There's implied sexual content in this chapter that takes place when Richie is 18.

—

Fonzie had always been pretty sure Richie was a little in love with him.

He'd been sure of it all the way back to when Richie was just another nerd hanging on Fonzie's every word, desperately trying to impress him, shooting little glances at him when he thought Fonzie wouldn't notice.

Once he met Richie's parents, once he got comfortable thinking of Richie as a friend, once he moved in over Richie's garage, things got...complicated, and Richie stopped being just a face in the crowd who was kind of cute, if you were into that sort of thing.

Fonzie wasn't, for the record. He liked women. It was as simple as that. And even if he was interested in guys - which he wasn't - they'd be intense and solid and dark. James Dean, Marlon Brando, the Lone Ranger. Not lanky freckled redheads who looked like Howdy Doody.

That was what he told himself whenever Richie got a little too close, whenever Fonzie grabbed and held on to him for too long, whenever his thoughts wandered with a girl.

Graduation kind of ruined that.

Fonzie was high on the knowledge that he was just as good, that he had worked as hard as anyone in that auditorium, and the look in Richie's eyes; like Fonzie was the only person there, or at least the only person there who mattered.

Fonzie could have gotten used to that.

Richie kept sneaking glances at him on the way back from Jefferson High, like he wanted to look but didn't want Fonzie to know he was looking.

There was a party after the ceremony down at Arnold's. Fonzie didn't get involved, much - after graduation itself, this just felt kind of anticlimactic. Richie disappeared halfway through, so Fonzie went to look for him. He eventually found Richie outside, sitting against a wall, his robe off and folded on his lap as he stared at nothing in particular.

He looked up as Fonzie approached him and sat down next to him.

"This is supposed to be a party, you know."

Richie had laughed at that. "Yeah, I know. I'm just..." He trailed off and shook his head. "It's nothing."

"If it really was nothing, you wouldn't be out here when everyone else is inside."

Richie laughed again. "You know, you can take off the robe now."

"Cunningham, if you're trying to get me naked, you could at least wait until we're alone."

Richie's face turned red. Fonzie half-expected him to say that he'd just forgotten what Fonzie had told him about not wearing anything under his robe. Then they could pretend this never happened, and everything would go back to normal.

Instead, Richie asked "You - you don't really mean that, do you?"

He was trying to sound casual, but the way he asked do you almost made it sound like that was what he'd wanted it to mean. And the way he was looking at Fonzie - almost hungry, in a way - there was nothing casual about that.

Fonzie hadn't expected Richie to take it seriously. He hadn't expected to feel oddly excited about it, either.

It seemed possible, right here, right now, in a way it never had before.

But not when everyone they knew was right inside.

So Fonzie settled for patting Richie on the back before he stood up.

"Maybe after the party."

—

Fonzie hadn't expected Richie to show up at his apartment later. He certainly hadn't been waiting for him or anything like that.

Richie smiled as soon as Fonzie let him in.

Neither of them said anything at first, like they were both waiting for the other to make the first move.

Fonzie did, eventually. He stood up, so he and Richie were right next to one another.

Richie took that as a cue to step closer, until they were chest to chest, close enough to feel every breath.

It shouldn't have felt like a big deal. There had never been any problem with invading each other's personal space before.

Richie's eyes flickered down to Fonzie's lips. "Have you done this before?"

Fonzie shrugged, which technically wasn't a lie.

Richie asked "Should we sit down for this or...?"

"This is a good place to start."

Richie licked his lips as his eyes flicked down again.

He reached out and took Fonzie by the hand, lightly running his thumb over a callus as he looked at Fonzie, shy and excited, scared and delighted, and it was easy - too easy - for Fonzie to lean over and kiss him.

Richie groaned against Fonzie and leaned into him, not letting go of his hand all the while.

And then they were necking.

Richie wrapped himself around Fonzie like he wanted to fold himself in on him. One thing led to another, and if Fonzie had known that this was going to happen maybe he would've worn clothes under his robe. Or maybe he wouldn't have, because it did make things simpler.

Richie was clumsy and inexperienced, but he was eager, like he'd been aching for this, for Fonzie, for god knew how long.

When it was over and they'd collapsed together on Fonzie's couch, foreheads bumping into one another, chests rising and falling in unison, Richie had let himself lean against Fonzie. It was easy and right and Fonzie had known at that exact moment that he was in trouble.

—

Fonzie hadn't been looking forward to talking to Richie the next day.

What were they supposed to do now? Just keep doing what they'd been doing before? Did Richie want to do this regularly? Was Richie only into this in private, or was he going to do something stupid like ask Fonzie to go steady?

But Richie didn't mention it at all that day, or the day after that, or the day after that, until a month had gone by and Fonzie wasn't a little convinced the whole thing had been a very vivid dream (not that he had had dreams about Richie).

There were moments where Richie obviously wanted to talk about it, where he would look at Fonzie and open his mouth like he had something to say, only to close it and go back to whatever he had been doing.

Two could play at that game. If Richie was happy pretending it never happened, then so was Fonzie. And Fonzie knew Richie well enough to know that he couldn't keep that up forever, that eventually he would crack and throw himself at Fonzie. And until then, they'd go on like nothing had changed.

And then Richie had gotten a girlfriend.

And alright, Fonzie had been the one to bring Richie to the library to meet girls. He hadn't expected someone like Lori Beth to be there, someone Richie would like enough to stick around and take to every college function that needed a date (which was, apparently, most of them).

On the bright side, it meant Fonzie didn't need to see much of Lori Beth outside of the occasional party. Just because Richie had a girlfriend now didn't mean anything had to be different. It meant some things couldn't change, but there wasn't anything wrong with that.

So maybe Richie wasn't interested in Fonzie the way he used to be. Maybe Richie just lost interest once he'd had his fun. But that was impossible; if Fonzie knew anything about Richie, he wasn't the type to just lose interest in someone like that.

It was almost a relief when Richie made a pass at him before shipping out, because it meant Fonzie hadn't been wr- had been right about this.

More than anything, he'd wanted to go ahead and give in. He'd wanted to take Richie somewhere private and kiss him silly, he'd wanted to do something to make him reconsider leaving town, leaving Fonzie.

But there were other things to think about, Lori Beth and the Cunninghams and whether Richie was sober enough to know that this was a bad idea. Whether this was just going to be another one-night fling that they'd pretend never happened in the morning.

It was another thing they just didn't talk about - not that they could, with Richie in Greenland.

—

And then Richie proposed to Lori Beth in a letter. Fonzie wouldn't say he expected that - who the hell proposes to someone in a letter?

He didn't actually say that. Lori Beth was practically glowing with joy when she showed everyone the letter, and Fonzie couldn't bring himself to ruin that for her.

Maybe that was why he volunteered later to be Richie's proxy. If Richie and Lori Beth couldn't have a real wedding, at least they'd have a wedding, and it would be thanks to Fonzie.

And yeah, it hurt to have Richie on the phone just for this, and maybe Fonzie did want to stop everything and ask Richie why he had done all this, enlisting and proposing to Lori Beth and leaving Fonzie.

But when he heard Richie's voice on the other end, he forgot what he wanted to say, and that was for the best, because there was a wedding on the line.
It went off without a hitch.

—

Out of everything that could have happened next, Fonzie hadn't expected becoming friends with Lori Beth. He barely spoke to her except when it was necessary, even after she got back from her honeymoon and moved into Richie's old room.

But when she revealed she was pregnant, pregnant with Richie's child, she didn't have to ask him twice to come to birthing classes with her. Fonzie was Richie's proxy once, he'll be Richie's proxy again.

It was tempting to just go to the classes with Lori Beth and leave it at that, but it felt wrong. Richie wouldn't do that, if he were here, he'd be by his wife's side day and night if he was able.

It was at night when Fonzie stopped by Lori Beth's room. She was going over Richie's latest letter; she liked to read it once to the Cunninghams and then bring it back and read it herself.

He sat down at Richie's desk. "You pick out a name yet?"

She folded up Richie's letter and put it back in the envelope. She likes to be neat about these things. It's something she has in common with Richie.

"You're up late for someone who has to teach tomorrow," she commented. "Did your date leave early?"

Fonzie shrugged. "I was alone. I figured you'd want some company if you were still up."

Lori Beth glanced down at the ground, face slightly red. She didn't say anything, but as she tapped a finger against the bedspread Fonzie got the sense she was building up to something.

"You don't have to do this," she said after several minutes of silence. She didn't look up at Fonzie. "I only asked you to go to the classes with me. I know you'd rather be on a date or something."

"Hey," Fonzie said. "There is nowhere else I'd rather be right now. I can go out anytime. This? This is once in a lifetime."

Lori Beth did look up at that, eyes wide with surprise and no small amount of curiosity. Then she smiled.

After that, they kept going to birthing classes, and Fonzie kept stopping by Lori Beth's at night and sticking around to talk if she was still up. They even started talking about things not related to the pregnancy and the baby, sometimes (but not Richie. They're not at that point yet).

By the time the baby is due, Fonzie would go as far as to say he sort of likes Lori Beth now.

—

Once Richie Jr. came into the world, everyone pitched in to look after the kid, and Fonzie did his part. Sure, the kid has an entire extended family to look after him, but Fonzie wasn't going to just forget about his best friend's baby, or his best friend's wife who is sort of his friend now.

It's a hell of a time to find out that Lori Beth knows.

After that first awkward conversation about Richie, they didn't talk about him again, unless it's about one of his letters or phone calls or everyone else is around. That way, they kept things at a safe distance. Whatever Lori Beth knew, she wasn't going to bring it up just yet.

It was always obvious when she was thinking about it; every time Fonzie (and only Fonzie) so much as mentioned Richie, she'd get a little glint in her eyes and her lips would purse like she was holding back what she wanted to say.

Fonzie didn't press her for anything. If she has something she wants to say, she'll say it. This sort-of friendship they have is fragile, and almost definitely not built to last.

—

Eventually, Lori Beth got the go-ahead to stay on the army base with Richie. The entire Cunningham clan saw her off at the airport, hugging her one after another. Howard's was brief, but warm. Marion's was tight and tear-stained. Joanie's was sisterly and affectionate.

Surprisingly, when it was Fonzie's turn, Lori Beth hugged him first.