Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Stan was four chapters into Bill’s last book of what they were all calling the Pre-IT Returned phase when the phone rang. At first, he was willing to ignore it. Say what you want about Bill, and they all did because that’s just how they rolled, but he could write a damn good story… until the end. Then it just got all weird and kind of awful (okay, really awful). But they were hoping that with the return of their memories and friendship that his streak would be over. At the very least, Mike was with him and would tell him when his endings sucked in a much nicer way than any of them, minus Ben could manage. So there was that. This book was the hopeful end of an era. And it was damned entertaining. 

But back to the phone call, it was well past midnight. No one in their right mind would be calling him at this time. The only one who would call this damn late was Richie and he was supposed to be cuddling (he refused to think of either of them doing anything more than cuddling) with Eddie right about now. So Stan didn’t bother to even glance at the phone. The phone stopped ringing as it finally switched to voicemail. Stan shrugged and kept reading. Not a minute later, it rang again. He felt a sudden shiver run down his spine that had nothing to do with the air conditioner that Patty insisted on blasting even when it was below 60 degrees. It was the chill he felt when something was off with Richie. 

Of all the Losers, Richie and Stan had known each other for the longest time. They met when they were three years old. Stan took one look at the hyperactive, utterly reckless, four-month younger toddler and decided it was his life’s mission to keep the idiot alive. Two years later he added another reckless moron who had entirely too much heart and courage with absolutely no damn sense and a hypochondriac livewire goblin to the people he cared about. To be fair, the goblin and the reckless moron were a set pair like he and Richie. Then Richie met aforementioned goblin became surgically attached at the hip and suddenly both groups were combined. Two and two became four and eventually, they were seven with the addition of the too sweet for his own good new kid, a fiery redhead, and the quiet home-schooled farm kid. 

Stan loved them all so damn much and it still puzzled him that he was able to make it for twenty years without them. They were his family. All of them were a part of him that he couldn’t bear to lose. But it was different with Richie. Richie, Richie was in his blood. They were more than just family. Richie was his hetero life partner that was also gay. So whenever he felt that chill, he knew something wasn’t right. 

He glanced down at the phone and frowned seeing Moron #1 with Richie’s beaming face flashed on his screen. That wasn’t right. It was well after midnight and Stan knew that the couple had plans. Eddie’s divorce was finalized today and Richie planned on celebrating by informing him that they could stay in New York. It had been a source of tension for the couple while they sorted through the mess that was Eddie’s marriage. It was true that while Eddie was more than willing to end his marriage, he actually liked his job and the life he had in New York. Richie only had his job tying him to LA. And now with a brand new, non-homophobic manager (thanks, Bill) based in New York, that was no longer an issue. He could work right out of New York. 

So they were getting what they wanted. Eddie got to stay in New York and be with Richie. And Richie got to work on his own material and be with Eddie. He was even looking into apartments not far from where Bev and Ben were settling down. So why was his Richie sense going off while the man himself called him after midnight? 

“Rich?” Stan asked, picking up the phone right before it went to voicemail again. There was a heavy silence on the other end. “Hey, Rich, it’s me. What’s wrong?”

“It’s over.” 

The chill was back. “What’s over?” 

“Me and Eddie,” Richie drawled, taking another very long and deliberate pause. Stan’s brow furrowed as he tried to make out the sounds he was hearing. It sounded like… 

“Are you drinking?”

“Champagne,” Richie confirmed, burping loudly in the process. “I got it to celebrate. I’m so fucking stupid. No wonder he left me.”

“Hey, you’re not stupid. Tell me what happened. Why is it over?”

Richie sniffled. “I told him I was moving to New York for him and he got so… he got so mad. He just started yelling. And then I started yelling. And then…”

“And then what, Rich?” 

Stan wanted the world to know that he adored Eddie. Eddie was one of his best friends and he would die for the man if he had to. He knew that Eddie loved Richie and did damn near die for him and would do it all over again. That being said if Eddie did anything to irrevocably damage the admittedly limited progress made on rebuilding the mess that Richie had become without the Losers in his life, Stan wouldn’t hesitate to... do something. He wasn’t sure what just yet but it would be… something. 

“He left,” Richie finally said, his voice cracking. “He just walked out. He didn’t say he would be back. And I don’t think he’s coming back. Why would he? Wouldn’t be the first and he’s clearly not…”

“Rich, hey, stop that. I know that this has a lot to do with your parents. But they’re not Eddie. And there’s no way that Eddie left you, okay? He divorced his wife for you.”

“He divorced his wife because she was toxic and ruining his life,” Richie replied back, voice flat. He took another audible swing of his drink. “He made it perfectly clear that it had nothing to do with me.”

Stan sighed. How the hell did a night that was supposed to be so happy turn out this awful? Oh, right. The two most dramatic people in the Losers Club were dating. That’s how. And how was he supposed to fix it with a clearly drunk Richie? Sober Richie was self-deprecating as fuck but drunk Richie made his sober self seem like a dream. This would be so much easier if Stan could just be there. Richie always did respond better to touch. But all Stan could do was talk down the pending panic attack from a distance. He could try and get Bev to get over there but really it was best to keep this to as few Losers as possible. 

He knew Eddie would likely call Bill but he was literally the worst person to get advice from pretty much always even with Mike chiming in so Stan didn’t see that conversation lasting long. And honestly, Stan didn’t want to get Bev involved. She was in overprotective Mama Bear mode over Richie ever since his former manager shot down his ideas about writing his own material and coming out in the worst possible way. Seriously, it was bordering on a hate crime level of awful. Any threat against Richie was met with all the wrath of a hot-tempered forty-year-old woman. So, a lot. The last thing any of the Losers needed was Bev squaring up against Eddie because of a perceived slight against Richie. Definitely leaving that one alone. 

Stan sighed, knowing he was pretty much dealing with this on his own and reached for his Bluetooth. 

“Hey, Rich? I need you to hold on for a second. I’m switching to Bluetooth, okay?”

Richie didn’t reply so much as sniffle loudly and make some noise that Stan took for consent. He connected the device and felt his heartbreak as his best friend’s pain came through in crystal clear HD sound. He wished he was there. Everything in him longed to wrap his giant of a best friend in a hug and hold him until Eddie pulled his head out of his ass and came back. But he couldn’t. Because Richie was in New York and Stan was in Atlanta. 

But he could do the next best thing. He opened his messages, quickly finding Eddie’s near the top of the screen. Stan hesitated for a moment. He hated getting in the middle of any fight between any of the Losers but it was particularly rough when it was these two. Because he knew how much this relationship meant to both of them. But their childhoods really did a number on them and suddenly remembering that was bound to have some effect. He knew that Eddie would never intentionally hurt Richie. So that’s why he had to approach this tactfully and with loving support. 

Me

What the fuck is going on with you and the other idiot?!

He winced. That could’ve gone a lot smoother. But oh well, it was done. And read. He figured Eddie’s phone wouldn’t be too far from him. 

Moron #2

Can you not? I already got gently chastised by Bill and Mike by proxy.

Me

I’m not Mom and Dad, I’m not gonna reprimand you… just tell me what happened so I can try and fix it

Three dots appeared on the screen. Stan bit his bottom lip as he waited to hear from the sober one what happened. But it was taking too long. It would be much easier if he could just call. But there was no way he was leaving Richie even more alone than he already was. Wait, the other end of the line had been quiet for far too long. “Rich?”

“I’m…” Richie trailed off and all he heard was retching. Stan flinched. There was a reason Richie tended not to drink when he was in a bad mood. He was already prone to emotional vomiting as it was. Add alcohol in the mix and well… 

“It’s okay, Rich. Just let it out. I’m here,” Stan murmured more nonsensical assurances until finally, he felt his phone vibrate indicating that Eddie had finally replied back. 

Moron #2

Nothing happened. Okay, so obviously something happened. He’s moving to New York. For me. Like what the fuck?! He has a life, Stan. A fucking career! And he’s just going to throw it all away? For me? A hypochondriac asshole who couldn’t even admit that he has a boyfriend in his divorce proceedings even though they already know. I don’t deserve him. And he was so happy. Like I’m worth any of this. And I got so mad and I yelled at him. Then I said some shit. He said some shit and I left before I could say some more shit.

Stan rolled his eyes. These two were going to be the death of him. Really? He should’ve known it was going to be something like this. There were days when he wished he could try and find Richie's parents and punch them in the face regardless of how old they were. He would totally throw hands with a couple of senior citizens. It wouldn't do a damn thing to erase the years of insecurities they let fester in their son when he was growing up but it would be a hell of a lot easier than dragging Sonia Kaspbrak back from hell. Stan sincerely hoped she was rotting right alongside Pennywise as she deserved. 

Me

Eddie, I love you. But you’re an idiot.

Moron #2

You always take his side!

Me

There aren’t any sides to take! You did something dumb. He did something dumb and here we are. Wait, where are you?

Moron #2

..... on a bench at the park across the street from the hotel.

Stan rolled his eyes again. He knew the idiot didn’t go very far. Richie and Eddie had a gravitational field that they operated under. They never strayed too far from each other because of it. And that was good because one, it was winter and that idiot didn’t need to be wandering the streets and two, he was closer to the other idiot and he could fix it all. But let the record show that they were both idiots. 

Me

Dude, go back upstairs.

Moron #2

Why? What’s the point?! He’s better off without me. He’s probably planning a flight back to LA where he had a life. 

Me

I’m on the phone with him right now. He’s been throwing up for the past five minutes and drinking for way longer than that. He’s not okay, Eds. He's not okay without you.

Moron #2

He’s drinking? He’s throwing up?

Me

Remember when his parents used to get mad at him when we were kids? They wouldn’t hit him when they were mad at him or anything like that. They would just yell at him and then…

Moron #2

Leave… they would just yell and leave him… sometimes they would just ignore him for days… oh god!

Me

Yeah, you remember what that did to him

Moron #2

Oh, shit. He must think… I mean I would never… I don’t want to lose him. I just had to go. I didn’t want to hurt him!

Stan resisted the urge to point out that by leaving that’s exactly what he did because Stan knew that Eddie was hurting too. Richie and Eddie made sense as a couple but that didn’t mean this relationship was easy for either one of them. They both had so much repressed shit to deal with. 

Me

Eds, just go upstairs. Trust me, he just needs you tonight. You two can work on everything else later. Okay?

There were no more dots and Stan was worried. Worried that Eddie would let the insecurities that prompted him to start this whole thing in the first place drive him further away from their friend. But thankfully, that was all shelved as he heard Eddie’s voice coming through the phone. He went home. Thank god. He heard Eddie crooning something to Richie, who was mumbling something unintelligible but probably depressing as hell. 

“Hey, I got him. He’s okay, Stan. I’m going to call you back in a bit.”

“Okay, thanks, Eddie.” 

“No, thank you. Love you, Stan.”  

“I love you too. Take care of our guy.”

“Always.”  

Eddie hung up and Stan let out a deep sigh. He didn’t mind being the one they called when in a crisis, it only bothered him that he couldn’t physically be there. He wanted nothing more than to see his best friend and hug him until he was okay again but he couldn’t. He was in Atlanta and Richie was in New York. It was closer than LA but it still seemed so painfully far away in moments like this. 

And it was more than that. He felt it in his heart every time he saw a picture of any of them together. He was the only Loser that was alone. Bev and Ben and now Richie and Eddie were all in New York. Bill joined Mike on his road trip around the country as they tried to work on what their relationship was exactly. So they were all together. And then there was Stan. Sure they made Patty an honorary Loser but it wasn’t the same. 

“Stan, baby, you okay?” Patty asked, drawing him out of his thoughts. 

He looked up to meet his wife’s concerned gaze. He mustered a weak smile and patted the side of the armchair he was sitting on. She took the hint and draped herself on the side so that she could pull him into her arms. He sighed settling into her warmth. 

“Another nightmare?”

“No, it was Richie. He and Eddie had a fight. They’re okay now I think. Or they’ll be okay in the morning when Richie sobers up and Eddie gets out of his own damn head.”

“With those two, that’s easier said than done. But they love each other and that’s honestly all they need. They’ll be okay,” Patty hummed, kissing his forehead. “But you’re not. What are you thinking so hard about?”

He didn’t know how to answer that. Was he really going to tell his wonderful, patient and supportive wife that he was moping because he missed the friends that he forgot for over twenty years? That now that he had them back, he missed them down to his marrow. That he wanted to move to New York so he could be close to at least four of them. No, he couldn't do that. They had a life in Georgia. A good one. And Patty had already sacrificed so much just being married to him. He couldn’t be that selfish. 

“What do you think about moving to New York?” Stan asked without giving himself permission. He cringed. Apparently, he could be that selfish. Patty’s eyes widened in surprise for a split second before she broke down in adorable laughter and broke into what was either a victory dance or some kind of mating ritual. His wife was freaking weird. Stan frowned. “Did I miss something? What’s so funny?”

“Mike and Bev totally owe me money!” Patty said, around another peal of laughter. She stood and crossed the room to his desk. She pulled out several pieces of paper before climbing back on the chair. 

Stan was briefly confused as she handed the slips to him but that faded as he realized that they were all real estate listings. All brownstone homes in the same Harlem neighborhood that Richie, Eddie, Bev, and Ben would be living in. Well, the same neighborhood once Eddie pulled his head out of his ass and got out of his own way. 

“I don’t understand. What is all this? And why do Mike and Bev owe you money?” 

“They really thought you were going to hold out until at least next year. I knew you would cave before the end of the year,” Patty grinned, looking so smug that Stan couldn’t help but be a little proud even though he had no idea what was happening. “Admittedly, I was getting a little nervous. It’s nearly November. I really thought I was going to have to pay up. I was a day away from enlisting Richie. And look, he helped and didn’t even know it. I'll split the winnings with him. It's only fair.” 

Stan shook his head, looking down at the papers in his hand. The solution to his problems was in his hand and he couldn’t begin to wrap his head around it. Patty was okay with uprooting their life here and moving to the big city. Not only was she just okay with, but she was also making bets on how soon it could happen. He was… 

“You’re really okay with this? You’re not upset?” 

“Stanley, why would I be upset about something that was clearly my idea?” 

“Not that… you’re not bothered by the fact that I suddenly remembered my codependent relationship with six people who are not you?” 

Patty snorted. “Is it a little strange? Yeah, I guess. But Stan, I love you and I know you love me. And I’ve always thought that something was missing when it came to you. We were happy before but our life has been so much better lately and that’s because you’re whole now. And those six other people who aren’t me are a huge part of that. Why would I ever be bothered by that?” she ran her hand through his hair. “Besides, I love them too because they make you whole and because of who they are. And eventually, in some way, we’re going to start a family. It would be nice for our kids to be around their aunts and uncles. That’s free babysitting, babe!” 

Stan laughed, pulling her close. “God, I love you. You know that?” 

“I do,” she giggled, kissing him slowly. “Love you too.” She moved the papers out of his hand and onto the coffee table behind them before sliding onto his lap. “Want to start working on that family?” 

“Oh my god, you’re ridiculous. This is why you and Richie get along so well!” 

“That wasn’t a no,” Patty said, nipping her way down his neck. He laughed again. 

“Oh, that was definitely not a no.” 

Hours later, he and Patty are tangled together in their bed when his phone vibrates on the end table. He reached over and wasn’t surprised to see a text from Eddie. It was a single image. He opened it with a smile to find Eddie and Richie tangled together similarly on the couch. For all that Richie was a giant human being who taunted Eddie for his height, he enjoyed curling up on his much smaller boyfriend and being held. In the picture, he was lying on Eddie’s chest knocked out but looking far more peaceful than he sounded a few hours ago. There was even a patch of drool forming on Eddie’s sleep shirt. It said a lot about the progress they made as a couple that Eddie wasn’t even annoyed. He was instead smiling softly at the camera no doubt as he took the shot. 

Stan grinned and sent back a heart eyes emoji before setting his phone back on the end table and cuddling up with his wife. All was well for now. And that was enough. 

Chapter Text

Richie was exhausted but slightly still on a high. That’s the only reason he was still awake when his phone rang. He just got home from a very successful test run of some of his new material. It was a secret pop up show so it wasn’t a lot of people but the ones who were there were very receptive. He wasn’t sure how they were going to handle his coming out but so far it seemed like his career wasn’t dead in the water. 

Bev was the only one of the Losers who could make it since both Eddie and Ben had to work early in the morning. That was fine as the wonderful Ms. Marsh and his equally wonderful new manager both treated Richie to multiple shots to commemorate his triumphant return to the stage. So, he was on a weird high from adrenaline, way too many green tea shots and the relief of knowing that he was finally getting to be himself. As he walked through the door after making sure that Gina got home in her Uber and delivering a giggly Bev directly into her charming fiancé's arms, Richie was settling into the pleasant exhaustion that would guarantee he would likely sleep through the night without any Deadlights visions coming back to haunt him. All he wanted now was to crawl into bed and snuggle with Eddie for at least a couple of hours before Eddie had to leave for work. However, his phone ringing put that plan on hold for a moment. 

It was late. They had stayed at the bar until closing. And then between the Uber ride back to Harlem, then dropping Bev off and walking the short trip between their apartments, it was almost an hour before Richie walked through the door. So it was super late. Who would be calling him at this time? His heart lurched when he saw that it was Stan. Stan who also had work in the morning and refused all offers to FaceTime with Bev during the show. So he definitely wasn’t calling because of that. That only left one possibility. Richie answered on the fourth ring, shedding his jacket and dropping himself on the sofa. 

“Hey, Stan the Man.”

“Rich?”

“Yup, it’s me,” Richie answered, sighing internally at the distress he could already hear in Stan’s voice even through that one word.

“You’re… you’re okay?”

“Peachy keen, jellybean,” Richie drawled. “Hold on.” He pulled the phone away from his ear and switched from audio to FaceTime. Stan’s too pale and haunted face stared back at him. Richie forced a wide smile. “Hey, buddy.  See? Perfectly okay. I’m all here. Not stuck in the deadlights.”

“Good,” Stan muttered. He ran a hand over his face and then roughly through his hair. It barely moved. How did his hair still look that perfect? He just woke up. Stan sighed, looking back at the camera. “That’s good. You’re good. We’re… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called so late. I’ll…”

“Want to hear some of my material from tonight?” Richie asked, plowing through Stan’s mumbled nonsense. Stan blinked slowly. 

“Uh, yeah?” 

“Great!” Richie rolled his shoulders in an exaggerated manner. “So what do you call a man with a rubber toe?”

Stan blinked at him, clearly not expecting that. Richie waggled his eyebrows until Stan sighed. “I don’t know. What do you call a man with a rubber toe?”

“Roberto!”

Stan blinked again. But Richie didn’t give him time to ask the obvious question. He just plowed right through Stan’s confusion. 

“What's the most terrifying word in nuclear physics?” Richie grinned. “Oops.” Stan was clearly still absolutely baffled by Richie’s jokes but a slow smile was starting to form on his lips. “How do you feel when there's no coffee? Depresso.”

“Richie, oh my…” Stan trailed off, biting his lip. His eyes were brighter than before. Richie grinned. Time to hit him with the good stuff. 

“There are three types of people in the world. Those of us who are good at math, and those of us who aren't.” Stan actually snorted. “What did Mario say when he broke up with Princess Peach? ‘It’s not you, it's a-me, Mario!’”

“Richie,” Stan laughed, it started as a quiet chuckle and then broke into infectious little giggles. Richie beamed back at him. “Dude please for the love of our turtle god, tell me you did not use those are your show! They are truly awful. Even for you.”

“Yeah, but they made you laugh,” Richie pointed out, leaning his head back on the sofa and grinning lazily at his best friend. 

Stan shook his head ruefully but the smile remained. “Yeah, I guess you did. Thanks, Rich. For talking to me. Not for the jokes. Those were bad. But thanks for being there.” 

“Dude, how many times have you talked me down since we were kids? It’s what I’m here for. Depressing 3 AM long-distance calls.”

Stan’s eyes flickered slightly before resuming the blank face he normally affected when he wanted to say something but also didn’t. Richie sat up straight and raised an eyebrow. Stan rolled his eyes. Richie tilted his head to the side. Stan bit his lip. Richie grinned. Stan groaned. 

“I hate you, you know that?”

“Dude, I have it on good authority aka Mikey, that you totally don’t. So as the kids say ‘miss me with that shit’ and tell me what you’re hiding.”

“What kids are you hanging around? And do their parents know?”

“The girls from upstairs and yes, their mom knows. I mean I guess. I barely ever see her hence the girls choosing to hang out with me. And honestly don't know why. They just like coming over here and hanging out. But it’s a mutually beneficial system at least. I provide them pizza and junk their mom won’t give them. And they've been teaching me the ways of the youth. I don’t remember being nearly as awesome as they are at six and eleven.”

“ That’s because you’re a giant moron and I thought that Asia and Remy were too smart to want to follow around a moronic washed-up comedian but here we are I guess. ”

“Well, here I am. You’re over there deflecting,” Richie grinned. “Ooh, it’s totally something really big, isn't it? Spill it, Urine! What are you hiding?!”

“Oh my god, you’re so annoying! How could I ever forget that?!” Stan shot back with no actual heat. He was still smiling. He sighed in a put upon manner and finally met Richie’s eyes through the camera. “So you remember how Patty and I were up there last week? Playing tourist in the city?”

“Uh, yeah, dude. I’m forty-one, not senile.” 

“Right well, I wasn’t totally honest with you. I wasn’t just there to see the sights. I was also there… to look at some listings.”  

“What kind of listings?” Richie asked, feeling the odd stirrings of hope forming in his chest. 

“What kind of listings do you think they were, dumbass? Residential listings.” 

“Residential… like here? In the city?”

“Obviously.”

“And… did you…?”

Stan smirked. “Yeah, actually. We closed the deal today on a really nice brownstone on 116th street and Lenox Ave.”

Richie didn’t know what his face was doing but it was doing something based on the amusement clearly playing across Stan’s face. 

“116th and Lenox?”

“Yup.”

“That’s like… I live on 117th and Lenox.” 

“I know,” Stan grinned, raking a hand through his painfully neat curls. Seriously how was his hair still that weirdly in control?! “Our place is officially one block away from you.”

“Like when we were kids,” Richie murmured, feeling a stinging in his eyes. He pushed aside his deep concern for Stan’s clearly supernatural hair in favor of listening to his words. “You’re moving here?”

“Yeah. We closed today. Patty starts teaching in the fall but I'm starting at my new job in a month. So we should be up there long before Bev and Ben’s wedding,” Stan answered, still grinning. But Richie could see the tears in his eyes too. He swallowed. “I really missed you, Trashmouth.”

“I missed you too, Urine,” Richie retorted, barely keeping his voice from wobbling with affection. “I missed you so much.” 

“And I missed both of you too,” Eddie’s sudden voice startled Richie before his arms wound around his shoulders and the man himself settled on the sofa beside him, soothing Richie just as quickly as he got scared. 

“Hi, Eddie.” 

“Hey, Eds,” Richie murmured, pressing a kiss to Eddie’s cheek. “You okay? I didn't wake you up, did I? I didn't mean to.”

“No,” Eddie said, reassuring and warm even as he hugged Richie again. “I heard you come in and sit down. Was worried you fell asleep out here. Then I heard you on the phone and thought I should check on you.” 

Richie couldn’t help the blush fighting to spread all over his face. A year ago, he was alone. He had few people that he could say he honestly even liked much less trusted and loved. Now he had six. Okay, maybe like eight including Patty and Audra, who despite going through a divorce with Bill was really pretty damn awesome. Oh and maybe Gina. she seemed really cool. Okay, so he had nine people in his life that loved him. But most importantly, he had the six people that mattered most in this world. He had his Losers back. 

“No, Stan called because he wanted to hear my new material. So I had to give him a private show.” 

“Oh god, I almost forgot about that,” Stan groaned, fake gagging. “Those jokes were awful and will haunt my nightmares. I hate you, Trashmouth.” 

“We both know that’s a damned lie,” Richie grinned. “You’re moving to New York for me.” 

“I’m moving to New York for all of the Losers,” Stan corrected. He paused for a minute, rolling his eyes. “But I guess you’re a pretty big part of that too. Yeah, I guess I am.” 

“You fool,” Richie retorted, leaning against Eddie and resting his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. Eddie kissed his forehead. “You complete and utter fool. This was all part of my genius plan to get you to join my shenanigans full time.”

“Richie, I'm always involved in your shenanigans even when I'm not there!”

“Yeah. I still have no idea how you two managed to take down the majority of the Losers in a prank war while in two different parts of the country. Mike and Bill weren't even in the country,” Eddie said, shaking his head. 

“ Talent ,” Richie and Stan replied together with matching grins. Richie didn't even need to look to know they were matching. Instead, he grinned up at Eddie who was rolling his eyes. 

“You two are so creepy. Wait, hold on. Stan, you’re moving?” Eddie asked. “Here?” 

“One block away,” he confirmed with another wide smile. 

“I’m now totally terrified for Harlem. Not only would you, Richie and Bev be in the same city but in a five-block radius? All we need is Mike and Bill and we might have to evacuate the city,” Eddie joked. 

“Actually, last time I talked to Mike, he was saying that Bill was looking into getting a place in the city. They’re not trying to settle down like at all right now. Mikey is having way too much fun seeing the world and Billy is having way too much fun pretending to write while actually staring at Mike,” Richie said, absently drawing mindless patterns on Eddie’s pajama pants with the hand not holding the phone. “But they said they thought it would be cool to have a home base here since we were pretty much all here. And that's before Staniel decided to join the New York party.”

“We’re definitely going to have to evacuate the city,” Stan laughed. He turned his head to the side at something slightly off-camera. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just Richie and Eddie.” He sat up straight, adjusting the phone as Patty settled on his lap. 

“Hey guys,” Patty said, around a wide yawn. “How was the show, Rich?” 

“Pretty good,” Richie answered, yawning himself. “I hear you’re moving to the city soon.” Patty’s sleepy gaze widened before she hit her husband on the shoulder. 

“Dammit! I bet Bev that you wouldn’t blab for at least three days. You couldn’t even make it twenty-four hours, Stanley?!” 

“Why are you and Bev making so many bets on every aspect of our lives?” Stan asked as if he suddenly forgot who his friends were. Again. “And why are you always betting against me?!”

“Hey, I was betting on you being stronger this time!” Patty grumbled in return. “ Oh well, at least it’s still better than Mike, who actually believed you could hold out a week. That ridiculously handsome yet foolish man. He has far too much faith in you all. But I guess it works out. He's just giving us Bill’s money anyway.” 

“Mike has taken to being a kept man really quickly,” Richie added. 

“Word,” Patty agreed sagely. Stan’s eyes narrowed as his gaze flickered between his wife and best friend. 

“And on that note,” Stan said, shaking his head. “We’re going to bed. Richie, you and Bev are no longer allowed to talk to my wife. I would ban Mike but he's cuter than both of you and knows how to work it. Eddie, I love you. Control your heathen. Talk to you guys later.” 

“Hey, he's your heathen too. I just have primary custody,” Eddie retorted. Stan rolled his eyes. 

“Love you, Riche. Love you, Eddie,” Patty managed to get out before Stan hung up. 

Richie raised an eyebrow, twisting his neck to meet Eddie’s gaze. They looked at each other for a very long moment before laughter erupted from them both. Richie slid down so that he could settle on Eddie’s lap even as they continued to giggle. 

“Hey,” Eddie murmured, stroking Richie’s cheek gently as their laughter slowly calmed down. Richie smiled softly, leaning into his hand and pressing a kiss against his palm. 

“Hey, sorry I woke you up,” Richie said, nuzzling Eddie’s hand. 

“I’m sorry I missed your show for work,” Eddie replied. 

“It’s not a big deal. Your job is important. There will be other shows.” 

“I know. But… I’m taking the day off tomorrow. Well, today.” 

Richie sat up. “And why are you doing that?” 

“Because as I was sitting here instead of being where I wanted to be, I kept wondering what it was for. I used to think my job was the one good thing in my life. And at the time, it was. It was the only good thing in my messed up ass life. But then a year ago, something changed. And suddenly everything else got better and I'm starting to realize my job really isn’t that great. A wise yet very dumbass man once told me that my job was invented before fun. And I realized today as I was sitting in my pajamas watching my boyfriend and best friend having fun via Instagram stories instead of doing shots at a bar with them that he had a point. But he's still a dumbass.” 

“This dumbass of yours sounds like a really great guy.” 

“Oh, he’s the best. He’s the best thing in my life,” Eddie corrected. “And he’s been making some adjustments to his career and I think it’s time I do the same. Risk analysis was something that I found comfort in before. But it was safe and boring. Heavy emphasis on boring. I don't know what this new chapter in my life will entail but I know that I want it to be something flexible so that I'm never missing a show again unless I absolutely have to.” 

“I think this dumbass of yours would be really proud of you for going after what you want. Not so much for missing work, you slacker.” 

“Well, I learned it from him,” Eddie grinned, his thumb lightly rubbing against Richie's cheeks. “My job was my escape from being married to Sonia Kaspbrak 2.0. But now that I'm with the love of my life, I don't need that escape anymore. I have plenty of vacation days. I think I'm going to use them and figure out what I want to do. Find something that makes me almost half as happy as I am when I'm with him.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“You're the love of my life too,” Richie said as if he didn't tell Eddie this every single day. And he would continue to tell him every single day for the rest of their lives in the same awe-filled voice. And every single day, Eddie would reply in the exact same way. 

He smiled, leaning down to meet Richie's lips in a sweet kiss that was both a declaration and a promise of forever. 

“I love you, Richie Tozier.”

“I love you….” Richie trailed off as a jaw cracking yawn escaped. “Sorry.”

“You dumbass,” Eddie said, fondly. “Come on. It's bedtime. We have the rest of our lives to be sappy losers together.”

Richie smirked dopily as Eddie pulled him to his feet. “Was that a proposal, Kaspbrak?” Richie tensed as his sleepy words caught up to him. “Whoa. Beep Beep Richie. I mean obviously, it wasn't because we've only been together for like a year and you just got divorced like two months ago. And you just said you were going to focus on your career for a bit. So obviously that's not the case. And I was just….”

Eddie rolled his eyes before pulling Richie down to meet his lips. Richie melted into the soft embrace with a muffled sigh. His hands reflexively gripped Eddie's hips in order to pull him even closer. All too soon, Eddie pulled away, ignoring the way Richie chased after his lips. He pecked him quickly on the corner of his mouth before pushing away.  

“When I propose, Tozier, you'll know.”

“So that's how it's going to be? You're gonna get down on one knee for the second time?”

“Try the first,” Eddie grimaced. “Myra basically said let's get married and so we did.”

“Totally romantic,” Richie snorted even as Eddie slapped him lightly on the arm. 

“Yeah, well, it's not like I was in love with her. No need for romance. I wasn't trying to sweep her off her feet. I was trying to repress my total gayness.”

“You going to sweep me off my feet, Eds?” Richie asked, only slightly teasing. Which in hindsight he would remember was basically like a challenge accepted for his competitive little shit of a boyfriend. 

He barely had a moment to place the smirk on Eddie's face before said competitive little shit of a boyfriend was quite literally sweeping him off of his feet and into his arms. 

“How the holy fuck are you carrying me right now?!” Richie asked even as they made their way to their bedroom. 

“Rich, you act like you weigh something. You lived off of takeout food and cup of noodles before we started living together. To say you dropped out of college and have wildly successful career in comedy, you still eat like a broke-ass college student. Bev could lift you easily. You're like a freaking noodle.”

“Why Eddie Kaspbrak, are you saying you're gonna fatten me up?” Richie mocked swooned, or maybe not so mock. It was pretty damn impressive that Eddie was able to carry him from their living room to the bedroom where he gently placed him on the bed. “You're too good to me.” 

“Nope,” Eddie said, pecking him on the nose. “I'm just the right amount of good to you. The good you deserve. Actually I could stand to be a little bit more good. But I think you might spontaneously combust if I tried.”

Richie swallowed the lump in his throat as Eddie started unbuttoning his shirt. “Just so you know, I don't think I'm up to much tonight.” 

“Rich, I'm not undressing trying to have sex with you, you horn dog. I'm just trying to get you ready for bed since I know you're half asleep and full of shots. At least you're walking unlike other people who went out with you tonight. Gina is going to kill both you and Bev in the morning.”

“Yeah, probably,” Richie snickered, lifting his arms when requested and shimmying out of his pants when Eddie moved him forward. 

Soon he was out of his clothes and under the sheets wrapped in his favorite place in the world: Eddie's arms. Richie kissed the skin under Eddie's jaw until his boyfriend got the hint. Eddie smiled into the kiss Richie so desperately wanted. 

“I thought you weren't up to much tonight.”

“I am just trying to kiss the man I love,” Richie retorted in a scandalized southern accent. “I can rock your world in the morning, Eduardo.” Eddie scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Or you can rock mine. I'm definitely not picky, baby.” 

“No, you're just utterly ridiculous,” Eddie laughed, pressing another kiss to Richie's lips before rolling him over and tugging Richie back against his chest. “Go to sleep, idiot. We have the whole day together.”

“So sex and then brunch?”

“Sex and then brunch.”

“For the rest of our lives?”

Eddie kissed his shoulder and tightened his grip on Richie's waist. “Yeah, Rich. Sex and then brunch for the rest of our lives.” 

Richie fell asleep with a smile on his face and completely oblivious to the lingering and meaningful glance Eddie threw at the top drawer on the left side of their dresser where a ring was hidden in his sock drawer, purchased just that afternoon with input from Mike and Bill. It would be almost a full year before Eddie would get on one knee and propose but like he said, Richie would definitely know. And he would definitely sweep him off his feet.

Chapter Text

Something was wrong with Richie. Admittedly that was a common occurrence in the days following their final showdown with Pennywise. Whatever happened to Richie in the Deadlights was far different than what Bev experienced. Whatever happened with Beverly it was over. She was changed by it for sure but so was Stan. They saw the lights as kids and it made them both a little different. But with Richie… It changed something in him. It left a mark. And that mark haunted him even a year later. They were all used to panicked calls late at night or sometimes early afternoon if he took a nap. They were all used to the way he would occasionally lose focus, the present slipping from him and mixing with whatever the lights were showing him. 

So no, something being wrong with Richie was a painfully recurring theme in their lives. One Stan was unfortunately intimately familiar with. Though the Losers were all ridiculously enmeshed and codependent, it went without saying that if something was seriously wrong with Richie, Stan would be the one to handle it and vice versa. It had been that way since they met when they were three years old. It was just a given. 

This is why Stan had absolutely zero hesitation about calling Richie and asking him to come over under the not entirely false pretense of needing help with assembling some of the IKEA furniture that would make up the guest room in his and Patty's still to be completely moved in home. That he only asked Richie after Eddie called Stan saying that the comic had been unusually withdrawn for the past two days really wasn't anything he needed to explore with anyone. 

Of course, Richie came over because Stan asked. No matter how far he was in his head, he would do anything he could for his friends, especially Stan and Eddie. So he came over ready to delve into the mystery and wonder that was assembling IKEA furniture. Stan took one look at his best friend and abandoned his initial plan of trying to force Richie to talk, deciding to just let Richie speak when he was ready. So they sat in an unusual but still comfortable and familiar silence and assembled an overly complicated bed, desk and what they both prayed was actually supposed to be an end table but the dirty look Patty gave them when she came home from work told them an entirely different story. Oh well. 

A few hours later, they were sitting side by side on the balcony, shoulders pressed together and watching the city around them. Stan never imagined they would end up in New York when they were two scrappy kids trying not to be eaten by a murderous space clown. New York seemed like a great dream, far too big and distant for them to ever hope for. But despite not having a clear vision of where they would be in the future, every version of his future involved the man sitting beside him. Stan never imagined a time when he wouldn’t have Richie around. It was so ingrained in him that he still marvels at how he managed to make it twenty-two years without Richie. He gently knocked his shoulder against Richie's earning him a quiet huff in response. 

That seemed to be the necessary catalyst for Richie to start figuring out what to say. Stan shrugged and waited. Whatever he was going to say was clearly weighing on him more than the usual Deadlights dreams. Though he hated them with a passion, he was more open about discussing the dreams. And everything was good between him and Eddie. Sickeningly so. That clearly wasn't it. So he had no idea what could be causing Richie to retreat so far into his head that he was voluntarily mute even in the face of the disaster that was Stan versus the IKEA furniture and the sequel: Stan versus the Allen wrench. Also seriously fuck Allen wrenches. Fuck them all. 

“So, uh, you remember my parents?” 

Of all the things Richie could've said that… that wasn't anywhere near the top of the list. His parents? What the hell? 

“Your… uh, yeah? Kind of hard to forget the people that birthed your best friend. Why? What? How? When?”

It was a testament to how well they knew each other that Richie knew exactly what Stan was asking. That was good because Stan was at a loss. The last time he saw or even thought of Richie's parents was the day after Richie left town for good when it became clear that he wasn't coming back. Stan hadn't intended to go off on them when they came, teary-eyed and hopeful that their son was with the Uris family but he didn't regret it either. They moved shortly before Stan left for college and he never gave them any real thought again. He should’ve known they would find a way to bite him in the ass. 

“They called me a couple of days ago. They actually live like not too far from here. I looked it up. They're only a forty-five-minute drive from me.” 

“They called…?” Stan asked, feeling like he was in a fog. Now he understood why Richie was so hazy. This was insane. His parents who were barely invested in his life when he was living with them suddenly called out of the blue twenty-two years after he gave up on winning their love. At least Pennywise was predictable with his scheduled bullshit. 

“Yeah, they called,” Richie answered, folding his hands together. Stan could see his jaw clenching with tension. 

“Why now? Why are they calling you now after twenty-two years? What did they suddenly remember they had a kid or something?”

“So,” Richie swallowed, looking down at his hands. “It turns out that's exactly the case. They forgot they had a son. When they left Derry after I did, they got hit with the same mind wiping mojo it seems. They forgot they had a son.” 

Stan sucked in a breath. He had no idea how to respond to any of that. Richie's parents, while not on Sonia Kaspbrak’s level of awful, left a lot to be desired. They were fairly young when they had Richie, trying to juggle a child, jobs and putting Richie’s dad through dental school. Between their career and vocational goals, their too anxious, too loud and in general just too damn much son was simply overwhelming for the young parents. They weren’t the worst parents in their group by a longshot but they weren’t the greatest either. 

“Okay, that's… plausible. But how did they remember? Did they suddenly get a feeling that something was missing?”

“Kind of,” Richie shrugged, picking at his sweatpants absently. “They said they saw an ad for a special of mine on tv. They watched and it just clicked. They remembered who I was. They've been trying to get in touch with me but apparently no one knew I changed managers. They got in touch with me through someone associated with Scott. That probably worked out for them because there's no way Gina would've let them get in touch with me.”

Stan hummed in agreement. That was an understatement. Gina was as fiercely protective of Richie as the other Losers. She knew the barest of details about Richie’s Trauma, both childhood and Deadlight related, but she protected him like she was one of them. There was no way Richie's parents would've gotten past her. Gina was going to be so pissed when she found out someone gave the Tozier’s Richie's number. Someone was going to catch hell if she found out. Stan reminded himself to tell her in the morning. 

“What did they want? Other than to tell you that they suddenly remembered they had a son just out there in the world.”

“They… they want to meet? To talk, I guess. Something about apologies,” Richie shrugged again but Stan could hear the crack in his voice. “I don't know how to do this, Stan.”

“You don’t. That’s how,” Stan answered, pressing tighter against Richie. “You don't owe them shit. No, they weren't abusive like Bev’s dad or Eddie's mom or absent like Bill’s. But they were pretty awful to you. Fuck them.”

“I know… but…”

“But you want to meet up with them,” Stan finished. Richie sighed, deflating slightly. 

“Is that bad?” Richie asked, quietly. He was looking down at his hands that were trembling. Stan felt his heartbreak. “I know… I know they weren't great. But I still….”

“Miss them?” Stan guessed. Richie nodded miserably. Stan let out a soft sigh and slung an arm around Richie's shoulders. Stan smiled softly as Richie melted into the touch. He pulled his best friend into his arms and pressed a kiss to his temple. “Richard Tozier, you're too damn good for this world. And definitely too good for your parents.” 

“I'm being stupid, aren't I?”

“A little bit,” Stan admitted. “But honestly, it's pretty on-brand for you.” Richie snorted. Stan tightened his hold on his best friend before letting him go.

He wasn't wrong. The Toziers did not deserve this man who grew up to be amazing despite them. But they were his parents. And he deserved some answers and at bare minimum at least ten apologies for everything they did to him. So Stan wasn't going to stand in the way. If Richie wanted to meet them, then he was going to support him completely. 

 “Alright, if you're going to do this, then set it up for some time next week. I should be free. And if not, I'll just switch my schedule around.” 

Richie raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“If you think for one second that I'm going to let you meet up with your parents alone, you're either completely stupid or have just not been paying attention to the story so far. I'm going with you to make sure that you don't just accept whatever bullshit they throw at you. That you stand up for yourself. Because what they did to you was not okay.”

Richie smiled but Stan could see the way it trembled. He reached for Richie's hand and squeezed gently. “Thanks, Stan, I,” he trailed off, biting his lip. “I don't know what I would do without you.”

“Good thing, you'll never have to find out,” Stan grinned. “Oh, but the record, the answer is suffering. You would exist in a constant state of suffering without me.” 

“That was meant to be a rhetorical question, you dick!” Richie sputtered. “Rhetorical means not to be answered. What did they teach you in college?!” 

Stan rolled his eyes but couldn't help the smile as Richie slowly set aside the darkness that his parents’ untimely reappearance in his life brought about and started telling Stan about how Gina effectively took down a heckler that tried to get violent when Richie heckled him back. Stan heard the story a few times before but it never got old hearing about a five-foot-four Afro Latina lesbian taking down a six-foot-five redneck bigot with one well-timed kick to the junk. The video never gets old either. Stan was so glad that Eddie’s class schedule allowed him to attend most of Richie’s local shows these days. Beverly was no hope when it came to recording the shenanigans as she was usually involved in them and whenever Mike and Bill were around, they were too busy making out to notice until it was too late. Ben also was no help as he was usually trying to contain the madness. 

The happy rambling chatter that characterized Richie when he was in good mood brought Patty outside to the balcony and Stan could only sit back and marvel at his idiot best friend and his crazy wife nitpicking the latest episode of Game of Thrones . Stan snorted and snapped a picture of them giggling with their heads bowed together, sending it to the group chat. He knew they were all anxiously waiting when he got five almost simultaneous responses. This group was far too enmeshed. But Losers stick together. And it was too late to take it back now. 

Besides he had a feeling that supernatural closeness was going to be needed. Richie never felt comfortable in his own skin. He never felt like he was enough or that he deserved. He would take whatever anyone he loved would give him. They all knew it and were careful not to ask too much of him. But his parents…  his parents were never careful. Stan wasn't going to let them get another chance to hurt him. And he knew that feeling was mutual for a few of the others. 

Wentworth and Maggie had no idea what was coming for them. They wouldn't get a chance to hurt their son again. Not with the Losers around. And he had a feeling that it wouldn't just be Stan and Richie making that drive up to Yonkers in a week. 

“So I get why Stan is here. Obviously I know why Eddie is here,” Richie drawled as they ambled up the long driveway leading to his parents’ home. “But how and why are the rest of you here?”

“I couldn't leave Bev,” Eddie shrugged. 

“And I couldn't leave Ben.”

“You know I couldn’t leave Mike.”

“And I am physically incapable of leaving Bill,” Mike finished with a bright smile. Stan coughed and hoped that hid the snicker he couldn't repress. Judging from the dirty look that Richie was throwing him, it did not. Oh well. 

“I'm just saying, this might be overkill. They're like pushing seventy. What exactly do you think is going to happen there?”

Honestly, none of them had a damn clue. But they were all prepared for the worst-case scenario. Whatever that may be they were ready. 

“Richie, how are you honestly surprised that we're all here?” Bev asked, smoothly ignoring Richie's question in a way that Stan wanted to learn. “We had to literally trick Audra and Patty into staying behind. And those two little girls you babysit. They wanted to go too.”

“Asia and Remy,” Richie corrected absently but said no more. Stan smirked. The big idiot still didn't realize how many people adored him. 

Audra and Patty were both fighting mad after they found out that Richie's parents wanted to meet up but despite being content to roll seven people deep when it was supposed to be just a meeting with Richie’s parents even they knew it was overkill to bring those two along. As for Asia and Remy, while it was true their mother was fine with the girls pretty much setting up camp in the Kaspbrak-Tozier household for hours at a time, she might have room for pause when it came to taking the girls on a road trip. A look exchanged between Eddie and Richie when Bill brought that up made Stan think otherwise. Either way, it worked out. Audra and Patty took the girls out for a day of shopping and ice cream instead of confronting Richie's parents. Though who's hurt feelings that was supposed to be soothing was a mystery. 

Either way, it left just the Losers to make the hour-long trip to the sleepy town of Scarsdale, NY. Now they were making their slow way from the end of the driveway where they parked the two cars they used for the drive. Eddie's hand was currently being strangled by the tight grip Richie had on it while Bev’s arm was looped through Richie's free arm. Stan and Bill were in front with Mike and Ben pulling up on their flank in a protective formation. 

Stan glanced over his shoulder at Richie. His friend looked pale and skittish. Part of him wanted to bundle him up and shove him back in the car. He knew Richie would let him too. But it wasn't what he needed. Richie needed this closure. He needed to meet with his parents and understand why they did everything they did. And so Stan took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. He had been watching the curtains by the front door flutter for the past five minutes, so he wasn't surprised when the door opened pretty much right away. 

Wentworth and Maggie Tozier were always an attractive couple and it seemed that age hasn't changed that much. Wentworth was almost as tall as Richie with a head full of silver hair. Maggie was by his side with salt and pepper streaks littering her short cut curly hair. Right away, Stan could see his best friend in their faces. This is what Richie would look like when he got to their age. It was interesting but not enough to distract him from his goal of protecting his best friend from the two people who hurt him the most. 

“Richard?” Maggie gasped. Her hands flying to cover her mouth even as tears slipped down her cheeks. “Oh, you're so grown up!”

“Yeah, that tends to happen in twenty…” Richie trailed off abruptly lurching to the left. Bev squealed and shoved him towards a garden of flowers. 

Stan couldn't help the vindictive smirk that formed as Richie hurled all over his mother’s beautiful bed of roses. Oh well, it was no worse than fertilizer. 

“Still has that nervous vomit habit, huh?” Wentworth said, his tone slightly fond. Stan merely hummed in agreement but offered nothing else. Wentworth laughed. “You also haven't changed, Stanley. So I'm guessing that's Bill. And Eddie helping Richie destroy his mother’s prize roses. And then Beverly, Ben, and Mike. Did I get it right?”

Stan knew he wasn't the only one staring in confusion. They figured that Eddie, Bill, and Stan would be the most memorable as they had known Richie the longest of all the Losers. By the time Ben, Bev, and Mike came along, the Tozier parents were like polite strangers in their son’s life. They hadn't anticipated them knowing who they were. 

“It's so nice that you're all still friends after all these years,” Maggie started, tears still running down her cheeks. “I know Richie was devastated when you all lost touch. I'm glad you found each other again.”

Stan looked away because that cut a little close to home. He remembered wondering if they would still like each other when they were adults. If they would still be friends when they were their parents’ age. He didn't believe it when everyone assured him that they would be. And that damn clown tried his best to make sure that they never would. But despite the stupid clown they did it. They found each other. And they were never letting go again. 

“Hey,” Stan murmured as a pale Richie made his way back to the group. Eddie was rumbling around in his bag looking for water. Bev was shooting Stan not so subtle looks. He snorted and grabbed Richie's hand. “You good?”

Richie’s flickered from Stan to his parents and then back to Stan. The clammy hand in his squeezed back and Stan nodded. They turned their focus back to Richie's parents who were watching them carefully. 

“Why don't you all come in? I think…. I think we need to talk,” Wentworth sighed. 

The Toziers stood back and allowed the Losers to file in the house with Stan and Eddie keeping Richie close between them and the other four scrambling to find a way to be closer. In the end, Bev wedged her way on the sofa with Eddie, Richie, and Stan while Mike and Ben sat on the arms of the chair and Bill gave up all pretense of not thinking this could end badly and sat on the floor in front of them all. 

“So…” Wentworth said after the silence stretched on. Richie fidgeted and Stan nudged him with his shoulder. “How about them Yankees?”

There was a pause and then a small snicker that turned into a genuine if not awkward laugh. Stan rolled his eyes. God, how could he forget that Richie got his twisted sense of humor from his father? Wentworth looked surprised but pleased at Richie's laughter. He looked so much like Richie at that moment that Stan found it hard to keep a hold of the anger. He almost felt bad. He promised Richie he would protect him but he forgot how Richie was the perfect mix of his parents. He could never stay mad at Richie and it seemed that was extending to his parents. Dammit. 

“So why did you call Richie?”

Nevermind. Eddie was there. Eddie could and would hold a grudge for eternity when it came to his loved ones. Even grudges against people who looked like the man he loved. 

“You never did like to let things stretch out as a kid,” Wentworth said, sighing softly but with an almost wistful smile. “Alright, see the thing is…”

“We were shit parents,” Maggie blurted out. “We were young and dumb. And that's not an excuse but it's an explanation. We had plans for the way our life was supposed to be. And then, Richie, you came along unexpectedly and instead of realizing that we needed to fit our lives around a child, we tried to fit a baby into our plan. And it didn't work. We were shitty parents and I don't understand how you didn't run away from us sooner.”

Richie definitely got his humor from his dad but his blunt way of telling the truth was all his mother. Maggie exhaled leaning forward, eyes only on her son. 

“When you left it was a slap in the face. A needed one. We realized that we ignored you for so long and then you were gone. Even Mike and Stan didn't know where you were. And we realized that we fucked up. We fucked up big time. So we left town, trying to pick up your path. And somehow… we forgot. We fucking forgot we had a child until one day we were scrolling through Netflix and came across your face and it just clicked. And then suddenly we remembered that we had a child. He was beautiful and we treated him like crap.”

The Losers, minus Richie, exchanged glances. It sounded like what happened to them. But why would Richie's parents be affected? None of the Losers’ parents forgot about Derry when they moved away and they certainly didn't forget about their children. So why would it happen to Richie's parents? 

“They broke the cycle,” Mike whispered suddenly. Stan’s eyes narrowed as he looked up at his friend. “They woke up.”

Stan started to ask but then it became clear. They all noticed it now that they were older. The adults in Derry were completely oblivious to the things happening in their town. To the things happening to their children. But if they were to be believed, and why wouldn't they, the Toziers realized they screwed up when Richie left Derry on his own. He broke the spell on his parents but Derry and the dark magic around it still somehow got its grip on them and made them forget. Made them give up the search for their son. Stan felt his heartbreak all over again. 

Who would Richie have been if his parents had found him when they left? Eighteen, damaged but able to move past the trauma of his childhood. Instead, he was left alone with no memories of the people who loved him and no physical parents to prove that they did. Stan wished the clown was still alive so he could call him a little bitch just once more. 

“I… I hear what you're saying and it's kind of not your fault that you… forgot me,” Richie said, voice hesitant and small. “But I… just… what do you want from me?”

Stan squeezed Richie's leg while Eddie leaned his weight further into Richie. He didn't need to look to know that Mike was stretching to put a hand on Richie's shoulder while Bill was basically cuddling his leg. Bev and Ben were most likely cursing their placement on the sofa that didn't allow them access to Richie but Stan was sure they would more than overcompensate by hugging the crap out of him when this was all over. 

“Richard… Richie, we,” Maggie trailer off, looking at her son with a too-familiar expression that mixed love, affection, and grief altogether. Stan hated it when her son wore that expression. He wasn't a fan of it on her either. “We don't want anything more than you're willing to give us. We… I'm so sorry, honey.”

Richie’s head tipped forward and Stan could feel him trembling. He waited as Richie took a few deep breaths and then turned to Eddie. The smaller man nodded and squeezed the hand that was tightly wrapped around his. 

“Okay,” Eddie said, looking back at the Toziers. “That's… we can do that. But we start small. Dinner maybe? On neutral ground until Richie feels comfortable with anything else.”

Wentworth was already nodding but Maggie was looking between her son and Eddie with a sudden sense of understanding. Her hands flew up to cover her mouth even as a quiet gasp escaped. 

“Oh, you're together.”

Richie's head snapped up so quickly that Stan was worried he had whiplash. He could only see the profile of his best friend’s face but he knew the expression was not a good one. 

“Yes, Eddie is my boyfriend.” 

Maggie nodded before bursting into tears. Stan didn't need to look to know that Bill and Mike were both ready to back him up on fighting two damn near senior citizens. But Bev was laying a placating hand on Bill while giving Stan a not subtle head shake. It was then that he noticed Maggie was smiling. 

“I always knew it would be you two,” she said, smiling tearfully. “For a while, I thought maybe Stan but then I saw you with Eddie and I just knew. I'm so happy for you, sweetheart. You deserve to have that kind of love in your life.”

“You're not upset?” Richie asked, quietly. 

“It's 2017,” Wentworth answered. “And even if it wasn't, you're our son. I know we've done a piss poor job of showing it but we love you, Richie. We love you no matter who you love.” 

“Besides who the hell are we to judge,” Maggie chimed in. “We're the people who forgot they had a damn child for over twenty years. We don't have a pot to piss in when it comes to telling you how to live your life.”

“That’s, uh, that's actually not your fault. It's a long story but the forgetting thing isn't your fault,” Richie said. 

“I appreciate you trying to make us feel better but we weren't parents of the year before that either,” Wentworth replied, shaking his head. “After we left Derry and we freaking forgot, we thought about having a child but the timing was never right. Turns out we already had one and we did a shit job at it the first time around.”

“Yeah, I guess you did,” Richie admitted. “But I didn't turn out so bad.”

“No, you turned out pretty great actually,” Maggie smiled. “And it's all thanks to your friends. God, what did you call yourselves as kids? The Losers?”

“Still do,” Richie said, smiling at his friends. “Losers stick together.”

“That we do,” Bev answered. “That we do.”

They didn't stay much longer with Richie's parents. Eddie made plans for them to meet at an Italian place in Little Italy since the Bronx was the midway point for all of them. Dinner was scheduled for a week from today and Stan knew that he wasn't the only one planning on making dinner reservations for that evening. Losers stick together. 

Later that night after making attempts to cook a group dinner together that damn near burned down Richie and Eddie's apartment, ordering pizza, watching the mini fashion show Asia and Remy put on with the truly excessive amount of clothes Audra and Patty bought and a couple of bottles of wine, the Losers and family were all loose-limbed and relaxed. Well, all except one. But Stan expected that one. 

He rose from his spot under Patty and Audra and made his way through the sprawled out pile of bodies scattered across the living room. He smiled softly at Eddie who was stretched out on the sofa with Asia and Remy on top of him. All three of them sleeping peacefully. Both girls were covered in pizza sauce and chocolate and yet Eddie cuddled them close with no complaint. He was going to make a great father whenever he and the other one settled down. 

“You okay?” Stan asked as he finally made his way to the balcony where Richie was sitting on one of the two lounge chairs that almost took up the whole space on the small balcony. Richie smiled in his direction and lifted the blanket he was huddled under to allow Stan to enter. He didn't hesitate to burrow into his best friend’s embrace. They barely fit on the chair side by side but they made it work. 

“Yeah, I'm okay,” Richie answered finally. “Just today was… a lot.”

“Yeah, it was,” Stan agreed. “You did good.”

“I puked on my mom's roses.”

“But only on the roses. That's actually pretty good for you.”

Richie snorted. “You're kind of a dick.”

“Yeah, but I'm still your best friend.”

“That you are,” Richie murmured. “Thanks, man. For today… just… thanks.”

Stan squeezed him tighter in response and said nothing more. He knew Richie was doing more than thanking him. He was also apologizing for leaving in the first place. And it was unnecessary. Did he worry about him for those three months before he left for school and also forgot? Of course, he did. But he knew why Richie left. He got it then and he got it now. He had nothing to apologize for. The past was in the past. And their future was pretty bright. 

“I love you, Stan.”

“Love you, too, Richie,” Stan murmured, hugging him tighter. “I love you too.”