cliché || reddie ✔️

twenty

Richie glances down at him, wary of how Eddie's going to react with getting caught. He's always been so apprehensive about risky things. Yet, to Richie utter surprise, Eddie lets out a choked laugh. His head tips back slightly as he erupts in laughter. And Richie can't help but chuckle along.

"We just did that," he says as Richie opens the basement door. "Oh, my God. Richie, this night has been so fucking... Well, I don't know!" He turns around on the stairs to stare at Richie, mouth spread out in a grin and eyes twinkling like never before. Richie grips onto the doorknob to keep from tumbling forward. Richie expects Eddie to look away at any second, but he doesn't. So Richie doesn't either.

With Eddie being a foot shorter because of the stairs, Richie thinks of how easy it could be for him to bend down and kiss him.

"Is that you guys?"

Eddie turns round on the stairs and takes a step down as Beverly comes into view. "Did you get it?" She asks. Eddie starts his way down, mouth open to explain what happened when Richie came tumbling down behind him with a glass bottle and can of beer in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other.

"When the fuck did you get those?" Eddie asks as Beverly takes the wine from him.

"That's the power of not getting caught, Eds," he jokes, playfully elbowing him in the ribs. Eddie smiles and pushes Richie's arm away.

"Remember, if you don't want it, you don't have to drink it," Beverly says, but they all know it's directed to Ben and Stanley.

Richie goes around the bar and takes out more plastic cups. He gets out seven, but only five get taken. "You guys are missin' out!" Richie says before tipping back the cup of beer. He pulls it away and his face twists up in disgust.

"I don't think I'm missing out on much," Stanley says, eyes racking over Richie's expression.

"That's why wine is better," Beverly says and offers a cup of white wine to Eddie.

"Really?" He asks and swirls the drink around.

"Yeah. And look, you're already a natural," she says and rocks him in the shoulder with hers. She walks away towards Mike and Ben, and Richie takes her place next to Eddie.

"You ever try this stuff before?" He asks and Eddie looks up at him.

"No," he admits. "Well.. once when my aunts came over for Christmas a couple years back, one of them let me take a sip of her red wine. My mom was furious."

"She sounds like a lovely lady," Richie says and Eddie forces out a laugh. "Yeah, fucking totally."

He looks down at the drink and swirls it once more. "Ready?" Richie asks and holds his drink up.

Eddie raises his cup, saying, "Ready." And together, they tip the cups back and take a drink.

Richie shakes his head, trying to rid the memory of the taste from his mind. "So?" He asks, "What's it taste like?"

"Very sweet," Eddie replies.

They both hear Beverly giggle from the other side of the room. "Good choice, Tozier!" She says as she lifts her cup into the air.