the songs mentioned later on are 'Peer Pressure' by James Bay feat Julia Micheals and 'Like Strangers Do' by AJ Mitchell.
TW: Body issues (A/N): This chapter has a few time jumps, but next chapter will be the last one.
The road to recovery had been long. Eddie had been told that he'd never be able to return to the profession he loved so much as the injuries to his spine would be long lasting. He was absolutely devastated, but when he told his manager and the coach of of team, they let him become assistant coach. It turned out both him and Richie lived in New York and they moved in together almost instantly.
Richie wrote a song inspired by his and Eddie's night together named 'Peer Pressure' which he recorded with Julia Michaels. It was an instant hit and spent a week on the top of the charts. Since he cancelled his tour while Eddie was in the hospital, he was going on a make up tour where all the original tickets were accepted as well as the new ones.
Neither of them told the media the full story of what happened to Eddie and none of the other losers did either and Eddie was grateful for it.
"How about we get a dog," Richie said while lounging on the bed he shared with Eddie, "I mean, it's been a while and I really want one of the little fuckers."
"Maybe when you get back from tour. We can't get a dog and then you just leave."
Eddie was getting some pyjamas out of the drawers in the far corner.
"Could you please look away," Eddie blushed as he reached for the hem of his shirt.
Without even saying anything Richie rolled over and faced the other way. Richie hadn't seen Eddie shirtless since his stay in the hospital. He wondered if he was self conscious about the scar from It because he was definitely okay with his body a few months ago.
"Okay, you can look now."
Richie rolled back over and Eddie walked over to the bed. Richie sat up and Eddie sat next to him.
"You know I would never judge you, Eds. Especially for the way you look."
"I know...it's just the scar it's still not fully healed and even I hate looking at it."
Richie softly grabbed Eddie's hand and kissed the scar on the back of his hand.
"I'm not going to pressure you into showing me, just know that I love all of you. Scars and all."
Eddie rested his head on Richie's shoulder.
"Thank you, Rich. It means a lot."
"When do you leave for tour?" Eddie asked.
"Wednesday, next week. You could come with me, ya know."
"I could. Training doesn't start for another two months."
"Cmon," Richie hopped off the bed and walked over to him, "I could introduce you publicly as my boyfriend."
Richie put his hands on Eddie's shoulders and kissed the tip of Eddie's nose. The boy smiled up at him and placed his hands on his chest,
"Okay."
"Fuck yeah! One whole month travelling with the cutest person in existence!"
"Calm down there, Romeo."
"Oh! Before I forget, I found a song that I wrote when you left when we were younger, be right back!"
Before Eddie could even say anything, Richie had ran out the room. A few minutes later he came back up with his guitar.
"Okay, sit."
Eddie sat down and leant back against the headboard of their bed. Richie sat on the edge and held the guitar in his lap. He played a few chords and then began singing.
"I miss the taste of your lips on Sunday and the sound of your laugh when I said something funny, but nobody heard it except for you."
Eddie looked at Richie in awe as he sung. His voice sounded even better without all the auto tune and Eddie loved it. He loved listening to him sing. When Richie cooked, cleaned or did the laundry he'd always hum or sing and Eddie just couldn't get enough.
"And my mom still asks about you, I lie and say we're friendly 'cause I don't have it in me to tell the truth."
Everything in the room faded out and Eddie was solely focused on Richie and his angelic voice.
"You and me, what are we if we're not together...we could be nothing 'cause nothing lasts forever. If you saw me on the train would you look the other way, like strangers do?"
Richie looked over and noticed Eddie looking at him with the biggest heart eyes. He smiled to himself and turned back to his guitar.
"And if you pass me on the street would you look down at your feet and move on through? Like strangers do. I miss the way you look when you overdress, the way that you looked when you undressed, the sound of your footsteps across the room."
Eddie felt a wide smile grow across his face as he imagined Richie performing the song to a wide audience.
"Now my friends don't ask about you 'cause they think I'm fine without you, I say it's all good, but it's never true. You and me, what are we if we're not together...we could be nothing 'cause nothing lasts forever. If you saw me on the train would you look the other way, like strangers do. And if you pass me on the street would you look down at your feet and move on through, like strangers do."
He finished up the last few chords and looked over at Eddie.
"That's all I ever wrote."
"It's beautiful, Rich."
"Not as beautiful as you."
"Oh shut up," Eddie playfully rolled his eyes, "did Maggie really ask about me?"
"Yeah, sometime I thought she liked you more than me."
Richie put his guitar down by the side of the bed and Eddie got up and walked over to him. Eddie straddled Richie and kissed him softly. The trashmouth hugged him, but made sure to avoid where he imagined the scar to be. The kiss lasted for a few moments before taking his lips away and pressing them to Richie's neck.
Later night, the two were talking when Eddie mindlessly took his shirt off and reached for his pyjama shirt. When he turned back around he noticed Richie looking at the scar. He quickly covered his stomach with the shirt he was holding. Richie rolled off the bed and walked over.
"Rich..."
"It's okay, I won't look again."
"No...I...I want you to."
Eddie looked up at him with sad eyes and smiled softly. He stood up on his toes and joined their lips. Richie kissed back softly. Their lips moved rhythmically for a few seconds before Eddie tensed slightly and let the shirt fall. Richie pulled away, but still kept his eyes on Eddie's.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah," he said weakly.
Richie looked down and immediately spotted the scar he'd got a brief glimpse of a few moments earlier. It was long and went all the way from the middle of his chest down to the middle of this stomach. It still wasn't fully healed so it still had some colour and all the jagged ends. It took a bit to take it all in. Richie looked back up at Eddie.
"It's hideous," he was almost crying.
"No, it's not," Richie's smile returned, "come sit down."
Richie grabbed his hand and walked him over to the bed, Eddie sat down and Richie knelt down in front of him. Richie looked back down at the scar.
"It's beautiful," Richie moved his right hand to touch the scar, but hesitated, "can I...?"
Eddie nodded softly. Richie placed his hand on the top of it and ran his fingers all the way down to the bottom of it. His touch on the rough and sensitive skin caused Eddie to gain goosebumps on his arms and torso. Richie separated Eddie's legs and situated himself between them. He leant forwards and pressed a kiss to the top of the scar. As he did this, he let his right hand snake to Eddie's back and softly run his fingers along the scar on the opposite side. He moved down lower and trailed kissed all the way down. When he looked up at Eddie, there were even more tears in his eyes.
"Does it hurt? I can stop if-"
"No, Rich, I'm just so happy," a smile grew across his face, "you love me for me."
"Of course I do," Richie smiled back, "nothing could stop me from loving you."
Eddie let out a soft laugh as a tear rolled down his cheek. Richie brought both his hands to cup Eddie's face. He wiped the tear and pulled Eddie down into a kiss. He stood and pushed Eddie back. Eddie pushed himself up further onto the bed before allowing himself to lay down, so his head was on the pillow. Richie crawled on top of him, before moving off him and top the side. Their lips parted as Richie laid down next to Eddie. Eddie rolled over to face Richie and smiled. Richie smiled back, took his glasses off and moved himself down to Eddie's chest.
Richie pressed his forehead and the bridge of his nose to the scar. He hugged Eddie's torso, entwined their legs and closed his eyes. Eddie hugged Richie back the best he could and also closed his eyes. Eddie fell asleep to the rhythm of Richie softly running his fingers along the scar on his back. Richie soon drifted off too while hugging Eddie's back.
Richie's tour was successful. Richie and Eddie were currently in Brooklyn. They had some free time before Richie's show, so the trashmouth took him out for the day while Eddie's pocket was weighing slightly more than usual.
They'd been walking around town holding hands and haven't had one homophobic slur thrown at them. Brooklyn was different to Derry...very different. Everyone seemed to be kinder and no one batted an eye when they noticed the two holding hands. Eddie had invited his publicist out with them for a very specific reason which Richie didn't know quite yet.
Eddie stopped in front of the Brooklyn bridge.
"Why are we stopping?"
Richie's publicist pulled out his phone and began taking photos. Eddie held Richie's hands softly and began talking.
"I have been in love with you for almost thirty years and nothing makes me happier knowing that you love me too. There is no one else I would want to spend the rest of my life with."
Richie covered his mouth and stepped back slightly as Eddie knelt on one knee. Eddie pulled a small box out of his pocket and opened the it to reveal an engagement ring with a reasonable sized diamond attached.
"Richie Tozier, will you marry me?"
"Eddie," happy tears fell down his cheeks, "yes, a thousand times yes."
Eddie stood and pulled Richie into a kiss by his dog tag. Onlookers clapped and cheered for the couple. Eddie slipped the ring into Richies finger as they deepened the kiss. When their lips parted, they both cupped each other's faces and rested their foreheads together.
"I love you so much, Eds," Richie sobbed out.
"I love you so much more, Rich."