A/N: Originally posted on Archive of Our Own, this is my first Reddie story. I got positive feedback from it on AO3, so I've decided to post it on here. I hope people enjoy this. Feedback is always awesome!

The Losers Club had defeated It and life had pretty much gone back to normal. The Losers, minus Beverly who moved away from Derry after defeating It in the sewers, went back to their mostly mundane lives. There were still the issues with some of their parents, such as Eddie's mom's continuous smothering and over-protectiveness as well as Richie's parents' neglect, but overall things had calmed down and life had gone on.

Some of them did have issues they needed to work on, though. Eddie wouldn't shut up about how many potential infections he must have gotten from being puked on all over, it had taken months for Mike to fully overcome the trauma of almost being savagely murdered several times, and Stan almost a year to get over almost having his face eaten on that defining day in the sewers. Bill and Ben seemed to have been the least affected, taking it upon themselves to play therapist for any of the Losers when they needed someone to talk to, especially Stan. Even after spending emotional nights with Stan where his facade would shatter and he would just cry for what felt like hours with his friends hugging him, they still weren't convinced he was over the trauma. They wondered if he ever would be. For Eddie, they just made sure he wasn't actually traumatized and let him continue his never-ending health lectures.

Richie was a different story. He hadn't seemed too affected by the events concerning the sewers or It in general, so none of them, not even Eddie, worried too much. His vulgar mouth continued its daily routine of getting him into trouble at school, with other kids, or with his parents, so everybody was convinced he was fine.

Overtime, though, his friends could tell something was bothering Richie. His jokes became a little less frequent, his smiles seemed forced at times, and he started to hang out with the group less and less. He would come to school tired some days and cancel plans to go home and nap. It wasn't until about almost ten months after being in the sewers that he confessed to nightmares and night terrors that started to plague him.

Bill had invited his friends over for a sleepover one night and, after some pleading from Eddie to Richie, the six of them were in Bill's living room watching "Killer Clowns from Outer Space." Bill, Stan, and Mike were sharing a couch while Ben and Richie were in comfy chairs, with Eddie sitting on the floor in between Richie's legs.

Richie tried to get through the movie, he really did. He knew it wasn't real, but the clowns were starting to affect him. He never told his friends, but every clown he saw reminded him of It. Not even 20 minutes into the movie, Richie felt short on breath and anxious. He did his best not to alarm his friends, but his body was screaming at him to do something, anything to relieve the severe anxiety attack he was having. Feeling desperate, he leaned forward and put his hands on Eddie's shoulders. Eddie turned his head and looked up at him. He could feel Richie trembling.

"What is it?" Eddie whispered, concerned.

Richie gulped and timidly asked, "Can I sit with you? Please?"

Confusion and worry swept through Eddie. He could tell something was bothering his friend, so he said nothing as he scooched over a little as Richie sat down next to him, their shoulders and arms touching. The others glanced at them curiously and Eddie shrugged at them slightly. He tried to make eye contact with Richie, who was transfixed with the screen, but it didn't work. He seemed to be more relaxed sitting next to Eddie, at least.

Later into the movie, however, Richie couldn't help himself from letting out a gasp, clutching onto Eddie's arm tighter than he needed to and burying his head into his shoulder. Eddie jumped at the sudden increase in contact and the pressure from Richie's hand. He was shaking again.

Deciding it was now or never, Eddie decided to speak up. "Bill, can you pause the movie for a minute and can someone turn on the lights, please?"

Bill did as he was asked while Ben got up and flicked on the lights before turning and looking at Richie still clutching onto Eddie, eyes shut tight and biting his bottom lip.

"Are you okay, Richie?" Eddie asked unnecessarily, since it was pretty clear to them all that Richie was not okay.

Richie shook his head before slowly lifting off of Eddie's shoulder, lessening his grip on Eddie's arm but not letting go. Ben walked over and sat on the floor next to Richie, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Deep breaths," Ben said soothingly, rubbing Richie's shoulder a little.

After Richie got his breathing under control, Eddie said, "You've been acting weird as shit lately. What's going on? You know you can tell us."

Richie looked around at all of them and saw their concerned faces before speaking. "I-it was the fucking clowns."

A moment of silence passed before Bill spoke up. "I th-thought you weren't af-afraid of clowns anymore."

"I'm not," Richie insisted. "They just…fuck, are you really going to make me say-" He cut himself off before the last word of his question.

Mike decided to get involved. "They remind you of It? That's what's going on?"

"Every fucking clown does," Richie said miserably, getting conspicuously more emotional as his voice started to crack. "I've been having nightmares. Ever since that day. Not every night, but...enough."

Ben and Eddie helped Richie stand up and sit in the chair he was in earlier. They all gathered around him, with Eddie grabbing Richie's hand with his own. Ben and Bill put their hands on one of Richie's shoulders.

"Why didn't you say anything earlier?" Ben asked.

"Because I can handle it," Richie said, sniffling a little. "I know I can."

"You look like you're about to cry," Eddie pointed out, giving Richie's hand a squeeze.

Richie took off his glasses and wiped his eyes. "I just got too freaked out over the clowns. That's it. I can handle the nightmares. They're really not that bad," he lied.

"They're enough to make you lose sleep," Stan said matter-of-factly, sitting on the arm of the couch next to the chair.

"Look, I just had a…moment. Okay? I'm fine. Let's just watch some other movie. I think I saw a porno of Eddie's mom in Bill's collection." Richie's cringeworthy joke inserted an unwelcome picture in their minds, making Stan gag and Eddie lightly punch Richie in the arm.

"If you s-say so, Richie. You know w-we're h-here for you," Bill concluded with.

Richie nodded. "I'll be okay for the rest of the night. I promise. Just, please change the movie."

Bill nodded and went to change the movie and the others except Eddie went back to their previous positions in Bill's living room. Richie looked up at Eddie, who still had his hand in his. Eddie smiled softly at him and gave his hand another squeeze before sitting on Richie's lap and wrapping an arm around his neck. Richie's head was resting against the crook of Eddie's neck.

The fact that his best friend was sitting on his lap and making sure he was okay made Richie smile. He didn't think about clowns or It for the rest of the night.

Once the new school year started, the others had started to notice Richie looking tired and eventually exhausted everyday they saw him at school. Eddie decided to approach Richie about it one day after school was over.

Richie was standing in front of his locker completely motionless after not speaking for almost the entire day and that's when Eddie walked up to him.

"Hey," Eddie began, removing his backpack and leaning on the lockers next to his friend.

There was no response from Richie and that's when Eddie realized his head was resting against the inside of his locker and his eyes were closed, glasses askew.

Concern flooded Eddie and he tapped Richie on the shoulder, resulting in Richie jerking his head upright, banging the top of it against the inside of his locker, glasses almost falling off his face. He swore at himself and grabbed his head, rubbing it slightly before turning to the shorter boy.

"Fuck, Eds, don't sneak up on me like that!" he exclaimed, shutting his locker.

"First of all, don't call me that. And what are you talking about? Were you asleep just now?" Eddie inquired. "Were you asleep while standing up?"

Richie stopped rubbing his head and fixed his glasses. "No, not fully. I just dozed off, I guess. I haven't been sleeping well," he confessed.

"Yeah, I know, you've mentioned that. You've also mentioned that you've been having nightmares," Eddie informed him. "Do you remember telling us that?"

Richie rubbed his eyes, letting out the faintest of groans. "Y-yeah…sorry. I'm just tired."

Eddie pursed his lips, examining Richie's face and the noticeable bags under his eyes. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Not here," Richie said brusquely, adjusting his backpack straps before handing Eddie his backpack.

"Okay," Eddie conceded. "Do you wanna go to the quarry or something and talk about it? Bill and Stan will be there. They're worried about you. And so am I."

"Don't be. And…I don't know. I might just go home and nap," Richie muttered, looking around to make sure nobody was eavesdropping.

Eddie tried again. "You sure?"

Richie made eye contact with Eddie. "There's nothing to talk about. You already know what the problem is."

Eddie nodded slowly. The two boys looked at each other knowingly for a couple seconds before starting their way out of school. Once they were at the bike rack, Eddie spoke up, giving one last attempt. "So, do you wanna hang out today or not? We don't have to talk about your nightmares if you don't want to."

Richie blinked a couple of times in an attempt to make his eyes less irritated and put his hands on his handlebars. "Maybe some other time. I think I should just go home and try to get some sleep."

Eddie tried to hide his disappointment. After a couple seconds of silence, he sighed and said, "Okay. Whatever you want."

"It is what I want," Richie shot at him, backing up his bike before climbing on. He was about to ride away before he took a look at the shocked Eddie. "Shit, sorry Eds. I just…I need to go. I'm okay, stop worrying about me already."

As he rode off without him, Eddie knew that his friend was anything but okay.