HEALING KISS

Suddenly, it occurred to Lacy that Bill had punched Richie. Bill wasn't a professional fighter so it was likely that he hurt his hand. Grabbing his hand, she examined the damage done. His knuckles were red, a bruise already forming in front of her eyes, which would no doubt stain his hands for a while. Along with the bruise, little beads of blood dripped from a small cut by his knuckle and onto the floor.

"You shouldn't have hit Richie," She reprimanded lightly, turning his bruised knuckles over in her hand.

"I know," Bill replied, a guilty look on his face.

"Does it hurt?" She asked, looking back up at his face.

"A little, I'm fine though," He assured her, smiling a little, which she was glad to see.

"You can come back to my house and I'll patch you up," Lacy offered, taken over by a sudden burst of confidence.

Bill looked hesitant, "Will Victor be there?" He asked cautiously, afraid of offending Lacy.

"Probably, he's been sulking a lot since the rock war, I don't think he's left the house in four days," she explained, feeling slightly sorry for her brother. Henry had been off doing God knows what and Belch wasn't the best company, leaving Victor alone with his problems.

"I don't- I don't particularly want to s-see him," Bill rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, looking sheepishly at her.

"He won't bug us, don't worry," Lacy waved the issue off, picking up her bike as if that settled it.

Bill still looked worried, but he grabbed his own bike and gave her a nod before starting to pedal. They weaved through the streets, cruising in silence as they both got lost in their own thoughts.

Lacy was thinking about how she would much rather have spent the summer alone, listening to her favourite music, than with a drama filled group that almost got her killed. But then she thought about all the new friends she'd gained - people who actually made her happy and care about things other than the latest songs. Mainly, she thought about the boy on the bike next to her; with his floppy hair and puppy dog eyes and a smile that made her heart jump in ways that couldn't be healthy.

Maybe the chaos was worth it for him.

They arrived at her house and dumped their bikes on the front lawn. Lacy walked up the stairs to the porch and stepped through the door with no hesitation, but Bill was more reluctant to follow.

"Are you sure your p-parents won't mind?" He asked quietly, like he was afraid of being overheard.

"They'll be fine with it Bill." She rolled her eyes and beckoned for him to come in.

"I'm back!" She called, the loud noise making Bill flinch away.

Her mom poked her head through the doorway to the living room, a smile on her face. However, her smile dropped when she took in the two preteens in front of her.

"Lacy dear, what happened?" She asked, leaving the lounge and walking hurriedly towards them, "And who's this?"

"Um, we were all just messing around in the mud," She lied quickly, "And this is Bill Denbrough, he hurt himself and I offered to help clean him up."

Lacy watched as her mom's eyes flashed with recognition at Bill's name, her worry replaced with pity. She remembered when the news first broke out that Georgie Denbrough had gone missing, her mom had bundled all three of her children up in a hug, refusing to let them go, despite the older two's complaints. Molly was about the same age as Georgie, and that really struck a nerve inside their mom.

"Of course darling, you know where the first aid kit is, do you want any help?" She asked, to which Lacy shook her head.

"I've got this, thanks," she replied, leading Bill up stairs and grabbing the first aid kit from a shelf on the way up.

As they walked passed Victor's room, which had the door wide open, his voice sounded, "So you're bringing the Losers into the house now, huh?" He commented, eyeing Bill up and down through the door way.

"Shut up Vic," Lacy rolled her eyes, flipping her brother off when he mimicked her.

They finally reached her room, Lacy walking in and sitting down on the floor, indicating Bill to sit opposite her.

He sat cautiously, his eyes drinking in every object in the room. Lacy suddenly felt self-conscious about it, noticing how childish some of her belongings were and eyeing the messy pile of clothes on the floor in disdain.

The two of them remained quiet as Lacy began to clean around the small cut and plaster over it. She felt kind of awkward holding his hand, though she wasn't sure why - she held it several times before. Then again, all of those times had been out of fright.

She rubbed some soothing cream over his knuckles then pulled back, twisting the lid back onto the pot and placing it in the first aid kit. She could feel Bill's eyes focused on her now, instead of the room, and looked up shyly.

Their eyes met and Lacy's face suddenly felt far too hot. She didn't know how to act in a situation like this, up until this summer she had never had a real friend. To her surprise, Bill leaned quickly in and pressed her lips to hers.

It was only a peck and lasted for less than three seconds, but it left Lacy frozen in shock. She could feel the blush rising up her face as she stared with wide eyes at Bill, who's face was equally flushed.

"I-I'm s-sorry," he mumbled, rubbing the back of neck awkwardly.

"I-it's fine," Lacy stuttered back.

"I uh, I r-really like you," Bill admitted.

Lacy smiled, despite the crushing embarrassment she felt about the whole situation. "I like you too," she replied.

"Really?" Bill asked, looking surprised and confused that she would say that.

Lacy nodded, "You're kind, and brave, and sweet, and also kind of cute," She admitted with a blush.

"You th-think I'm c-cute?" He repeated, a grin forming on his face.

Lacy confirmed the statement with a nod, "Don't laugh at me!" She whined in protest as Bill began to chuckle.

"It's okay, I think you-you're cute t-too." He smiled, leaning forward and pulling her in for a hug.

Lacy laughed into his shoulder. Her heart was beating fast and her legs felt like jelly, but this was nice, she could get used to this.

aw lacy and bill are so awkward i love