"I just want to love you! I can't live without you, don't go!"
//
Richie slammed his locker shut as Eddie and his group of friends came down the corridor. He hated the way they got so close to the small boy, and how they always had to be touching him. Whether it was holding his arm or ruffling his hair, they were all over him.
"Hey, Rich!" Eddie jumped up, waving.
Richie's face dusted over with a bright shade of red before he waved back. His hands began to shake and he thought he would drop his books. Two of Eddie's friends rolled their eyes, snickering obnoxiously loud. The others just gave Richie a pitiful look and kept walking, dragging Eddie with them.
Except one. A girl with short, red, curly hair stayed behind and walked up to Richie. He'd never really had a problem with her, she kept her distance with Eddie and was pretty sweet, but that didn't mean he still didn't tense up when she approached.
"I'm Bev, we have history together." She said, holding out her hand.
Richie shook it, trying to be nice, "I'm Richie, you sit behind me, don't you?"
She nodded, "I notice you've been staring at Eddie every time he comes down the hall, you like him or something?"
"Huh? Why, do you have a thing for him?" Richie asked, annoyance prickling his tone.
"Oh no, I'm with Ben! The sweet little boy who runs the paper?" Bev said, trying to give Richie a mental image.
"Oh yeah, Hanscom! We worked on a project together once." Richie gestured, "He's sweet."
Richie was starting to warm up to her already, and he hadn't even known her for five minutes.
"Anyway, back to Eddie, you like him?" Bev asked again
"Uh, yeah, I guess you could say that-"
Bev smiled, "Ahh, finally! Eddie thought that you hated him or something."
"Oh god no!" Richie exclaimed, "And he talks about me?"
shut up you fucking idiot! you're gonna blow your cover!
If you could even call it a cover at that point. What was he covering? Certainly not the blush that graced his face every time Eddie walked by, thats for sure.
"Yeah, he brought you up at the lunch table, kind of upset because he wanted to be friends with you or something." She shrugged.
Richie's heart almost stopped, the pace of his breathing picked up rapidly, causing the air to get caught in the back of his throat. He coughed a bit, choking on his own air supply.
"Don't tell him that I like him!" Richie blurted out
Bev chuckled and patted his back, "Don't worry, I won't! If you wanna study after school, let me know."
Bev scribbled her number on Richie's binder, smiling at him as she walked away.
-
Richie hummed to himself, opening his notebook. He added "call beverly" onto his todo list, smiling softly at the words.
Richie sighed, resting his chin in his palm. He wanted to find a way to talk to Eddie, he just didn't know were to start. He tapped his pencil lightly on his desk, before hearing soft footsteps in his direction, making him slam the notebook shut immediately.
"R- Richie? Isn't i-it?" A boy, who Richie could only assume to be Bill or Stan (not that he was a stalker or anything because stalkers are gross and Eddie wouldn't like a stalker...) said to him.
Richie looked up, raising an eyebrow, "Hello? You need anything?"
Bill nodded nervously, "L-Look, I, uh-"
Richie tapped his foot against the ground, quietly annoyed with Bill for testing his nonexistent patience.
"I'd a-a-appreciate it if you t-told Eddie that you don't h-hate him?" It came out as more of a question than a statement, making it very evident that Bill was... intimidated?
the fuck?
Because Richie Tozier, the same kid who wears butterfly hair clips in his hair on a near daily basis, is totally scary. A real top dog if I do say so myself.
I think I just shit myself at the mere thought of him, oh no!
"Uh, sure. I'll talk to him." Richie said, trying to say something to avoid further conversation.
Richie quickly traded out his notebook for a sketchbook from his book bag, and nearly rolled his eyes when Bill sat at the desk in front of him.
He pulled his knees up so that his shins pressed against the desk, allowing the sketchbook to rest propped up on his thighs. It was an attempt to let Bill know, hey, closing myself off, please leave.
He flipped to the sketch of Eddie he'd been working on since yesterday. It was actually pretty good, considering Richie had also been taking art classes. On top of having a good memory, he was also smart and picked things up quickly. That's all it really took to be able to draw a good picture.
Richie continued on his drawing, inking out the final line-art for his lines. Once he'd finished inking his work, he pulled out the colored pencil set his dad had given him before going out on a business trip. He carefully took out the dark brown and began to color in the hair, evening out the lines skillfully.
Bill obnoxiously leaned over Richie's entire desk, trying to see who Richie was drawing.
Why would you put yourself through all of that effort just to look at a sketchbook? What?
"I-Is that E-E-Eddie?" Bill asked, awestruck at Richie's ability to draw.
"Well, yes, but," Richie started, "I draw everything and everyone. It's not a big deal."
Bill nodded, "Its good, you should show him."
"Nah, it's kind of weird, don't ya think?"
"hey i know we don't talk, but i literally drew you ahaha!" logic who?
"I g-guess so..." Bill mumbled before pulling out his phone and quickly talking a picture without Richie noticing.
The lunch bell rang and Bill immediately chased after Richie, who was still clutching the sketchbook tightly in his hands. He insisted that he sat with them at lunch and Richie said yes, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to function being that close to Eddie.
Richie didn't really eat much, so he just stood by Bill in the lunch line, waiting for him to get done piling garbage onto his plate. Richie scoffed as Bill waltzed over to their friend group's designated table, patting the seat between him and Bev. Richie pressed forward, taking the spot between them.
"So, Richie's s-sitting with u-us today." Bill announced
"I think they have eyes Bill." Richie joked, his gaze flickering to meet Eddie's for a split second.
Eddie giggled a bit, smiling at Richie, who immediately turned red and looked away. He felt like a middle schooler all over again. a dumb middle schooler who didn't even really understand how to express himself.
tell him you fucked his mother! your mom joke! dude! seriously? TALK TO HIM SAY SOMETHING YOU ABSOLUTE DUMBASS!
Eddie sighed, frustrated at Richie's lack of interest. He just wanted to hang out with him and be friends with him. Was he really so difficult to get along with?
Bev ended up harassing Richie for his sketchbook so she could see it for herself. Richie just ended up rolling his eyes and handing it to her. Bev oohed and ahhed at how pretty it was.
The book got passed around the table- much to Richie's protest- and finally got to Eddie. Who seemed to enjoy it very much.
"Wow!" He had exclaimed, "Its really pretty!"
It made Richie's whole body go numb, he liked it? he did? what?
//
you guys get pennybitch tomorrow, for now, deal with this.
i'm really tired, loves you guys 😉💕
UPDATE: the book if finally in its editing stages! thank you all 🥺 i think it's much better