Pray For Us (A Richie Jerimovich Story)

"Mikey Was Right."

"Such a fucking badass!"
"BadASS!!!"

"So we walk back inside and Mikey's making sure I'm ok and I am, and hes apologizing to me and he's worried he scared me or something but I tell him to stop apologizing and I thank him for saving me, and then we get our drinks and just go back to playing pool- like nothing happened. I think he would've killed that guy though, that's why he was taking him outside. I'm glad there was a bouncer."

"Yeah, he would've obliterated that bitch!"

"Completely!"

You both laugh a bit.

"I would've done the same thing. Only I don't think I would've stopped just because the bouncer was there."

"Then you would've gone to jail, and left me all alone in the bar to find a way home." You raised an eyebrow at him.

"Shit, yeah. Mikey was always three steps ahead."

"He was so generous and selfless."

"You get that from him, you know? When we first met you, you were so sweet. But you were really selfish with toys and shit. Mikey taught you how to share, and how giving was a good thing to do, how to spread the love, not just to be kind but also caring and giving."

"I don't really remember that, but I had to have been, what, 5? 6 years old?"

"Yeah something like that." Richie took a swig out of his beer.

"I'm gonna grab another one, you want one?" He said standing up starting to walk to the kitchen.

"Yes, please." You said taking the last sip of yours.

"One time, Mikey and I had to be around 10-" Richie called from the fridge.

"We were riding our bikes, and I took this gnarly spill, real nasty. And I broke my arm, and we're just down the street from his house. So-" he had walked back and handed you your beer.

"So," he stops to chuckle, "So this fucking kid, he stops dead in his tracks and yells at me 'Don't move! I'll be right back!'  so I'm sitting on the ground, and he went and grabbed Donna, so they run out and come over and I'm crying cuz my fuckin arms broken and I'm all scratched up, and Donna picks me up and she's trying to calm me down while she walks back. So we get back to the house, she sets me down, and she calls my mom, and my mom rushes over and takes me to the hospital, I got a cast and everything. And the next day I asked Mikey to sign it, I wouldn't let anyone touch it until Mikey signed it first. And you know what he fuckin wrote on it?"

"What?" You laugh at the anticipation.

"He wrote, 'heal fast magic 10,000 -Mikey'" Richie wrote in the air to emphasize.

"That's better than anything I could've thought of." You both laugh.

"And you know what? It did. Doctors said it'd take at least 6 weeks to heal, my arm was healed in 4 and a half weeks. It was like a medical mystery or some shit like that!"

"That's crazy! Magic is real!"

"Fuck yeah it is. Especially Mikey's. That kid was filled with magic."

"Everyone could feel it, the energy coming off of him. He really was magical." You nodded looking down at your beer.

You smiled to yourself remembering him, his energy.

"Tell me something about Copenhagen, when you left. What were your favourite things about it?" Richie changed the subject.

"Ah, it was absolutely beautiful. There's this canal and district, right? Nyhaven. Its lined with these brightly painted townhouses, all different colours, and there's all these beautiful boats in the canal. There's people performing music in the street, and there's so many restaurants and cafes and bars all around. Here, I have pictures!" You pulled out your phone and showed him.

"That's beautiful." Richie muttered as you swiped through them.

"I know, it really is something.  That was one of my favourite places to visit. And there was this park more out in the countryside, when I needed a break I'd go out there and just relax on this one bench and watch the sunset."

"That sounds really great." Richie sounded almost sad. You looked over at him and he looked kind of sad.

"It was, are you alright?" You put your hand on his arm.

"Yeah, just. You and Carmy got to go out and travel and have these amazing experiences. I never got that. I was here, trying to help run a sandwich shop. I'm not good at things. I'm not like you and Carmy. Mikey was always so good with everyone, always solving problems. Sugar's working at a bank. And all I could do was help run a sandwich shop. A sandwich shop that is changing and no one wants me there. I got no skills."

"Richie... That's not true. You're good with people too. You're an amazing story teller, and you listen and remember things. You're a good dad, you're a good person, you're fucking hilarious! You just haven't found your passion yet, you'll find it. You just have to dig deep and look. But that doesn't mean you aren't good at things."

Richie looked at you, the air grew thick in a second. And he leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on your lips. You barely had time to kiss back, and he pulled away.

"Ah, I. Sorry, sorry. Thank you. I'm drunk. Sorry." He rubbed his eye.

"It's ok." Was all you could get out, and it was almost a whisper.

"Richie, I..."

He looked over at you, apologetically.

"Oh, don't do that." You laughed and smacked his arm.

"I liked it." It came out without a thought.  You blushed and looked away.

"You did?"

"Of course I did." You said shyly.

"I knew it. I knew it! I knew you liked me. All the flirting and weird moments. I fucking knew it!"

"Shut up" you laughed and took a swig of your beer.

"Mikey was right. He saw it, he tried to fucking tell me and I never believed him. I thought it was all jokes. Jokes my ass!" He made you laugh.

"Mikey was right." You leaned back and looked over at him smiling. You two looked at each other for a few seconds, everything was said in those looks. Richie leaned towards you again, and this time you met him halfway.

You're lips met and it wasn't as gentle as before, but it wasn't rough. It was more passionate, less nervous. It could've been the added influence of the alcohol, or it could've just been because you've secretly wanted this for so long- either way, it quickly became heated, hot, and heavy.

You moved to straddle him and you both moaned. You wrapped your arms around his neck pulling him closer. His hands found their way to your hips and you started to grind on him.

"Fuck" he said lowly and put his hands on your shoulders, stopping you.

"Sorry, sorry. Are you- is this ok?" You scootched back a little on his legs and looked at him.

"Yeah, no, this is. I mean, this is amazing, and your amazing, I just don't wanna fuck this up. It's been a while, and I'm no good for you."

"Don't say that." You cupped his face and gently looked into his eyes. "You're amazing too, Richie. You're not gonna fuck it up. But I'm sorry if this is too fast, we can go slower." You moved your hands to his chest.

"Don't apologize, sweetheart, seriously. I, I don't know. We're both pretty drunk, I mean. C'mon, do you even really want this?"

"You really have no idea do you?" You gently ran your fingers through his hair. You pulled him into a hug and whispered into his ear.

"More than anything."

He held you tighter and stood up, picking you up with him.

"What are-" you stopped, leaning back just enough to catch a glimpse of the side of his face. A lustful glimmer to his eye told you everything.

He made his way into your bedroom and set you down gently on the bed, looming over you, his lips instantly met yours. It was rough and passionate and desperate.

*******NSFW/smut - 18+ - next chapter********