#itsecretsanta18

[whatidoisxsecret]

A delayed Secret Santa submission for @spagreddie from the @it-secretsanta-2018 project! Thank you for joining in on our Secret Santa this year! I’m sorry the gift was late, but I finally finished a cutesy high-school Reddie smooch.

[wrwlfie]

mistletoe

summary: two idiots at Christmas (reddie)

warnings: none

authors note: hello!!! this is my secret santa gift for @heknewwellenough !! I hope you like it, im sorry it’s short but I had a busier than expected holiday szn!!! anyways, happy holidays my friend, enjoy!!1 @it-secretsanta-2018 

____________________________________________________________

“HEY HO HO HOES” Richie grinned as he bounced into Mike’s barn, cheeks red, present in hand... and an hour late.

The others were sitting on the beanbags near one of the corners, Stan gesturing wildly and Ben eyeing Bev out of the corner of his eye. he jumped almost completely off the bean bag when Richie barged in.

“Richie, really?? You’re late, you don’t get the privilege of saying that.” Eddie grumbled as he stormed past Richie with two cups of hot chocolate in his hands, handing one to Mike and sitting down with a glare. Before Richie has gotten there, he had asked the others about 10 times where he was and if he was even coming and muttering about how he ‘shouldn’t have worn this stupid sweater if the idiot wasn’t even here to see him in it’.

Richie didn’t need to know any of that.

“Aww Eds baby, I’m sorry, didn’t mean to stand ya up sweet cheeks. Just finishing my secret santa gift!” he beamed and held up a bag with newspaper stuffed in it.

Bev watched Eddie roll his eyes and subtly try to run a hand through his hair and smiled.

Standing, she declared, “Alright boys, Secret Santa time!!!! Richie, put your gift in the middle and then we’ll exchange.”

Ben nodded attentively and then immediately went and sat around the presents as the others followed, Stan still talking about the horror movie industry to Mike and Bill, both nodding wisely as he grew louder.

“Am I saying Hereditary was BAD? No, I don’t think so, I personally enjoyed it, the problem is – “

“Stan sweetheart, can we unwrap presents?” Mike cut in quietly, putting a hand on his arm. Stan snapped his mouth shut, rolled his eyes and nodded, crossing his legs and plopping next to Mike.

The seven of them looked at each other for a minute, and Richie opened his mouth to break the silence.

“Okay lads, who’s guessing first??”

___________________

It was almost a half hour past when they had started, wrapping paper strewn everywhere and Christmas music floating up quietly from the stereo. Bill finished unwrapping Ben’s present to him and quirked his mouth into a half smile as he unearthed a book from the meticulous tape job Ben had completed weeks ago.

“House of L-Leaves?” he asked, flipping it to read the summary. Ben moved closer to him, red faced, and started explaining the plot in great detail as the others looked on.

Stan was playing with a heavy silver ring given to him by Bev as he leaned against Mike, who was wrapped in a thick wool scarf with a sheep pattern adorning it, ‘f-f-for cold d-days on the f-farm’ Bill had stuttered out when it was opened. Ben and Bev had also gravitated towards each other, Bev laying half in Ben’s lap swatching the shades of a Morphe palette Eddie had snagged for her. Next to Ben lay a crystalized pot with a succulent in it, a gift from Stan, who had witnessed the magic of Ben’s green thumb before. Richie, on the other side of Ben, was twirling the putty Mike had found for him in his hands, the second part of the gift already safely tucked in his pocket. The note on the baggie of weed had read, ‘to help you relax. love mike :)’. Richie had high-fived Mike when he opened it. 

Ben’s explanation was winding down, and poor Eddie was biting his lip anxiously, having yet to open his gift. Which meant…

“That’s right Spaghetti, I’m your Secret Santa!! Go on, open it!!” Richie shoved the bag over to Eddie, who groaned but took it anyway.

“Okay, you guys have to turn around, you know I hate-“

“Yes, you hate opening gifts in front of people, okay” Bev cut in, smacking her gum as she shut her eyes. The others shut their eyes and Bill turned around while still reading the first chapter of his gift.

They heard the sound of the newspaper being ripped out, and,

Silence.

“It’s mistletoe!!! Give me a smooch, sweetheart!!!” Richie puckered his lips, eyes still squeezed shut.

More silence.

Bev nudged Richie, who opened his eyes.

Eddie sat, staring down at the plant in his hands, bag discarded, face red.

“Uh, Eds?”

“This isn’t funny, Richie” He said lowly, voice shaking.

The losers watched, in complete silence, as Eddie stood up, the mistletoe falling out of his lap. All 5 feet 3 inches of him strode to Richie and slapped the side of his face he could reach.

The slap rang out with a resounding CRACK throughout the barn as Richie’s head whipped to the side, glasses falling off as a hand flew to clutch at his stinging cheek. Eddie stormed out of the room as fast as he could, head down, but none of the losers missed the tears threatening at the corner of his eyes.

The door slammed and the room was still silent, everyone in shock, Richie holding his cheek and the mistletoe lying abandoned, as It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas started up softly.

_______________

Richie sat on a stool in near the fridge as Bev smoothed a bandaid onto the cut on his cheek his glasses had left. His eyes were low and his leg bounced wildly. Bev could hear his teeth chattering despite the warmth from the space heater. She touched his other cheek softly.

“Put on your coat, Richie. Go talk to him.”

He looked at her desperately, pleading, for once, silently.

“He’s your best friend, Rich. You hurt his feelings. You need to communicate with him.”

“I- What if he doesn’t want to forgive me?”

“He will, honey. Go explain to him.”

Richie stood, shrugging on his coat and grabbing the mistletoe from the ground as he made his way to the door.

It had started to snow, but Richie could make out a little figure sitting against the side of the barn, and slowly made his way over, sliding down next to him.

Eddie sniffled viciously and wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

Without a word, Richie shrugged off his coat and handed it to him. Eddie held it in his lap.

“What the fuck, Richie.”

“Yeah, not my best idea. Giving the kid I have a crush on mistletoe for Christmas was an idiot move. I was also gonna give you this after you unwrapped the other one, though.”

Richie pulled a car key from his pocket. Eddie’s mouth dropped open.

“Okay, so it’s not exactly what you think. This is another key to my truck, because I know you love to drive and your mom won’t let you get a car, so I thought, I dunno, this might help. You can use it whenever.” Richie muttered as he pressed the key into Eddie’s waiting hand, shuffling his feet in the frozen dirt as he did.

“And uh. Here’s this.” The mistletoe was also handed to Eddie. “I Thought it was a cute way to tell you. Bev helped me but, I see now it was a bit much. I know just because you like boys doesn’t mean you like me, but I really like you, Eds. You’re brave, so brave, and smart and kind and fucking hilarious. You’re my best friend, and I know I ruined things, and I’m sorry. Could we- Let’s just go back to normal, please Eds?”

Eddie closed his hands around the mistletoe, still staring at it.

He slowly lifted his hand above his head and made eye contact with Richie, brown meeting blue.

“Eddie, wha-“

Eddie surged forward awkwardly, catching Richie’s lips in a kiss. It was wet and cold and all too short, but they both pulled back giddy. Eddie’s hand swiped over the bandaid on Richie’s cheek, and then pulled him closer, smiling. They kissed again, gently, Richie melting into Eddie’s grip on his cheek, sighing contentedly into his warm mouth. Eddie pulled away to grin and wink at him.

“I like you too, idiot. Merry Christmas.”

__________

When they walked back in 20 minutes later holding hands, cheeks pink, hair tussled, and covered in snow, Bill placed 5 dollars into Ben’s waiting hand. 

[beepbeep-losers]

mistletoe

happy holidays all!!!!!! merry christmas eve to those that celebrate!! (and merry christmas to some already lmao). here is a piece of Christmassy, modern au, 15yo reddie fluff for @uhhcanigetabyeler for @it-secretsanta-2018 !!! I hope you enjoy it and that you have a wonderful holiday season! much love ❤❤❤

(warning: I'm on mobile and so I can't put a cut so....long post forgive me)

A fifteen year old Richie Tozier annoyed many people throughout the year, but at the Toziers' holiday party he was doing a really spectacular job of it.

He had brought a few bundles of mistletoe, shoved into his pockets, and was doing his absolute best to try to goad as many people into kissing as possible. He'd already dangled it between Bill and Stan and Bill had turned red and almost punched him. Stan, wearing his Hanukkah sweater and really only there because of the food, had looked bored out of his mind with Richie's antics.

When Richie had shoved it between his parents, he'd made a show of shouting "EWWWWWWW" when Wentworth gave a small peck to Maggie's lips. He confiscated that bundle of misteltoe afterward.

The threat of impending mistletoe had been enough to make Eddie wary any time Richie was near all night. Eddie's crush on Richie was forced to the forefront of his mind with all the stupid kissing, and it was really stressing him out. Plus, what was he even supposed to do if Richie tried to get him to kiss someone else? Eddie didn't like the thought.

The losers club had been at the Toziers', like every twenty-second day of every December since they were eleven, since five that evening. They'd played several rounds of Uno, the final round ending when Stan and Eddie had bickered for ten minutes because Eddie was sure thay Stan had cheated. Their bickering had only ceased when Richie dangled the mistletoe between them and they'd both shoved him so hard they'd been afraid he would fall into the Toziers' Christmas tree and then they'd all be kicked out.

They were up late. They always were at their parties. They'd played their Uno, and their Dirty Santa, and they'd all stuffed themselves with all of Maggie and Went's cooking, and were slumped all over the den's furniture watching How the Grinch Stoel Christmas, which Stan was having a really great time making jokes about. It was putting them all in stitches, anyway, because if anyone could come up with witty and snide jokes it was Stan - especially at the expense of a Christmas movie that he'd watched with them several times.

Eddie wound up leaning against Richie, but that wasn't exactly the most comfortable place to be. Richie kept laughing at Stan's jokes, and he laughed with his entire body and kept jostling him. He kept poking Richie in the ribs to try to get him to quit moving, and maybe to hide that he was really smitten every time he looked up to see tears of laughter in Richie's eyes, and his glasses crooked on his nose, and his grin so big that his cheeks must hurt.

Leaning on Richie got even more distracting after that, and Eddie got restless and stood up.

"Where ya goin', Edsie?" Richie asked immediately, reaching out and grabbing onto his shirt. Eddie batted his hand away, blushing.

"I'm getting a drink," he told him, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "And don't call me that, jackass."

"I'll come with!" Richie said, ignoring any qualms Eddie had with his nicknames, and he popped up and threw his arm around Eddie's shoulders.

Eddie slipped out from under Richie's arm, but didn't complain when Richie followed him into the Toziers' kitchen to find drinks. Richie opened up the fridge and tossed Eddie a pop, then grabbed one for himself. They were both facing the fridge, and didn't notice anyone else in the kitchen, but when they turned around they were met with a loud,

"GOTCHA!"

Beverly was there, beaming a toothy grin at them, and the rest of the losers club peeking into the room from the entry. Dangling from Beverly's fingers right between Eddie and Richie was a sprig of mistletoe.

Eddie could have kicked her right in the shin, but he was frozen. His mouth had dropped open, and he whipped to look at Richie, whose eyes looked even more huge than normal, and whose cheeks and ears and neck were bright red.

"Go on, big shot," Bev said teasingly to Richie, still grinning at them. When Eddie caught her eye she winked at him - winked! Damn her! "Put your money where your mouth is!"

"More like his mouth where his mouth is," Stan piped up, and then snickered at himself.

Eddie turned back to Richie, right as he swooped down. His glasses and nose hit Eddie in the face awkwardly, and Bill told Eddie later that he made a noise a lot like a mouse squeaking right before Richie's lips pressed against his.

It was quick, only a few seconds, but Eddie thought he might turn into a living puddle in the time it took. When Richie pulled away, Eddie had a blush to match Richie's and all the rest of the club were oohing and aahing at them.

"You've had yer fun, now get yerselves outta here!" Richie said loudly at them, in a flustered attempt at an accent.

They filed out after a minute, and Eddie set down his pop on the counter next to them; he'd just realized that his hand was cold. He wiped it on his pants.

"Guess I got what was comin' to me, huh, Eds?" Richie said, and when Eddie looked at him, he actually looked nervous. His smile was lopsided but he looked a little tense.

Eddie nodded at him thoughtfully. "I guess you did. But it was kind of a shit kiss," he added with a surge of confidence. Then he blushed, and grabbed his pop, and rushed back toward the den.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean!" Richie called after him.

Eddie plopped down on the couch, asked himself why the holy hell he had said that, and tried to focus on the movie and not on the fact that Richie was still away. He had popped open his pop and drank a third of it by the time Richie came back.

Richie sat down next to Eddie quietly for several minutes, and there were a few inches between them that made Eddie unreasonably antsy.

Then, after ten minutes, Richie leaned over and planted a kiss on Eddie's cheek. Eddie's eyes widened, and he felt his cheeks redden, and he froze up for only a moment before leaning back into Richie.

Maybe the mistletoe wasn't all that bad overall.

[thelazyeye]

Moving Through the Years With You

Summary:

Richie doesn’t think he’ll ever admit it but he swears he can feel something in the way they’re pressed together. He feels it when they pass notes back and forth during class or when they share the couch during movie nights. It’s in the way Richie helps her with her fashion designs and Bev volunteers to be the test of one of Richie’s new jokes or Voices. It’s laced in every interaction and every thought.

Read it on AO3

This is my secret santa gift for @multi-parker  for the @it-secretsanta-2018. I hope you like it. I might have gone a little overboard but I made sure to include some of the prompts you asked for (warm hats, rosy cheeks!)

I have literally always wanted to write for this pairing so I was super stoked to find out you included them in your ship list! I reall hope you enjoy this, I had tons of fun writing it for you. I'm sorry its so late but better late than never!

Happy holidays, dear!

Perma Tag List:

@tinyarmedtrex @richardtoz @aizeninlefox @reddiepop @chocolatemangoose @jem-carstairs-is-perfection @studpuffin @oldguybones @its-stranger-than-you-think @honeybeehanlon @recycle-byn @thestralskies

[spagreddie]

happy holidays @headssupjd i was your @it-secretsanta-2018 this year! your prompt was midnight ice cream date for reddie and i had a lot of fun making this mood board!

i also went to see Calpurnia friday so i recorded a lil video for you! hope you enjoy! :)

also big thanks to @it-secretsanta-2018 for organizing this whole thing and being so helpful with my questions!

[inthebreadbinwrites]

Ambrosia

Hi! This is my @it-secretsanta-2018 gift for @heyspacecadett :) I hope you have a wonderful holiday season ❤ 

Pairing: Stanlon

Words: 1548

Rating: Gen

Mike Hanlon walked across the street to the pretty flower shop, Maturin Flowers, and took a deep breath. He'd moved to Seattle two weeks ago, after his grandfather had died and he sold the farm. His best friend as a teenager, Ben Hanscom, also lived in Seattle and had gotten him an interview at the quaint shop. He walked inside, where a pretty brunette was sitting at the counter and arranging flowers. She looked up at him and smiled. 

"Hi, how can I help you?" She said in a clear, sweet tone.  

"I'm here for an interview with Bill Denbrough. Uh, twelve o' clock." Her face lit up and she scrambled up to shake his hand. 

"You must be Mike then. I'm Audra Phillips. Ben has told us all so much about you." Mike let a small sigh of relief, some of his anxiety fading. 

A man with dark red hair came through. "Hi, are you Mike?" Mike nodded and extended his hand. "I'm Bill, I'll be interviewing you today." He said, shaking Mike's hand. They walked through to a small room with a desk and two chairs either side. Bill sat down and gestured for Mike to do the same.

"So you know Ben?" He asked. Mike eagerly nodded.

"He was my best friend back in Maine, where we grew up. We mostly lost contact when he moved out here for college though. 

"He says you just moved here from Derry. Why did you move?" Bill asked, writing stuff down on a notepad. 

"My parents died when I was younger and I stayed with my grandpa from then. I stayed to look after him and his farm but when he died I decided to come here and sold up." Mike said honestly. 

Bill gave him a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry about that." Mike nodded. "Do you know a lot about flowers?" 

Mike grinned at him. "Yeah. Our farm supplied meat to the local butcher, but I hated that and I needed some extra money. I started growing a huge flower garden and after I made deliveries I would sell bouquets of flowers. I know how to do vast amounts of arrangements and also I can identify most flowers." Bill looked impressed.

"Can you show me some of your arrangements?" When Mike nodded, he led him through to another room filled with hundreds of flowers and a counter. "Go wild." Bill said with a smile. Mike picked out some beautiful roses in different colors and started to arrange them. When he was finished, his bouquet looked spectacular. He handed it to Bill, who gave him a grin. "When can you start?"

Mike smiled at him. "Tomorrow if you want." Bill nodded and they started to discuss details such as salary. Finally, they stood up and walked to the the main bit of the shop. There were several more people now, as well as Audra.

They all turned to stare at him as he walked through. Bill chuckled at his shocked expression. "Don't worry, not everyone works here." he introduced him to Richie, Eddie and Bev. Mike found out that only Eddie, Bev, Bill and another man, Stanley worked at the shop.  Richie, Ben and Audra only hung around the shop because they were dating people who worked there. Richie and Eddie were together, as well as Ben and Bev and Audra and Bill. Mike chatted with them all for a while and then went home, a happy feeling in his chest.

The next day, he woke up bright and early and drove to his new job.  He parked and went into the shop, the smell hitting him on the way in. He whistled a happy tune, walking into the back where the flowers were kept. A man whipped around when he saw him.

"Jesus fuck!" The man swore, obviously getting a fright. He had dirty blond curly hair, and was wearing a mint green button up with some jeans. "Sorry, you scared me. You must be Mike." He walked up to Mike and shook his hand. "I'm Stanley Uris." He gave Mike a shy smile and he felt his stomach flip. 

"It's nice to meet you, Stanley." They stared into each other's eyes for a few seconds before a loud voice pierced the silence. 

"WHAT'S UP FUCKERS?!" Richie skipped into the room, Eddie following close behind. Stanley rolled his eyes. "Stan the Man, I see you've met Micycle here." He threw an arm around Stan and stage whispered into his ear. "Total eye candy right?" Stan simply punched his arm and Richie went back to Eddie, who gave him a light smack.

After that first encounter, Mike found him working with Stan a lot. Stan knew how to make intricate arrangements which left him amazed. Over the course of the next two months, Mike found himself liking Stan more and more. By that he means he developed  a huge crush. He couldn't help it, Stan matched his personality perfectely. He was smart, funny and sarcastic, not to mention very attractive. 

Mike lamented this to Ben during one of his breaks. Out of all the friends he now had, Mike was still closest to Ben. He and and his childhood best friend were as close as before, if not closer. "I'm pretty sure he feels the same, Mikey." Ben said, taking a bite out of his sandwich. Mike gave him a incredulous look. "You haven't seen the way he looks at you when you're not looking. It's an expression of someone who's whipped." 

Mike paid attention to Stan from there on. He caught on to way Stan looked at him and suddenly, returned feelings didn't seem so unlikely. After a lot of thinking, Mike decided to ask him out. He made a stunning bouquet of Gardenias and attached a note: Go on a date with me? -Mike❤. He knew Stan would understand what the Gardenias meant: secret love, sweet love and joy. He left the bouquet by Stan's car and left for the day. 

When he got to the shop the next day Stan was waiting for him, holding a bouquet of flowers. "Yes. To the date." He said with a smile, passing over the bouquet.

Mike stared at it and grinned. "Ambrosia. Meaning love is reciprocated." He took Stan's hand. "Can I kiss you?" Stan gave a slight nodded and their lips met. They gently kissed, until they heard loud noises coming from the hall.

A week later, after work, Mike took Stanley on their first date. He asked Richie, who said that Stan loved bird watching. They went to a secluded part of the local park, which Mike knew had a lot of birds. He laid out a picnic blanket and they lay down. 

"That's a blue jay." Stan said, passing Mike the binoculars and pointing to a bird in one of the trees. Mike looked at the bird and then passed the binoculars back to Stan, smiling. He looked so relaxed and happy. Their legs were intertwined and Mike had his arm around Stan. 

"You never told me how you met the rest of our friends." Mike said, nestling into him.

"Oh. Richie was my first friend, I met him when I was five. We met Bev when we were nine and it was us three until we got to college. Richie and Eddie started dating, and eventually our two friend groups integrated. We've all been friends ever since." Stanley explained, smiling. Mike told him stories about his childhood with Ben, until it started to get late.

They started to pack up the picnic. Mike looked up and gasped. "Look! It's an apple tree." He gauged the height of the apples. "I'm going to climb up and grab us two for the road." Stan gave him a worried look. 

"Is that a good idea? The branches are pretty high." Mike just kissed his cheek and started climbing. He saw two good looking apples near the top and climbed up higher. He tried grab for them. The branch snapped and he heard Stan scream as he hit the ground. His head swam and when he opened his eyes he found a very worried Stan peering over him. 

"Oh thank fuck. We need to get you to the hospital." Stan helped him up and they drove to the nearest hospital. Mike discovered his leg was broken and he had to get a cast. He had been given a few painkillers and a bed until he was discharged in a few hours. 

Stan came through to the room he was in. "Hey. How are you holding up?" Mike smiled and grabbed his hand.

"Better now you're here." Stan took a seat and kissed his cheek.

"I let the others know what's going on. Sorry our date ended like this." Stan said, frowning. 

Mike squeezed his hand. "Hey, if I get a cute boyfriend out of it, then it's worth it." Stan raised an eyebrow. 

"Is that your way of asking me to be your boyfriend?" Mike gave a nervous nod. "How could I say no to a wounded man." He said with a playful smile. He bent down and kissed Mike.  

Mike had the feeling it would be one of many.

[showtimeben]

Mixcommunication, or a Very Happy Accident

Here’s my @it-secretsanta-2018 gift for @areyoureddieforit ! I hope you enjoy it, darling, and happy holidays <3

Summary: Eddie can’t figure out what to get Richie for Christmas. Little did he know, the answer was right there all along.

Read it on ao3 here x

Eddie Kaspbrak had a problem. In the grand scheme, it wasn’t that big of a problem, but to him it very much was. It wasn’t life threatening by any means, but in his mind a friendship was at stake. The thing was, he couldn’t figure out what to get his best friend for Christmas to save his life.

He had already gotten presents for the rest of his friends; they were much easier. He got a small cardinal ornament for Stan (though he was Jewish, he still enjoyed a holiday gift exchange with his friends), a set of crystals for Bev, an ink and quill set for Bill, a knit sweater for Mike, and a new history book for Ben. He had been able to pick those out easily. As soon as he saw them, he knew they were right for his friends.

However, no matter how much he looked, he couldn’t find anything good enough for Richie. He found tons of stuff that he would like, but none of it seemed like it was right. He could get him a new record, or a colorful shirt that wasn’t completely hideous, but it wasn’t good enough for him. He wanted to get Richie something special. He needed to get him something special.

As his mother was out of the house for the day, he set out for another day of shopping. He bundled up in his winter coat and a nice warm scarf and pulled his hat over his chocolate brown waves, covering the rosy tips of his ears. It was a chilly day in Derry, snowfall impending by the looks of the gray clouds in the sky.

He got into his car, a ‘67 ford mustang that had belonged to his father. It had taken a lot of convincing for his mother to allow him to use get his license, but when he threatened to try and leave, again, she let him take the test. It was even harder to get her to let him use the car, so he usually only drove it when she wasn’t there to stop him.

He made his way downtown, somehow finding a parking spot. He got out and put quarters in the meter, buying himself an hour of shopping. He hoped that would be enough, since he was only shopping for one person. However, if history repeated itself, he would find nothing yet again. He walked down the street, peering through shop windows.

He decided to stop in a clothing shop, seeing some shirts that Richie might like. He looked through the racks, softly humming along to the music playing overhead. A few shirts were considered, but he still felt as if it wasn’t a good enough gift for him.

A heavy sigh fell from his lips as he left the shop empty handed, resigned to shop some more. He stopped inside a music shop next, knowing Richie would be a fan of a new cassette or record. He grinned as he remembered Richie talking about an album he had wanted and bounded over to the section it should be in. His eyes scanned over the rows, his finger moving along with them. He paused once he found the spot it should be in, only to find it empty.

“Fuck,” he whispered to himself, disappointment seeping into him from having the perfect gift, only to have it snatched from under his fingertips. He didn’t let himself lose hope completely yet, seeing as there was still a week until their Christmas Eve gift exchange. He asked the worker when they would be restocked, only to have the flame from the candle of hope burning within him blown out yet again.

He shuffled out of the shop dejectedly, the news that the album wouldn’t be back in the store until after Christmas bouncing around his head. Sure he could tell Richie that he had to get his present late, but it just wouldn’t be the same. He sighed as he noticed the time on his watch, realizing how long he had already spent shopping already. He walked back to his car, deciding to just go home now rather than refill the meter and shop more.

He walked inside as he got home, taking off his shoes and hanging his coat. He gave his mother a vague answer when she asked where he had been, practically challenging her with his eyes to try and question him further. He had grown a lot more confidence against her since he was young, having realized how she had manipulated him and bent him to her will.

He went up to his bedroom, shutting his door. He decided to work on some homework, having nothing better to do. He worked in silence for a few minutes before deciding he needed some music and walking over to his radio. He pulled open his drawer, smiling slightly at the sight of the many mixtapes he had been given from Richie. He shuffled through them, finding his favorite and popping it into the slot.

That was when it hit him; a mixtape! That would be the perfect gift for Richie. The taller boy often loved to make mixtapes for his friends, Eddie especially. And as much as he liked to deny it and claim he put random songs together, Eddie knew each tape had a story. Making his own mixtape for the other boy would be perfect to show him how much he truly cared about him.

He pressed play on the radio, in much higher spirits than he had been mere minutes earlier. He went back to doing his homework, singing along off key to the songs Richie had handpicked. He half focused on the chemistry work, much too focused on building a soundtrack in his head.

He woke up early the next morning, a smile already on his cheeks. He hopped out of bed, taking a quick shower before getting dressed to go out. He ate breakfast with his mother, buttering her up before asking if he could go out again. She reluctantly let him go, but not without warnings of the ‘dangers’ of the outside world. He resisted rolling his eyes, simply nodding along with a promise to be careful.

He drove back downtown, walking into the music shop from the day before. He got himself a couple of blank tapes, deciding it would be better to have more just in case. He also got himself a tape recorder, knowing from Richie’s rambling he would need one to create the mixtape. He bought the items with a smile, not even blinking at the price as he was too excited.

He drove himself back home, locking himself in his room once he got there. He set up his radio, taking a while to figure out how to attach the tape recorder to it. Once he had it figured out, he turned to Richie’s favorite radio station. He sat at his desk for hours, recording songs that he knew Richie liked. It took him awhile to figure out, having to rewind and re-record many times. Once he was finally happy with it he grabbed a marker, doodling all over it.

He looked back up as he heard a love song coming on, a light blush coming to his tanned cheeks. He glanced back to his bag from earlier, biting his lip before pulling out the extra tape he had bought. He put Richie’s to the side and put the new one into the recorder. He sat waiting for another love song to come on, which didn’t take all that long, before starting to record it.

He sat like that until late evening, changing the station a few times until he had filled it up with cheesy love songs including I Wanna Dance With Somebody and I Want to Know What Love Is. He pulled it out of the recorder, uncapping his marker and writing on the back for him. He left it at that and set it to the side, still blushing lightly.

He had no intention of actually giving the second mixtape to Richie, the thought of the other boy finding out about his true feelings absolutely mortifying to Eddie. Because of that, it sat in a drawer of his desk until Christmas Eve, next to the one he actually planned to give to Richie.

He didn’t realize he had forgotten to wrap Richie’s gift until the morning of the get together, causing him to scramble around the house looking for present wrapping supplies. He managed to find a small gift bag and some tissue paper and ran back up to his room, throwing them together haphazardly. He pulled open his drawer, grabbing the tape and tossing it in the bag carefully. However, unbeknownst to him, he had managed to grab both tapes.

He didn’t realize this as he grabbed the other, previously wrapped gifts, carrying them down to his car and putting them in the backseat. He got in and drove off to Bill’s house, excitement thrumming through him at the thought of how his friends would react to his gifts.

He parked outside of Bill’s house, getting out and facing the cold. He took his presents out of the backseat before locking the car and going up to the house. He knocked on the door, balancing the gifts as well as he could. He grinned at Bill as he opened it, walking into the warmth the house provided.

He said a hello to everybody, setting the presents down before taking off his shoes and coat. He walked into the living room, sitting on his favorite armchair and curling up. The losers all talked for a while, not as concerned about presents as they were with simply enjoying each others company.

Once it finally became present time, Eddie watched along nervously as everyone opened their gifts. Everyone had enjoyed theirs so far, seeing as they had known each other for years it was easy to know what they would like. He bit his lip when it was Richie’s turn to open his present, not sure how he’d react.

He watched Richie reach his hand into the bag, pulling out only one of the tapes. He saw his eyes grow wide and his lips stretch into a goofy grin- one which showed off his colorful braces. Richie flipped over the tape in his hands, a look of happiness and disbelief on his face.

“Aww, Eds! This better not just be one of mine repurposed!” He teased.

Eddie couldn’t help the light blush that rose to his cheeks, though he picked up a small throw pillow and did exactly that- threw it at him. “Oh, fuck off! Of course I didn’t regift, you asshole. And don’t call me Eds.”

Richie laughed, getting cut off when the pillow hit him square in the face. “Okay, okay! Jeez, no need for violence, Señor!”

Eddie rolled his eyes, though he still wasn’t too sure how Richie felt about it. “You don’t have to like, listen to it if you don’t want.” He said with a shrug, trying to backpedal slightly.

Richie scoffed, shaking his head. “Oh, please! Of course I’ll give it a listen, governor!” He said, putting on one of his awful British accents.

This forced a laugh out of Eddie as he nodded, shooting Richie a grin. The other losers shared a knowing look but didn’t say anything, not wanting to embarrass the two boys.

Eddie didn’t realize his mistake for a few days. As far as he knew, the love mix was still tucked neatly into his drawer. He was blissfully unaware of its actual location until he decided to listen to it one night while he was pining particularly hard. He pulled open the drawer it was hidden in, eyebrows furrowing in confusion as he didn’t see it. He figured he had simply put it in another drawer and went to open another.

However, no matter how many drawers he pulled out and bags he looked through, the mixtape was nowhere to be found. He searched every inch of his room, grabbing his inhaler when he couldn’t find it anywhere. He took a couple puffs of the air, the action helping him calm back down.

Physically, the inhaler didn’t actually do anything. He had found out long ago that he didn’t actually have asthma, and it was all just another one of his mother’s schemes. Psychologically, however, it provided a great comfort to him. It may not actually do anything to settle his breathing, but the familiarity of it always helped bring him back down to earth.

He laid down on his bed, picking at his nails anxiously. He came to the obvious conclusion that Richie had his mixtape, as he knew his mom didn’t snoop through his room anymore. He couldn’t believe how stupid he had been. How did he manage to give Richie the one thing he said he would never?

He flipped over on his bed, burying his face in his pillow and muffling a frustrated scream into it. He felt overcome by emotions, the worst not being embarrassment like one might assume. He was mostly upset at the thought of how Richie would react, and if he would lose his best friend because of it.

He sighed as he turned back over, trying to push it to the back of his mind. Richie wouldn’t drop him over this. Besides, he could probably just play it off as a joke and get away with never talking about it again.

He somehow avoided seeing Richie for the rest of the holiday break, coming up with excuses as to why he couldn’t every time he tried. He felt bad, but he needed time to come up with what he would say if Richie tried to confront him about it.

By the time school came around, he felt he was sufficiently prepared for whatever was to come. (He wasn’t.) He got to school a bit later than usual, having slept in longer than he should have. He parked his car in the lot before rushing into the school, making his way to his locker.

He twisted the lock easily, muscle memory helping him unlock it within seconds. He pulled it open, furrowing his eyebrows as he saw something fall down and bounce against the floor gently. He crouched down, picking up what he now saw to be a cassette tape.

He felt his heart pumping in his chest as he picked it up, wiping his palms on his jeans from his nerves. He looked it over, seeing nothing on it but the words Eddie, my love sharpied onto it. That showed him that it was from Richie, as he was the only person to ever call him that.

He flipped it over in his hands a few times, finding nothing else written on it. He didn’t even question how Richie got into his locker, sure he had known his combination for ages now. He slipped off his backpack and put it in the front pocket of it, being careful that it wouldn’t be crushed. He tried not to think it would be Richie turning him down, as it could really be anything when it came to Richie. He simply grabbed his books and walked to his history class, talking to Stan for the few minutes they had before class started.

He went through his day like normal, though his mind kept wandering back to the tape sitting in his locker. He saw Richie for the first time in days, but since the other teen didn’t bring up the tape, neither did he. They joked around like usual, something which left Eddie immensely relieved. Clearly Richie had listened to the tape, but by the way he was acting he didn’t seem to mind all that much.

Eddie couldn’t get out of class quick enough once the final bell finally rang. He jumped out of his seat and practically ran to his locker, his smaller frame making it easy to weave through the sea of students. He sighed in relief once he reached it, shoving his books into his bag haphazardly. He made his way to his car, getting in and carefully driving home.

He said a quick hello to his mother once he got inside, though took no time in running up to his room. He shut the door behind him before walking over to his desk, the boombox still sitting on top of it. He was suddenly nervous again, the anticipation over what it could be being taken over by his worries.

He took a deep breath before unzipping his bag, pulling the small tape out of it. He pushed it into the slot, closing it with a small click. He pressed play, relaxing a bit once music started to play. The mixtape was not unlike his own, filled with some love songs. It had Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley slipped in there, considering that was Richie’s favorite song at the moment.

He was smiling giddily by the end, hope blooming in his chest once more. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he heard something coming from the radio, having thought the tape was finished. After a second of shuffling noises he heard someone clear their throat, and then Richie’s voice crackling through the speakers.

How the fuck do you work this thing? Oh! There we go. Uh- hey there Eds. Bet you’re wondering what this cheese fest of a mixtape was. Well, I-uh, I listened to your second mixtape. I wasn’t sure if you meant to give it to me or whatever, but I listened anyways. Pretty strong signals you’re sending there, my guy. So uh, I’m not that great at words, so I figured I’d make you this tape to say I felt the same or whatever. And if that tape was meant for someone else just pretend this never happened, yeah? Thanks for the gift, Eddie, my love.

Eddie’s eyes were as wide as saucers by the time Richie had finished speaking, and a wide smile was tugging on his lips. Richie liked him back, Richie liked him. He could hardly believe it. But it was true, clearly, He took a moment to process before jumping back up, grabbing his car keys and rushing down the stairs. He told his mom he was going out, slipping on his shoes and coat and leaving before she had any time to protest.

He drove to Richie’s house, tapping on the steering wheel anxiously. He parked outside of his house, taking a deep breath to steady himself before getting out of the car. He noticed that his parents weren’t home, figuring they were both at work still. He didn’t bother knocking, he never did at Richie’s house. He stalked up the stairs before he could back out, walking over to Richie’s closed bedroom door.

He pushed it open, just now hearing Richie listening to the mixtape that he made him. Richie jumped slightly as Eddie burst in, having not even heard him walk into the house. He recovered after a moment, giving him an easy grin.

“Oh, hey Eds. Couldn’t stay away for lo-,”

“Did you mean it?” Eddie blurted out, effectively cutting him off. “What you said on the tape, did you mean it?”

Richie’s eyes widened slightly, a light blush taking over his cheeks and making his freckles more pronounced.”Oh,” he breathed out. “I mean, yeah. I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t.” He finished with a shrug.

Eddie nodded slowly, taking a moment to watch Richie carefully. The boy looked more vulnerable than he had ever seen him. Richie almost never let his true emotions show, usually hiding them behind a crude joke and obnoxious laugh.

The last time Eddie had seen him like that was when they were both 15 and Eddie had stayed over Richie’s house for a sleepover. It was about 2am when Richie spoke up, asking Eddie if he was still awake. He had nervously admit that he felt the same way about boys that he felt about girls that night, nerves clearly pouring from him as he awaited his friend’s reaction.

Eddie had of course accepted him, it would be very hypocritical if he hadn’t. Even after his friend’s confession, Eddie could never muster up the courage to tell him that he himself was gay. Well, until now it seemed.

Richie had started to fidget nervously, seeing as Eddie had yet to say anything more. Eddie finally snapped out of his stupor, walking back over to Richie. He didn’t say anything as he cupped his cheeks, taking a deep breath before shutting his eyes tightly and pressing their lips together.

Richie sat frozen in shock for a moment, making Eddie question whether or not he had made the right decision or not. His worry melted away as Richie finally responded, moving his lips against Eddie’s.

The kiss was awkward, as many first kisses are. Richie’s braces snagged against Eddie’s lip after a moment, making them both laugh softly as they parted. Eddie let his eyes flutter open again, pink lips stretched into a shy smile as he looked down at Richie on the bed.

“I guess I like you too, Trashmouth.”

Richie let out a laugh, smiling with his teeth and showing off the metal brackets proudly. “Eddie Spaghetti likes me,” he teased, lisping around the words slightly and drawing out the ‘e’ in me.

Eddie rolled his eyes, deciding to quiet Richie down by kissing him again. Things wouldn’t be perfect, and they sure as hell wouldn’t be easy, but they would make it work. They would work out the logistics later, for now they were simply content to share each others company (along with a few more kisses). And to think, all of this happened through a mistakenly given mixtape. Maybe Bob Ross was right after all. There’s no mistakes, just happy accidents.

[bimbadoll]

Winter War

Winter war

For: @fleeuriart @it-secretsanta-2018

“I think you’re a little too invested in these snowBALLS”

“Beep Beep Richie!”

Richie throws his head back in laughter as he watches Stan’s eyebrows furrow in disgust. They were currently situated in front of a fireplace in a cottage that they rented for break. It was all Stan’s idea. The idea itself was to have a nice getaway from school and just focus on themselves. He asked the others to come with, but they all had other plans. Ben and Beverly went down to Portland to stay with her aunt , while Mike was very apologetic about having to stay in Derry with his grandparents. “So, this trip is just for the gays” Richie had laughed. At first they were sad that they couldn’t all be together at once but quickly found out that being together was actually pretty fun. Richie and Eddie were never the type to have double dates, same goes for Stan and Bill, but with all the freedom they had. 

They could do a fuck-ton of damage.And by damage they mean pranks. Since they walked through the door pranks have become second nature. However, it was just between couples, until now. 

Stan pranked Bill by switching the sugar with salt, and that morning he got a _sweet _surprise in the form of bitter coffee.

Bill got him back by putting candy in their shower head. Once Stan got out the shower he was sticky from head to toe. “You should’ve seen his face when the towel kept leaving pellets on his arm!” Bill told Richie. “Wow, I honestly expected you to be an amateur at pranks but you’ve proved me wrong big bill” he responds giving him a high five. Eddie watched this happen and proceeded to tell Richie if he ever did that to him that he’d “rip off his balls and feed them to his mother.”

Do you really put anything past Trashmouth Tozier?

That same night Richie put peanut butter in Eddie’s shoes to make it look like some dog shitted in them. Richie was in the “doghouse” . Eddie completely shut him out for about 6 hours, the only reason that it wasn’t the whole trip is because Richie kept whining-definitely not because he missed his trashmouth- and pleading him for attention. So he allowed himself to talk to Richie only to pull the “cruelest prank ever” as Richie calls it.

It wasn't even a bad prank. All Eddie did was text "hey" to his ex, which was a fake number. Then Richie started spiraling saying "everyone wants his plate of spaghetti" and different variations of the phrase. It was a great form of entertainment for the boys.

“Take this seriously. If this is gonna work we have to stay focused.”

“AYE-AYE CAPTAIN URIS” Richie speaks in a sailor accent. Stan continued to work on the list as if Richie had said nothing. “This prank is going to put everybody to shame,” Richie counters. Stan shakes his head and huffs out what could be a laugh, but Richie sees it as a positive reaction either way.

The prank they were doing was Something Richie came up with. Stan hesitated at first because it seemed cruel, but Richie’s constant persuasion put him at ease of the situation. There was no turning back now.

~

It was around 7:00am when they started stalking towards Eddie’s room. Stan was 2 feet away from the door when he looked down and saw a gangly-limbed Richie Tozier crawling a few paces behind him. “What the fuck are you doing?” Stan harshly whispered. Richie just looked at him and put a finger to his mouth teasingly. 

Stan rolled his eyes. Now that he was at the door he slowly moved his arm toward the doorknob and twisted lightly and cautiously. At this point Richie was standing and taking the venture seriously. Eddie was in bed with the sheets covering half his face. The freckles on his cheeks were visible and prominent with a shiny glow from the sun. It took everything in Richie to not cue at how beautiful his boyfriend looked. Stan looked at him with a warning look, and Richie just nodded silently. 

Stan had the bucket of cold water in his hands and slowly walked over to Eddie’s sleeping form. He didn’t stir nor looked like he was awake in the slightest. Richie was holding back laughter with his hand over his mouth, but you could see the glint of fear in his eyes. Stan looked at Richie one more time before confirming that they were actually doing this.

‘No turning back’ Stan thought. The excitement was getting to him. Adrenaline coursed through his veins all the way down to his arms and drenched Eddie Kaspbrak in cold water. 

Eddie woke up with flailing limbs, and his breath heaving. Stan and Richie saw him just stand there with a calculating look, and you can see that once he connected the dots (from Stan holding an Empty bucket, and Richie just laughing while peaking through his long fingers).  Eddie looked up at Richie “you stuPID ASSHO-”

“There’s a hot bath waiting for you” Richie speaks with urgency, cutting Eddie off mid yell. His arms were stretched out in front of his body as if waiting for a blow.

Eddie looks at him with a one eyebrow raised as if to say ‘we’ll finish this later’. He gets out of the soaked bed and stomps over to the connected bathroom, not before pinching Richie hard on the shoulder. He yelps in pain before rotating his head to pout at Eddie, but he was already secluded in the bathroom.

“Time to wake up Bill”

Stan laughs “I’m not doing this prank on Bill.” Richie looks at Stan with an unimpressed look. ‘He cant be serious’ he thinks. All Stan does is obnoxiously laugh on his way out the door.

That’s when it sinks in that Stan was not joking.

“YOU ASSHOLE!”