” Lennon adds, turning her head for only a second. “What?” Whitney asks, in the dark on the whole situation. “I met him at the bar. He asked me to meet him after,” I say, and Whitney’s eyes crinkle as if she doesn’t think that’s a good idea. So thinks the girl who resorted to Tinder. “Like you’d do that,” she says confidently, and I bite my lower lip. The lip that is now a little tingly from what I assume is the Everclear. “Tahlia, don’t you think you should wait for your second one-night stand for someone of his…caliber?” Cole peeks over her shoulder. “I met him a few weeks ago when I came to watch the fights. Seems like an okay guy.” Whitney raises her hand, and it smacks Cole in the face. He grabs his nose. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She glances at him for a second before her eyes set on me again like a mother scolding her teenager. “No, babe, it’s my fault. I know better than to try to get in the middle of a conversation between you three.” Cole touches his nose a few times and wiggles it around. “Guess you’re not the kinda guy to jump in that ring then.” Lennon laughs and points at him. Cole raises his eyebrows in her direction. “Are you challenging me, Lennon?” Cole asks and the three of us laugh. Whitney waves her hands around. “Forget that. Tahlia, you can’t go have a one-night stand with someone like him.” I look past Whitney to Cole. “I think you need to go over the one-night stand rules. First one being, you don’t know the person. Second qualification, you pick the hottest guy.” Cole laughs, but Whitney only becomes more agitated. I’m not sure why she’s giving me trouble. She’s the one who brought me here tonight. “Tahl,” she sighs. “Whit,” I mimic her tone. “I’m a grown woman. I’ll be fine.” Lennon elbows me a few times. “The blood is about to spew,” she says and jumps up, screaming, “Go, black shorts!”

Lucas turns around to Lennon and then cocks an eyebrow in her direction. For a second, jealousy spikes within me, but when his gaze turns to me and he smirks, I melt. Unable to deal with the thought that the guy up in the ring could be inside of me in a few hours, I tip the rest of my Everclear and down it.

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AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Free in Kindle Unlimited

Author Bio

Piper Rayne, or Piper and Rayne, whichever you prefer because we’re not one author, we’re two. Yep, you get two established authors for the price of one. You might be wondering if you know us? Maybe you’ll read our books and figure it out. Maybe you won’t. Does it really matter? We aren’t trying to stamp ourselves with a top-secret label. We wanted to write without apology. We wanted to not be pigeon holed into a specific outline. We wanted to give readers a story without them assuming how the story will flow. Everyone has their favorite authors, right? And when you pick up their books, you expect something from them. Whether it’s an alpha male, heavy angst, a happily ever after, there’s something you are absolutely certain the book will contain. Heck, we’re readers, too, we get it. What can we tell you about ourselves? We both have kindle’s full of one-clickable books. We're both married to husbands who drive us to drink. We're both chauffeurs to our kids. Most of all, we love hot heroes and quirky heroines that make us laugh, and we hope you do, too.

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[ruthlessbookfish]

The Boxer by Piper Rayne

Title: The Boxer

Series: Modern Love #2

Author: Piper Rayne

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Release Date: March 1, 2017

Blurb

“Who knew a bad boy could mend a broken heart." What does a girl do after she discovers her fiancé is a cheating bastard? In my case, I performed the ritual implosion of all scorned women. I drowned my sorrows in cases of white wine, wallowed in gallons of ice cream, and ignited a bonfire to burn away every damn remnant of his existence. Six months later, the only result was a permanent impression of my ass on the couch. Adventure Dating my friends dared.

A new and exciting opportunity they said.

I thought they were crazy, but I’m not one to back down from a challenge, so I signed up for the entire four-week deal. That’s where I saw HIM. Lucas Cummings. He isn’t the classic rich boy I usually end up with. The one whose idea of working up a sweat is waiting for his margarita to be served on the beach. Nope. He’s a rough and tough bad boy that all fathers warn their daughters about. You know the type. Cocky swagger, chiseled jaw—the ‘V’. SOLD, I said to myself, until I discovered he was so much more than just a BOXER. Left Hook. Right to the heart.

ADD TO GOODREADS

Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Free in Kindle Unlimited

Excerpt

My mouth waters as the guy who propositioned me a half hour ago strips off his robe, revealing a set of abs I’m quite positive could wash the panties I just soaked. Jesus, he’s hot, with not one ounce of fat on him. His black silk shorts have a white band of fabric around his waist that says Raging Bull. Lennon grabs my cup out of my hand. “Hey,” I say, reaching for it. “No, girl, you’re gonna want to be stone sober for this one. You don’t want to be like Whit the first night she and Cole got together.” She takes a sip, but I grab the cup back, knowing I need it more than I thought. Especially when he glances down and a perfect set of sparkling teeth emerge, revealing a smile that has me gripping Lennon’s arm for support. Then he bites his bottom lip for a second, and my fingernails dig into Lennon’s bicep. “Damn, I wish I saw him first.” Lennon’s voice sounds as dreamy as I feel. “You better ride him like you’re a fucking rodeo star, girl.” And there’s the Lennon I know and love. The vodka man, now known as Lucas Cummings, turns around, continuing to bounce on his toes. Sammie’s voice rings out once more, and another boxer enters with four bodyguards and a red silk robe. He weaves through the ropes and stares down Lucas. Lucas laughs, egging him on, and my gut twists. “The undefeated Brock ‘Lights Out’ Hayes,” Sammie announces, and the guy jumps around the ring, waving both fists in the air. Lucas turns back toward us, but his attention is focused solely on another guy. A small man rushes in the ring, putting Vaseline on his cheeks and forehead. “This is the real deal.” The excitement in Lennon’s voice increases. Lucas keeps peeking over at me, an uptick on his lips each time. Eventually, the guy who I assume is his manager glances over our way to see what’s distracting him. Whit tugs on my arm and leans in close. “Someone has caught the boxer’s attention,” she whispers and I wish my cheeks didn’t heat like they are. “Because he’s thinking of all the ways he’s going to fuck her later,” Lennon adds, turning her head for only a second. “What?” Whitney asks, in the dark on the whole situation. “I met him at the bar. He asked me to meet him after,” I say, and Whitney’s eyes crinkle as if she doesn’t think that’s a good idea. So thinks the girl who resorted to Tinder. “Like you’d do that,” she says confidently, and I bite my lower lip. The lip that is now a little tingly from what I assume is the Everclear. “Tahlia, don’t you think you should wait for your second one-night stand for someone of his…caliber?” Cole peeks over her shoulder. “I met him a few weeks ago when I came to watch the fights. Seems like an okay guy.” Whitney raises her hand, and it smacks Cole in the face. He grabs his nose. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She glances at him for a second before her eyes set on me again like a mother scolding her teenager. “No, babe, it’s my fault. I know better than to try to get in the middle of a conversation between you three.” Cole touches his nose a few times and wiggles it around. “Guess you’re not the kinda guy to jump in that ring then.” Lennon laughs and points at him. Cole raises his eyebrows in her direction. “Are you challenging me, Lennon?” Cole asks and the three of us laugh. Whitney waves her hands around. “Forget that. Tahlia, you can’t go have a one-night stand with someone like him.” I look past Whitney to Cole. “I think you need to go over the one-night stand rules. First one being, you don’t know the person. Second qualification, you pick the hottest guy.” Cole laughs, but Whitney only becomes more agitated. I’m not sure why she’s giving me trouble. She’s the one who brought me here tonight. “Tahl,” she sighs. “Whit,” I mimic her tone. “I’m a grown woman. I’ll be fine.” Lennon elbows me a few times. “The blood is about to spew,” she says and jumps up, screaming, “Go, black shorts!”

Lucas turns around to Lennon and then cocks an eyebrow in her direction. For a second, jealousy spikes within me, but when his gaze turns to me and he smirks, I melt. Unable to deal with the thought that the guy up in the ring could be inside of me in a few hours, I tip the rest of my Everclear and down it.

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Author Bio

Piper Rayne, or Piper and Rayne, whichever you prefer because we’re not one author, we’re two. Yep, you get two established authors for the price of one. You might be wondering if you know us? Maybe you’ll read our books and figure it out. Maybe you won’t. Does it really matter? We aren’t trying to stamp ourselves with a top-secret label. We wanted to write without apology. We wanted to not be pigeon holed into a specific outline. We wanted to give readers a story without them assuming how the story will flow. Everyone has their favorite authors, right? And when you pick up their books, you expect something from them. Whether it’s an alpha male, heavy angst, a happily ever after, there’s something you are absolutely certain the book will contain. Heck, we’re readers, too, we get it. What can we tell you about ourselves? We both have kindle’s full of one-clickable books. We're both married to husbands who drive us to drink. We're both chauffeurs to our kids. Most of all, we love hot heroes and quirky heroines that make us laugh, and we hope you do, too.

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