*not my art*

Thursday. July 9, 1987

Since sharing his doubts, Eddie spent his mornings with Richie on the floor as they leaned against the foot of his bed. Each morning, they would sit side by side, with Eddie's head on Richie's shoulder. They'd wait two minutes and then evaluate his heart rate. Afterwards they'd try holding hands for another two minutes. It became a sort of science experiment, Eddie liked to think.

Though it wasn't enough to be sure. And as Thursday was finally upon them, it was time for Eddie to put his feelings to the final test. It was the day he'd finally kiss his friend Will.

The thought of it made his hands sweat. Richie noticed this right away.

"Your hands." He muttered. Eddie nodded, taking a deep breath.

"You nervous?" Richie asked, relieving an annoyed look from Eddie in return.

"Of course. I've never kissed anyone else, you know?" Eddie lowered his voice, even though they were alone.

Richie pondered for a moment, rubbing his thumb over Eddie's hand. The act sent shivers down the boy's spine but he kept it to himself. He heard Richie humming, in thought.

Finally, the boy came up with a solution. He turned to Eddie with a grin.

"I'll help you practice." Richie stated. Eddie rolled his eyes. He'd kissed Richie before, he needed new information. A part of him was still worried he'd enjoy it, only to have Richie hurt him again.

"Richie," Eddie sighed. He didn't want to feel it.

"C'mon, it's just practice. We talked about it, it's cool. You'll kiss Will and you'll realize you don't actually like me. If you do, after, maybe we can figure it out."

Eddie could only see half the logic in the entire situation but nodded, regardless. Richie let go of his hand soon after and inched forward. Shakily, Eddie turned his head to face the boy.

"You ready?" Eddie nodded, once again, closing his eyes.

Richie placed a hand on the boy's cheek, clearing his throat. The smaller boy opened his eyes when nothing happened. He saw Richie staring back at him, waiting. Eddie rose an eyebrow as Richie stayed silent. He took a moment to admire the boy's features and reached forward to remove his large glasses.

"That's a boy, spaghetti head. Do some shit like that to really ease into it." Richie snickered, not taking the situation seriously. Eddie rolled his eyes, cursing Richie for ruining the moment. However, he continued to gaze into the other's eyes now, the view much clearer without the goggles blocking his face. Eddie's eyes flickered down to the boy's lips, then back up to the freckles on his nose, making their way back to his eyes. He was growing very fond of Richie's eyes, he noticed. At one point in time, he couldn't bear to look at the boy and yet he found himself hypnotized by them. 

"Are you just gonna stare at him or what-" Richie received a glare from Eddie before the former spoke.

"Shut up, trashmouth," is all he said before he leaned forward, a hand behind Richie's neck, and kissed the boy. Richie's hands were stuck at his sides for a moment, before he eased into it, placing them on either side of Eddie's waist. Eddie wanted to experiment techniques, Richie figured, when he felt the smaller's tongue graze the inside of his mouth. The room was silent apart from the faint sounds of their breathing and the shuffling of their feet, as they inched closer. 

Eddie's head was spinning. His face was flushed and there was a tickling feeling in his stomach that rose to his chest as he sat kissing the boy he'd spent years despising. He felt Richie's hands interlock behind his back and he tried to bite back the smile that dared to creep onto his face. He didn't know how he could enjoy anything so much but all he wanted was more. Eddie was already halfway on top of Richie's lap when there was a sharp knock at the door. The two broke apart like deer caught in headlights. 

Richie took a moment to catch his breath, looking down at the floor unable to meet his cabinmate's gaze for a moment. 

"How-" Eddie trailed off as another knock was heard. Richie finally looked up, clearing his throat. 

Richie nodded, "Good. Yeah." 

Eddie slowly mirrored the boy, nodding along. "Good. So I should do that, then." 

"Ye-yeah. For sure. That was," Richie paused, awkwardly. "Good."

Eddie mouthed an 'okay' before rising to his feet. He glanced back at Richie one last time before walking to the door. Once open, a friendly face was waiting on the other side. He smiled, still flustered from his actions with Richie but still managing to say hello.

"Hey, Elle. What's up?" Eddie pursed his lips. The girl in front of him smiled back, looking ecstatic to be in his presence. 

"Just came to see Richie, he said he wanted to go on a walk. How are you doing, Eds?" she was too kind for her own good. Naive, Eddie had to add. He didn't understand how she could be so oblivious to Richie's advances and he had to assume that she'd never go for him. When in fact, she had her eyes set on someone else. Though, neither of them were aware of that. 

"I'm fine." Eddie stood in the doorway, awkwardly. 

"You look a little overworked," Elle chuckled, not putting two and two together. "Anyway, can I come in?"

Eddie nodded, glancing behind him only to see Richie had composed himself, glasses already back on his face. Elle happily stepped past the boy and greeted Richie who seemed surprised for a second before realization hit.

"Elle! Hey, I forgot we were going to do that thing." He chuckled. "Right, well bye, Eds." He said, walking past Eddie without another word. Elle followed, taking a few steps before turning to send the message she had forgotten.

"Oh, Eddie. Will told me to tell you he'd be waiting for you in his cabin. Said you had plans together." 

Eddie took a deep breath, readying himself before leaving his cabin, as well. The walk over to Will's cabin was short but in the time it took for him to arrive, Eddie's head had already ran miles. He was nervous, though he knew he had no reason to be. Will was his friend, he had confidence that the boy would be willing to help in any way possible. He reminded himself of this as he knocked on the cabin door. 

He was greeted by a sweet face, the face of a friend who he'd grown to appreciate. Will invited him inside right away and once the door was closed behind him, reality sunk in for Eddie. Will was unable to even properly say his 'hello' before Eddie was pacing around the room.

"Ed?" Will's voice was tainted with concern as he watched the boy frantically walking from corner to corner with his head scanning the floor.

"I need a favor." Eddie stopped, to look up at him. Will was confused, but nodded, a bit scared of what such favor would entail. He couldn't think of anything, however, that he wouldn't do for Eddie. He'd never had friends in Derry aside from his siblings and to have grown so close to Eddie, he thought it a blessing. 

"What is it?" Will questioned.

"I need to kiss you." Eddie blurted out, a nervous sort of frown planted on his face. Will was shocked, taking a second to process the other's words.

"What?" Will raised his eyebrows, waiting for further explanation.

"I told Richie I might be into him and he basically told me that I don't like him and even if I did, it wasn't good for me because I deserve better. He told me I should kiss you because, well, I've only ever kissed him and what if I don't even like him. I think I do like kissing, though. So he thinks I should kiss you so I can know for sure, if I like him, or you, or boys, or girls, or whatever." Eddie heaved, retrieving his inhaler from his fanny pack. Will was dumbfounded, blinking back at Eddie who was trying to regulate his breathing, slowly.

"Uh," Will rubbed the back of his neck. "Sure?" Eddie sighed in relief, thankful to have such support in the mess he was living. 

"Thank, fuck." Eddie chuckled. 

"Just don't go falling in love with me or anything." Will laughed. Eddie was grateful for how casual Will was about the whole situation. They stood, watching each other in an awkward silence for a few minutes before Will broke the tension. 

"So, we going to do this?" He shrugged, waiting. Eddie nodded, laughing a little as he stepped closer. 

"This is kind of weird, I guess I didn't think about how strange it would feel." Will mumbled. Eddie nodded, in agreement. 

"Just," Eddie sighed, he needed these answers. "Close your eyes. Forget it's me, your friend and just pretend it's someone you could like." 

Will paused for a moment, then nodded and let his eyes flutter shut. Eddie gathered what was left of his courage and reached out to hold Will's face in his hands. Will was apprehensive yet his hands somehow found the boy's sides. He took a deep breath, then felt soft lips pressing against his own. 

Eddie kissed the boy softly at first, delicately, placing his own on Will's. When he didn't feel an initial shock, he carried on. He tilted his head, kissing Will again. He felt a sort of euphoria for only a second before it fizzled away. Lastly, he kissed Will a third time. This time, letting his lips linger on the other's for a moment. 

He lowered his hands and took a step back with a puzzled expression. He hummed, waiting for Will to open his eyes. When he finally did, they stood as they had before it had happened, silently watching each other.

"Well?" Will muttered. 

"Nothing." Eddie shrugged. He crossed his arms and threw himself on Will's bed, with a sigh.

"What now?" Will asked, taking a seat on a chair across the room.

Eddie felt hopeless as the answer slipped out of his mouth. "I have to tell Richie I like him." 

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smfh yall were so worried about them kissing but you should know i'm not that evil. It was all for research lmao

please leave comments and feedback. I love reading everything guys think about it. 

-kat

august 27, 2018 @4:33PM