#(it's clearly mike that stan's marrying)

[carigm]

Today Millie had a fan panel in which she answered that her ideal ending would be Mike and El getting married and Will being happy and confessing to Mike (lol) and ofc the Stranger Things fandom kicked up the old Byler vs Mlvn war once again, regardless of the fact she doesn’t write the show. But I want to break down some points here about things I’ve been noticing today, but also for a while and that I think need to be discussed. Keep reading if you want.

I’ve seen a lot of hostility towards Byler and Bylers on Twitter lately, saying we’re delusional and don’t know what we’re talking about. This always seems to be the go to argument even tho it’s all in the narrative. Today it got really bad after Millie’s comments and even people that were merely disagreeing with her opinions got called everything from delusional to misogynistic.

IF the Duffers suddenly decided to ignore everything they’ve carefully crafted and put into their narrative that doesn’t make anyone delusional, it just makes them terrible writers. Who would be doing a great disservice to all three characters involved in the love triangle.

There’s been an insurgence (on Twitter) of so called “Will stans” who seem to be completely fine with the idea of mlvn being endgame because “Will can just get another boyfriend” Not only is this insulting to what the writers have already established for Will’s character but it’s also a defense and endorsement of the worst kind of lazy/bad writing that could graze our screens.

The Duffers CHOSE to tie Will’s character arc to Mike’s and El’s.

How do you expect them to undo that and create a well fleshed out character that’s deserving of Will, in 8 episodes that we know are not just gonna be dedicated to Will’s supposed love interest, because there’s a shit ton of stuff to resolve?

If this was the route the Duffers were going for, they could’ve clearly given Will a love interest last season (like with Robin) or two seasons ago (like with Dustin) And yet somehow, people think it would be totally okay for Will to get the most meaningless romance of all time as the writers ignore the same story they’ve created.

Another point I’ve been seeing a lot from these people is “Mike won’t come out. Let it go. He’s just a very unlikable character” What does that say about the quality of the writing and content you’re willing to consume then? You’re okay with characters being poorly written? And please someone explain to me how Mike’s actions, especially in S4, make any sense unless he likes Will.

The more people try to simplify this story the more plot holes and inconsistencies it creates.

The funny thing is that a lot of these “Will stans” used to be Bylers themselves but are so deathly afraid it won’t be endgame that they’ve started to use the same rhetoric mlvns use every day to justify what would be atrocious writing.

And this next thing might be controversial but I think it needs to be said.

So many people on Twitter have hit those who disagree with Millie’s opinion today with “y’all are misinterpreting Millie’s words” and let me tell you, no one has. She’s been saying the same stuff for forever and quite frankly she’s never had a coherent thought about Will. Which is fine, at the end of the day that’s not the character she plays. However, I haven’t forgotten how last year (at another panel) she was asked about Byler and said it was just a reflection of Finn and Noah’s friendship and that was what people were seeing…

Whatever the fuck that means, I guess.

Again, I’m not taking her answer today too seriously cause truth be told she’s been saying some version of this since she was around twelve, and has even at times said she was joking about it. If a wedding were actually happening she wouldn’t be able to say it cause I’d literally be a spoiler, even if she doesn’t have the scripts yet or doesn’t know I’m sure there’s things that would be off limits for any actor to say at this point.

But this defense squad that formed today begging for us to not misconstrue her words because “she really cares about Will’s character” is laughable.

Her answers regarding the topic of the love triangle have been anything but nuanced. If she doesn’t want to get into it or address it, that’s fine. It’s her choice.

But of course, mlvn stans are gonna take her answers seriously, as well as those who are now “Will stans” who basically ship mlvn too.

And to me there’s a fundamental flaw regarding the ship wars in this fandom, which these people don’t seem to grasp. At this point, it isn’t so much about “which ship is better” but “which outcome isn’t violently homophobic”

That’s it.

I don’t care how much you ship mlvn, this is the undisputed truth here.

But when your lead actors act like it’s not a big deal, it’s no surprise the fandom doesn’t give a shit.

I can only hope the Duffers were smart enough to see reason and were able to write the only outcome that won’t set television back around 10 years or so.

And hopefully one day, when S5 is out, we can get a more in depth and honest conversation with the actors about all of this.

As for me, I’m gonna lay low and not give much of a fuck until we start getting those Reddit leaks, which were very much accurate for last season. I’ll take a peak at those, and depending on what they look like, I’ll stay around or dip completely.

If you read all of this, thank you.

[thestrangestthing89]

I think a lot of situations get interpreted differently based on who is saying/doing something rather than taking the whole situation or relationship dynamic into consideration.

When Steve tells Nancy he wants to marry her and have 6 kids the people who stan Steve think it's romantic. But Steve broke up with Nancy 2+ years prior and has had minimal interaction with her since then. And no one-on-one interaction until S4 (and even then it was minimal). If Jonathan had been in his situation it wouldn't have been considered romantic. If they broke up and didn't see each other again for years and suddenly after 3 days of reuniting he was proposing and saying he wanted 6 kids with her, people would be understandably weirded out by this. The action itself was awkward when you consider their relationship (or lack thereof). The circumstances made that an inappropriate thing to say. It shouldn't matter who is saying it.

If Mike's monologue to El was done by one of the other couples, people would assume that relationship was doomed. If Hopper kept saying generic "it was love at first sight" crap and wasn't able to give any specific examples of why Joyce means a lot to him it wouldn't be good. Hopper has known Joyce since they were younger and not being able to reference any kind of moment that meant something to him would of course be a red flag.

But I can't even picture one of the younger couples saying this instead of Mike. Not even Dustin and Susie who seem like they know each other pretty well even though we don't see much of them. They bond over science and movies. I think they could come up with a speech more specific than the one Mike came up with. And I know Lucas and Max would have done better here. At least the Lucas and Max of S4. They are both more emotionally mature with regard to the way they relate to each other. And if Lucas had gotten a chance to say something like this to Max when she was being Vecna'd he could have. Because him and Max have bonded and they have shared interests and actually like spending time together.

So I don't buy for one second that Mike's speech was just age appropriate because he gave better speeches to Will multiple times - the shed in S2, and in Lenora in S4. And Mike has spent enough time with El at this point that he should be able to clearly explain why he likes her with examples easily. Even a 5 year old can tell you why they like their friend. It may be with basic examples like they have the same favorite color but they can still give reason. Mike's example of her wearing a yellow shirt when they met isn't a reason why he likes her. It's a statement of fact like him saying it was raining and cold. It's not personal.

And that talk in Lenora - the flirty one with Will where he's checking him out and telling him how nothing is the same without him - would have 100% be viewed as romantic if Mike said it to El. Or if Jonathan said it to Nancy. Or if Lucas said it to Max. No one would doubt this for a second. But Mike has never spoken to El like this ever. He has never acted like he's attracted to her (she hasn't acted like she's attracted to him either). They don't have that kind of relationship.

But people's perception is different when it's Mike and Will so they bypass the flirting and make excuses. If you can apply the same action and dialogue to a different group of people the response should be the same. If Dustin had checked out Lucas and told him Hawkins wasn't the same without him I would immediately assume a romantic relationship was being planned there. Because the action itself is inherently romantic. It would also feel completely out of place and random since there was no build up, but Mike and Will have been acting like this with each other for couple seasons now. They have this relationship dynamic where flirting is now normal, but Mike and El don't do this. Not ever. They do not act the way other romantic couples act.

It's not the story being more age appropriate. They are 15 years old and they were separated from each other for months. They would be all over each other when they reunited. But instead we get:

- Mike being super awkward and trying not to get close enough to her to hug properly and avoiding eye contact at the same time all while hyper focused on Will, - Mike asking El if she is going to hang out with her friends right after they reunite (why don't you want alone time with your girlfriend Mike?), - El trying to get Mike to focus on her and her alone and completely ignoring that Will is there and missing his friend, - Mike completely missing the fact that El is uncomfortable around Angela because he wasn't paying attention to her, - Mike not even asking her what she's been up to lately or how she is (they talked about milkshakes for fucks sake. Nothing substantial), - Mike getting distracted when he's trying to look for her to focus on Will and doing the least to comfort her when she's upset. They haven't seen each other in months and this was their big romantic reunion? Again, with any other couple this would spell out the end. It would take a lot for them to come back from this. A forced I love you when things are dire isn't fixing this. It wouldn't fix any other couple either. The situation/circumstances are inherently problematic. No matter who it involves.

[stellarbisexual]

38 for reddie?

cop/person getting a speeding ticket au

Sooooooo I went way off script for this prompt. Hahaha. Hope you still enjoy!

***

“Nope.  Nope nope nope nope nope.”  Stan’s instantly waving his hands in front of his face and walking away from the front door as soon as he opens it.  

“What?” Richie says, smiling innocently from where he’s taking up the entire loveseat, a paper penis hat tipped precariously atop his nest of dark curls.  

Stan hisses at him through clenched teeth.  “I said no strippers, Richie!  Come on.”

The cop at the door–”cop,” though the stripper uniform looks pretty damn realistic–looks slightly dejected.  

Richie purses his lips and feigns confusion.  “We were getting pretty rowdy; I think you should see what the officer wants before we all get arrested.”  He leans over, nearly tipping over the side of the couch, taking in the compact, adorable fake cop, all big brown eyes, thick eyebrows, soft hair, and pink lips, still standing obediently on Stan’s porch.  “Are you trained to use excessive force?”  He waggles his brows.  The stripper rolls his eyes, though he’s smiling, Richie notes with satisfaction.

Stan growls in frustration, throwing his hands up and ushering Stripper Cop into his house and shutting the door behind him.  “Fine, come on in, I know this isn’t going to stop until you do.”

“Are you sure?” the guy asks, and Richie smiles at his cute raspy voice, taking his entrance as an opportunity to eye him up some more.

“No, but I’m assuming my idiot best man,” Stan gestures toward Richie, who bows grandly, “already paid for your services, so.  Make yourself at home,” Stan huffs.  “Just don’t give me a lapdance; I’m off limits.”  He mutters to himself as he makes his way back across the living room to his favorite recliner: “All I want is a quiet night playing poker with my closest friends, I said.”

“And you got it, Stan the Almost Married Man.”  Richie sits up straight and pours himself another couple of fingers of scotch.  “This right here is a present from the best man to himself.”

“Emily Post would be so impressed,” the stripper drawls through a smirk as he scrolls through what Richie can only assume is a playlist on his phone.  He supposes now that his cover is blown, there’s no point in him carrying on the cop roleplay charade.

Stan cracks up at that remark, actually slapping one of his knees.

“No idea who that is, but I gather from the context ‘twas a dig at me.”  Richie pouts.  “I’m hurt, Officer Cutiepie.”

“I take it all back,” Stan says when he finally recovers from his laughing fit.  “You can stay as long as you like–what’s your name?”

“Eddie.”  Stripper Cop awkwardly reaches over to take Stan’s proferred hand.  

“Eddie!  Light of my life, fire of my loins–”

Beverly smothers her drunken laughter into a pillow.

“–I officially call first dibs on your professional sexy-dance services.”  Richie sits up as straight and tall as he can manage and spreads his knees in preparation.

“Sorry, Stringbean,” Eddie shoots back, the entire group losing their shit.  “If the groom declines, then it’s ladies first.  And if the best man’s over six feet tall, I’m afraid he doesn’t get a ride.”  He gives Richie a flirtatiously apologetic shrug.

Richie clutches his chest and collapses dramatically onto the loveseat.  “Benny,” he reaches over to scratch at Ben’s thigh, “Call the paramedics, seriously, I think I’m in love.  We may have a dual nuptial ceremony on Saturday!”

“Something tells me that proposal’s gonna get shot down, Rich,” Ben says, not unkindly, nursing his own glass of scotch.

“Something tells me your friend is right,” Eddie smiles, sauntering over to Beverly’s chair as the opening beats to That’s the Way Love Goes by Janet Jackson emanate from the tiny speakers he’s set up.

Beverly gasps and starts dancing a little in her seat.  “Unexpected musical selection.”

“Keepin’ it real classy, Eds.  Seems unfair, though, that the biggest lesbian in the room should get the first dance.”

“Fuck you,” Bev chuckles, flicking some water from her glass at Richie.  

“I think the biggest lesbian should always get the first dance.”  Eddie smiles sweetly at Bev and starts grinding over her lap.

“Okay, Eddie’s officially my favorite.”  Bev lets her hands be guided to his hips.  “I may beat you to that proposal, Rich.”

“If it’s a sexless marriage, I’m down.”  Eddie rolls his hips, clutching his fake nightstick to keep it from banging against his thigh.  

Richie rolls over onto his back, his scotch perched on his chest, though his face is turned to Eddie, eyes roving his figure as it moves skillfully.  “Shot down twice in one night.  I may never recover.”

“What do you think?” Eddie asks Bev playfully.  “Should I pay him some attention?”

“It’s a slippery slope, Eddie,” Ben smiles.

Beverly silently urges Eddie over to the loveseat, where he plants a knee on either side of Richie’s hips and starts unbuttoning his shirt.  A dopey smile spreads across Richie’s face.  He slips off one of his rings and holds it out to Eddie.  “Ma cherie.”

***

permatag list: @reddie-to-fight @hurleyhugo @raspberrywind @losver-kaspbrak  @geckolover001 @its-stranger-than-you-think @gazebo-motherfucker @waypunsarelife @reddietofall @happytozier @librablossom @aesteddie @tapetayloe@spagheddi-kaspbrak @sadhelianthus @adhdtozier @justcallme-trashmouth @fuckboyrichie  @bandaids @20gayteeneds @richietoaster @burymestanding @speakslowtellmelove @notsugarandspice @richiefuckfacetozier @noahsschnapp @mrs-vh @adhdtozier @loveoflosers @constantreaderfool @lizacore @yikesitsrylee @mars-14

[alldatwrite]

Okay so... so time ago I said that Marc Cherry had stereotypes for characters and that was why some characters from Why Women Kill were similar to those in Desperate Housewives, and I clearly remember saying that Beth Ann was similar to Bree/Susan, but after another rewatch of DH, I've realised that... actually... Beth Ann is Katherine.

Like, she is Katherine Mayfair if she was in the sixties.

And there are certain paralells to it, so I'm going to rant about them:

Them being unhinged: DH shows us something a bit more insane, whereas WWK is more calm in this regard, but both women have mental breakdowns and are regarded at some point as unhinged and even psychos. Katherine has her breakdown over Mike and all of that and tries to ruin his wedding (and his life), but Beth Ann has a similar moment both when she snaps at Sheila and when she makes the choice to kill Rob.

Them being psychos: I mean... they arem, kinda. They both seem to take a point of no return at the middle of their "story". It is easier to point on Beth Ann because, unlike Katherine, she has a closed season where is is the main character, and Katherine doesn't , but both of them have "Psycho" moments throughout their entire storyline.

Murder: Although it is obvious when it comes to Beth Ann, Katherine is also a murderer and yet, just like with Beth Ann, it is okay. In fact, their stories are quite similar in this regard; both of them kill their abusive husbands with a gun and in front of others. The only difference may be the modus operandi and the public, but it is still a pretty similar development and it also marks the end of an era for both characters. Oh, and they both get away with it, too!

Children: even though the development was differently paced, they both lose their children, and then they have another children, if you call it that. Beth Ann loses Emily and then she gets to be Elsie's "aunt", and Katherine loses Dylan and adopts... Dylan. They have to bury their children who died by accident and yet, they end up being mothers again and happy with their kids.

Cheating: although this is much more evident with Beth Ann's story, both women are married to cheater and, eventually, think of leaving them.

Blondes: yet again, the outcome is slighly different, but both women end up with blondes who also happen to be sweethearts and socially outcasts in some way. Of course, Katherine and Robin had a different pace and ending to their story than Beth Ann did with April, but the similarities are there: redhead older woman meets blonde young woman working an awful job, who had dreams, who does not have many friends and is seen negatively because of their personal life, and befriends them. The only difference is that Katherine and Robin actually have a romantic relationship, but Beth Ann and April end up sharing a family in some way, which is the best you could get in the sixties, so... yeah.

Specific traits: I'm sure there are more paralells, but here are some specific traits I think they share: both are redheads with green eyes (the first one is definitely intentional as Ginny has bruentte hair, but maybe the second one is unintentional); both follow the rules and then break them (the reason I thought Beth Ann was shaped after Bree was because of her being all prim and proper, but Katherine is just like that when she arrives at Wisteria Lane, so it makes even more sense); they hide secrets (said secrets are the death of their daughters), they end up leaving the neighborhood with a blonde woman with them...

So... yeah. I wouldn't be surprised if the said Beth Ann is Katherine's distant relative because of the resemblance. Anyway, stan the best characters off the Marc Cherry universe: the sapphic-coded, sassy, crazy redheads who are actually softies and their ray-of-sunshine blonde (girl)friends

[koalas-koalas-everywhere]

Suits 9x10 One Last Con

Well, that was. A Mess.

The end of the Samantha v. Faye thing was way too anticlimatic, mostly bc it was too short (Faye’s the big bad of the season! Why does it feel like this pesky little thing they had to get out of the way!), partly bc happened too early in the ep. They should’ve wrapped it up the Faye v. Samantha thing last ep. Cut out Lily’s funeral (actually, her whole death; it was pointless and, looking at that letter, where nothing of relevance to Lily and Harvey’s rship was said, clearly nothing more than some sort of d**vey set up. Replace those last few minutes of ep 8 with Mike showing up or the suit being somehow introduced or even just foreshadowed) and all the extraneous bs - all references to Harvey grieving, the letter (they were technically already talking about marriage), getting Mike to testify (it was such a ridiculous cross I’m still trying to comprehend it - just let him and Harvey have a nice dinner and have Faye’s phone-call to tell Harvey that she wants him to testify, nevermind what Katrina said, he turns around and tells Mike the truth, take it from there) - to get to One Last Con with Faye gone (it probably wouldn’t be named one last con, would it?), Harvey having had a mysterious meeting with her where mysterious things were said. Start the ep with Louis asking Lipschitz to officiate his wedding and go from there. My mom rightly pointed out that they cut off the procedural stuff and focused on the characters, well, focus on the characters.

Following on that last one, it does not look good that an episode focusing like 70% on weddings is called “one last con”. Christ.

There���s something so sad about the fact that Harvey started out as an asshole with a heart of gold that mostly showed in his complete refusal to act unethically and ended as a guy who says he likes crossing lines. What happened to “to win fairly is more important than to win”? On that topic, Faye’s appearance could’ve been a call back to that, if not to bring him back to how he was before, then to at least acknowledge that this isn’t who he’s always been, but noooo.

I am so happy for Katrina!! Like, all in all, her arc should’ve probably ended in something suggesting she’s found more to life than work, but. That’s my baby and I’m proud of her.

It is so fucking telling that Harvey’s vows are so indicative of who he is as a character and his journey (pity they mangled the “when the chips are down” metaphor, especially with a guy who, as a self-proclaimed gambler, would know that the literal chips being down isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Like, I’m not even sure the chips can be up? They’re chips. How.) and Donna’s are so fucking generic. “We don’t know how much time we have” is that a reference to Harvey’s storyline? Or have we completely given up on pretending she’s a tool of the narrative and that she doesn’t have any reason to say something that reflects on Louis’s circumstances in the montage. Maybe she just knew! She’s Donna! “You make me laugh, you make me cry” I wanna marry you because we have interactions.

(It’s a pity I dislike d**vey and can’t stand Donna bc Sarah Rafferty killed it during the proposal.)

STOP 👏 SCAMMING👏 LOUIS👏. First, the camera spends half the minute of Stan’s speech focused on Harvey and Donna, then they steal his thunder during the reception, then his very dramatic moment of waiting to find out whether his wife and child would live or die (which came out of NOWHERE and is something else I’d either cut out or pad up with more references to Sheila’s age and other complications, also, so sorry to Rachael Harris, but she didn’t sell me on the contractions at ALL, much less on the possibility that they might be too bad, which contributed to making the crisis seem out of nowhere) was montaged with the d**vey wedding???? LET HIM HAVE ONE THING!!! 

“It’s what we want. Both of us” Why, Donna? Why do you want it, and why did you feel the need to clarify that you do? Did the writers get a lot of hate mail over Rachel getting a job in Seattle pretty much as a bribe to Mike and didn’t want to make that mistake again, but they didn’t feel like actually giving you motivations to go along with Harvey’s and so they figured that just saying that you have them would be enough? Damn, at least Rachel got a huge ass promotion in exchange for her dignity.

Well, Mike was there.

So was Samantha. And Alex. I think. Was he? 

Oh, yeah, he talked to Katrina about a matter Harvey should’ve been the one to talk to her about, except for deniability.

Did I have anything else to say? I spent so much time cringing, it feels like there should be more. Oh, the proposal. “I learned two things from my mom. To forgive her and to marry you.” (That may not be exactly what he said, but it’s exactly what he said.) Who wrote that. Babe. Focus for two seconds. The only way to make that more embarrassing would’ve been to write “1, to forgive her. B, to marry you.” Makes me wonder if maybe they’d decided that they wouldn’t have a d**vey wedding at all, but then changed their minds. Maybe they thought it would be easier to justify Donna moving to Seattle?

Oh, yeah, Mike’s questioning! What? Why? How could making him admit that he accused Samantha of fabricating evidence too be not only helpful, but so good that it might win them the case? As he said, he didn’t have proof either and, to top it off, he didn’t even know Samantha’s character well enough to justify that suspicion! He could’ve even turned it around, said he only made that comment because he was bitter, as Harvey had already made him admit he was, just like Faye, and it wouldn’t be a complete lie - if he didn’t care, he wouldn’t have made the accusation at all, no matter how true. Now, if they’d asked him whether that evidence was true, then they would’ve gotten him. He’d either have to 1) perjure himself to incriminate himself or 2) admit that false evidence had been submitted by opposing counsel in that case, which would necessarily lead to the question of who had submitted it. Even pissed as he was, I don’t think Mike would’ve gone as far as to imply that it had been Harvey, which would’ve only left Samantha. You can’t argue that they were trying to skirt the issue of whether she’d done it, since they were the ones who brought it up, even if they did a bad job of proving it (and got an appropriately weak testimony out of it which should not have gotten them a win oh my god), and what they did ask would’ve still been enough to fill in the blanks - the fact that Mike accused anyone of fabricating that evidence, outside of official channels where it might have looked like an attempt to salvage the case, means that the evidence is false. If it’s false, someone has to have fabricated it. Ergo... Anyway, like I said, I would’ve cut that out to wrap that arc in Thunder Away. (Also, maybe call that episode One Last Con and not the one with the weddings coughcough yeahI’mnotlettingthatgo)

[alwaysahiccupandastrid]

You know, when you think about it, Richie got truly the shittiest deal by the end of “IT”. Not only is the love of his life dead, but he also lost his best friend.

I know there’s some disagreement over whether or not Stan and Richie are best friends, but there’s evidence to support it; in the movies, Richie was the only one at Stan’s Bar Mitzvah, and there’s a whole scene where Richie alone takes a moment to remember Stan and thank him “for showing up”. In the book, Richie is the one to introduce Stan into the Loser’s Club - Stan doesn’t know any of the others before Richie brings him to the dam that Ben, Bill and Eddie are building.

So if you think about... Richie lost both his best friend and the love of his life in the space of a few days. The other Losers all have bright and positive endings in their futures after IT C2: Bill is finally writing a good ending to his book + is married, Beverly and Ben are together and successful, Mike has finally left Derry and is going to travel. Sure, Richie has his career as a stand up comedian but he’s said before that he doesn’t even write his own material, he’s mourning the loss of Eddie, technically still in the closet...he has no one he loves waiting for him when he goes home. And yeah, Mike doesn’t exactly have a loved one but his ending is clearly happy because he’s leaving Derry for the first time and is going to start a new life. The others all seem to be at least somewhat happy after leaving Derry once more - Richie just looks fucking miserable, going back to the Kissing Bridge to recarve the “R+E” and seeming to be literally on the verge of tears. The love of his life was literally impaled on top of him, Richie was covered in his blood, and it’s clear he’s suffering still, more than the others.

I’m not sure if you could argue that Pennywise targeted Richie specifically but it would be an interesting idea if it were true...

[lluvguts]

just pretend for now // reddie

(mostly posting my ao3 fics here for now // i’ll take requests too!)

pairing: eddie kaspbrak x richie tozier 

genre/warnings: none! fluff

word count: 2,037

summary: a loser’s club wedding...but kids!

“Let’s just skip it.”

“Our own wedding, Rich?”

“We already got married, Eds,” Richie murmured as he turned over in the sheets to reach for Eddie in the mid morning light. He was well aware of the plans that had to be set into motion, as well as the many things they must actually be present for―like getting married, for one―but all Richie felt like doing was spending the rest of their Friday afternoon in the hotel bed. Well, Eddie had brought separate bed sheets for the hotel bed, but still the same idea in spirit.

Eddie pulled Richie closer and rested a hand in his tousled hair. Though he did not fully bring him to his chest―the wound had healed months ago, but Eddie was still extremely careful. It made Richie wonder what their wedding night was going to look like if Eddie wouldn’t touch him. Not like it made much of a difference considering all the other times…

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, but we can’t just not go to our rehearsal dinner,” He stated, craning over Richie to stare at the clock displayed on the hotel nightstand with a groan.

Richie tilted his head up to stare at Eddie―or the foggy shape he assumed was his soon-to-be husband, having forgotten to put on his glasses.

“You don’t remember when we got married as kids?”

“I don’t think that a children’s cereal box ring counts towards marriage.”

“Oh, please. It wasn’t a cereal box prize…It was a Ring Pop,” Richie said with dignity.

“You’re gonna have to tell me the story of our so-called wedding, since there’s clearly some pieces I’m missing.”

Richie flourished a hand, in an old British clip. “With pleasure, Mr. Tozier.”

“Tozier-Kaspbrak,” Eddie corrected him.

“Nuance. Anyway, I’m pretty sure it was one hot ass summer when we were all sitting in Bill’s backyard, eating candy…”  

The Denbrough’s yard was stifling that summer in Maine, and all of the Losers crowded under the aged umbrella from their outdoor patio furniture to stay cool in the grass. Mike and Stanley were huddled close, admiring a bluejay that had perched on the fence, while Ben passed around a plastic bag of assorted candies from Costello’s Market―one that his mother had purchased for him the morning of―and tried not to sneak a glance at Beverley’s smile, or the way the sun made her hair glow like an open fire.

“It’s so fuckin’ hot,” Richie whined, popping a cherry Ring Pop into his mouth.

Ben shifted uncomfortably on his place in the dead grass. “You shouldn’t say that word Richie!”

“Oh hush, Haystack. I can say whatever I’d like,” He replied coolly and fell onto his back to stare at the cloudless sky.

“There’s nothing to do out here,” Eddie said in a soft voice, still awed by Richie’s crude remark. The brown-haired boy had some color on his cheeks, but not from the heat. He was startled, and maybe a little captivated by how confident Richie was, and Eddie wondered if some of that confidence could work on him the next time Belch Huggins shoved him off the playground equipment at school.

Bill fished inside the shopping bag for a candy bar that wasn’t already melted. “W-We have some board games i-i-inside.”

“Let’s go to the library,” Mike murmured. “There’s a new issue of Superman out and if we don’t act now all the other kids'll take them all.”

Stanley leaned in toward Mike’s neck and used the binoculars he was wearing, pointing at the bird. “No, let’s go back to my house for my sketchbook so I can draw her. Look, she’s so pretty.”

The three argued about what to do when Richie pondered over his candy, then said thoughtfully, “We could get married.”

Eddie looked away, knowing full well that Richie’s finger poking into his side meant that he was talking to him.

“W-What?” Bill spoke above Stanley and Mike’s chatter. Ben was too busy sorting the candy to pay much attention.

Richie shrugged, wiping sweaty hair out of his face. “We’ve got the rings, right Eds?”

Eddie crossed his arms, scowling at the Ring Pop on his own finger and spoke to the ground.

“Don’t call me Eds. You know it’s not my name.”

“It’s just pretend…unless you’re too chicken to do it,” Richie challenged.

Beverly glanced between the both of them, her eyes finally landing on Richie as a wicked grin lit her face.

“I’ll be the lucky lady, if my daddy doesn’t find out,” She giggled.

Richie sat up, wiping the grass from his shirt. “I was talking about Eddie Spaghetti, Bev. But you can be my best man.”

“I don’t think that’s how it works,” Stan said.

“Fine! I’ll marry Beverly, then Eds. Okay?”

Stan pulled his binoculars down. “You’re still not getting the point.”

“Oh, whatever. We’ve got a wedding to do,” Richie stood alongside Bev and held out his hand.

Eddie blinked at him for a speechless moment but took his hand warily.

“This is a bad idea,” He mumbled with a red face as the three sautnered over to the Denbrough’s rusting trellis, its vines once lively now hung dead across the scorching metal.

“Bill! Will you come marry us?” Beverly shouted across the lawn, even though the boys were only a few feet away.

“S-Sure Bevvie,” The boy immediately stood and went to her.

“Got yours, Bev?” Richie held up his candy ring, as well as the one on Eddie’s hand, still clasped in his own.

“Let go of my hand!” Eddie flung his arm back, nursing the Ring Pop in hopes that neither could see his expression. It was the only comfort he had, that sweet taste of blue dye, he’d left his inhaler at home.

Beverly showed them her ring, fresh from the package and shining a neon green on her pale finger.

Bill clapped his hands together, nervously looking to Bev. “Alright, uh, R-Richie go stand by Eh-Eh-Eddie, I’ll marry Bev and you f-first.”

Richie grabbed Beverly’s hands and grinned sheepishly at the young girl. The other three watched from the shade of the umbrella, a mix of amusement and anxiety filtering across their faces. Luckily Bill’s parents were not home to see the ceremony, but the Losers knew neither mother nor father would take much interest in their antics.

“Do y-you Beverly Marsh tu-tu-take Richie T-Tozier to be your, uh, husband?”

“It’s ‘lawfully wedded husband,’ Bill!” Mike commented, while Stan slapped his shoulder.

Richie winked at Bev, which made her laugh harder. “I do.”

Bill nodded in agreement. “Okay, D-Do you, Richie Tozier t-take her to be your,” He turned to Mike, remembering the phrase, “Lawfully wedded wife?”

“Sure do, Big Bill. Now, how bout a good one, right here, Bevvie?” Richie clicked his tongue and tapped a cheek with his finger.

Bev blushed and leaned forward to peck his cheek. Eddie closed his eyes, trying not to picture Richie’s lips on his face. She pulled back, smiling and waving around her ringed finger in the hot air. Richie did the same.

“Eddie, your t-t-turn.”

Beverly gave Richie’s shoulder an affectionate squeeze before dashing off to hide under the umbrella. Eddie ran his tongue across the dry roof of his mouth and stepped forward, accepting the boy’s sweaty hands.

He hardly understood Bill’s words, not because of the stutter but more so because of the way Richie cleared his throat, and the firm grip he had on his hands, as if it were an actual ceremony and not something thrown together in a small town backyard.

Richie was busy staring at Eddie and stammered out an ‘I do’ just in time for him to whisper the same.

Bill bristled at the next line, his eyes flickering to Richie, who nodded his approval and said, “You m-may, uh, kiss each other?”

“On the cheek!” Eddie squealed, but Richie used their locked hands to propel him forward, smacking their lips together with an unceremonious crash of saliva. Richie’s mouth moved quickly across his, with neither having the slightest idea what they were doing or what it meant, but were drawn further into the kiss by the sugary taste left from their Ring Pops.

Richie’s glasses drove up against Eddie’s face in the seconds that their kiss lasted, and when he moved away Eddie let a small smile break through his resolve at Richie’s crooked glasses and wet curls of messy black hair. Eddie wouldn’t realize it until much later in the day but that hot summer afternoon, and Richie’s cherry flavored kiss was a brisk line in the sand on his feelings, and the memory of it would linger in his mind every time the dark-haired boy passed by. He kissed me, he kissed me, his mind would scream with gleeful abandon. Now go tell him you like him.

“See? Just pretend,” Richie released Eddie’s hands and stuck the Ring Pop into his mouth, biting it clean off the plastic ring. He stuck his tongue out, it was still red from the artificial flavoring and Eddie could almost feel that cherry candy in his own mouth. He shuddered at the thought and hurried away from the other boy, terrified and amazed at him.

The patio door slid on its hinges, and a small mousy haired boy stepped out―George, Bill’s little brother.

“What's going on? Who got candy without me?” The boy commanded, looking hurt by the other’s failure to include him.

Bill rushed to his side, holding out what was left of his chocolate. “S-Sorry Georgie. We were just gonna ask i-i-if you wanted some.”

“Uh huh.” Georgie snatched the candy bar, then sought out the plastic bag that promised more treats.

“So what’re you gonna do now Richie, with your new husband and wife?” Mike asked. Stan was bent over his travel-sized birth encyclopedia, so lost in thought the boy was getting smudges of milk chocolate on the pages.

Once Richie went back to the umbrella he slung an arm around Beverly and Eddie’s shoulders and looked up at the sun with a weary grin.

“Take a nap.”

“See Eds? Married,” Richie sighed happily as he concluded his story.

“Rich, there’s no way that you kissed me in front of everyone at ten years old.”

“Would you like me to call Bev for clarification?” Richie said, lovingly resting his head against Eddie’s waist, smiling where the other man could not see―because for a minute Eddie did not flinch away.

Eddie eased Richie’s head away from him and slid off the bed, throwing open his luggage.

“I’d like for you to take back the past twenty minutes, because now we’re going to be late. Ask her tonight at our actual wedding rehearsal.”

Richie rolled over Eddie’s side of the bed and found his phone and glasses while trying to tug off the shirt he’d slept in. “Yeah, Bev? Remember that one time at Bill’s house when we got married?”  

“You’re calling her, Rich?” Eddie disappeared into the bathroom so he didn’t have to witness the reason they were going to inevitably be late for dinner.

Richie stopped and listened, slipping into a pair of dress pants. He rolled his eyes and threw the phone onto the rumpled sheets with a childish whine.

“What did she say?” Eddie asked smugly, poking his head out of the door.

“She said, and I quote, ‘If you don’t show up in the next five minutes I am telling your parents you decided to elope at age forty.’”

Eddie grinned and straightened his shirt collar, exiting the bathroom to kiss Richie’s smooth cheek. At least he’d done one thing: shave.

He took Richie’s arm and they headed out the hotel door. “Let’s go then, Mr. Tozier.”

“That’s Tozier-Kaspbrak, according to you,” Richie grumbled.

“I said I was fine with Tozier.”

“Are you ‘fine’ with it? Just fine? ‘Fine’ is like, ‘I’m fine with my shitty low-end job.’ That sort of fine?”

“How about, ‘I’m more than fine with it for the rest of my life?’”

Richie chuckled. “Sounds good to me, Mr. Tozier. The wedding planner’s gonna give us hell, though.”

“We’ve been through worse.”

[reddieforasloppybitch]

If Stan had come to Jade of the Orient

“Stan, clearly something is wrong, stop that bath running and tell me about it”

Patricia comes along - she begged to

Stan was worried about her coming to Derry, but she wanted to be there for him, so she packed her bags, anyway

When they get there, there’s a second pf awkwardness - Stan’s not exactly a social butterfly and it has been decades since he saw them

Lucky for him, Patty is a people-person and introduces herself

“Woah, Stan, you married a hugger? Opposites do attract!” “Yeah, they do - so you must be married to Victoria’s Secret model, right, Richie?”

And just like that - as if a switch got turned on in his mind - he felt like no time has passed

Why had he felt so awkward? He knews these guys! The Losers! Richie, Ben, Beverly, Mike, Eddie and Bill-

Bill!

His face went red as he remembered his first kiss - Oh, shit, did Bill remember to? How embarrassing

Patty knew he was bisexual, but he wasn’t sure she’d love to know she was sitting next to someone he had once or many times kissed as a teenager

He was relieved to find that his feelings for Bill didn’t reignite (though he did check him out once) and he was still madly in love with Patty

Ben asked Stan about work and vice versa

“I’ve actually been looking for an accountant, would you be interested?” “Really? You’ve only known I was an accountant for five minutes!” “But I’ve known you for 30 years - come work with me!” “I’ll have to talk with Patty first on such a big decision, but I think I will!”

Everyone cheers their drinks to Stan’s new job

“So, Stan, Patty, any rugrats?” asks Richie. “I can’t wait to see Stan the Man Jr. with his toy calculator”

Patty holds Stan’s hand. “Actually, we can’t have children and, well, adoption and surrogacy is so expensive”

Everyone group hugs

No one really knew Richie was gay (for sure) except Stan who had accidentally found a picture of Eddie under Richie’s pillow when they were 13 (fully-clothed, get your mind out the gutter) but he never told anyone, not even Richie, because he thought he’d come out when he was ready

But when they meet up again after TWENTY-FUCKING-SEVEN years, Stan quickly realises that Richie never came out and he feels guilty for not trying to talk to him about it as kids

“Patty, he’s lived his entire life alone, lying to everyone he knows, and I could have helped, but I was a stupid kid!” he says to his wife later that night

Eddie says he’s married, but Stan notices how he seems geared towards Richie and thinks maybe he should have tried talking to him, too

Maybe I’m imagining it, Eddie’s not— “Let’s take our shirts off and kiss!” Nope, definitely gay

When Bev avoids questions about Tom, Patty subtly points out the belt marks on her arm

Afterwards, he pulls Beverly to the side

“I know this is weird and probably not-my-place because it’s been 27 years, but it feels like I just saw you yesterday, Beverly, so if this Tom guy ever...” his voice trails as he gestures to her arm. “You can always stay with us, okay? I know you probably live in a mansion now so my house will probably seem like shit, but it’s there if you-”

Beverly hugs him. “I missed you, Stan”

He also talks to Mike.

“I’ve got to thank you, Mike.” “What for?” “You stayed so we didn’t have to. Don’t think I didn’t notice or appreciate it because I do. Patty is amazing. I love her more than anything in the world. You know how neurotic I am, right? Not only does she ‘put up with’ it, she likes it about me and she gets me to have fun. But I only got the chance to meet her because you stayed. You gave me the chance, Mike. Thank you”

[jonny-byerss]

Why Jancy Is Endgame

So, recently, I’ve seen quite a bit of Jancy hate which I literally don’t understand, because how can you look at Jancy and think “Wow, I hate them”...like, it genuinely baffles me that people don’t ship Jancy, like how? They have SO MUCH CHEMISTRY it’s unreal. In all three seasons, it’s evident that there’s something more between them than just “monster hunting partners”. So, recently, I have been asking multiple people including my irl friends why they think Jancy is endgame and this is what I’ve come up with.

1.) The Duffers Aren’t Dumb

Even though quite a bit of people are disappointed with the way they’ve taken their writing, you have to admit one thing: they aren’t dumb. They’ve been setting Jancy up to be canon since S1, and fans have been rooting for them to get together since S1. It’s not until Steve’s turn-around that people started hating on Jancy.

Jancy is definitely more popular than Stancy for sure. To a majority of fans, even if Jancy isn’t their favorite Stranger Things ship, they still at least ship it. And, with the exception of hardcore Steve stans, most people who like Steve as a character admit that Jonathan and Nancy fit better together than Steve and Nancy ever did. We know the Duffers like to give in to what a majority of fans want, and Jancy seems to be what a majority of fans want.

There’s 3 core ships that the Duffers have been building up since S1. Those are Jopper, Jancy, and Mileven. It’s obvious in S1 that these ships are going to become canon eventually, and they’re also the three core ships of the show that people love. They also tend to focus on these three relationships quite a bit in their writing, with the majority of major relationship moments being with these three ships, especially Mileven. It’s obvious they want us to root for these ships.

The main point I’m trying to make is the Duffers have been setting Jancy up to be canon since S1. They have shown us many moments in all three seasons that show us just how much chemistry Jancy has. From the bed scene in S1, to the hallway scene in S2, they’re obviously trying to show us that Jancy is meant to get together.

Not only that, but Jancy was ACTUALLY supposed to be canon in S1. I don’t know how many people know this, but Steve was supposed to die in S1, and Jancy was supposed to get together. The writers liked Joe Keery so they decided they needed to find a way to keep him on the show. It’s clear to me that the writers themselves are rooting for Jancy, which means that they want us to root for Jancy too.

I’m not here to say how the Duffers should write the next seasons, and I myself don’t know what happens in the future seasons, but I do see the clues that the Duffers have given us since S1 and I also believe that the Duffers know what they’re doing. They know what the majority of fans want and it’s clear to me that they want us to root for Jancy, so obviously they’re gonna keep them together.

2.) THAT Ending Scene In S3

A lot of people that say “Jancy has no chemistry” clearly have not seen their last scene in S3. To me, that scene is a promise. A promise to each other and to us that Jancy is in it for each other.

In this scene, you can see that they are so painfully in love. They don’t want to leave each other. You can tell it breaks both of their hearts that they have to separate for a bit.

I could do a whole analysis of this scene, and I just might do that later, but to me, what they’re saying to each other is “We’ve been through so much together, why can’t we go through a little more?”

Sure, long-distance would be harder in the 80s, but I do believe that their love is strong enough to last. They clearly both love each other very much. And there’s always phone calls and letters and visiting each other on breaks.

When thinking of the LDRs that the Byers move caused, lots of people think of Mileven, but Jancy is actually way more likely to be endgame than Mileven at this point. We don’t know what happens in future seasons or if the Byers eventually move back, but we do know that Jonathan and Nancy are seniors in high school and almost 18. Mike and Eleven are barely starting high school and have more time to be apart than Jancy does. Once Jancy graduates, they can do whatever they want. Sure, one could say that Jonathan might feel an obligation to stay with his family, but we also know that he has an ambition for NYU. We have no idea what Nancy wants. I can honestly see her go to college for journalism or something similar. What’s to stop her from going to NYU or somewhere in NY with Jonathan?

We don’t know what the Duffers have in store for Jancy’s future, but I trust that they can give Jancy the perfect ending they deserve. That scene in S3 has so much underlying meaning to it, like the fact that the song that play in the background during it is called “You’re a Fighter”. I have a whole different thing planned on analyzing that scene, and I’ll post that later, but basically, with that scene, to me, the Duffers are trying to say “They’re in this for each other. They’re so in love that they’re going to make it work”

3) They are the most mature relationship on the show

I’ve seen quite a few people say that the argument they had in S3 is “proof they are incompatible” but that is simply not true. In fact, if anything, it shows how they are exactly the opposite. Here’s why.

So, every couple fights. It’s the ability to work through a fight and come out stronger and more understanding that shows just how committed a couple is to each other. Jonathan and Nancy are a prime example of this.

Jonathan and Nancy come from different backgrounds. This argument of “I’m poor” and “People are being sexist towards me” is a very adult argument. I mean, most teenage couples you see have fights about jealousy-type crap. Jancy’s fight is a fight that adults would have. That’s why I believe they are a very mature couple.

Not only that, but the key thing to remember is that they both admitted that they felt bad for what they said and apologized, reaffirming their commitment to each other. This is a fight that they can grow from as a result. Because they apologized and acknowledged their wrong-doings, they have a better foundation for understanding each other in the future and they can grow as a couple. This can also give them a perspective on life that maybe they didn’t think about before.

Honestly, Jancy has been through a lot crap together so they kind of have to be mature. Plus, Jonathan himself had to grow up faster than most children, which gives him a perspective on life that he most likely passed on to Nancy.

This is why I believe Jancy is the most mature couple. Instead of letting their fight get the best of them, they acknowledged their wrong-doings and became more understanding of each other as a result. It takes real maturity to do something like that.

The reason I compare them to the other couples is because, look at Mileven’s fight in S3. It seems sort of childish compared to Jancy’s. And Lumax has broken up 5 times apparently. And Jopper, gosh, they have a lot of issues to work out. Jancy seems to have effectively worked out their differences and become stronger as a result.

Charlie Heaton (Jonathan) himself said that when he first read the S3 script, he thought that Jancy seemed like a married couple, which I think says a lot about their relationship. They are so mature and comfortable with each other like that. He also said this, which basically sums up what I said, here:

4) They are more than just “shared trauma”

I’ve seen a lot of people criticize Jancy by saying stuff like “Shared trauma isn’t a good foundation for a relationship”, but I’m about to prove why that’s bullcrap, because Jancy is more than their shared trauma.

So, shared trauma seems to be what the writers like to point out about their relationship. In the ending scene in S3, Jonathan tells Nancy “We’ve got shared trauma”. He is referring to what Murray said to them in S2 when he was telling them why they should get together. Just because “shared trauma” is what Murray emphasized, doesn’t mean it’s their only foundation.

I’d quickly like to point out though, that shared trauma is actually a real life relationship trope and there are real-life couples founded on this. But, I’d also like to point out that Jancy’s trauma isn’t just any trauma. They didn’t just fight in Vietnam together or something, like it’s not every day your loved one gets kidnapped by an otherworldly demon.

I think the main emphasis that the show is focusing on when they say “shared trauma” is the scars. I mean, when Jonathan said that line in S3, he was touching Nancy’s scar that he shares with her. They are the only two people with those matching scars. Those scars are something that unites them and reminds them of the past they share.

Their “trauma” isn’t just how they met either. I mean, they obviously knew each other before the events of S1. Their brothers are best friends. I’m not saying they were friends or anything, but they were definitely acquaintances.

Their trauma is how they grew closer. I mean, before their first traumatic experience, they seemed to be getting on each other’s nerves a bit. It’s not until Nancy almost became Demogorgon lunch that they started realizing they could trust each other. After that, they realized they worked well together and they may or may not have fallen in love.

Also, let’s not forget all the flirting they did before their traumatic experience. The darkroom, even the target practice scene.

I think the key thing to remember with their trauma though is that, because they both went through similar experiences, they understand each other in that way. I mean, part of Stancy breaking up was because Steve didn’t realize the trauma she was going through and didn’t understand fully how to help her. Jonathan understood in a way what she was feeling because he went through something similar.

And yeah, shared trauma might not be a good foundation, because obviously there’s other things to consider in a relationship, but if there’s anything S3 showed us it’s that Jancy knows how to communicate and work through their problems, so clearly that’s not an issue for them.

5) The love triangle is done

I’ve seen some online articles that say things like “Now that Jonathan is gone, Nancy will go back with Steve”. I’ve even heard people say “Nancy will go with Robin”. Both of those are bullcrap.

First of all, Stancy’s arc is finished. S2 showed us how incompatible they were by showing how Steve hasn’t been a good support system for Nancy and showing that Nancy no longer loved Steve. Nancy obviously felt something more for Jonathan, who could support her in a better way than Steve could, because Jonathan had similar experiences. After they broke up, they were done. And when Jonathan and Nancy kissed the love triangle was over. It was solved.

I think most of the fans can agree that they are glad the love triangle was solved, that way Nancy’s story can be about more than just boys. It would be stupid for the Duffers to bring it back and it would ruin every ounce of character development that Steve and Nancy have gone through. And I am confident that the Duffers aren’t stupid.

Part of Steve’s S2 arc is getting over Nancy and accepting that she no longer loves him and even finding a friend in Dustin. Part of Nancy’s arc in S2 was realizing she should embrace that girl she was for a week in November 1983. She gets justice for Barb and even embraces her feelings for the school outcast. Nancy and Steve can still be friends, and even Jonathan and Steve, but that’s it. Nothing more. It’s been decided that Nancy doesn’t love Steve, she loves Jonathan. Even if Jonathan is far away, it’s possible to love him from a distance.

And about Robin and Nancy, it’s also highly unlikely. Again, I think most fans are tired of Nancy’s love life and love triangle and are glad it’s over. Adding Robin to the mix would make it even more complicated.

First of all, it’s not canon that Nancy is bisexual. The only canon LGBT character is Robin. It is implied that Will may be as well, but nothing has been confirmed.

I can see Robin and Nancy being good friends, but Robin did call her a priss in S3 and also, it’s like an unspoken rule in best-friendship that you don’t date their exes. Robin and Steve are best friends. This would break that rule.

I do know, based on leaked photos, Nancy and Robin most likely work together (maybe even with Steve) in S4. I believe, however, that the relationship is fully platonic. It would be nice for Nancy to have a friend that’s a girl after her loss of Barb, and Robin is a good person and would be a great friend for Nancy. I also believe, however, that Nancy is 100% dedicated to Jonathan (based on the last scene in S3) and will only be working with Robin (and maybe Steve) because they know something that would be useful.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is: Nancy’s love life arc has ended. It’s been decided that Nancy doesn’t love Steve and he can’t give her what she wants. And I think most Ronance shippers are just trolls, tbh. No one seems really serious about any Nancy and Robin relationship that’s anything more than platonic.

———————

And I think that about sums up why I believe Jancy is endgame. Jonathan and Nancy clearly love and care for each other very much as shown in all three seasons. Plus, there’s the fact that THEIR ACTORS ARE LITERALLY DATING IN REAL LIFE! (Seriously both Jancy and Natarlie are relationship goals).

I am extremely confident that even if Jancy does break up at some point, it won’t be for long and they’ll somehow find their way back to each other because they are soulmates. That is a guarantee. I have full confidence that the Duffers can give their relationship the perfect ending they deserve. I’d like to hear your guys’ feedback (please try to keep negativity away). Do you believe Jancy is endgame?

And here’s proof that Jancy loves each other:

[mikemoon]

( choi yeonjun, cis man ) have you seen MICHAEL “MIKE” MOON ? i heard HE is a COMPUTER SCIENCE MAJOR at SAN VERTO COLLEGE and an EMPLOYEE at HALL OF FILM. they’re 22 years old and they’ve been living in san verto for 6 YEARS. they tend to be CARE-FREE & ADVENTUROUS, but rumor has it they can also be GRUMPY & CLUMSY. [ tally, 25, gmt+4, she/her ] @foolsstarters​

tw // mentions of depression, cheating, divorce, underage drinking and smoking

michael moon, born myungjun moon –– choi yeonjun fc

birthday: september 9, 1998 - 22 yrs old ; virgo

cis man, he/him, bisexual

born and raised in philadelphia, pennsylvania

mike grew up being an only child, and always around the company of his mother in their house. his father was always traveling back and forth from south korea to the states for work. his parents have met at work on one of his father’s trips to the states, and they fell in love. his mother being american-born, she couldn’t really leave philadelphia. she loved it there. so they decided to keep it a long distance relationship.

sometime during those fleeting meetings, she had gotten pregnant with michael. and of course, his father spoiled them both, giving them everything they wanted. he never left them to fend for themselves. when the boy was born, his father named him myungjun, and his mother decided to name him michael for his english name. the nicknames jun, mike, and sometimes junnie were often heard whenever his parents or childhood friends called him.

up until mike was five years old in 2004, he’s lived with his mother, while his father was leaving and coming back for a week or two. but that year, he’s finally moved to the states and stayed with them for longer nights. he even finally married michael’s mother. of course, he still disappeared for a few days or weeks on end for work.

but that was also the year michael’s mother found out that her husband was with another woman. michael has never seen his mother break down like that before. sadly, the young boy was peering into the room when the fight happened and witnessed everything. his mother made her partner choose between the two women, and he eventually told her that he was going to divorce his first wife for her, and appeared to have gone through with his promise. because after that incident, he’s been around more often.

by early 2015, when michael had just turned 16, his mother had gotten a teaching job in ashdown academy, which resulted in their move to san verto, california. meaning, new school and new friends for mike. meanwhile, his dad was still traveling a lot for business and coming back whenever he could.

michael has grown up as a cheerful and energetic child. his friends at any school he went to would tell you how much of a great friend he is, how trustworthy and caring he is. it was so easy for him to make friends anywhere. he was the type of friend who would smile at you and listen to you talk on and on about whatever you liked, and the type who would cheer you on with anything you want to achieve. he wanted everyone to feel included and loved.

so it wasn’t that hard for him to get along with new people once he moved to town. he was a very social person. 

he was also the type of teenager who was out there doing things he wasn’t supposed to. he missed his old friends and his old home, but he wanted to have fun with all the new kids he was befriending. that simply resulted in him going to house parties as an underaged teen to ‘have fun’. his mother didn’t approve of him coming home very late at night, clearly smelling like smoke and alcohol. 

internally he was a depressed mess. of course, no one is completely happy as they grow up. his family was a mess, even if it appeared as fine to everyone else. his family life affected him so much while growing up. mike sometimes could disappear for a few days in his room, and it was always during some of his bad spells.

what made it worse was the day he found out the truth.

it was 2017 when michael walked into his father’s office in their house, looking for him to ask him about something. and instead of finding the man, he found a stack of papers poking from underneath his father’s laptop. upon closer look, they appeared to be divorce papers. michael’s heart sunk, thinking his parents were breaking it off.

michael is a curious kid, he couldn’t help but close the door and read the papers. but what he saw wasn’t his mother’s name, it was another woman. his heart raced, as he put things back where they were and immediately left the room. michael had found out one of his father’s many secrets. he never divorced his first wife all those years ago. he lied and somehow stayed with both women without suspicion... well, until now. clearly the other woman was breaking it off for a reason. 

michael couldn’t help his curiosity. he came back to the room later that night and snapped as many pictures as he could of evidence he could find. he even found his father’s phone (which was easy to figure out the password of) and found a plethora of pictures of the man with a different family, different kids and a different partner. he airdropped the pictures to himself to avoid leaving any traces behind and quickly left again.

a quick search on facebook, and he managed to find the first wife. it was easy with the name and pictures he had. if anything, michael prided himself on being a good internet detective... or stalker. he spent everyday trying to find the rest of the family on the internet. he found the woman’s young daughter on instagram and twitter, along with her older son’s accounts as well. it felt weird. it was a constant “now what?” for michael. he’s found them. what was he going to do now? he couldn’t just message them and tell them everything. and he couldn’t break his mother’s heart by letting her know.

except he had to let her know. he could never live with the fact that he knew his father was betraying her this entire time. and so michael told her everything, and after comforting her all night when she broke down yet again, she immediately ended things and asked for a divorce. now it was just michael and his mother, all alone. and for once, having to get by on their own.

thankfully they were safe, with his mother’s amazing money management skills, and the job she got at the academy, they managed to live their regular lives despite the heavy feeling of a broken family looming around them. the two just wanted to be happy again.

michael spent the next few years trying to lead a normal life. his mental health had gotten worse after everything he’s found out. he went to college, and he continued trying to do well in school. he really wasn’t the best when it came to grades, but he was trying his best.

and truthfully, he couldn’t help but make a few spare accounts on some social medias to follow his father’s other family.

but he eventually decided to just let it go, assuming they definitely knew about his mother and himself, which would explain the first divorce. so he decided to put it in the past and move on.

his mother has moved on as well. she found herself someone who actually cares about her so much (mike’s stupid ass has done a secret background check to make sure this dude wasn’t another cheater lmaoo) and now mike isn’t an only child anymore. it’s been 2 years since his little sister yuna was born, and he loves her so much. he still isn’t used to the idea of a new fatherly figure in his life, but he’s.... getting there. 

little dumb hcs

mike majors in computer science at san verto college, with a concentration in game development and design

hes a lil gamer boy,,, u KNOW he’s that annoying dude with a gamer chair that has a sound system in it khjkh

he posted a few videos on youtube but rly just ditched the channel after like a month. he still posts whenever he feels like it tho and it’s usually just.... messy gaming videos or opinions no one asked for

his dad’s dumb ass still doesn’t know it was mike who exposed him to his mother. he thinks she found the divorce papers on her own. therefore.... mike still gets money from his dad on a monthly basis and gets to keep the car he bought him for his 18th birthday lmaooooo a win 

you probably heard me say this before but.... theres a hc that mike is allergic to eggs. simply bc the idea of him shopping in the vegan section is funny to me 

this boy has a love for frogs ? idk where the obsession came from but you bet you’re gonna see a cute lil frog sticker on everything he owns. he doodles them on everything too ? it’s a habit at this point. he also knows random little facts about them and tells them to anyone who didnt ask for them 

. embarrassing but.. this dude... omg.... a big sana stan.... he has a photocard collection.... he went to a twice concert like 5 times.... dont be surprised if you see a feel special sana photocard in his phonecase.... im embarrassed of him 

he also has a hyunjin mcdonalds hashbrown photocard framed that a friend gave to him for christmas bc.. it’s a rare card,,, and you can see it on a table by the door when you walk into his apartment 😭

mike also has a habit of buying things he doesn’t need ?? he has a plushie collection that has been growing since he was young, and now is getting bigger with the rise of squishmallows

there’s this random hc where he drunk bought a cardboard cutout of john cena ,,,, don’t ask,,, it’s currently guarding his room back at his mom’s house djfhdj

can you tell mike is my most embarrassing , most chaotic character,, 

also he moved out after graduating school and when he started to attend college,,,, gimme some roomies pls

connection ideas ??

michael’s childhood friends; could’ve gone to the same school back in philly before he moved away ?? 

friends he made when he moved to town?? mike is very social and was... kinda popular in school, i’d say. he made friends with basically anyone he found interesting

michael’s ex; they could’ve ended on a bad note, or even on a good one and ended up being friends. im really up for plotting anything.

michael’s best friend; PLEASE i love wholesome best friend plots. it doesn’t matter if they met in san verto or philly

roomies pls !!! i would love it if he could have some roommates who have to deal with his very . peculiar decorating habits 

co workers ?? customers ? regulars ? he works at hall of film ! 

like this to plot or hmu !

[richiefuckfacetozier]

Why Can't This Be Love

Chapter 1: Here It Comes

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Click to read on Archive 

Pairing: Richie Tozier x Eddie Kaspbrak

Title - Why Can't This Be Love by Van Halen

Dedicated to @slashpalooza and @sam-i-am2468

___

Eddie’s Tuesday started out as it normally did. Half a grapefruit for breakfast, thoroughly shower, text his best friend, Richie, a stupid meme, call Mike to confirm lunch for tomorrow, work from 8am to 6pm, and come home to pour himself a glass of wine. 

Right now he was pouring 4 glasses because around 3:00pm, Beverly called asking if her and Ben could come by to tell him something exciting and that Richie had to be there too. He was not sure what they could possibly want to talk about with the two of them. Eddie tried to push down the anxiety that they might be angry about something. He was pretty sure he didn’t do anything horrible recently, but he couldn’t be sure.

“Richie! Can you help me?” Eddie shouted from the kitchen of his apartment. “I don’t have enough hands to carry everything!”

“Coming, my love!” Richie joked annoyingly. Although Eddie didn’t find it entirely annoying, it’s just Richie being ridiculous. 

His tall friend padded into the kitchen wearing his worn out leather jacket that he thought made him look cool, a print shirt with a meme on it that Eddie didn’t get, and jeans, “I know what they are going to tell us.” Richie stated confidently with a little bounce in his step. 

“Did they tell you already? That’s not fair!” Eddie said in frustration. “They couldn’t wait two more damn minutes?”

“No, I have a guess, Eds.” 

“Don’t call me Eds.”

“I think Ben finally got the courage to propose to Beverly.” Richie went on with a smile. “Or she grabbed him by the balls and told him to do it.”

Eddie snorted at the imagery and wouldn’t put it past Bev to be that aggressive but probably wouldn’t to the love of her life. “That’s wonderful if it’s the news.” 

“I bet you 50 bucks it is,” Richie challenged, “Ben was looking mighty anxious at Bill’s wedding a year ago.” 

Eddie rubbed the back of his neck, “I barely remember Bill’s wedding. I was so blackedout.” 

Richie rolled his eyes dramatically, “You were stupidly mourning the loss of Myra the hydra.” Eddie cringed at the mention of his ex-girlfriend. 

“Be nice, Rich.” Eddie frowned. He pulled out a packet of thin mint girl scout cookies for all of them to snack on.  

Richie rolled his eyes as he sipped quickly from the glass of wine, clearly not finished speaking, “I don’t know why either. She was a carbon copy of your mother. Her leaving was the best thing to ever happen to you.” 

“Yes, being extremely single has done wonders for my self-esteem.” Eddie mumbled.

Richie leaned over and flicked Eddie’s nose, “You’re a catch, dummy.” 

He yelped, rubbing his nose and getting goosebumps from their intensely close position. Eddie grabbed the other two glasses, thin mints and turned on his heel to walk out of the kitchen. “Fine, 50 bucks it isn’t an engagement.” 

“Sweet! Also, those pants look good on you.” Richie pointed out following from behind him. 

Eddie’s cheeks heated up a little, he purposely wore these dark navy blue jeans because Richie always compliments them. He wondered if Richie remembered that he did this every time. Eddie doubted it. When it was just the two of them, Richie constantly tried to make Eddie feel special and wanted. Eddie suspected Richie did it because he felt sorry for him, but he couldn’t be sure. Despite knowing his best friend pretty well, he was also a huge enigma. Constantly says whatever is on his mind, does the most spontaneous - borderline suicidal - things, and keeps a smile on his face no matter what he may be feeling. 

They plop down on the couch in Eddie’s living room. His place was what Richie called a ‘clean mess’, probably the best description of Eddie ever said. He had the habit of hoarding things he didn’t really need. Piles of books on every table that he had already read, knick-knacks from trips, more candles than any one person needed on all open surfaces. He had really nice furniture that matched well in a blend of warm colors. Beverly and Ben sat in two mahogany chairs across from them, holding hands. 

Eddie placed the wine glasses on monster movie poster coasters that Richie gifted him years ago when they were teens. They grew up together and remained close throughout the years, regardless of college or moving around. In fact, Eddie had six very close friends from childhood. The group called themselves the Losers Club, a title courtesy of Richie. 

“Thanks, Eddie!” Beverly said nicely. Ben thanked him too. Richie sat beside Eddie, the side of their thighs touching as he scooted closer to hand him wine. Eddie always felt so comfortable around all his friends, they were the only ones he let be touchy with him. He used to hate germs and be easily disgusted by everything, but when the people he was closest with shared food, drinks, and beds with him, that feeling went away gradually. 

“Alright, lads,” Richie started up with a newsies kid accent. “What’s the scoop? Striking Pulitzer again?” 

“Well,” Ben’s round cheeks turned pink as he said, “We’ve got pretty big news.” Eddie observed Ben take both Beverly’s hands into his own big ones. 

Beverly was practically jumping in her seat, her flamming red short curls bouncing against the sides of her face. She shared a big smile with Ben as she blurted out, “WE ARE GETTING MARRIED!”

“FUCK YES!” Richie shouted. He flew off the couch tackling Beverly in a huge hug. 

“Please, don’t hurt my girlfrie-I mean fiancé.” Ben said softly, clearly surprised how much he enjoyed calling her that. 

Eddie got up to hug Ben tightly, saying congratulations. Beverly kissed both men before they sat back down. Eddie raised his glass. “Cheers, to two people who’s friendship, romance, and love are unparalleled.” 

They clinked glasses and drank. Richie bumped Eddie lightly, “Cheers to owing me $50.” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Eddie nodded toward the counter. “You can grab it from my wallet before you go home.” 

“You can just buy me dinner this weekend.” Richie waved his hand.

“So Rich, you know what me getting married also means?” Beverly’s eyes shined brightly at him. He looked between her and Ben, thinking. Then dawning flashed on his face. He put his glass down and stood on the couch. 

“Richie, no!” Eddie pleaded desperately. “You are going to fall! Idiot!” 

He jumped up and down like a child discovering Christmas came early. “I AM GOING TO BE DUDE OF HONOR!” 

They all laughed at his excitement. One of the things the losers club decided in their 20’s, after a particularly ugly fight about who would be who’s best man or ‘dude of honor’ in this case, was that each of them would take turns. 

So far, Bill and Stanley had gotten married. To two incredible women, Audra and Patty. Eddie was Bill’s and Bill was Stan’s best man. The rest of the sequence goes: Mike is Richie’s, Richie is Bev’s, Bev is Eddie’s, Stan is Ben’s, and Ben is Mike’s. Mike is fairly confident he won’t get married and neither will Richie, which he says is for the best as he is far too stressed as a person to get married or be a best man. 

Eddie recalled that a huge fight he had with Myra was over Beverly being his Best Woman. She shouted at him for hours that there was no reason a woman should be when he had all these guy friends. Explaining the losers club deal to her did nothing but place fuel on the fire. ‘Sometimes I think you love them more than me!’ Looking back, he most certainly did. Eddie was fairly certain he would always love the losers most in this world. Which furthered the cycle of being horribly single. Sometimes he thought he was in a polyamorous asexual relationship with 6 other people. They were too close.

Richie finished up his jumping and landed on the couch half on Eddie. “OW!” Eddie yelled. “That fucking hurt. You aren’t light enough to plop all your weight on me.” 

Richie slung an arm over Eddie’s shoulders and kissed the side of his face. “Sorry, Eds.”

Eddie wiped his face that got kissed on Richie’s shoulder, pretending to get the germs off. “Have you told everyone else?” 

“We have…” Ben begun slowly. Eddie didn’t like the tone he was using. “Stanley’s already started his best man duties.”

“Why wouldn’t you just tell us you’re getting married altogether like Bill and Stan did?” Richie said, seeming to also realize this was odd. 

“Because we have to ask a favor of you.” Ben brought his hand up to start biting his nails the way he did when he was about to deliver bad news. 

“Favor is too nice, babe. This is not a favor or a request. It is a requirement if you both want to be at this wedding.” Beverly let go of Ben’s hand to place it on her knee. She rubbed her thighs once, gearing up to tell them. Eddie had a couple guesses about what she may want to say but nothing prepared him for what it actually was, “You have to bring a date.” 

Eddie leaned back in confusion, realizing Richie’s arm was still around him so it brought them both laying back against the couch. Richie removed his arm and started fidgeting with his fingers. Eddie worried his bottom lip before saying quietly, “Why?” 

Beverly looked to Eddie with sympathy. “I’m sorry, Eddie, but we don’t want a repeat of Stan and Bill’s weddings.”

Eddie’s face immediately turned red with embarrassment. Three years ago, Stanley got married and that was around when he left his mother’s place for the third time. A year later, Bill got married and he had his break up with Myra. On both occasions, Eddie took a bad combination of too many pills and drinking more than he ever had in his life. Resulting in major blackouts and behavior he cannot remember but knows second hand from everyone what happened.

“Why do we both have to have dates?” Richie said, voice a little strained and weird.

Beverly rounded on him with no sympathy. “Because, Richard, when YOU go to weddings you fuck everyone and break shit. A date will keep you focused on that person and not be a chaotic monster with a death wish.”

Richie laughed, “If I want to be fucked by all your bridesmaids at the same time then I should be allowed to do that!”

Beverly’s voice rose higher, “That’s literally not possible, asshole! And the only bridesmaid is Kay McCall.” 

“Damn. Kay’s beautiful but I don’t screw married women.” Richie’s face scrunched up. “Does that make her a bride’s matron?”

“High morals there Richie,” Ben said trying to lighten the mood.

“You know it Ben Handsome.” He winked. 

Eddie sat there trying to word what he wanted to say carefully. As Richie continued to dig himself a deeper hole, “We are getting off-topic. I’m saying if I want to have sex with someone and have a little fun or if Eddie wants to get so drunk he mistakes your grandma for a urinal, then we should have that right.” 

This brings Eddie back, “Richie!” 

“What? Nana Denbrough thought she was at a waterpark. You’re fine.” 

He put his hands on his face and folded forward. Richie scratched his back soothingly but didn’t stop trying to defend himself. Beverly eventually got so fed up that she pulled out her phone and played a video from YouTube. 

“Exhibit A, Bill and Audra’s wedding.” She said viciously. 

Eddie groaned as he raised his head to watch the screen. Bill’s younger brother Georgie had filmed people talking about Bill and Audra. He put the most unfortunate video, starring Eddie and Richie, on the internet for the world to see. 

Video Eddie looked miserable and spaced out. Georgie had to say his name three times before Eddie looked up and hiccuped. “Oh hey, Georgie!” Video Eddie said enthusiastically. “Having fun kiddo?” 

“I’m 21, Eddie. Not really a kid anymore.” Georgie’s voice said laughing. 

“Stay a kid forever,” Eddie begged him.

“Ok, Eddie. What do you want to say to Bill and Audra?” 

“Bill...I want you to know that you are the bravest man alive and I would die for you. Audra, you better be good to him.” Video Eddie points at the camera and almost falls forward. Suddenly, video Richie appears, catching him. He giggles bopping video Richie on the nose and keeping his face precariously close to video Richie’s face. 

Video Eddie frowns suddenly and looks back at the camera, “But don’t fall too too in love. You might get your heart broken like me. Love is dumb. Women are dumb. They don’t really care about you.” 

Video Richie had his hair slicked back and was laughing at video Eddie’s truths, “Eds! This day isn’t about you. It’s about Bill and Audra. We should be telling stories about them!”

“Oh god,” Eddie said as his stomach turned reliving the next part again. 

“So Audra, let me tell you about Bill’s first time. He had a girlfriend in high school, blonde and pretty, much like yourself and they were dating for about…” 

Video Eddie hiccups, “4 months.” Then smashes his face into video Richie’s neck. “You smell like whiskey.” He winces.

Video Richie laughed, cheeks reddening from drunkenness, “Thank you, Eds. When they decided to fuck for the first time, he got everything all set and she came over that evening. As he was eating her out.” 

“Richie, kids could see this.” Video Georgie warned through obvious laughter.

“As Bill was going downtown on her hoo-hoo she got a little too excited and shat the bed.” All three men were shrieking with laughter. Video Eddie wrapped his arms around video Richie, shaking uncontrollably with glee. Despite the horribleness of the situation, Eddie smiled a little. “Now it’s unclear where all the crap ended up but we can guess that…”

Beverly stopped the video glaring at Richie intently. Eddie looked at him and he only smiled. “We won’t even get into the nuclear mess that was Stanley and Patti Uris’s wedding right now. But we want you both to have a date so there is no chance of you completely embarrassing me, Ben, and yourselves.” 

Eddie scoffed, “Richie embarrasses himself on every date he goes on. What makes you think one brought to the wedding will be any better?” 

“Oh yeah?” Richie gazed at him steadily. Eddie braced himself for the incoming insult. As much as he could dish it, he rarely could take it. Especially against Richie’s quick tongue, “And when was the last time you even fucking went on a date to embarrass yourself?” 

“I can get dates!” 

“A night alone with your right hand isn’t a date.”

“Shut the fuck up, Trashmouth!” 

Suddenly, two armchair pillows smacked the side of Eddie and Richie’s heads. They both rounded on Beverly and Ben but the stare of death Beverly was giving stopped their prepared protests. 

“If you assholes want to come to my wedding,”

“Our wedding…” Ben whispered.

She turned her ever reddening face, almost the color of her hair, at her financé, “Not if you correct me, Benjamin! Don’t make me marry myself!” She focused back on Eddie and Richie, pointing a bitten nail at them menacingly. “...you will have dates and BEHAVE at the reception or so help me, I’ll castrate you!” 

There was a pregnant pause broken by the one who can never stay quiet long. “What about the ceremony?” Richie responded, “Can I at least ruin that?”

She stared at him, everyone ready for more yelling but instead she broke into a gorgeous smile and laughed. It lightened the moment but Eddie didn’t find he felt any less anxious. He fully contemplated this enormous request from his friends. Finding a good wedding date took time, he only ever had committed relationships. Well, the one with Myra. As much as Richie’s words hurt, he was right. Eddie didn’t go on dates. People didn’t tend to find him datable. “Too short, too high maintenance, too weird” were just a few of the flaws that consumed him. He had no clue how he was expected to get someone to go to this wedding with him. 

The four of them started discussing wedding details, Beverly and Richie talking a mile a minute about everything that had to get done. He was especially excited to plan a bachelorette party. With how much money Ben and Bev make, it sounded like they would get their dream wedding easily. 

Eddie was thrilled for them but that pang of being single and now having to find a date was eating him alive for the two more hours they stayed. When they finally called it a night, Beverly and Ben hugged them promising to talk tomorrow. 

Richie did not follow them out which meant he wanted to drink and talk more, probably spend the night there. Eddie had a guest room that was essentially Richie’s room since he spent the most time there. 

“You want ice cream?” Richie shouted from the kitchen where he was most likely opening another bottle of wine. 

“With chocolate syrup!” Eddie yelled back. 

“Oh, chocolate syrup night means major troubles.” Richie laughed. 

“What are we gonna do Rich?” Eddie whined miserably. “Or rather, what the fuck am I going to do?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“About the fucking dates!” Eddie laid sideways on the couch, grabbing the cushion pillow and placing it over his face to scream into. 

“Don’t be a drama queen.” Richie said. The couch shifted as he sat down by Eddie’s legs. 

“That’s easy for you to say.” Eddie mumbled into the pillow. 

Two hands extracted the pillow from his face. Eddie kept his eyes scrunched closed. “I can’t speak pillow.” 

Eddie huffed out, “It’s easy for you to not be worried. You are a serial dater.” 

“Open your eyes, Eds.” Richie chuckled. Eddie opened them to pout childishly at him.

He had his smirky smile on, which could only mean he had a terrible idea. “I have a great idea to get us out of getting actual dates.”

Eddie stared at him from his laid down position, probably giving Richie an unattractive double chin, “There is no loophole in this agreement, Rich. Beverly was really fucking clear. We have to have dates.” 

“And we will.” Richie poured wine into both their glasses. He handed it to Eddie, forcing him to sit up in order to drink it. While Eddie drank normally, Richie downed his quickly then licked his lips. 

“Who am I gonna have to take to Ben and Beverly’s wedding?”

Richie watched him carefully, opened his mouth and said, “You’ll take me. I will be your wedding date. And by default, you will be mine” Eddie’s mouth dropped and Richie clinked his empty glass with Eddie’s full one.

______________________

In honor of IT: Chapter 2 coming out soon, I have begun writing this fake dating idea! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, comment here or on archive and let me know your thoughts and feels! The title is thanks to Slashpalooza on tumblr who asked me a million years ago to write something with this title!

Tag List (Starting a new tag list since I don’t know who is still around in the fandom. Let me know if you want to be tagged):

@sarah011 @pan-ini @frankeeenstein @sam-i-am2468 @eds-kas @jem-carstairs-is-perfection @roobarrtrashmouth @hypnoidvoid @imeddie @slashpalooza @reddieforlove 

[halo-jpeg]

Bearable | A Reddie Fanfiction

Read it from the beginning

Chapter 7.5

Bev and Richie were sitting alone. It was long past midnight now, the moon high and mighty in the great big sky, and the two were the only ones still left in the clearing of Back Cove Park; Stanley had been the first to go, dragging a rapidly tiring (yet still reluctant to leave) Eddie and Bill behind him. Mike had excused himself next, and Ben had gone with him- the two of them had taken the flashlight, leaving Beverly and her friend in near-total darkness, though they really didn't mind. That was just over an hour ago now, and since the departure of the others neither Bev nor Richie had spoken a word. There was an odd tension in the air, waves of some negative feeling rolling off of Richie so subtly that she hardly noticed them. For a good 30 minutes or so she'd been debating asking him what was wrong, why he was so off, but she had been wondering whether that was really a good idea. There were a few different paths she could take here, and each had their own obvious pros and cons; the first option was to let Richie sit in his silence, to let him have his privacy because she knows how much that privacy meant to him. The next option was to, well, wrap up the evening and leave. Beverly was tired and she was certain that he was too, so maybe it was a good idea to get the both of them home safely to sleep on the struggles. The last option, most likely to best one, was to ask Richie about what was bothering him.

Just be forward Bevvie, she told herself, wringing her hands together and picking out the best words she could. Sucking in a silent breath through her teeth, Beverly let her eyes fall momentarily shut, psyching herself up and trying to scrape together enough confidence to speak. Richie and her were seated nearly back-to-back, nothing but one of the stones/stools between them. Richie had pulled his knees up to his chest, his head leaned back to rest on the rock, eyes upturned towards the sky. From her place cross-legged just behind him, she let her own head fall backwards, bumping gently against his own.

"So," She started, her voice gentle and soft and already warning Richie of her upcoming question, "Are you okay telling me what's wrong?" She rolled her head to the side, regarding him out of the very corner of her eye, and could see the way his shoulders tensed, the way he pulled his knees just a little closer, lifting his head upright. It was as if he were curling into himself, tucking himself away into a metaphorical shell as if he were a turtle.

"Nothing's wrong," Richie said, shrugging, "I'm all god, Bev. Don't worry." Uttering a sigh, Beverly sat up and shifted halfway around the rock so that her shoulder pressed against Richie's in as comforting a way as possible.

"I... I know you don't like it when I press but..." Beverly mirrored Richie's position. going silent for a moment as phrases of comfort and coaxing danced around in her mind. She was good at talking to people, good at becoming an impromptu therapist with nearly anyone who's ever come to her- anyone except for Richie. Something about seeing Richie, esteemed Trashmouth and Man of 1000 Jokes and 6000 Riddles, sad or scared or just bummed out threw her rational brain askew, tossing her to flounder into some ocean of unease and unfamiliarity. "I'm here for you, you know. You can tell me anything. We've been through hell together, Rich, and you'll always be stuck with me." A silence stretched between them, the tension pulled taut and threatening to snap any moment now. Those waves of negativity grew stronger, nearly moving in a pulsing tandem with the distant sound of the ocean; why, Beverly was unsure. It could be both because she was upsetting him even further, or because he was letting his walls down one brick at a time. For a moment, Beverly thought Richie was going to stay silent, to decline her invitation to vent- and then, he let his head fall sideways, resting gently upon her shoulder. He scooted a little closer, arm pressed against arm, and shrugged again, dejected and unsure.

"I..." for once in his life Richie Tozier was whispering. "I'm so gay, Bev. Like, so, so gay." Beverly couldn't help but bark out a quick laugh, resting her own head on top of Richie's and rolling her eyes though he wouldn't be able to see it.

"I know that much, Tozier. I also know that's not all that's bothering you, so what's up? What's the problem?"

"The problem is that stupid, jackass, lovely little guy named Eddie. Jesus, Bev, I didn't think I'd ever like another guy again after-" Richie paused for a moment, letting the silence spell out the name he wouldn't allow himself to say, "But here I fucking am and I just- It's scary, you know? It's goddamn terrifying." Beverly nodded her head, a frown scrawling itself over her face.

"What's the scary part?"

"Remembering. I'm... I'm afraid that I'll fall in love and just get fucked up all over again. It's stupid but I can't shake the feeling that-"

"It's not stupid, Richie!" Bev's tone took on something almost scolding, and she reached for one of Richie's hands to counter the harshness, "Jesus, it's not stupid at all. Nathan," Richie stiffened, "was a dick, he hurt you. It's entirely natural to be afraid of that happening again. I promise, I'll do my best to make sure it doesn't," Beverly wrapped her arm around Richie's shoulders, pulling him closer and planting a kiss into his hair, "Eddie's an angel, Rich, you know that he'd never hurt you, right? And if he did," Bev smiled, "I'd break his stupid, jackass, lovely little neck." Richie chuckled, still weak, and shook his head. For another few beats the two fell back into a lapse of silence. Beverly's thumb, which was rested on the top of Richie's shoulder, began to skate back and forth slowly, comfortingly, rhythmic circles that helped to soothe his mind just a little bit. Sadly, with that soothing came weakening.

"No, you don't have to... you don't have to say that. I dunno," He sighed, and lifted his free hand to peel of his glasses. With the heel of his hand he scrubbed at his eyes, and Bev was dumbfounded to discover that his eyes must have been watering. Seeing Richie cry when he wasn't playing a character was a rare occurrence. She hugged him tighter, laying her legs down and pulling Richie right against her chest, cradling him as if he were a baby. "I don't think I'll ever really make any moves on Eddie. I can't risk it." Beverly opened her mouth to speak again, to repeat that Eddie was a good guy, that he wouldn't do the same things as Richie's ex, but he spoke first, "I know, I know what you're gonna say, but that's not what I mean. What I mean is that I can't risk him hating me for it or something, because then Stan and Bill will probably hate me, too- and... And that means they'll hate all of us." Richie's voice had begun to waver. Never ever has Bev felt so utterly horrible, so guilty even though this isn't her fault. "I don't want them to hate me, and I couldn't stand watching them hate you and Ben and Mike because of me,"

"Richie..." Bev tucked Richie's face against her shoulder, placing one hand on the back of his head to run her fingers through his hair, "If they hated you because you were gay then I wouldn't want anything to do with them, okay? I don't want to know them if you can't be yourself around them." As she spoke, Richie's let out a hitching breath, his battle against his own tears clearly coming closer and closer to an end. She pulled him tighter against him, other arm wrapping securely around his shoulders, and felt him hug her right back with a certain desperation, a certain starvation, clinging to her shirt as if he'd never hugged anyone in his life. It was as if she was going to slip away. He shuddered, fighting back a wail rising in his throat, trying not to sob like a child. Even though Richie was so much bigger than Bev he felt like her arms were hiding him from the world. A wave of sudden vulnerability choked his throat.

"I'm just-" Richie's voice broke and that was it for him. He melted into Beverly, the tears finally flowing free, his glasses discarded somewhere nearby and his face pressed into her shoulder, her hair, smelling her lavender shampoo. He began to tremble lightly, gasping for breath between his tears, hating how quickly he'd broken and loving that Beverly was here to cling to because she was probably the person he trusted most on this fucked up planet. "I just- I'm so scared, Bev, I'm so fucking scared and-" He was interrupted by a racking sob, and his tears strengthened tenfold, "Everything- it's all so f-fucking hard and I- I can't- Why the hell am I like this? Why the fuck can't I just- why can't I just be normal?"

"Richard Wentworth Tozier, you are not allowed to speak like that!" Beverly held him tighter, afraid that she might literally be crushing him but feeling the way he hugged her back, "Being normal fucking sucks, dude! What, you want to be some stupid pencil-pushing white boy? Get a desk job, some lame-ass wife? You can have three kids and hate your life until old age finally takes you away?" Richie nodded into her shoulder and she shook her head furiously, grabbing fistfuls of his gross arcade-carpet button up and turning her head so that her face was pressed into the crown of his head, her voice muffled, "Fuck that, Richie. You're awesome. You are literally the single greatest person that I have ever known in my entire life. You're gonna be the best comedian on the planet, and you're going to find and marry the guy of your dreams. I'm not letting you make yourself miserable just because society wants you to be, okay?" Again, with hesitance, Richie nodded. That wasn't good enough for Bev. "You got it?"

"Y-Yes, yes I-"

"Good," The firmness in her voice leaked away, replaced by that Beverly Marsh tenderness that was always hidden deep down below her spitfire, "Because I don't know what I'd do with myself if you stopped making jokes and got all old and gross." Richie was still crying, his shoulders jumping with each attempted-to-stifle sob that he just couldn't hold in. Feeling rather than seeing the misery in Richie's soul, Bev knew she had to do something to bring back his flame of humor, of idiocy, of downright stupidity. He was a fool, and she loved him for it, so she would make a fool of herself if she had to. Beverly screwed up her face, trying to get her voice to change just like Richie's always do- it didn't come as easy to her, not in the slightest, and she mostly sounded like Beverly Marsh but also sounded just a teeny tiny bit like Richie Void Of Soul. "Oh, sorry Bevvie, I can't come and make you laugh because I have a work potluck," Her voice dragged out, taking on a false-tired, lifeless drawl, and it managed to get a shaky little snicker out of Richie that was wet and sad and overtaken by another shaking sob, "Oh, by the way, do you have a recipe for some coleslaw? Usually Karen in accounting brings coleslaw but she died of boredom right at her desk," Again, Richie let out a shaky little giggle, his voice hitching for breath, little hiccups slipping past his lips as he did. The character Beverly was going for was Richie If He Followed Social Norms. It seems the joke landed at least enough to brighten the usually unshakeable mood of Richie Tozier.

"You can drop that recipe off any time after five o'clock tonight," His voice was strained, tiny and Richie pitched it up an octave and tried his best to mimic the depressing lifelessness Bev had adopted, "Any earlier than that and I might be at my sweet angel Joseph's ballgame." Beverly was laughing now too, rocking gently back and forth with Richie still held tightly in her arms.

"What are you, a soccer mom?"

"O-Only if you take Joseph and the team out for pizza after, because I'm just so proud of them. Who cares if they lost!" Richie wiped his damp eyes on Bev's shirt and leaned away, his shoulders, which were hunched, leaning back just gently as he straightened up again. He was grinning in a way that almost looked frightening, tear-stricken and all tooth and self-loathing and relief to have cried out all the sadness.

"Everyone is a winner in my book! Saddle up gang, to the Pizza Hut we go!" Beverly pumped a fist into the air, wiping at her own damp eyes and wearing a grin not dissimilar to Richie's own. Reduced to sad, scared, giggling children in one another's arms, Richie began to feel just a little better. If he tried really hard and had his friends at his side then maybe he really would fine his soulmate or his dream guy or whatever other silly name existed for 'the one'. Maybe he would fulfill his dreams and become a real standup guy, or maybe he'd pursue ventriloquism or he'd become a Rockstar or a radio host or something like that. With a few more minutes together, Richie nearly squashing Bev under his weight, he began to feel good enough to function again. Richie leaned in one more time, wrapping his arms tightly around Beverly's shoulders and crushing the soul out of her in a bear hug. After a moment of near-suffocation he pulled away, his smile more natural than it had been moments later. The two began to untangle themselves from one another like some finicky Christmas lights, and then Richie sat heavily at her side still sitting shoulder-to-shoulder.

"Thanks, Bev." Richie clasped his hands, letting them rest in his lap. Beverly's smile shrunk into something serene and loving, and the two let minutes tick by in silence as Richie picked up his last stray pieces and clicked them back into place. Once Bev was certain he was A-Okay once more she let her head shift to look at him, watching him replace his glasses and piping up with a cheeky question and a cheekier grin. Humor and teasing always was the best way to get Rich's spirits up again.

"So Eddie, huh? I didn't take him as your type." Richie let out an incredulous sound, staring at her in disbelief. The way his eyebrows had shot up said 'What the hell are you talking about? Have you seen him?'.

"He's such a- such a little bastard, it's adorable. How can you not be into that?" At this, Beverly nodded her head, letting out a sound that meant 'you have a point' and accenting it with a half-shrug that clearly didn't suffice for Richie believing that she was convinced, "And he's smart and annoying and- well, he's cute, too. So cute with his freckles and his eyes and his hair- not to mention he's way shorter than me- and... uh..." Richie cut himself off, seeing the way that Bev was looking at him. Suddenly, his face went red, flushing with heat, and he lifted one hand to scratch at the back of his neck. He smiled sheepishly. "I... I like him, I think."

"Yeah, Rich," Beverly grinned, her heart swelling with endearment, "I think you probably do."

[applejacks1552]

PART 1:

So after my discussion on why Gambit would make a good parent in the 616, a few readers asked if I would do a write up for Rogue, his long time love interest and recent wife.

Now parenthood for Rogue is a little more complicated than for Gambit in several aspects, not the least of which being the complexities of portraying motherhood in media. The rather fraught politics around the role of women in society leaves the issue of if and when women should have children loaded with controversy and judgement from opposing sides. But let's take a look at what we know from comics canon and set those considerations aside for now.

A normal life

Given the limits her powers impose on her physically, throughout her comics career Rogue covets and idealizes a perception of normalcy far more than most of her fellow mutant teammates. She yearns for intimacy and touch and family. While the majority of the X-Women are fairly silent or ambivalent or even downright hostile toward the notion of starting a family, it's something Rogue has expressed interest in on panel more than once.

In Cable #20 during the Legion Quest storyline, the M'kraan crystal wave is coming and the world is about to end. Rogue asks Gambit if he'd ever thought about having a family … clearly something she herself is mourning in those last moments of life and in relation to what might have been with Gambit.

Later, in Uncanny X-Men #359, Rogue is desperate to be free of her powers, having recently come to experience physical intimacy firsthand while trapped powerless in Antarctica with Gambit. She tries to undergo a treatment claiming to cure mutation, but is stopped at the last moment by Mystique. While arguing with her, Rogue explicitly expresses the desire to have a child someday as part of the reason she wants to be free of her powers. It says a lot about how important this was to her that Rogue was ready to throw away her powers and risk a procedure she knew almost nothing about by an individual she doesn't even know she can trust.

Her aspirations are further expounded upon in the short prose story "Life Is But A Dream" by Stan Timmons from The Ultimate X-Men 1996 collection. In this tale, Rogue uses the Danger Room to simulate a normal suburban life with Gambit which includes a child they name Charlie. She thinks this will be a way to experience what she wants, yet fears she'll never have. Though ultimately Rogue cannot fully buy into the simulation, as it fails to live up to reality.

A Talent for Connecting

Rogue doesn't spend a significant time with younger team members or children early on in her career, probably because she is so concerned about harming others with her powers.

So when she finally gained control early in Mike Carey's X-Men: Legacy run, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities for Rogue and she found herself sliding readily into a mentorship role for many of the younger team members at Cyclops' suggestion. Her personal struggles with her own powers and her past along with her empathetic nature lent well to connecting with young mutants as seen in X-Men: Legacy #234.

Even as Legacy wound to a close under Cristos Gage, part of Rogue's decision to follow Wolverine during the Schism and become a senior staff member at the new Jean Grey School stemmed from her desire to continue helping the children. It really seemed like Rogue had found her calling and she felt strongly about protecting the kids and giving them the kind of life she didn't have growing up as she says in X-Men: Legacy 260-1.

Rogue eventually found herself called away from the X-Men and joined the Uncanny Avengers Unity Squad. But even in this era Rogue has a soft spot for kids.

In Deadpool #18, Rogue promises her teammate Wade Wilson (aka Deadpool) she'll be there for his daughter Ellie if it turns out she's a mutant.

New Possibilities

The Rogue and Gambit miniseries (2018) saw Rogue return to the X-Men and reunite with Gambit. Later in X-Men: Gold (2018) #30, Gambit proposes and they marry despite her powers still being a challenge.

In Mr. & Mrs. X (2018), Rogue is forced to confront her power control issues as she and Gambit run missions on their interrupted honeymoon, escape Mojoworld, and deal with an unruly Thieves Guild. By the end of the series she has regained control, potentially opening new doors for the couple. We also see Rogue and Remy serve as rescuers and caretakers for Xandra, the secret perception-warping child of Lilandra and Xavier, getting some insight into the trials and triumphs of parenthood. Rogue gets particular insight, as she gets to witness the bond between Cerise and Xandra.

The topic of children comes up throughout the run, from the joked conceit of Kitty trolling the newlyweds by making them babysit an egg, to Rogue teasing Gambit about his "baby fever" since Spiral's soul appears just to him as an infant. Both characters note that they "want it all" for their lives and by the end of this run, we know that Gambit seems hopeful for the possibility of parenthood someday and Rogue is at least open to considering it eventually. That "maybe" would have been a really nice place to leave it for a while, with that glimmer of distant hope.

However, we see a rather drastic 180 degree shift when we get to Excalibur (2019) by Tini Howard. Despite foreshadowing in the early part of the run, where Rogue mentions Krakoa's new law about making more mutants and Apocalypse waxes poetic about "the children of tonight's unions" while Gambit and Rogue hover in the background frame, followed by Rogue's suspicious floral coma and rumors about a secret costume, and then finally her escape from said coma by driving a sword into a mysterious energy emanating from her abdomen. Yes, despite all this ...

We later get an unexpected confession from Rogue in issue #6 during an otherwise steamy scene, in which she confirms the challenge pregnancy is for her and then claims an off panel nightmare led her to suddenly realize she doesn't want children now or maybe ever.

To say this seems incongruent with her previous portrayals and build up to this point, even as recently as Mr. and Mrs. X, would be an understatement. One can only speculate at the reasoning behind this decision. Why bring up and tease this subject if it serves no purpose? Editorial edict? Just to punt the subject down the line and take it off the table for now? To fake out the readership, only to spring a surprise on them later? To change Rogue's narrative completely to fit a perceived more modern lens? ... Only time will tell.

Continue to PART 2 ...

[princecupcakee]

Park Bench | Reddie

Read on AO3

Rating: E

Pairing: Richie Tozier/Eddie Kaspbrak

Word Count: 3,112

Chapter: 1/8

Next Chapters: Chapter 2 (AO3), Chapter 3 (AO3), Chapter 4 (AO3)

Summary: Recently divorced and ‘incapable of love’, Eddie Kaspbrak moves to Los Angeles for work and a small, small hope of a fresh start. Broken up and never dated again, Richie Tozier tries to get back into love with help from his love of music. Quickly meeting eyes and one concert later, they think that maybe love isn’t that bad. So they try it one more time.

Chapter 1: Richie Tozier’s Plan, Eddie Kaspbrak’s First Vinyl & Beverly Marsh’s Plan

Tags/Warnings: Angst / Unhappy Ending / theres only one sex scene but this is explicit anyway / Bisexual Richie Tozier / Gay Eddie Kaspbrak / Post-Divorce / Implied/Referenced Cheating / Inspired By Remembering Sunday (All Time Low) / Inspired by The Book Ninja by Ali Berg / Implied/Referenced Child Abuse / Implied/Referenced Abuse / Implied/Referenced Manipulation

Tag-list: @richietoaster, @s-s-georgie, @mikeuris​, @gazebobullshit, @that-weird-girls-blog, @tozierking​, @thoughtfullyyoungduck, @s-onora, @bellarosewrites, @lermanslogan, @ambitiousskychild, @ghostnebula, @vanillaredvelvet, 

(Ask if you wanna be on the tag-list!!)

Chapter 1

Richie Tozier’s Plan

If Richie’s love life was written into a song, it would be called ‘Disaster’; named after his sad attempts at everything even just slightly involved with it. It would be a ballad, slow at first, some depressing line about how dreams don’t become reality. The chorus would hit loud, deafening if rock music wasn’t something you’d find yourself listening to, ‘He loved the sound of their romance’ is the loudest line in the chorus followed by: ‘But he messed up the steps to the dance’  then a sudden melancholy beat, ‘He failed his audition and he lost his chance.’ Toward the end of the song, as the sounds of the drums faded, and a slow guitar was the dominant sound, ‘It’s hopeless’ and the song would close.

Richie’s love life was an utter disaster if you tried to put it to words. He hadn’t had a single normal date in a very long time (he wonders if he ever did, really.) It wasn’t as simple as, ‘I spilled my drink and now there’s going to be a stain and that embarrassing’ those dates wouldn’t stand a chance on his. A few from his museum of failed dates:

Exhibit A -

James: Hey, I saw that you live in Los Angeles

Richie: Yeah! What about you?

James: I just got out of jail and my ex changed the locks. I really need a place to stay?

Exhibit B -

“I love this band so much,” Abigail gushed.

“Me, too! I’m really glad we were able to catch them here.”

And later that night on the news: ‘Woman arrested for jumping on stage to pull a strand of hair from a celebrity in a Los Angeles concert.’

Exhibit C - Connor. Connor Bowers was perfect with Richie, at least as Richie thought. The two had been dating for 2 years until Richie proposed, only to be rejected. Connor confessed that he was cheating, that he didn’t even actually like men. The night they got together, Richie had bought him a drink. Connor really only wanted to try it, but it clearly wasn’t for him. The next morning though, when they woke up in Connor’s bedroom, Richie decided that they were together. Richie wasn’t really thinking, he was just in desperate need for love. After Richie was kicked out of Connor’s apartment, he ended up in Stan’s house, unable to stay alone his own.

Richie never really moved out of Stan and Patty’s house. They didn’t really mind Richie living there, but they did mind that Richie was still bitter about the breakup. Stan and Richie have been friends since they were kids, he’s seen Richie in every way. Patty and Richie became close friends right when Stan introduced them. They would try to set Richie up with a few of their friends but he would just sulk in his room. He claims to be ‘done with love in the most chill way possible’ but the sad love songs, the bitterness on Valentines, and the sulking would beg to differ.“Love isn’t that bad you know, you could try”

“I don’t need to try. I’m fine,” Richie countered.

“There’s a lot of fish in the sea,” Patty said, kindly.

“Not anymore. All I get is plastic bags now,” Richie said bitterly.

Stan sighed, “you’re just gonna be alone forever?”

“Yes,” Richie replied immediately, standing up to get ready for work. Aside from a few comedy gigs, he works at a little record store a few minutes from where he lives. The store had the best speakers, phonographs, Walkmans, discs, headphones, everything. Richie loved it there, always being surrounded by music. The store was always pretty empty, aside from the occasional customer, it was just him. Like its always been.

He took his car from the driveway, heading for the city.

~~~

“Morning, Ben, Bev,” Richie nodded at them, smiling.

“Good morning Richie,” Beverly greeted with a wave, “How have you been?” Beverly was Ben’s wife, she has always been nice to Richie. ‘Nice’ didn’t compose of only greetings and coffee and being professional, they were close friends who went out to movies and heard each other’s lives play. Beverly designed clothing lines, while Ben was an architect. They don’t spend much time in the store, usually just leaving it with Richie.

“Pretty good, you?”

“Fine, but this one forgot to fix the thing on this table yesterday and was insanely worried all night,” Beverly pointed to Ben over her shoulder.

“It could break!” Ben argued, continuing to fix whatever was wrong with the table. Beverly walked over to Richie, who is sat down on the sofa. “So… I have this friend. He’s smart, good-looking, and really nice-“

“No, Bev, I’m not going to date. I’m single and unwilling to mingle.”

“More like, single and afraid to mingle,” she tiredly rolls her eyes, “Richie, there are good people out there, you just have to try.”

“I don’t see that. All the good people are with the other good people. Look at you and Ben! Both of you are like, super hot and nice. Guys like me got no chance- not saying that I want a chance, because I’m fine being alone.”

“You just have to keep looking.”

“Its a waste of energy to ‘keep looking.’ People who like me are not okay. Remember Abigail? Not to mention, people have shit taste in music.”

“You’re such a music snob,” She weakly laughs and shakes her head.

“Alright, its good. The screws were just-“ Ben says, getting up and walking to them.

“Ben, we love you but I don’t understand a single thing you say about architecture and furniture, and whatever else there is,” Bev jokes.

“I try. I’m out for today though, I have meeting, and I’m not sure if I’ll be back,” Ben says to Richie.

“Thats fine, I’ll just sit back here,” Richie smiles putting his hands behind his head and leaning further into the sofa.

“See you then.”

Richie picked up a vinyl and put it in the player. He had been playing around with cassettes, and a few of his own vinyl for a few hours now (‘few’ probably not being the case) and thinking and writing. After he’s finished a chunk of the script he was working on for his Friday performance at a local bar, he had gotten bored and just casually sat by the sofa. ‘Love’ the word danced around his head, taunting him. Or at least, to him, it was taunting. ’He woke up from dreaming and put on his shoes’ sung the player.

The song carried him around as he sang, “Forgive me I’m trying to find, my calling, I’m calling at night. I don’t mean to be a bother but have you seen this girl?” The lyrics took him strongly, his heart tight and loose at the same time, feeling each beat. He drums his fingers on the sofa, following the beats, “She’s been running through my dreams. And its driving me crazy it seems. I’m going to ask her to marry me.”

“you’re such a music snob,” rang in his ears, and he knew what he was going to do. He ran to his collection of vinyl seated by the left of the speakers, under the small table and began to search. He had his own few pieces of vinyl in the store, his own music that he listened to on the empty days of work. The Beatles, Green Day, Aerosmith, he took all the classics in his hands and grinned.

~~~

“Explain to me your plan again?” Stan asked, shocked.

“I’m going to get the best vinyl, write my number or email- whatever, and see who calls. Go on a date, see what happens. I’m gonna leave the vinyl all around the city’s subway all that, ” Richie explains excitedly.

“That might actually work!” Patty says, joining Richie’s excitement.

“This can get you more crazy dates than the ones you got before, Rich,” Stan says, unsure.

“Then, its material for my shows! Like Abigail and James!”

“See, Stan? Its great! Richie tries to go back to dating and he gets show material, win-win!” Patty hopes.

“Where will you get all the vinyl your leaving?”

“Thats the only downside, I’m going to use my own vinyl, maybe beg Ben to let me use the ones at the store?”

Stan sighs, softly smiling and nods, “this could work.”

~~~

‘Hot Fuss’ sat on his lap as he traced over the letters. Richie was in doubt now, his heart racing as he sat in the train. This was the first vinyl he would be leaving for this project of his. His stop was in a few minutes, so he pulled out the Sharpie from his pocket, bit the cap off, and wrote: ‘If you’ve enjoyed listening to this, would you enjoy a date too? Email me, Richie Tozier, @Remembering_Records.’ Richie set the vinyl down subtly and walked. “@Remembering_Records?” Stan asks.

“I was listening to Remembering Sunday, it was influenced,” Richie replies, hopping over the gap, he takes a deep breath and looks over at Stan, “Let’s hope this works,” he smiles, dashing away.

Eddie Kaspbrak’s First Vinyl

“I can’t believe we’re not using our cars,” Eddie mumbles, grumpily.

“Says the New Yorker,” Mike jokes.

“I drive there! Bill’s from there too! Subway stations are so unsanitary, so many people-“

“P-please! Enough with the com-complaining!” Bill says, frustrated, “M-Mike’s car broke down, and there’s no other way to get to B-Ben and Bev’s shop.”

“Its your day off! You landed in LA at midnight, and now we’re going to meet up with old friends,” Mike says happily, walking into the train.

“Exactly! Midnight. I shouldn’t be running around in this germ-infested-“

Mike looks at him tiredly.

“—I’m doing this because Ben and Bev are great and they’re our place to stay, Florida,” Eddie rolls his eyes.

Eddie doesn’t fit in LA. At all. He’s not used to the weather, the lifestyle, everything. He doesn’t like it here and just wants to go home. And Los Angeles seems to not want him here either. He lost one out of three of his suitcases the moment he got down, he had to wait an hour for Mike and Bill to pick him up from the airport, Mike’s car breaks down on the way to meet a friend, and now he’s taking the dirty subway.

He’s only really here for work. All three of them are. Bill and Eddie are from New York, and Mike is from Florida. They were transferred to the Los Angeles branch as a way to teach and help the new workers there. Bill’s ex-girlfriend, Beverly, lives in Los Angeles with her husband. They’re all good friends and Ben and Beverly offered to let them stay at their house (scratch that- mansion) for as long as they’re there. Of course, they took the offer instead of some crummy hotel, too far from their jobs.

Now here he is, on a train, heading to EighthNote to meet Ben and Beverly. But something isn’t right in this train, Eddie doesn’t know if this is just Los Angeles, but there, two seats away, is a light blue, paper casing, with the words ‘The Killers Hot Fuss’ sprawled across its center.

“Look, its Hot Fuss,” Mike points, “someone must’ve lost it.”

“We could put it in the l-lost and found,” Bill mumbles.

“Do not touch that. Who knows where its been?” Eddie says immediately, grabbing Bill's wrist and lightly pulling him back.

But Mike was already on his way to the seat, hand already about to grab the record. Until some guy in his late twenties took the record and sat on the seat. “Oh, is this yours?” He asks Mike.

“Oh, no, it isn’t mine,” Mike says walking back to Bill and Eddie.

~~~

On a street corner, a glass door, big windows, and a small wood sign that says EighthNote hanging above, Ben and Bev were talking inside when Bill, Mike, and Eddie walked in. “Ben! Bev!” Mike smiles, arms open wide.

“Its been so long!” Beverly sings, piling them into a group hug.

“It really has. I didn’t even know you had this shop,” Eddie says, admiring the speakers.

“At this point, it isn’t even ours, one our friends who work here basically one the place at this point,” Ben explains.

“You guys have a whole staff for this?”

“Nah, its just one of our friends. We pretty much just lay around here, the few customers here and there,” Beverly smiles, “he’s got comedy gigs though, he should honestly be a star now.”

“What’s his name?”

“Richie. We met him through Patty—one of my friends who model for me— her husband, Stan.”

“I’m probably pulling at strings here but are you talking about Stan Uris?” Mike asks, surprised.

“Yeah! How do you know him?”

“Best ex I ever had.”

Beverly laughs cheekily, “do tell.”

“Nothing! I just know from college, we dated a while, then he swooned for a girl, Patty Blum.”

“Thats her alright. Gorgeous.”

Eddie had moved on from the speakers by then, knowing they’d be reminiscing college in the next few minutes. Eddie only knows Ben and Beverly through Bill. Bill and Beverly had dated in college, but broke up and just stuck to being friends. Nothing is really awkward between them, all still close. Ben and Eddie both get along with architecture. He really just wanted something to do, he didn’t know what anything in this store was. “Its the thing from the train,” Eddie points, not exactly talking to anyone.

“Oh yeah,” Mike says walking over to Eddie. Mike’s reply startling him.

“Train?” Ben asks.

“We found a vinyl in the train on our way here,” Bill explains.

The conversation didn’t go into the details anymore, as Beverly took the record and put it in… Eddie didn’t know what that was. Was he supposed to? He saw Walkmans from his classmates when he was in middle school, but he never paid too much attention to it. He simply didn’t have the time or energy to care. Its just music. The song started oddly, in Eddie’s opinion. ‘Save some face, you know you’ve only got one’

“What the fuck is this?” Eddie wondered as the song continued.

“You’ve never heard ‘Smile Like You Mean It’?” Bill asks making Eddie slightly uncomfortable.

“I- No?”

Beverly cheekily grinning, “Well, since you’re in LA with us, you’re gonna finally see what good music is.”

~~~

The day took longer than Eddie had hoped, but now, he was in a car (thank God) heading the Marsh’s house. Grateful that Bill and Mike were just as exhausted and quiet as he was, he finally caught up with his thoughts. He was finally able to think again, about how the shop looked, how much he disliked the album Beverly basically threw at his ears, how cute the boy who walked into the shop earlier- no. No. Not what should be running threw his head right now. “Do you guys know the guy who walked into EighthNote earlier?”

“The tall, Hawaiian shirt guy with the glasses?” Mike asked, not looking at Eddie as he turned the wheel.

“Yeah.”

“I th-think that was the guy who works there. Who would randomly bring food into a store and y-yell ‘I brought Chinese, fuckers!’ If they didn’t work there?” Bill answers.

“Right,” Eddie says, his mind wandering away from the topic. He found himself opening his phone and searching ‘Hot Fuss’ into Spotify’s search bar. As much as he’d hate to admit it, it wasn’t that bad. And the guy at the store was cute.

Beverly Marsh’s Plan

“I brought Chinese, fuckers!” Richie shouted as he walked into the store. He instantly dropped his hands when he saw a man right in front of him.

After a quite lengthy moment of staring, “Excuse me,” he said, moving to the right of Richie, out the door, two men following after.

“Who were they?” Richie asked, setting the food on the table in front of him.

“Old friends of ours. They’re gonna be staying at our place,” Beverly explains.

“Okay,” Richie drags the word, “anyway, I have an amazing plan that was already put into action before any of you two hets try to stop me—”

“Uh-huh,” Ben cautiously nods.

“— so. Here’s how it works. I’m gonna set out a bunch of vinyl and shit on subways, with an email written on the back, and see how calls. I write if they wanna go on a date on the back, and if you’re worried if that'll be a bunch of people like Abigail and shit, I’m not saying you’re wrong. But if it is, it’s show material. It’s gonna be great.”

“This is amazing! You should’ve told us earlier, I totally would’ve come with you!” Beverly laughs.

“Wait. Did you start today?” Ben asks.

“Yeah, why?”

“Which?” Ben smirks at Beverly, as she returns the look.

“Hot Fuss,” Richie smiles. Ben and Beverly snicker. Richie rolls his eyes, “Yeah I know I played Mr. Brightside to a girl before, but I didn’t know the song was about cheating!”

Beverly’s laughter doubles, “That’s not it but okay.”

“Whatever. But, anyway, who was the short guy earlier?”

“We told you, old friends. Why?” Ben says.

“Dunno. He was kinda cute I guess.”

“See? I told you you’d like him. That was the guy I was telling you about,” Beverly smiles knowingly.

“You tried to set up Eddie and Richie?” Ben wonders. Beverly sneaks a wink at Ben, “There’s a concert next weekend, right?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Think you could get us three more tickets?”

“Sure?”

~~~

Beverly walked into to her and Ben’s room, grinning. “Are you gonna explain why you’re so happy?” Ben asks.

“We’re gonna get Richie and Eddie together.”

Ben gives an unsure look at her, “Richie’s going back to dating with this vinyls-on-trains thing he’s doing. Are you sure you want to set him up? You know how unhappy he is about love and stuff, its surprising enough that he’s willing to try again.”

Beverly takes a moment to think. She knows Ben is right, but she also knows that this will be good for both Eddie and Richie. Well, the second one, she isn’t so sure of. “I guess,” Beverly says, slightly disheartened, “but, we could ask them and, y’know, try?” She says hopefully.

“As much as I worry about this, I also think that it could be good. We’ll take them both to the concert and see where they go from there. What do you think?”

“Perfect,” Beverly smiles.

[justauthoring]

Lost Feelings [S.U.]

Request: Okay, buddy, here we go. Time for some Stanley love and angst...How about an adult!Stan X Reader where Stan actually makes the decision to return to Derry and help Mike and the Losers conquer Pennywise. However, shortly after he arrives, he finds out that his childhood crush/best friend (reader) still lives in Derry. His memories come rushing back to him and he begs the reader to leave Derry before it’s too late. Cue confessions and heartbreaking reunions. 👀

Requested by: @chaostheoryy

Please don’t plagiarize my work! Word Count: 1,356

To be fair, you’d forgotten about Stan too. 

Well, not really. It was more of the fact that you hadn’t really thought of him, since he left all those years. That, and a mixture of the fact that it was too hard to live your life knowing that Stan wasn’t a part of yours and he was off, probably happily married to another woman.

A woman that wasn’t you.

He was probably some successful something and living in a big house, happy, maybe even with kids and you were here, in Derry. Not that Derry itself was bad (it was) but you never really did anything with your life. You always meant to leave, move to Los Angeles or something like that. You’d wanted to become a actress once upon a time, and you were really going to do it. And then... you never did.

Very few of the kids you grew up along with stayed in Derry. You couldn’t blame them. You faintly remember the group that Stan always hung around, you believe their dubbed name was ‘The Losers’ Club’ or something like that; most of them, all except one, left. The one who stayed, Mike Hanlon (a very friendly man) was actually your boss down at the library, where you worked as a receptionist.

It was an alright job. Quiet most days and peaceful, Mike was a considerably considerate and compassionate boss and in general, you enjoyed your job. It just wasn’t what you’d wanted to do, not what you had dreamed of when you were a young girl. Wasn’t what you spent your days in high-school striving towards. And you weren’t where you wanted to be, with who you wanted to be; which was no one.

Forty and you were still single.

It wasn’t that you were un-happy, per-say. Just bored.

Mike, on that particular night, had asked you to stay late. It seemed like he had some big dinner that he had to get to, but he didn’t explain much more than that. You had been on your way home when you caught sight of him, and two other figures. 

To be fair, you hadn’t recognized either of them. Mike caught your eye and came rushing over to you, the other following somewhat a bit behind and you could’ve sworn you heard one of them mutter your name under their breath, but other then that, they mainly stayed hidden in the shadows. “Mike? What’re you doing here so late? I thought you had a dinner.”

“I did, it’s over.” Mike explains curtly. Not in a rude way, just shortly. Clearly, he isn’t keen on explaining it. “Don’t bother coming into work tomorrow. I’m keeping the library closed for the day.”

Your brows furrow; “why?”

“Something’s come up.” He then turns to the two figures behind him, “come on, Bill, Stan, I need to show you something.” He turns to you, seemingly oblivious of your wide eyes and parted lips at that name. “Have a good evening, Y/N.” You barely notice him walking past you, or even Bill. All that your eyes seem to focus on is Stan (of course that was Stan, how hadn’t you noticed before?) as he steps up to you.

“Stan?”

“I’ll catch up,” he brushes the other two up, eyes stuck on your own. “I...” 

He doesn’t finish his explanation. He doesn’t need to, Bill and Mike continue on their way.

You let your eyes flicker across Stan, taking in the whole sight of him. He was just as beautiful as he’d been when he was younger. Your heart leaps at the sight of him, meeting his eyes as every memory resurfaces that the two of you had ever shared. You’d known you’d missed him, but God, not this much.

Swallowing thickly, you force yourself to speak; “you look good.”

“You too.” Stan says quietly.

“I... I, uh, wasn’t expecting to see you here.” You comment finally, voice hoarse. “How long have you been back in Derry for?”

“Just a few hours.” He shrugs, but then pauses. You’re not sure, but something clearly seems to strike within him. His shoulders suddenly tense and you watch as his eyes widen. His gaze flickers behind you for a moment, before returning to your own. “You have to go.”

And then you blink, that being the absolute last thing you’d ever expect to hear. “Excuse me?”

He pauses, obviously catching his mistake. “No, I... I mean, it isn’t safe. There’s something going on, and it isn’t safe for you to stay here. At least not right now. You have to get out of Derry.”

Your brows furrow, confusion flooding you. “Stan, what the hell are you talking about?”

He hesitates, lips parting, shutting and then parting once more. He holds his hands out before himself, trying to think of what to say and how to properly say it. Stan hadn’t even remembered you’d existed until moments ago, but with that revelation came the memories of you and him and all the times you’d spent together. It brought back his feelings for you and how much he cared for you, cares. Because he still cares. Of course he does. Even if he’d forgotten you, he never stopped caring.

And now it all makes sense. Why he’d never gotten married. Why he could never stay in a relationship long. Because he didn’t want a life that wasn’t with you.

“I know this makes no sense, but you have to get out here,” Stan stresses, brows knitting together in panic. “It’s not safe. And... And I can’t lose you.”

Lips parting, you find no words to say. You glance back in the direction of the library and how Mike had just rushed past you. With Bill. Bill Denbrough. Stan’s friend, a boy you’d talked to once or twice back then. Part of the Loser’s Club.

There was always something so strange about the Losers’ Club.

“You’re all back, aren’t you?”

Stan blinks; “what?”

“The Losers’ Club, or whatever it is the seven of you were. You are all back, with the exception of Mike who never left.” Mike. Mike who spent his days at the library researching. For what, you didn’t know. But he did it almost religiously. “Recently, you know, Mike just won’t stop. I don’t know what he’s doing, he won’t tell me. But he’d always have this panicked look in his eyes. And then, back then, all those years ago, you seven were always up to something. Always hiding something.”

You inhale deeply, meeting Stan’s eyes sharply. “It’s that, isn’t it? Whatever it was, it’s... back.”

You just don’t know how right you are.

Stan seems puzzled, almost blown away that you were able to decipher all of that, especially when most of it had happened twenty-seven years ago. But then he remembers; you never left.

“Promise me you’ll leave.”

“I’ve got nowhere else to go, Stan. This is my home.”

“No family?”

“Not any that care.”

Stan frowns, shoulders tensing. It hits you then; I can’t lose you. Your lips part, eyes flickering across Stan’s face. His beautiful face. One you’d missed so much. One you’d craved for years.

“I’m not leaving without you.”

Stan pauses; “what?”

“You said you can’t lose me, well, I can’t lose you too. Not again.”

“Y/N...”

“I’m praying that I have misread anything and you don’t have a wife back home or anything, but...” You only hesitate a second longer before stepping forward, pushing yourself up to your toes and wrapping an arm around the back of Stan’s neck. You pull him close, firmly placing your lips against his own despite the way your entire body shakes with fear of rejection.

It’s only a second later that Stan’s arms circle around your waist, pulling you flush against him. He pulls you against him with just as much need, molding his lips against your own as you both pour out whatever pent up emotions you’ve held from each for twenty-seven years.

And then, when you pull back, out of breath, you whisper; “whatever you’ve got to do, do it. But i’m not leaving without you.”

-

Let me know what you thought?

[darling-i-read-it]

Old Feelings

Stanley Uris x reader

Word Count: 1k

Warnings: serious make out session, little bit of it 2 spoilers but not really

Author’s Note: Hello. I am here to write more Stanley Uris fluff. Because I love him. And will continue to write happy stuff about him. There.

Summary: Y/N gets the call from Mike first and talks it over with her husband. They decide they should think about it in the morning while they drink their wine and pretend their like their kids, like when they met. (its fluffy i swear)

Genre: FLUFF

Song:

(not my gif) (I repeat. Please make more Stanley Uris adult gifs. Andy bean my BABY)

“Let's pretend for a moment that you were to go and kill a clown and leave me here..alone because you think I shouldn’t go back and see our friends,” you spoke clearly to your husband Stanley Uris. You had been friends since elementary school days so when the whole thing went down the summer Pennywise came you were there for him and for the rest of the losers. You got the call from Mike Hanlon, excited at the thought of seeing your friends again before Stan told you about the parts of that summer that had slipped your memory.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“I don’t want to go but I know if I don’t something could happen to you. Because you want to go and I am going instead of you. End of discussion.” Your mouth opened to form a circle in surprise. Stanley got up and you grabbed his hand pushing him back down to you. He sat on your glass table and looked back in your eyes.

“Bullshit,” you whispered. He sighed and you put your hands on his cheeks. “It is bullshit if you think that I am going to let you go without me.” You looked in his eyes a little longer and then let him go, standing.

“I’ll pack,” he muttered.

You shook your head and walked to your kitchen, grabbing a bottle of wine and some glasses. You poured some as Stan stood up and you watched him head for the bedroom where your suitcases were stored and you stopped him with your eyes. He walked over, leaning over the other side of your island.

“I don’t think I can go Y/L/N,” he muttered. You resisted the urge to tell him your last name was Uris now like you usually did when he called you by your maiden name. You handed him a glass of wine. He took a drink but then looked back at you. His hair flopped over his head. For a second you saw Stanley as you had when you first started dating. Young and innocent and scared and unsure. He had grown into himself but you could still see it in his eyes.

Young, innocent, scared, unsure.

“We don’t have to,” you told him quietly. He shut his eyes tightly and opened them, his eyes blinking quickly.

“We have to,” he whispered, grabbing your hand and running a finger over the scar there that you got when you were a kid. He had an identical one on his hand and you tried your hardest not to reach for it.

“Come ‘ere,” you muttered and he walked across the table and you embraced each other. He dug his face into your neck and inhaled the scent of your hair. You always underlined, smelled the same. It reminded him of being 15.

“I love you more than anything and I don’t want you to get hurt,” he mumbled. You kissed his neck gingerly.

“I love you more,” you said. You could tell that made him smile a little.

“No way you loser.”

“Yes way.” He pulled away and shook his head.

“I’ll fight you. You’ll be on the ground in like 4 seconds flat,” he said. You raised an eyebrow.

“You could get me on the ground faster if you asked nicely,” you teased. He rolled his eyes and hugged you again this time kissing you.

You pulled away and put your hands on his chest, pushing him away lightly. You moved toward the living room couch.

“We can think about it tomorrow. We can pack tomorrow if we’re gonna go. Today, tonight I say we hang out and watch a movie and make out a little,” you said with a smile. He put your glass of wine by the sink and rolled his eyes.

“We’re not teenagers anymore. We’ve been married how many years?”

“20.”

“And how many times have you said, make out a little?”

“I’m a little angry about the fact you had to ask how many years we’ve been married.”

“Like once. Today if the first time I’d say.”

“Stanley would you rather I just say I want you to come over here and push me on the couch?” you asked. He stopped, leaning against the island and staring at you. He looked in your eyes like he was trying to figure out your intentions.

In two long strides his hands were on your cheeks and his lips were on yours. Excitement and butterflies ran through you. So many years and you still got those stupid butterflies.

Kiss after kiss and you had nearly fallen over the backside of the couch. He hoisted you up so your legs were around his waist. You pulled away and looked into his eyes, searching for something.

“You know maybe we should pack-”

“For fucks sake Y/L/N-”

“My last name is Uris.”

“I’m going to-”

“What. What are you going to do?” you asked with a giggle. He laughed lightly. It did feel like you were kids again. He never would have been able to hold you up like he was now with his scrawny arms back then.

“I am going to kiss you again,” he decided upon. You nodded seriously.

“That sounds like a valid punishme-”

You didn’t get the word out before he kissed you again, leading you to your bedroom.

Left on the couch was his phone, ringing, an area code from Derry that he wasn’t going to pick up until the next morning and by then him and his wife had decided they should probably go say hi to their old friends.