Yoo if you’re still taking requests from the kissing prompts can I request “in the moonlight” and “a bet” with reddie please and thank youu!!
Thank you! This prompt is hella old but hopefully you’ll still enjoy it
You can also read it on AO3
“I can't believe I let you talk me into this.” Eddie muttered, letting Bev drag him through campus, towards the bonfire party.
“It will be fun!” She promised with a grin. As they got closer, Eddie heard the shouts of drunk college students over the noise of crackling flames.
He let out a sigh, that didn’t sound fun at all. “Just promise me you won't ditch me.” Eddie said. The last thing he wanted was to end up alone, in a party he didn’t even want to be in. “You're the only reason I'm here.”
Bev looked at him over her shoulder, one of her eyebrows raised. “Really? You're not secretly hoping that Richie will be there?”
Eddie spluttered, cheeks flushing pink. “What? Why would I― I'm not―” Bev was snickering and he glared at her half heartedly. “Shut up.”
It wasn’t like she was right. He wasn’t hoping that Richie would be at this silly bonfire. Eddie was sure he would be there. Unlike him, Richie never missed a party. But Eddie was, in fact, hoping to see him tonight, to spend time with him. He thought he had been subtle about it, but it seemed Bev was onto him.
The bonfire came into view. People were drinking and dancing around a large, burning pile of wood. Eddie wrinkled his nose, who thought it was a good idea to have a bunch of drunk people near a fire?
“See? Fun!” Bev said with a delighted grin, she released Eddie's arm. “Alright, I'll get us some drinks.”
“I told you not to leave me!” He said, shaking his head.
But Bev was already walking away. “I'm not leaving you! I'll be right back!” She shouted over her shoulder before disappearing into the crowd.
It was a lie.
Eddie waited at the spot where she left him, shifting uneasily on his feet. But when she didn’t return he found an empty log and sat on it, glaring at the flames.
He was considering going back to his dorm when someone sat down next to him. Eddie looked up to find Richie grinning at him, the sight made his heart skip a beat.
“Hey Eds, having fun?”
Eddie rolled his eyes. “Because being surrounded by drunken idiots is clearly my idea of fun.”
“Well, at least the bonfire is cool.” Richie said, bumping his shoulder against him.
He chuckled, looking at the flames and shrugging. “Yeah, I guess.” Then his nose scrunched up. “But I'm not looking forward to my clothes and my hair smelling like smoke for an entire week.”
Richie leaned forward in one fast movement, startling him. His first thought was that Richie was going to kiss him, which made no sense, but it still made his heart speed up. Instead, Richie pressed his nose to Eddie’s hair, taking a deep breath.
“Smells good to me. Soapy and clean, pure Eddie.”
Eddie's cheeks were burning, he pushed Richie away with a light shove. "Well, I haven’t been here for long."
“Is that why you don't have a drink yet?”
“Bev said she would get me one, then she disappeared.”
Richie chuckled softly. “Yeah, I saw her talking to Ben and Mike. That's why I came looking for you. I figured you would be around here somewhere, glaring at people who actually know how to have fun.” He smirked at Eddie. “And I was right.”
Eddie huffed indignantly. “I know how to have fun. This―” he gestured vaguely around them, “―is just not it.”
“Alright.” Richie said, pausing to drink from his beer bottle while giving Eddie a considering look. “Tell me what would you be doing if Bev hadn’t dragged you here?”
Eddie bit the inside of his cheek. The truth was, that before Bev barged into his room and dragged him outside, he’d been looking for something to watch on his laptop, ready to spend his Saturday night under his covers, watching movies. Richie clearly expected something like that, if his smug expression was anything to go by. "I can be fun." Eddie said instead, making Richie laugh out loud.
"Sure you can, Eds." He said, voice dripping with sarcasm. Eddie glared at him, and when Richie raised his bottle to drink more beer he reached over and snatched the bottle away. Without giving it much thought, he brought it to his lips and, ignoring Richie’s protests, he gulped the beer down.
His face scrunched up at the taste, but he didn't stop drinking until the bottle was empty. Richie was staring at him, wide eyed and with a slight flush on his cheeks. It made Eddie feel slightly flustered himself.
He cleared his throat and tried to make his expression smug. “See? I’m fun.”
“The life of the fucking party.” Richie agreed with a chuckle.
“Mmm, exactly.” He didn’t understand how he felt a bit tipsy after only half a bottle of beer. The last thing he needed was for Richie to also tease him for being a lightweight. “I'm the most fun person on campus.”
Richie gave him an uncharacteristically soft smile. “You're certainly the cutest.”
The words made blood rise to Eddie’s face. Before he was forced to respond to that, they heard catcalls and whistles coming from a group near them. When they looked over, they saw two people kissing in the middle of a circle. Richie noticed the way Eddie’s nose scrunched up and said, “I think they're playing truth or dare. Wanna go over there Mr. ‘I'm the most fun person on campus’?”
Eddie rolled his eyes. “Richie, that game is just an excuse to make out with strangers.”
“Duh. That's what makes it fun.”
“You know what's not fun?”
“You?” Richie supplied with a smirk.
“Mononucleosis.” Eddie finished, and Richie tossed his head back with a laugh.
“I mean, you could always choose truth. You look like the kind of guy who picks truth every time.” He said with that same smug expression from before. It bugged Eddie, especially considering Richie was right. On the rare occasion Eddie had attended parties in high school and was roped into games of truth or dare, he always stuck with truth. It was safer. And boring, according to Richie.
“You're wrong.” Eddie lied as best as he could. “I picked dare all the time, and I never backed down.”
“Is that so?” Richie said, eyes sparkling with interest. “So if I were to dare you to do something right now, you'd do it?”
Eddie hesitated. He wanted to prove Richie wrong, but he was nervous about what he would dare him to do. Sure that Eddie would back down, a smile slowly appeared on Richie’s face.
That smug smile was what ultimately made Eddie say, “Yeah. I'll do it.”
He regretted it when Richie’s smile turned devious. “Well then. I dare you to kiss someone.” He said, looking at him with a challenge in his eyes, like he was certain Eddie wouldn't do it, not after he just finished talking about mononucleosis and the risks of kissing strangers.
Eddie’s lips flattened to a thin, stubborn line. “Anyone?”
"Yup." Richie shrugged. "Your choice Eds, just find someone at this bonfire and kiss them. Live a little."
Eddie looked around, his bottom lip caught between his teeth while he weighed his options. He could say no, Richie would tease him but he would never force Eddie to do anything he didn’t want to do. Kissing a stranger was out of the question, just thinking about it made him shudder. He guessed he could find Bev and give her a quick friendly kiss just to shut Richie up. Or―
Eddie looked at Richie. He was used to denying it, but Eddie knew he liked him. He liked his blue eyes, his ridiculous glasses, his messy curls. And he liked how he made Eddie laugh. How he could go from making a joke to talking him down from a panic attack in less than a second. He liked how he seemed to know Eddie better than anyone, even if they had only known each other for a year.
He wanted to kiss him. He could kiss him. And if Richie didn't kiss him back, he could just brush it off as part of the joke. No harm done. And if he did kiss him back, well― Eddie wouldn’t mind.
“Backing down, Eds?” Richie asked, interrupting his thoughts.
“No, just thinking.”
Richie opened his mouth, ready to make another teasing remark, but Eddie cut him off before he got the chance. He closed the space between the two and pressed their lips together.
He heard Richie make a surprised noise and felt him go stiff as a board. Eddie started to panic when he didn’t kiss him back right away but before he could even think about moving away, Richie was grabbing his shoulders, and his lips were moving. Eddie didn't even care about the taste of beer shared between them, kissing Richie was better than he ever imagined. He placed his hand around the back of his neck, pulling him closer.
It wasn't until they heard a few catcalls that may or may not have been directed at them that they pulled away, both of them a little flushed. The way Richie was grinning at him eased the last of Eddie's nerves.
“Still think I don't know how to have fun?” Eddie asked, voice slightly breathless.
“A little.” Richie replied, and Eddie pushed at his chest but he was smiling. “You definitely know how to kiss, though.”
Eddie felt his stomach flip. “Oh. Thanks.” He mumbled shyly.
“Can I ask why me?”
The question brought back Eddie's worries. Kissing Richie was one thing, blatantly admitting that he liked him was way more nerve wracking.
He offered a noncommittal shrug. “You were the closest to me.” He said as nonchalantly as he could.
But Richie's grin widened, like he didn't believe Eddie at all. “Oh really? So you would've just kissed any guy like that?”
“I might've.”
Richie rolled his eyes, he moved closer until their faces were only inches apart. “Right. See, here's the thing, Eds. I don't think you would've. I think you wanted to kiss me just as much as I've been wanting to kiss you.”
Eddie’s breath caught in his throat. “Wait, what?” When he had first realized he liked Richie he didn’t want to get his hopes up, knowing it would be worse if it turned out Richie only saw him as a friend so he never entertained the idea that he might like him back.
“Let’s just say,” Richie began, his hand softly holding Eddie’s cheek. “If you had dared me to kiss anyone at this bonfire, I would’ve also picked you.”
“Oh.” Eddie gasped, his heart hammering in his chest. Richie leaned in to kiss him again, without anyone daring him to do it.
And just as their lips touched Eddie thought that maybe this time, just a little bit of hope would be alright.
Tag list: @daddyphantomtbh @yes-dillman-yes @richietoaster @beepbeeprichiellc @its-stranger-than-you-think @lemonaayyee @losers-gotta-stick-together @tinyarmedtrex @richiefuckfacetozier @sam-i-am2468 @stylesmelon @s-s-georgie @reddie-for-anything @eddiefuckinkaspbrak @constantreaderfool @hammockrichie @jesuschristsupruvestar @mirandonsky @reddie4diaster @alargedepresso @purplepoisonedgem @pan-ini @reddie-to-cry @reddieforlove @trashmouthnick @multi-fandom-wby @wheezyeds @nancynwheeler @reddieslashgeneralhorror @madi-personal @reddie-tozibrak @lover-mouth @atownofeggs @that-weird-girls-blog @appojoos @castielwinovak @a-gay-treee @twoidiotsinl0ve @fcngirltrxsh @spirited-marvel @typewrxter @rebecca-the-queen @juhavs @thegoshdiddlydangdoor @soooobr @purebloodqueen @call-me-bread @britcorn @wickedlyweasley @derpyanimatesstuff @braverthanyathink @s-onora @reddie-stole-my-heart @hammockrichie @s-onora @reddie-stole-my-heart @typewrxter
