.: Friday I'm In Love :|: Reddie :.

How Do I Look

Eddie had walked hand in hand with Richie as they approached the school. They got a few knowing glances that caused the smaller boy to blush, and tug his sleeves further over his hands. He had always felt like his hands were too small, and when he saw people looking at his tiny hand in Richie's gigantic one, he was afraid that people would find it odd.

By the time they actually entered the building, both of Eddie's hands were entirely covered by his sleeves, and Richie was looking at him with a gentle, yet confused smile. Eddie just blushed darker, and looked away again, before shifting closer and pulling Richie's sleeves down as well so he could hold his hand where it was hidden from the world.

Richie curled their fingers together, the pad of his thumb rubbing slow circles on the back of Eddie's delicate hands as they walked.

Eddie's hair had started to grow out ever since the middle of the last school year, and it tended to get curlier the longer it was. Brown curls bounced with every step, and he knew he looked adorable because his boyfriend almost ran into at least four people, one being Ben Hanscom. The boy turned around, and smiled upon realizing who it was.

"Hey, guys. You're matching." Suddenly, Bev popped up from behind him and she was squealing like a little girl.

"I saw your post and I freaked out! Oh my God, you two are literally the definition of couple goals. Ben, we should get something that matches." She grinned, her long arms curling around a very deeply blushing Ben, who just nodded. Eddie smiled shyly, leaning towards his boyfriend and squeezing his hand from within the privacy of their sleeves.

"Yeah, we know you freaked out. Your comment was literal spastic smashes of your poor phone's keyboard." Richie rolled his eyes, but his pale cheeks were a little pink as well. Eddie found himself blocking out their conversation as they began to walk, and instead looked around the halls. This was the first day of his last year in this school. How many memories had been made?

He glanced at a few kids as he passed by, and every single one seemed to be looking at him. It was getting a little uncomfortable. He found his grip on Richie's hand loosening as he leaned towards groups, trying to hear what they were saying. He only caught a few hushed whispers.

"Those are the kids that went missing!"

"Yeah, I heard that the brunette was in a totally different place from all the others."

"Yup, and they were the oldest ones, too."

"What kind of idiot gets themselves kidnapped by the same guy who took a bunch of kindergarteners?"

"What kind of idiot gets themselves kidnapped by a guy in the same grade?"

There was a gentle tug on his arm and he was yanked back into reality as his friends rounded a corner, catching up with the others. Bill and Stan were at the stuttering boy's locker, like usual. Eddie was frowning a bit as he glanced up at Richie, who was smiling contentedly. He was glad Richie hadn't heard what people were saying, and decided there was no need to make him upset by mentioning it, so he distracted himself by stealing the boy's glasses with his free hand still covered and sliding them onto his own face. They slid down his nose and nearly fell off, at which he giggled, squinting up at Richie, who just snorted with laughter.

"How do I look?" Eddie asked, tilting his head and smiling brightly. He knew Bev was gushing because she could hear her muffled squeals, even if he couldn't see through his boyfriend's glasses.

"You look absolutely adorable," Richie replied, and the immense certainty in his voice, not even a shadow of a doubt, caused Eddie to nearly swoon. He blushed, looking down, and the motion caused a few curls to fall in his face. They tickled his cheeks as Richie lifted his chin, pushing the locks of hair out of the way and straightening the glasses on Eddie's nose with a teasing smile.

"I'm afraid I've got to take these back, or else they're gonna make you need glasses, too." Eddie shrugged, averting his eyes as he allowed Richie to remove the glasses. He had never wanted glasses, because his face shape had never fit the lenses he could find at the eye doctors. They had a prescription ready for him, most likely forced by Sonia, and his mother was begging him to just choose some. They were always too big and slid off of his face. The doctors offered to tighten them, but he was just making excuses and kept insisting that they were just too uncomfortable.

Eddie rubbed at his eyes gently, and let go of Richie's hand. His own was beginning to get sweaty due to the heat of the sweaters covering it and he didn't want the boy to notice. He pulled the sleeve back down anyway, turning towards their other friends. Richie was leaning against the lockers, oblivious to the world outside their little circle, but Eddie could hear them. He could hear the whispers.

The small boy shifted closer to his boyfriend, leaning his head against the boy's chest and frowning deeply. He turned his face away from his friends so they couldn't see his expression, staring down the hallway as Richie's arms came up to wrap around him. He watched as a few people turned to look, talking in hushed voices, and averting their eyes when they saw him staring.

"Eds, you alright?" Richie was talking to him. He lifted his head, resting his chin on Richie's chest so he was looking straight up at the boy and he knew he looked miserable. He had decided against telling him about the whispers earlier, so he would have to come up with something else to tell him.

"I'm fine. Just thinking about some things." He took a deep breath, hugging Richie's waist. "Do you really think I would look cute in -" He was cut off by the warning bell ringing. It was time for homeroom, and he wasn't in Richie's class. His frown deepened, and he sighed heavily. "Glasses?" He finished weakly. Richie pretended to think about it, sliding an unbelievably warm arm around Eddie's shoulders as they began walking.

"I think you should let me come pick out your frames with you, because I know you've been stalling. You would look adorable, Spaghetti. I can't wait to see them, alright?" Eddie nodded faintly, glad that Richie hadn't questioned him further. He shifted a bit closer to the boy's side when they reached his classroom, and Richie began to pull away.

"Are you sure you're alright, Eddie? You aren't usually like this, especially not on the first day of school." Richie frowned, concern showing in his usually-bright eyes. Eddie looked up at him with sad eyes and lifted his arm, pulling Richie's head down and grabbing his chin with the other hand. His sleeve slipped off of his fingers as he directed Richie's lips to the tip of his nose, feeling them curl upwards into a smile against his skin. Then Eddie pulled away with a light blush and scampered away into his classroom.

He sat down and took off his backpack, opening his phone. It was certainly going to be a long day.