timing : stozier

epilogue

a/n: dumb little scrap a lot of months after i last uploaded a chapter. thank you all for reading this story, it's been super cool. anyway i specialize in stozier and write a lot of stozier (and other ship) stories so CHECK EM OUT!!!

"move OVER!" beverly bumped into richie, who laughed as he moved closer to stanley. richie wrapped his arms around stanley, whose own arms were now digging into the car handle on the inside of the door. they'd just gotten back into the car from a gas station.

"hey, i'm not complaining," richie peppered stanley's face with kisses, stanley laughing. beverly groaned in a jealous sort of way, and richie grinned.  stanley lit up bright red as he laughed, his hair bouncing on either side of his head.

"hi richie," he leaned more into him, if that was possible. stanley's arms relocated to richie's lap. stanley tried to adjust his legs and accidentally kicked the passenger seat. bill, in the passenger seat, turned around to glare at stanley. stanley couldn't help but smile, holding in a laugh.

bill turned back around, "tell me there's less than fuh-five minutes in this drive," he groaned, mike laughing. bill put his head down on the dashboard. eddie reached a hand out to smooth his hand over bill's back.

"only about ten, hang on, bill," eddie said, one hand resting on the top of the wheel. bill mumbled something incoherent from the dashboard, and eddie glanced at him briefly.

"you guys are unbearable," mike said to richie and eddie, leaning over the middle seat next to stanley. he slung his arms across the seats. "thank you all for letting me have the back,"

"mike, i envy you," beverly said, turning around in her seat. mike stretched across the backseat alone, reaching his arms back. 

"i know, i'm lucky, trust me," mike said. 

"i think i'm the luckiest, actually." richie replied, making kissy noises next to stanley's cheek. he leaned forward and made kissy noises next to bill. bill swatted at him, and richie leaned back just in time.

bill turned the radio volume up, blasting some pop song into the speakers of the car. mike laughed a little, and stanley turned to richie with a smile on his face. 

"i think they're trying to tell us something, rich," stanley said, richie squeezing him with his arm. stanley fit right into the crook of richie's neck.

"i don't care," richie laughed, continuing to be affectionate with stanley. bill flipped him the middle finger. 

a couple minutes later, eddie pulled over to the side of the road and bill started cheering. after the most childlike stumbling out of the vehicle, eddie texted ben and within five minutes, the seven adults were hugging as if it was christmas morning and they were nine years old. 

mike and ben shared a long hug, second only to beverly and ben's hug, where the two squealed out loud at seeing each other. 

the seven of them, finally reunited for the first time in a long time, piled back into the car. ben watched as richie grabbed stanley's hand to pull him into the car, and he understood. none of them had mentioned stanley and richie's relationship to him, but they figured (correctly) that he didn't really need to be told. 

he'd been told about richie's return to their friend group, and his failed engagement with axel, but not much else.

it only confirmed it further when stanley looked to richie and kissed him gently for just a moment. ben smiled. 

mike and ben sat in the back and as the seven drove out to dinner, they shared a look. 

in the restaurant, the first thing they all ordered was a glass of champagne.

"i have a toast, i duh-don't care if it's cheesy," bill held a glass up to the middle of the table, always the leader. they all followed, waiting expectantly. bill smiled widely, "to the losers club," he cheered.

"to the losers club!"