#side benverly

[marshbevvie]

These totally random pictures of us make it look like we’re looking at each other. So I say we are. Just two losers bombastically side eyeing each other through time, space, and edges of the camera.

[l393ndjean]

It AU

so like... AU where instead of Bev getting taken beyond Pennywise and caught in the deadlights it's Stan. Which would really strike a nerve because he was the least willing to fight IT anyway.

So obviously Bill is the one to break the curse and kiss Stan because #stenbroughforlife. Which would mean you could put a better focus on building up young Benverly and making them a stronger foundation for their future relationship.

Anyway so when Stan sees into the future he sees him and Bill married. So we get not one but two young Stenbrough kisses. A bitter-sweet parting for Ben and Bev, and Reddie get to be in all their usual glory. Meanwhile we get to stan Mike, our AroAce king.

Then fast-forward 27 years and when Mike calls Bill and Stan, Bill doesn't remember about Pennywise. I'm imaging they have and interaction like:

Stan: I can't go, Billy.

Bill: We s-swore, Stanley. That we-we'd go back. I do-don't remember why, but we s-sw-swore.

Stan: But I'm scared, Bill. Something bad happened in Derry.

Bill: We'll m-made it Stan. We'll make it a-again. I p-p-promise. I s-swear.

So Stan lives and he also saves Eddie because Stan is fricken smart like that and he realises that they need to move tf away Eddie! Then all the losers roast the shit out of Pennywise.

They go swimming at the quarry, Ben and Bev finally get together after a more developed build up on both sides. Richie and Eddie have a moment. Bill and Stan are just sitting quietly.

Bill: We m-made it.

Stan: We swore we would.

The whole group has a beautiful group hug. Then the epilogue is narrated partly by all the losers. At the kissing Bridge scene Richie re-carves the E and Eddie re-carves the R and they both carve the +.

Mike goes to California, where he has the time of his life. Ben and Bev have their usual scene. Stan finally gets to release his documentary on birds. Bill publishes a new book, IT. Everyone praises the end.

[princess-glassred]

I already have a Reddie Cinderella au but a fuckin Benverly Cinderella au where instead of searching for the girl who fits the slipper, beverly is searching for the boy who wrote the January Embers poem would be sooooo cute.

Poor Bev's just this princess who's being auctioned off by her creepy dad to the highest bidder like she's a hunk of meat. Pretty much every man in her life has given their unfiltered opinion on her and it's made her against marrying anyone (she does want to get married, but the men in the royal court have soured it for her). Her betrothed Tom Rogan is a piece of shit who ""sees her poential"" to be a good queen IF she's got a good man by her side to keep her in check.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the kingdom, is a poor orphaned servant named Ben hanscom. His daddy died serving for the royal gaurd and his mom passed away from an illness a couple years after, leaving him in the care of his step father Mr. Keene, his (slightly) younger step sister Greta and his older step brother Henry. Mr. Keene has Ben slaving away in his apothecary since he's fat and probably wouldn't be useful in snatching up a spouse anytime soon. He's treated like a black sheep, Greta likes getting him into trouble and being a jerk for no reason, while Henry likes to attack him with physical abuse and make jokes about his weight. Ben happens to like cleaning and working for Mr. Keene though, because he's logically minded and good at figuring out how things tecnically work (although its kinda degrading with Henry around to make fun of him all the time). It's worth noting that if Ben wasn't around Henry would probably be in the same situation, considering he's not actually Mr. Keene's son and was just sold to him by his dad for booze money.

Bev and Ben meet when she's pretending to be a maid to sneak away from her father, the only hint that she's even a princess is the palace key she keeps around her neck. She tells Ben her name is "Bevvie" to hide her identity and he buys it. The two become really fast friends after that, routinely visiting each other whenever they can. Ben even introduces her to his one and only friend, Mike the farm boy, and now all of them are kind of buddies. When the ball comes Ben has no interest in meeting princess Beverly (even though he assumes she's a wonderfully nice gal) he just wants to see bevvie again. Mostly because he wrote her a poem and neglected to give it to her before, so he HAS to give it to her at the ball. His step family ruin it though, because Ben's considered an embarassment and they can't have ANYONE interfering with Henry's attemps at marriage and Greta's wannabe socialite career. They rip up the poem right in front of him and it's quite heart breaking.

Just when all is lost though, Ben finds not one, but TWO fairy god parents here to help him. They introduce themselves as Richie Tozier and Eddie Kaspbrak, married couple, business men, and expert fairy god parents. They dress in modern clothes, which Ben finds very confusing, especially since 40 year old man in hawaiin shirt is hardly what comes to mind when you think "fairy god parent" but whatever. They seem well meaning enough, although they can't stop bickering for like 2 seconds to actually help. They bring back the poem to prove they're legit and give him all the cinderella fixings. Eddie is a little paranoid about Ben getting home on time though, so he gives him a midnight curfew so he leaves on time. Also Richie calls Ben haystack cause he sleeps in a barn lol.

The ball comes around and the usual stuff happens, Henry and Greta embarrass themselves, Bev hates everything about it, and Ben makes a grand entrance that shocks everyone. Ben is pretty shocked himself, as he realizes he's been friends with the princess all along and freaks tf out. Beverly instantly runs to him to ask where on earth he got that wonderfully designed suit and he mumbles out some bullshit excuse that doesn't really make sense. They fall in love but just as midnight comes around Ben remembers he forgot to give her the poem again! He leaves it behind by accident on the ground when he's running away, and bev's dad picks it up.

He seems interested in knowing who sent it, and for a moment Beverly honestly tells him she doesn't know because she met a lot of suitors last night. He insists they go searching for the guy, comparing hand writing to the post card from house to house. All while Bev just wants to get it over with so she can see Ben again and tell her how she really feels..

Sorry that was so long, i got really into the idea. I know i never make benverly stuff, so i wanted to try it.

[multi-fandom-hyperchondriac]

About me!!! Hello there!

My name is Kira

I am 23

I am British

She/her pronouns

I can be very awkward

I like writing, mainly songs but sometimes I have the urge to just write stuff down for a book that will probably never be written.

I am on the waiting list for an autism diagnosis.

I play D&D though currently my party is doing a campaign in pathfinder and it's really fun!

I love musicals however my favourite musical is the Prince of Egypt, I love it more than the film surprisingly.

My favourite film however is how to train your dragon, my parents have gotten me something httyd for Christmas every year since like 2014 because I love it so much

I used to roleplay, especially a lot in like 2019 but it died down and I kind of missed it, it helped with my creative writing.

I am learning to cosplay but as a plus sized woman I find it hard to enjoy it but I'm slowly getting there.

The only people I won't interact with are people who are rude and disrespectful or just like to plain cyberbuly.

My fandoms/Ships

IT chapter one and chapter 2 (I'm very new and it's my new obsession)

Linking with the first one, Reddie, Benverly, Stanpat and Bill/Mike

Genshin impact

Kavetham mainly but I don't mind talking about other ones.

Honkai star rail

Danganronpa

Ishimondo

Any of the Markiplier interactive works, my favourite is a heist with Markiplier but space is a very close second.

Sanders Sides

I will probably edit this if I think of more, I like making friends, I like talking to people about my interests, I am very friendly just very shy but an open book! So come say hi if you want or like a post I have done.

[trashmouthdiangelo]

The Last Ingredient - Chapter 8

Fandom: Stranger Things, IT

Main pairing(s): Henclair

Side pairing(s): Byler, Reddie, Elmax, Stenbranlon, Benverly

Rating: Mature

A/N: So, I'm finally back. This is me trying to finish all my WIPs one by one. Also it pained me to write Byler with one E.

Read it on ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19129585/chapters/45461722

[evilbookworm]

Back on my bullshit. Here’s how they got Reddie and Benverly together.

Ok, first benverly. Obviously, Ben talks about Bev all the time and gives her the most loving looks in the world so it’s not hard for Stan and Bill to put two and two together.

Bill most likely comes up with a frivolous plan to help Ben woo her, and Ben, too nice to say no, agrees. Stan, being the prissy wife he is, disapproves, but lets them go along with it.

Anyways, the plan fails, and Ben is heartbroken. Bill apologizes, and Stan comes and tells Ben just to be honest with Bev. And that he’s seen the way she looks at him, and that Bev likes him back. And benverly ensues.

Then, Reddie. Stan, being Richie’s best friend and the observant person he is, quickly catches on to his feelings. He thinks it’s a one sided attraction at one point, but then notices how Eddie looks at Richie. At that point, it’s obvious the two are hopelessly enamored with each other.

So, Stan talks to Bill, hoping he’ll help get their two idiot friends together. But Bill is shocked. Richie and Eddie like each other??? What??? (Yeah Stan had to confirm that Ben liked Bev and Bev back to Bill) He’s kind of clueless. But Bill agrees to help anyways. Because Stan is his scary wife (and because he loves him).

So they both talk to their best friends, hoping they can get them to talk, but Richie and Eddie are idiots. Richie, while accepting of his feelings, refuses to believe Eddie likes him back and plays it off as a lame joke. Eddie, on the other hand, doesn’t even think to admit that he likes Richie, not even wanting to contemplate being queer.

So yeah, Bill and Stan get frustrated, and one day, while all the losers are hanging out together, truth or dare comes up, and they play. Obviously, Stan and Bill see the opportunity, but they take it slow, not wanting to force their friends into anything. Bill’s truth to Eddie is if he has a crush, and Stan’s to Richie is if he’d kiss anyone in the room.

Anyways, things are clearly getting heated between Richie and Eddie, both of them giving each other not-so-subtle glances. So, at one point, it’s Stan’s turn to pick someone and it just goes like:

Bev: Ok Stan it’s your turn!

Stan: Guess I’ll choose Richie since he hasn’t gone in a while. Also, dare.

Richie: Oh yeah? What’s it gonna be Stanny? Gonna dare me to blow Eddie’s mom-

Eddie: Shut up, Rich, shut up!

Richie: Aww, jealous Ed’s? I knew you loved me-

Eddie: *face red* That’s not-

Stan: Oh for fucks sake, both of you are so obvious! Richie, I dare you to kiss Eddie

*awkward silence*

And they kiss. And Reddie is canon. Yay!

…

Did I mention that Bill and Stan aren’t together through any of this?

Wait wait wait hear me out. Stan and Bill we’re totally the parents of the group. Stan was the annoyed mom who kept everyone in line and made sure they didn’t die, and if he uses his mom voice you know you’re fucked. Even worse if he uses your full name.

Then there’s Bill, who’s the fun dad, in a way. He doesn’t mind the losers doing crazy things and shit. He helps them when they have a stupid plan (though let’s be real Bill is probably the one coming up with the stupid plans). But he is also terrified of his wife. Which is Stan. Stan is his wife.

So basically, if one of the losers ever gets hurt and it’s because Bill went along with their plan, he knows he’s fucked. And it’s hilarious, ngl.

They also plot to get Reddie and benverly together but I’ll post about that later.

[80soleff]

je t'aime, eddie: one

summary: “pardon my french, eddie spaghetti, but you’re the cutest fucking person i have ever seen.” aka, the foreign exchange fic.

word count: 1,282

pairings: reddie, side stenbrough, side benverly, lots of platonic kaspbrough

a/n: the pennywise incident still happened but in like 2014, this takes place in 2017!

1, 2, 3, 4

it was definitely an impulse decision, on his part. he could have said something else when asked what he wanted for christmas that year. something… normal. like a camera, or new art supplies.

but no. the words that came flying out of bill denbrough’s mouth were pretty peculiar. “a person.” he said, as his parents looked at him, confusion clear on their faces. who the hell asks for a person for christmas? well, not a person. a foreign exchange student.

it’s not something he’s thought of before, just something that came to his mind moments before the question was asked. he had the other losers of course, but things around his house got lonely after three years. three years of no georgie and three years of not knowing what to do with himself.

after explaining to them what he actually meant, his parents agreed. in fact, they thought it was a great idea. it would be a “good way for bill to have some exposure to another culture” as they said. he never really viewed it as that kind of opportunity, but he definitely wasn’t opposed to it.

so, gathered around bill’s laptop in the middle of the year, the denbroughs signed up to be a host family. it was a long process, background checks and orientations, signature after signature, but the day finally came where they would get to pick the person to live with them for the next year.

his name was eddie and he was from france. 16 years old, just like bill and the rest of the losers. the biography under his picture tells the story of his family and how he used to live in america until he was six. he spoke english pretty well, but he usually spoke french.

naturally, bill procrastinated so much that he didn’t tell the others that eddie was coming until the day was four days away.

the losers club sat around a bonfire in bill’s backyard, as they usually spent their summer saturdays. stan and bill were sitting on a bench, sharing earbuds and a thick blanket draped over their shoulders. ben and beverly were reading a book together, beverly’s hand holding the right page and ben’s holding the left. richie and mike were looking at something on mike’s phone and laughing.

bill was pretty sure stan knew he liked him. i mean, he has been pining after him ever since the summer before freshman year. he saw bev look up from her book and over at the two of them. she gave bill a knowing smile and went back to reading. beverly was the only one who knew about bills crush on stan, but she found out by accident. it’s actually a really funny story.

beverly was coming over and bill’s hands were shaking. when he told all of the losers his parents would be gone for the weekend, she had asked to come over. mike told him that was code for “dude, she totally wants to make out!” but how were you supposed to make out with a girl? surely it can’t be that hard. he heard a knock at the to snap him out of his worried thoughts.

he practically ran down the stairs and opened the door. “hey b-b-bev.” his stutter came out more than he would have liked it to.

“hey bill! can i come in?” she asked him through a smile.

“y-yeah. i m-mean, yeah.” beverly took off her boots and they walked up to his room.

“i’m not sure if we all tell you enough bill, but you’re an amazing artist.” walking around bill’s room, she ran her fingers over the drawings and doodles hanging on the wall.

“thanks, i t-try.” he said in a nervous tone. beverly then walked over to him and got pretty close. she glanced down at his lips a few times and so did he. she started moving in. oh my god. oh my god. this is it.

one innocent kiss progressed into making out pretty quickly. they were nearing bill’s bed until he disconnected their lips.

“holy shit.”

beverly laughed at his words. “you okay there, denbrough?”

“i’m gay.”

she started jumping up and down in the air and cheering. “oh my god, i knew it! richie totally owes me twenty dollars!” he stared at her in disbelief, watching her celebrate in the middle of his bedroom floor. “kidding, kidding.” she raised her arms in defense.

“w-wait, you knew? h-how…” bill trailed off and sat down on his bed, shock evident on his face.

“bill, you look at stan like he hung the stars. i think we all know. except stan, he’s sooo oblivious.” he slowly processed the information he was given. who couldn’t look at stan like that, he’s gorgeous. was it really that obvious? he always thought the secret glances he stole at stan were when no one else was paying attention. bill just nodded his head in response and beverly came over to engulf him in a hug.

“it’s okay, i think i’m the only one who noticed. i won’t tell, swear.” she extended her pinky out toward bill and he intertwined his with her own.

he came out to the losers at the quarry the next day. he didn’t expect anything but support, but he was still scared. they all shared a big group hug and to say his attention stayed on stan the whole time definitely wasn’t a lie.

smiling at the memory, he watched as mike and ben added various twigs and logs to the growing fire. he really hoped eddie wasn’t homophobic or anything like that.

“guys, i h-have something t-to tell y-you.” everyone shifted their attention to bill.

“what is it, bill?” stan said, nervousness evident in his voice.

“n-no, it’s nothing b-bad.” richie raises his eyebrows, waiting for him to say something. “w-well, basically, i h-have a foreign e-exchange student c-coming to live with us in f-f-four days.”

“four days?! bill, why didn’t you tell us? that’s crazy, man! i mean, how are we gonna understand this fucking kid?” richie looked at bill with shock in his eyes, as did the other losers.

“he s-speaks english, d-dumbass.”

“four days? wow… where is he from? how old is he?” mike asked inquisitively.

“f-france. he used to l-live here when he was l-little but he m-m-moved away. he’s sixteen.” stan has the slightest bit of anger in his voice.

“he’s gonna live here? with you?” bill laughed at him.

“where e-else would he live?” he only huffed in response.

“ooo, eddie? you know me, i love a good french boy.” richie was openly bisexual and proud.

“beep beep, richie!” they all said in unison. “do you have a picture, bill?” beverly asked and bill took his phone out.

“we’ve been t-texting. he seems r-really nice.”

on the screen, richie saw what he thought was the best sight he would ever see. it was a picture of eddie standing in front of the eiffel with a big smile on his face. “hm. very frenchy.” ben said and they laughed at him.

“he’s an adorable frenchy.” beverly said looking at the picture.

“adorable? he’s a smokin’ frenchy.” richie trailed off into the summer night.

“say “frenchy” one more time and i’m-”

“m-my mom talked to h-his mom on the phone. she’s c-c-crazy. he has to t-take like, a j-j-jillion pills a day.” bill told all of them.

“what’s wrong with him? he looks mighty fine to me.” richie said with a smirk plastered to his face. stan elbowed him in the side.

“i th-think he has asthma. not s-sure what the o-others are f-for.” richie looked at the picture again.

“oh, eddie spaghetti, i’m gonna have so much fun with you.”

special thanks to @roses-for-reddie because she’s such a hypeman. should i continue this fic? send me an ask and tell me what you thought!

[lolahood]

alleyways & payphone calls - reddie glee au

summary: Eddie is a passionate young lad looking for a creative outlet, and he sets his sights on Glee Club. Richie wants to get into a good college and needs extra curriculars. He also thinks Eddie is cute, so Glee Club seems like a double win. main/reddie  side/stenborough  side/benverly

word count: 1.3k

/////////////////////

Eddie Kaspbrak wasn’t the kind of person to go halfway on things. The small boy either committed totally to his cause or didn’t participate at all. So when he saw the tattered signup sheet advertising auditions for the school’s new Glee club, Eddie felt a fire light in his stomach. This would be his Thing. Each of the small boy’s friends had already committed to their own thing: Mike, who was popular (obviously, look at him) and he was a star soccer player. Ben was the head of the school newspaper, and Stan starred in most of the school’s theater productions. Eddie had been waiting his entire high school career to discover something that would serve as his passion. He had tried tennis, chess club, even math team. Now they were nearing winter break in their junior year, and Eddie still wasn’t involved in any after school activities. He could hear his mother’s voice in the back of his head: Eddie, you don’t need any of that! You have me! And your schoolwork! You’re simply too fragile, darling. The sweater-clad teen shook his head, as if he could repeal 17 years of his mother’s overbearing ways as easily as shaking off a mosquito. He clenched his fist tight and marched up to the bulletin board where the mostly empty list was stapled. His well-groomed fingernails drove deep into his palms and the boy felt a sharp pain, thought this wasn’t an uncommon action for Eddie. He took a deep breath, grabbed a pen from his shorts’ pocket, and (before he let himself doubt) signed his name. He took a step back. It was done. A wave of relief washed over Eddie as giddiness replaced the anxiety in his throat. This is it, Eddie thought to himself. With a smirk and a brisk turn, Eddie strolled away, more confident than he had been in a while. Now I just need to pick an audition song.

/////////////////////

Richie Tozier was the kind of person to go halfway on things. His best friend, Bev, told him this was his biggest flaw, as it made him uncapable of committing to any relationships. Richie viewed it as a lazy spontaneity. Bev always rolled her eyes whenever he said this, because she knew the real reasons behind Richie’s anti-caring philosophy. The two of them had experienced far too many drunk conversations during which a broken-down Richie explained in a whisper that ‘if you don’t let yourself love anything, it will never break your heart.’ Bev suspected the root of the problem was Richie’s parents, but she knew it wasn’t her place to comment. Essentially - Richie just didn’t give a shit. This made seeing the cute boy with the shorts studying the Glee Club sign up sheet so much more difficult. From the moment he had spotted the boy in the library, pouring over a book on the evolution of rock and roll, Richie knew something was different about him. He had a gleam in his eyes that was like nothing Richie had found in their small town so far. Most people in the shitty town of Derry, Maine had already resigned to living their lives there, having two kids and a 9 to 5. They were lifeless; zombies. Richie hated it. He wanted to leave the town more than anything. He wanted to walk out the back door of his shitty house, away from his shitty parents and their shitty fights. He wanted to leave and never come back. Whenever he tried to explain how he felt to Bev, she would laugh and agree with him, but he knew she didn’t take him seriously. Not because she didn’t care for him - Bev cared more about Riche than anyone else in his life - she just didn’t think he was serious. No one left Derry. That’s what made Eddie so special. Richie saw from Eddie’s face that he felt the same way about the town. As Richie watched the small teen quickly scribble his name on the piece of paper and then flounce away, Richie thought about the conversation he had had earlier with Bev and his other friends.

“I love football, but sometimes it’s a lot. I’m kinda glad the season’s over for the year,” Bill said with a chuckle.

“Oh, c’mon Billy Boy,” Richie exclaimed. “Don’t poop on your team! I’m sure Coach Jockstrap would be simply crushed to hear you say that.” Bev giggled next to him, earning her a playful frown from Bill.

“Shut up, Richie, you can’t make any comments on my lack of faithfulness,” Bill quipped. Richie’s brow raised in an expression of fake shock.

“Billiam! How dare thee! I am perrrrrrfect at being faithful!” Richie purred. Bev sighed with another laugh.

“He’s right, Rich, you wouldn’t know commitment if it bit you in the behind.”

“Well, at least it would be eating more ass than Bill has in his life,” Richie smirked. Bill rolled his eyes, but couldn’t hide his laughter.

“I’m serious, Richie. Have you ever considered joining an extra-curricular? They’re a blast and they might help you, erm, make more friends!” Richie’s brow furrowed for a moment before reverting back to its regular raised state. Was this some sort of intervention or something?

“Plus, they look really good on college applications,” Bev stated with a pointed look. Richie sighed, knowing the red-haired gal was right. Richie knew that to get into an out-of-state college (as that was his plan) he needed all the help he could get.

“But I don’t wanna do a sport!” Richie whined, flinging his lanky limbs as if demonstrating how uncoordinated his body was.

“You don’t have to do a sport,” Bev pointed out. “There are plenty of clubs and things that aren’t sport-related.” She thought for a moment, curling a strand of hair around her finger as she pondered. Suddenly, her face lit up, and she slammed her hand onto the table in excitement. “You can join Glee Club!” Richie snorted.

“Are you serious? Me, singing? On stage?” Richie tried to play off his sudden nerves as part of his act, but Bev knew better.

“Yes, Richie. It would be great! Plus, Mr. Alexander is running it and he LOVES you!” Richie wouldn’t use the L-word, but Mr. Alex definitely had a soft spot for the curly haired teen. Richie knew Bev had a lot of valid points, but he just wasn’t sure.

“I don’t know Bev, I’ve never done something like this. What if someth-”

“I’ll do it with you, Richie.” Bev and Richie’s heads snapped to the tall boy staring intently at his sandwich.

“Are you serious, Billy?” Richie giggled thinking about Bill singing.

“Yes, I’m serious!” Bill protested indignantly. “It’ll be fun. Plus, it never hurts to look well-rounded.” A big grin spread across Bev’s face.

“Oh Richie, you have to now!” Bill and Bev high-fived over Richie’s head as Richie laughed nervously.

Was he actually considering this? Richie was frozen, leaning against his locker with his sights set on the slip of paper stapled to the board. Was he, Richie Tozier, actually going to sign up for Glee Club? He knew he wasn’t a great singer, but he could hold a tune and had unbeatable enthusiasm when he wanted to. He knew the points Bev made were reasonable - he needed more after-school stuff to get into the colleges he was looking at, and he wasn’t exactly a popular dude.  Maybe it would be good for him to get some more friends. Richie thought back to the swing of Eddie’s hips as the cute boy sauntered away from the list. And maybe something other than a friend, Richie thought as he made his way over to the bulletin board. He saw that Bill had been there already, with his tiny, neat signature etched at the bottom of the paper. A sincere grin turned up the corners of Richie’s lips. He pulled out a chewed-up pencil and scratched out his name right under Eddie’s. Richie ran his thumb over the immaculate handwriting.

Well, this will be fun.

/////////////////////

part 2

thanks for reading! thanks to @80soleff for being the absolute biggest help in the world :)) i might be continuing this depending on how it goes over. let me know what you thought! comments and asks aCtuALLy mAkE mY hEarT buRst so if you want please do those!

[sandcrdriesens]

i’m sorry but hanbrough au where mike is an actor workin on an adaption of bill’s books n they fall in love.. please

[dykemusic]

how about a reddie barn party?

“a barn party?”

“yeah.”

“well what is it?”

mike looks at stan. stan looks at bill. bill, wide-eyed, looks back and forth between the two of them. 

“it’s… a party. in a barn.” stan speaks slowly, though the corner of his mouth twitches like he’s trying desperately not to smile. 

“well i nuh-know that,” bill says in exasperation, and mike lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and laughs, relieved. he knows bill is smart, he knows—the good grades and power essays will prove it—but sometimes bill’s brain cells took vacations. sometimes bill would write the coolest shit in creative writing class: the kinda shit that mike and bev and richie (so, by proxy, eddie as well) liked to read. horror stories, like the slasher films the losers stayed up to watch (ben and stan preferred anything but horror), though bill has a habit of adding corny romantic subplots that appealed more to ben than anyone else. bill would write those, would blow the whole loser’s club away with those, and then turn around and introduce himself as dilliam benbrough. 

his braincells took vacations, but they always came back. 

“i meant what is it fuh-for?” 

mike shrugs. “for fun.”

“why, do you have other plans that day, bill?” stan crosses his arms, and bill grins. 

“i’m in. on wuh-one condition.” 

* * *

“are you kidding me?” eddie scowls. “cowboy attire mandatory?”

“i don’t know why you’re complaining, eds; it’s your fantasy come true. i have two words for you, bro.” richie strikes a pose and the sound of his hand slapping against his thigh is too loud in the small space of the clubhouse. “assless. chaps.”

“take it back, bill, please.” eddie looks at bill helplessly, but bill’s too busy flipping through a Sears catalogue to see it. 

“shuh-should i get classic brown leather style boots? or should i g-go for a buh-bold black instead?” 

bev leans over his shoulder and points to an image on the sheet, her nail polish still wet. “these. they’ll match that plaid you got at the thrifty mart today.” 

eddie turns to mike, eyes desperate, but mike just shrugs. 

“i’ve been looking for a reason to wear my cowboy hat. sorry eddie.” 

richie slaps his thigh again and raises his eyebrows suggestively at eddie. “c’mon cowboy. saddle up, eddie, we’re goin’ full gay cowboy. wanna share a tent with m—.” 

eddie, red with fury (and flushed with embarrassment) punches richie’s shoulder. richie cackles, and cackles, until eddie’s pout twists like he’s holding back his own giggles; until stan turns to mike with a flat look and asks if they can be uninvited. 

“we need eight to square dance, stan.” 

eddie stops mid-tousle with richie and squawks. “we have to dance?” 

bill looks up from his magazine and sighs. “it’s a barn party eddie.” 

eddie flips him off, and this time they all laugh. 

* * *

“oh my god.” 

“wow.”

“holy shit, benny boy!” richie puts his hands on his hips and slowly turns in a circle, surveying the empty barn. “you out-fuckin’-did yourself, now!” 

“richie tozier!” calls a warning voice from the corner, and jessica hanlon gives him the stink eye from thirty feet away. “you watch your mouth while i’m around.”

richie holds up an apologetic hand, though his mouth quivers with the shadow of a smile. “you got it, mrs. h!” 

“nice, richie,” bev smirks. she turns to ben. “seriously ben, this place looks incredible.”

the lights were the hardest part: stringing them up in the rafters, wrapping them around the old wood and across the walls… ben had suffered his share of splinters and spider encounters. it’s a big barn too, and ben’s hands were sweaty from the early june heatwaves (and nerves from the spider encounters). but he’d managed, with the help of mike and his uncle, and now the whole barn was strung with fairy lights and chinese lanterns. 

“it’s dreamy,” bev says, looking ben in the eye as she does. “romantic.” 

ben goes as crimson as the barn and looks at his feet.

“thanks bev.” 

“are you guys gonna’ help set-up or just stand there like raisins on a celery stick?” jessica stands behind the group now, a sheen of sweat on her forehead. “your poor friend is struggling over there and you all are looking at the lights like a bunch of moths.” 

mike turns to where bill’s currently putting up the big banner he and bev painted. well, trying to put up the banner. actually, struggling is really the word he’s looking for. every time bill would get one side taped up he’d walk to the other, but just as he’d get that corner taped down the first side would fall again. mike bites his lip and tries not to smile too wide. 

they all stand there for another few seconds, watching bill continue to struggle, before mike shakes his head and jogs over to help. 

“oh!” bill says as mike pressed his palm to the paper to keep it up as bill fought with the tape dispenser. “th-thanks, mikey.” 

“no problem, bill.” mike watches bill attempt to rip the tape with his teeth. “are you going to the barn party with anyone?”

bill pauses, looks up at mike with the strip of tape still in his mouth. “uhh. the rest of yuh-you guys?”

“i meant as a date.” mike’s face is perfectly calm, but the cage of his rib bones shakes noisily with the thumping of his heart. “are you, you know, going with anyone?”

bill starts fighting with the tape again. “uh, n-no.”

“do you want to go with me?”

bill manages to rip off the tape he needs, and finally secures the poster. mike steps back cautiously from the wall, just in case it decides to fall again. nothing moves. mike looks back to bill, who still hasn’t answered. 

“yes. yuh-yeah.” bill smiles, a soft thing, and nods. “that’d be awesome, mikey.” 

“cool,” mike says, feeling very, very cool. “very cool.” 

* * * 

“whoa, eds, slow down—eddie, damn, what’re you running for?” richie’s keeping up pretty easily with his long legs and therefore long strides, but eddie’s practically jogging at this point and soon richie’s going to have to do the same. “what’s goin’ on, cowboy?”

“don’t cowboy me,” eddie grumbles, his boots making a little click click with every step as the fake spurs tapped against the sidewalk. 

richie stops. “eds, are you mad at me?” eddie’s still walking, albeit a little slower now. “eddie.”

“i’m not mad!” eddie says, madly, though he stops walking too. “i’m just. i’m. ugh!” eddie makes a little noise of frustration and richie tries desperately not to feel so fucking fond about it. “why didn’t you ask me to go with you to the barn party?”

if richie wasn’t already frozen to the spot, that would’ve knocked him out cold. “wh… what? whaddya mean? i’m here, with you, right— “

“but you didn’t ask. you just showed up unannounced like you always do.” 

“well yeah that’s just how it is—”

“but why didn’t you ask?” eddie turns, sparks of red on high cheekbones turned orange in the lamplight. he looks like a puppy, ears turned down and big brown eyes hiding sadness under the brow of anger that covered it. the pieces clicked together in richie’s head. 

“oh. ohhh. i get it.” richie shoves his hands in his pockets. “you wanted to be romanced.” 

“that is not what i said.” 

richie takes a few steps forward. “you wanted me to get down on one knee and lend you my kerchief as an invite to the debutante ball.” richie, playing up the western twang he’s taken on, over-pronounces every syllable in debutante. eddie scoffs to hide the beginning of a laugh. 

“shut up richie, i was just saying—“

“well, mistah edward j. kaspbrak— 

“don’t call me that.”

“— would you do me the honor of bein’ my pardner—“

“i hate you.”

“and accompanyin’ me to the hanlon barn party so i don’t haf’ta ride solo tonight?”

richie’s got his hand cupped under eddie’s chin by now, and the other arm curled loosely around eddie’s waist. in the early twilight glow, richie’s eyes shine with amusement and something else; something that’s always wrapped in every glance sent eddie’s way. love, probably, though eddie’s still scared to say it and richie’s no better. sometimes richie knows he’s in love but he also knows he was in love last year, and the year before, and the year before that one, and every year that goes by richie’s love feels deeper and stronger and real-er. richie used to think love was a peak at the top of a mountain of feelings but being with eddie has him thinking that maybe it isn’t, that maybe love is just a mountain and richie never wants to stop climbing. 

“yes, asshole, of course i want to go to the barn party with you.” eddie’s not even trying to look angry anymore. richie wants to kiss him, and he goes to do so, but the oversized rims of their cowboy hats bump together and it makes them both laugh. 

“gay cowboys sure have it rough, huh?” richie asks. “let’s try that again.” then he tilts his hat back, leans down, and kisses Eddie properly. 

* * *

the lights looked good in the day, but they look downright magical in the dark of night. there’s still a purple tint to the sky, leftover from the stretched out sunset, and though there’s no cracks in the roof to see the stars through, they cast a foggy glow on the grass outside. 

the music is loud, but not too loud, and cheerful, but not overtly so. dancing music, is what it is, and most people are inside making the most out of it. stan’s in there with patty, mike knows—he’d seen them spinning circles around everyone else. mike knows for a fact stan doesn’t take dancing lessons, but the way he and patty swing and dance with such ease and grace makes you think it was practiced. mike just thinks that true love shows in the way you move together. you can always see it in the way people dance. it’s about… well, richie and eddie have it too, and richie’s got two left feet and a tragic lack of the “being able to take things seriously” bone. 

it’s in the way they look at each other, though, the way eddie’s face pulls into a joyous adoration when richie spins him around the room obnoxiously even though he’s telling richie to put me down, put me down! it’s in the way bev brushes her fingers against ben’s when he hands her a cup of punch, and the way ben’s knee lingers when bev’s knee rests against his where they sit on the bench; like every touch is infinite, and worth every second. it’s in the way stan holds patty as they dance, like she’s something to be held, and the way patty holds him just the same. 

fuck, mike knows he’s only eighteen, but he knows what love, true love, looks like. 

“the p-party is inside,” bill says. an adjacent thought to mike’s last, suddenly here before him: bill, in all his plaid and leather fringe glory. mike’s heart, a racehorse poised at the startling line, takes off.

“i needed a break from the line dancing. your mom is kicking my ass.” it’s true. ms. denbrough sure knows how to country-shake it. 

“she was muh-more excited for this than i was,” bill jokes, and then walks the rest of the way from the barn to the edge of the field where mike is standing. 

“you look good.” it’s a bit sudden, maybe, but that thought evaporates when bill lights up with a shy smile. “the cowboy look suits you.” 

“thuh-thanks, mikey.” bill’s hand twitches, like he’s going to reach out, but it stays at his side. “your shirt. it’s a g-good shirt.” 

nice one, denbrough. bill makes a face. 

“i mean yuh-you look strong it it. i mean, handsome. and strong, tuh-too.” bill’s bright pink, and mike couldn’t think him any cuter. “yuh-you know what i mean.”

“i wear this shirt all the time,” mike says, just to see if bill will flush darker. he does.

“yuh-yeah, i know.” 

mike’s eyes flick to the barn and back. out here, the music is muffled, but mike can still tell hear andy williams crooning his familiar tune from the speakers inside. 

“do you want to dance with me, bill?” 

bill’s hand twitches again. “out here?” 

mike nods. bill nods, and mike bets his heart is knocking against his ribs just as hard as the one in mike’s chest. mike offers his hand, and bill takes it, and the next moment mike’s got bill denbrough against his chest as they sway to the easy beat of moon river.

it’s in the way bill steps on my feet, mike thinks. it’s in the way he apologizes every time, even when i just laugh and promise him it’s okay. it’s in the way he keeps apologizing, cheeks flushed and hands curled around mike’s arms, until mike kisses him quiet. 

it’s in the way that mike’s only eighteen, but he knows what love, true love, feels like. 

[kenzia]

Richie, Truth or Dare?

Richie Tozier was going to lose his mind. His entire mind, not just the frontal lobe or some shit. The entire goddamn thing. 

It was all because Stanley Uris, bless his soul, had asked him a question. 

The Losers always played truth or dare. it was the game they played when the sleepover was wrapping up. The clock would show that it was 3 or 4 in the morning, so they played truth or dare tired-drunk and happy.

Richie avoided it. Dodged questions that he didn’t want to answer with shitty jokes and cocky coverups, but this. This whole fucking thing was different. 

The whole night had been different. Bev had sat in Ben’s lap, and holy shit Stanley had been smiling all fucking night all because Patricia had said yes to hoco.

They were more than tired-drunk they were drunk on love, and it made Richie sick. Sick of answers and sick of questions.

“Dare,” Richie breathed his last. The words falling out of his lips before he could even think.

If he had thought for one more second he would’ve remembered that Stanny boy was power crazy. An insane big dumb head.

“Kiss Eddie, big kiss. Lips.” Stan’s cheeks were flushed and he clapped his hands as if he had just solved all the world’s problems.

Richie’s heart dropped to his balls. He remembered a few days back when Stan was nervous about asking Patty to homecoming. 

“Stan, bud, I gotta tell you something. If I tell you though you have to ask Patty to hoco. I think I like like Eddie.”

“Um,” Eddie started with a cough. “What?”

“We’ve never done that one before.” Bill grinned. 

“Ooooo, you have to. That’s the rules of the game,” Bev said seriously, Ben nodding with her.

“I was literally dared to kiss Beverly ten minutes ago.” Mike chimed in. “it’s not a big deal.” 

Richie took a deep breath and smiled at his friends. It was fine. Stan didn’t know what he was doing. He probably thought he was helping. Maybe Stan did help. Maybe the second their lips touched something would click. Maybe Eddie would kiss back. Everyone would cheer, and they would all be happy. 

Richie could be one of the boys drunk in love.

“Well Eds pucker up baby.” He was going to kiss Eddie Kaspbrak. 

“Ew Stanley. Do you know how dirty a human mouth is?” Eddie yelled, sending a nervous Richie into easy laughter with the rest of the losers. “Better yet, we’re both boys! That’s disgusting Stan! Boy’s can’t kiss each other.”

Richie, truth or dare?

Did that hurt Richie. Little Eddie Kaspbrak thinks you’re disgusting. 

Richie looked around the circle at confused expressions.

“Why not?” Bill was the one who spoke first breaking the silence.

Eddie’s face morphed into something unreadable. He looked foreign in their group. 

“My mom says it isn’t right. Have you heard the news lately? Disease can happen if you’re not careful about that shit!” it sounded like any other of his rants, but this time it wasn’t about a bully it was about Richie.

“There's no problem. You don’t have to kiss me, but I don’t want to hear that bullshit.” Richie spit.

Every pair of eyes looked to Richie who tried his damn best not to look at Eddie. 

“I’m sorry. Let’s move on. Maybe we should go to sleep.” 

Richie, truth or dare? Come on Rich. Play the game. 

Richie sat for hours in silence stewing in his brain. He went over every movement from their game. How Beverly had tensed, how sad Bill looked, and how fucking upset Eddie was.

Richie knew it wasn’t him. Eddie wasn’t disgusted by him. He didn't know any better. 

The boy in question lay a few feet away snoring softly in a way that Richie still found adorable. 

Richie fucking hated truth or dare. 

_______________________________________________________________________

AUTHOR NOTE - THIS WAS JUST A QUICK WRITE. I SHIP REDDIE I JUST WANTED TO PRACTICE WRITING A TOUGH SITUATION. NOT EVERY CHARACTER IS PERFECT AND I WANTED TO PLAY WITH A POSSIBLE FLAW IN EDDIE.

[applesouletly]

tell me you'll stay (never ever go away) (4942 words) by sheriffandsteel Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: IT - Stephen King, IT (Movies - Muschietti) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Ben Hanscom & Eddie Kaspbrak, Mike Hanlon & Ben Hanscom Characters: Ben Hanscom, Beverly Marsh, Eddie Kaspbrak, Mike Hanlon, Richie Tozier Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - No Pennywise (IT), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Pining, Soft Ben Hanscom Summary:

Ben loves most things but there is little that he loves more than love itself. He's already met the woman he's certain is the One. If only he could find her again.

[kenzie-ann27]

do you ever think that after beverly tells richie that she pegs ben he refuses to call them anything other than "needle in a haystack"

[jennifersminds]

does anyone have any fanfics that are just like.. richie and bev being bestsies? they’re my favourite friendships i need more of them

[trashcanmarvelfan]

Second Chances - A Benverly Post- IT: Chapter Two Fanfic

Summary: After everything is over, Ben finally asks Beverly about the bruises he noticed on her arm the night they arrived back in town.

Warnings: 2 uses of the F-bomb (if you've seen the movie you guys know Richie has a mouth like a sailor so that's not too bad, all things considering) and non-graphic allusions to spousal abuse. Bonus Reddie feels, although Eddie is still dead, guys.

Word Count: 2100-ish.

Author’s Note: I wish we would've gotten more sweet Benverly togetherness in Chapter Two, but that's what fanfic is for, right? Whipped this up, gave it a read-thru, and here you guys are. Enjoy.

CROSS-POSTED ON AO3 (Coming soon).

Ben Hanscom stood in a small circle with his childhood friends inside the underground clubhouse he had built during the summer they had all met, the summer that had been both of one of the best & one of the worst summers of Ben's life-- although he hadn't known it at the time. He had met Bev, Bill, Richie, Mike, Stan, and Eddie, who along with Ben collectively formed the Losers Club. During that summer Ben had also battled an evil demonic clown, wrote the first-- and last-- love poem he had ever anonymously sent someone, and had his first kiss (well, sorta). Unfortunately for Ben the person with whom he shared his first kiss was, at the time, incapacitated due to said evil demonic clown, and the poem was incorrectly attributed to someone else.

The Losers had scattered after that summer. Bev had gone to live with relatives out of state, Eddie had been dragged off to a new town by his mom, and eventually the rest of the Losers moved off as well, forgetting about Derry, that summer… and each other.

All except for Mike. He had stayed, and when It had resurfaced 27 years later, he had gathered the Losers Club to fight It again, this time defeating It for good. However, defeating It had come with a price. This time, Stan hadn't made it back to Derry and Eddie hadn't made it to the end.

Ben glanced around the circle. Each of his fellow remaining Losers were, like him, puffy-eyed and tear-streaked. They had agreed to meet one last time on their way out of town -- Bill was heading back west with the new, 'happier' ending for the film that was being made out of one of his books.  Mike had decided since It was really and truly gone that he was moving on to Florida. Richie was heading back to L.A. Beverly… Actually Ben didn't know exactly what Beverly's plans were. He knew she needed to go back to Chicago to 'wrap up some loose ends' but had no idea what her plans were beyond that.

It had taken 27 years, but Bev had finally figured out that Ben was the one who had written her the poem. Besides that underwater kiss at the Quarry though they hadn't discussed the poem or the fact that Ben had carried around the yearbook page that Beverly had signed in his wallet.

The Losers were currently holding an impromptu memorial service for Stan and Eddie before going their separate ways, and each had shared a memory about Stan and Eddie, respectively.  Ben had gone first, then Mike, then Bill and Beverly, until finally it was Richie's turn as the last Loser to share. Ben listened with a chuckle as Richie reminisced about Stan's bar mitzvah, when Stan had basically told all of the adults in the congregation to go fuck themselves, and now he was about to say something about Eddie. Richie sniffled. "I have to tell you guys something."

The rest of the Losers waited patiently.

Richie took a deep breath. "I'm gay, and when we were kids I was in love with Eddie. I was head-over-heels in love with him, and I never got a chance to tell him before he moved away. Then we came back here and all my old feelings for him came rushing back like I was 13 again."

Ben placed a hand on Richie's shoulder and gave him a gentle squeeze. He could relate--well, not the being gay part, but being in love with someone and not directly getting to tell them how he felt before it was too late. Fortunately for Ben, however, he had a second chance.

January embers

He quickly glanced over at Beverly, who was watching Richie speak with fresh tears in her eyes.

"He saved us," Richie continued. "Telling us about choking the leper and making it small… if it hadn't been for him then none of us would've made it out. But Eddie deserved to make it out too. He deserved to live..." He broke down into sobs. 

Ben and Beverly both moved to wrap Richie in a hug as he cried, and Mike and Bill placed encouraging hands on his back. 

When Richie seemed to have calmed down somewhat, Ben asked, "You ok, man?"

Richie nodded. "Eddie should've been here celebrating with the rest of us. I never got a chance to tell him how I felt before he died, but I figure if I at least tell our best friends, it'll make not getting to tell him hurt just a little bit less."

He sighed. "Life is short -- I missed my chance with Eddie, but don't you guys pass up the opportunity to tell the ones you love how you feel."

With one final sniffle he wiped his eyes. "I made all those jokes about banging Eddie's mom when we were kids when really all I wanted to do was bang Eddie," he joked.

Ben couldn't help but smile.

Bill's phone went off with an alert. "Shoot, guys. I hate to cut this short but Richie and I have a flight back to L.A. in an hour."

"I should probably get going too," Mike added.

Ben and the rest of the Losers gave them each a brief hug. "We'll stay in touch this time," Bill promised as he gave Beverly a hug, and Ben couldn't help but feel a tiny pang of jealousy before chastising himself. Bill is your friend, you ass. What he and Beverly had ended long ago. Besides, Bill is happily married.  Beverly was married too, but from what Ben had gathered he suspected it wasn't too happily.

He watched as Bill and Mike climbed up the ladder to the surface, followed soon by Richie. As Richie's footsteps faded, Ben could hear Beverly say, "I think he knew."

He turned to her. "What?"

Beverly gestured toward the ladder. "Eddie. I think he knew how Richie felt about him, and I think he felt the same way about Richie." She sighed. "They would've been happy together."

Ben nodded. "Yeah, I could see it too between them. The way they would look at each other when they thought the other one wasn't looking." That hit a little too close to home, he thought.

He cleared his throat before changing the subject. "Hey, can I ask you about something? Something personal. And it's ok if you don't want to talk about it, but…" he trailed off.

Beverly nodded and took a seat on the bench that Ben had made their sophomore year of high school, after Beverly had left and Ben started getting more into architecture in order to keep his mind occupied. She patted the spot next to her.

Ben took a seat and was silent for a few moments while he collected his thoughts. How do I go about this? 

Finally, he decided that the direct approach would probably be best. "When we got here… back to Derry, I mean… I noticed bruises on your arm at dinner. Then when you flinched away from me… Is everything ok, Bev?"

Beverly paled and wouldn't make eye contact with Ben, instead choosing to look at the floor. "Tom… my husband… he wasn't very happy that I was leaving so suddenly," she explained. "We-- we got into a fight, and he-- he--" she broke off.

Ben stiffened. "Was that the first time?"

"No," Beverly whispered, then started crying. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Hey," Ben said gently, slowly reaching for Bev and giving her plenty of time to back away. Instead of rejecting his offer of comfort, however, Beverly leaned into Ben's embrace, allowing him to wrap his arms around her as her body wracked with sobs. "There's absolutely no need to apologize for anything. None of anything that you have gone through is your fault, okay? None of it. Not the shit we went through with Pennywise, or anything your dad or your husband put you through. You hear me? None of it was your fault and you have every right to be upset." Ben stroked Bev's hair soothingly as he held her. "You're safe with me, Bev. You're safe. I swear on my life that as long as I am breathing no one will ever harm you again." 

Beverly hiccuped. "Thank you," she whispered, tightening her hold on Ben. "Thank you." She sniffled and leaned back to look at him face-to-face.

When they were kids Ben had thought that Beverly was a beautiful girl; now he thought that she was a beautiful woman. He wiped the tears from her face with his thumbs, letting his hands gently rest on her cheeks. "You deserve all the happiness in the world," he said, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.

Beverly reached up to wrap her hands around Ben's. "I should have realized all those years ago that you were the one who wrote me the poem."

Ben tilted his head to the side. "How do you figure?"

Beverly smirked. "Bill's a great writer but he's no poet, Eddie and Richie were too busy arguing and making moony eyes at each other to be interested in anyone else, Stan probably either would've been too nervous to leave the note or would've 'fessed up almost immediately, and Mike was just trying to survive the summer-- I don't think he even thought of me as a girl at the time." She paused. "But you… you saw me, didn't you? You've always seen me. Your hair is winter fire," she recited. "January embers."

"My heart burns there too," Ben finished. "Still does. Always has in fact, although I didn't always quite remember why I was carrying around a yearbook page with only one signature on it."

Beverly smiled. "It's ok, New Kid," she said, then the next thing Ben knew Beverly was kissing him.

Their second (okay, technically third) kiss was even better than their first (okay, second). Considering the fact that Beverly was still in the Deadlights' thrall and wasn't even conscious for the first one as kids, Ben figured that shouldn't even count. Their first kiss as adults, shared under the dirty water of the quarry, paled in comparison to the feel of Beverly's lips on his own at that moment.

For a split second Ben thought maybe this was all another Pennywise-induced hallucination, then had the brief notion that maybe he had died in the battle and somehow made it to heaven instead of whatever hellscape Pennywise inhabited.

He realized it was neither when Beverly ran her fingers through his hair and gave it a slight tug, making him moan.

"Jesus, Bev," he muttered, pulling her into his lap and seeking permission to deepen the kiss.

Suddenly they heard a voice:

"It's about fuckin' time!"

They whipped their heads around to see Richie, Bill, and Mike, all watching them with shit-eating grins on their faces.

"What are you guys doing back here?" Ben asked as Bev giggled and buried her face in his neck.

Richie gestured to a now-blushing Bill. "Billy here forgot his wallet, so we came back down to get it. Didn't know we were gonna get a show as well."

"Beep beep, Richie," Bill said.

Richie ignored him. "So this is finally happening, huh? You two gonna ride off into the sunset together?"

Ben shrugged then looked at Bev, who was biting her kiss-swollen bottom lip to keep from laughing. "The man's got a point... What do you say? Come to Nebraska with me?"

Bev seemed to consider it for a few moments."I have a few things to take care of in Chicago first, so would you mind stopping off there on the way?"

"Bev, I'd follow you to the ends of the Earth and beyond if you asked me to," Ben said honestly.

Bev's answering smile made Ben fall just a little bit more in love with her.

"Okay, well, that's our exit," Bill, who had snuck over to the corner and retrieved his wallet from the table, said. "Come on, guys, let's leave them alone."

"Congratulations, you two," Mike said before heading back up the ladder. 

"We'll see you guys again soon," Bill added before following.

"And remember," Richie yelled down as he disappeared out of sight, "practice safe sex!"

Ben shook his head fondly. "Richie is such an asshole."

"Yeah," Beverly agreed with a grin, "but he's our asshole."

"True." Ben bit his lip and slid his hands up Beverly's sides. "Now, were were we?"

Beverly smirked. "I believe about right here," she replied as she sought Ben's lips out once more.

[itchapter3]

suggest trans girl ben names, go!