INSTANT REPLAY | REDDIE

- 17 | INSTANT REPLAY

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Eddie didn't like to be around when Richie and Bev were drinking, but he somehow got looped into one of their parties. It was a Friday night, and Eddie's mother was going to be out of the house for a schedules talk with Dr. Keene about his 'progress', so as far as Richie was concerned, all Eddie had to do was figure out a way to escape his locked house. The brunette was immensely bothered by this plan. At first, he outright refused— there was no way he was crossing his mother like that, not when he was already considering a relationship that was so far outside the guidelines she had set. But Richie was persistent.

Eddie had to admit, the boy was being extremely patient. He acted as though nothing had changed, which felt safe. Eddie didn't have to make a move until he felt comfortable. But he knew Richie wouldn't wait forever, despite what he said the night Eddie had been found on the side of the road. So when he was laying in his dimly lit room with his homework spread all over his bed and heard a tapping noise on his window, he dropped everything.

It was absolutely insane, what he was doing as he opened the window and looked down at Richie. But he started to climb out, reaching for the tree that was just a few feet away. His foot hit a solid branch, but he couldn't find anything to grab on to and his hands were slipping. So he gave himself a hopeless boost and curled his knee over the branch, hanging from it like a monkey. Terror gripped at his heart as he scrambled for a good grip, but he was falling already anyway. All of the breath left his body as he hit a solid but soft surface, squashing it beneath him.

"Sorry," he squeaked, rolling off of Richie and getting to his feet a bit unsteadily. He helped his friend up, smiling a bit shyly as he brushed off the boy's shirt.

"You kidding? Don't be sorry. It's not every day that angels fall from the sky, but I was lucky enough to have one land right in my lap." That was another thing about Richie lately; he had become quite the flirtatious individual. The nicknames were certainly coming back almost effortlessly, and the trashmouth Richie had in Eddie's dream was beginning to leak into reality again as well. Eddie didn't mind very much, to say the least, as he stood frozen with a furious blush taking over his features.

"Shut up," he muttered, punching Richie's shoulder playfully. Bev's house was a short drive away, and Richie got them there in just under two minutes. It was a small party, which made Eddie feel a bit better, but the presence of alcohol was enough to heighten his anxiety.

"There's only enough for everyone to have a little bit," Richie was assuring him as they made their way into the living room. "That's all there is, too. No smoking allowed in the house, or Bev's dad will flip his shit when he smells it. We found that out the hard way." It was meant to be a joke, judging by the good humored glimmer in his eyes, but Eddie still felt a lingering sense of unease.

They entered the living room to find a small group of people passing around a bottle and laughing amongst themselves. Eddie's eyes immediately zoomed in on Stanley, who seemed very out of his element over on his side of the circle beside Bill. He allowed his gaze to travel around the group as he felt a tug on his arm and suddenly he was being plopped down right next to Bev herself. Richie settled on his other side, and Eddie turned silently to look at what was going on in the middle of the circle.

The rather large bottle of what Eddie presumed was an alcoholic beverage sat in the middle now, and everyone was holding a cup. One was passed to him, and he clutched it rather tightly, confusion flooding through him. He glanced at Richie, brow furrowed, but the boy was too busy conversing with a guy Eddie recognized from his history class. He couldn't remember his name, but he sat in the back like one of the stereotypical sketchy kids in the movies, which was how all adults seemed to see teenagers nowadays.