𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 / 𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞✔️

one // cold boy in the bedroom

‼️Trigger warnings‼️
(Child abuse, sexual assault, bullying)

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Wentworth Tozier's firm hand collided roughly with richies left cheek, his wedding ring leaving a welt in the center of the blossoming red mark. Richie stumbled back against the counter as his own father kneed his stomach, spitting in his face. "You're pathetic, Richard, pathetic."
     He shoved him further into the marble, Richie screeching in pain as the sharp edge dug into his back. "faggot," he slapped him, shoving him onto his knees and walking away.
     Richie cried, no, sobbed on his knees as he heard the faint footsteps and a fizzing beer bottle open and the cap clank on the floor.
     Richie cleaned his bloody nose, putting a frozen bag of peas over his eye. He Stood in the kitchen, hunched over a chair as he finished taking care of his fresh wounds.
     His mother, Maggie Tozier, entered the door with a messy bun and smeared mascara. She worked in fashion designing and was generally a very busy lady.
   She poured herself a glass of wine, shooting Richie a tired, weak smile. Richie didn't smile back, but simply sighed and said, "hi, mama."
     She poured another glass, "hi, Richie. How was school?"
     He shrugged, "It was okay. How was work?"
     She took another sip, "exhausting. What happened to your eye? And nose? And how did you get all those bruises?" She asked, as if she was just noticing, "dodgeball was rough in P.E., and my allergies were acting up so my nose bled." He shrugged, and with that, their conversation had ended.
You see, Maggie tozier wanted a daughter, so, so badly. When she found out she was carrying a baby boy in her stomach, she was horrified.
She wanted a baby girl with black hair just like her that she could braid and put in ponytails, a girl that she could spoil and buy dresses for, a girl that painted her nails and did her makeup. But she got a boy. A boy who plays his music too loud, a boy who never cleans up after himself, a boy who doesn't even talk to his mom. They simply never had time for each other.
Richie walked up to his room, sniffling as his feet shuffled along the carpet. He slammed his door shut and locked it. His hand gently picked up his radio, sliding in his Rolling Stones CD. It played lightly in the background as he sat down, taking a book into his hand, One For Sorrow by Mary Downing Hahn. He flipped through each page with interest. This had always been a favorite of his, he loved to re-read it over and over. His calm state was quickly interrupted by a tap on his window. Richie assumed it was a pebble, but the tapping came back, rapidly this time. Richie sighed and got up, drawing the curtains open.
A drenched Eddie stood in the window, a bruise on his cheek and cuts on his cheek. "H-Henry- they-" he gasped for breathes, Richie quickly pulling him inside and grabbing a blanket.
     Eddie curled up in it, shivering. Patrick and Henry screamed from beneath the window, but were muted as Richie slammed the window shut and focused his attention on the cold boy in his bedroom.
He was quick to act on things, grabbing eddies inhaler and lifting it to his mouth. Eddie took multiple puffs before his breathing went back to normal. Nodding a thank you to Richie.
     "Wanna take a shower? You're covered in mud." Richie noticed, brushing eddies hair out of his face.
     Eddie nodded, allowing Richie to walk him to the bathroom. Eddie stepped behind the curtain and stripped free of his clothing, turning on the water and moaning as it hit his skin.
Richie sat on the toilet seat, tapping his foot. "Wanna talk about what happened?" He asked carefully, trying not to trigger Eddie's anxiety or asthma by the topic.
     "I-I was on my way home from the pharmacy to r-refill my m-meds a-a-and Henry and his g-goons started ch-chasing me all the w-way home.." Eddie sniffled, "t-they caught me f-for a while and p-Patrick shoved me against a tree and t-touched me...m-my face, my thighs, my b-butt, it scared me..."
     Richie could feel the shakiness in eddies voice, and Eddie was crying out the words he spoke. "When I tried to f-fight back he sliced my cheek with his knife and h-Henry beat me up from there...I m-managed to get up and r-run. I knew my m-mom would freak out I-if I showed up looking the w-way I did and make m-me go back to that s-stupid hospital so I ran h-here and they chased me all th-the way back."
Richie fell silent for a while, at a loss for words. His body filled with anger, pity, and sadness at once. Henry and Patrick wouldn't get away with treating Eddie this way, treating his Eddie this way. He helped Eddie get out, turning his head as he got dried and wrapped the towel around himself. Richie let eddie borrow some clothes of his, a pair of grey sweatpants that went down to his feet and a baggy tee-shirt that dragged down to the middle of his thighs. Richie thought he looked adorable in his clothes.
Eddie laid down on richies bed, tucking himself in a nest of blankets after lots off insisting from Richie. Richie had made himself a pallet on the floor, cuddling up under a blanket that left his feet hanging out. They sat that way for a while before Eddie spoke up. "Richie," he forced out, Richie hummed in response. "just- come lay up here? Please?" He said softly, nervously. Richie complied, getting up and tucking himself in the bed beside Eddie. The smaller one was quick to nuzzle against richies chest, feeling safer in his embrace. Richie smiled, resting his chin on eddies head and falling asleep with his best friend in his arms.

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This is the first chapter. A lot happened but I wanted to introduce you to richies home life and eddies struggles as well,, but yeah 🥺 go read my other books toooooooo