so she became a nurse in Hawkins, and she stayed a candy striper for years because she didn't want pay for what was basically just trying to keep homophobia out of the hospital. she snook in people's partners for last goodbyes, and sat with those who had no accepting family to be with them for their last breaths. she cornered will and gave him the safe sex talk as soon as he came out and made steve make his sex ed as inclusive as possible, because she couldn't handle one of those kids ending up in one of her hospital beds.

and she did all of this without coming out, without finding a wider community past the tiny one in her hometown that she found herself at the heart of. for a long time, the only people that knew she was queer were six feet under mearge days after she told them.

“Suddenly, the hospitals were full of lesbians who were volunteering. Volunteering to go into those rooms and help my friends who were dying. I remember being so moved by them because gay men hadn’t been too kind to lesbians. We’d call them ‘fish’ and make fun of the butch dykes in the bars – and yet, there they were.”

In the 80s, the AIDS crisis was devastating the world of GLBT people - as the acronym read at the time. Gay men were banned from donating blood, which was desperately needed by patients dying from AIDS. The fear around HIV was so great that doctors and nurses refused to even enter the rooms of AIDS patients. These patients were often abandoned by their families in their dying days. There was a crisis was in the GLBT community, and so lesbians stepped in.

Lesbians organized blood drives in order to give blood to AIDS patients who desperately needed it. These blood drives attracted dozens, if not hundreds of lesbians at a time who all donated their blood. They called themselves the Blood Sisters, and they organized regular blood drives for at least 4 years. HIV patients needed frequent blood transfusions due to anemia induced from the virus, and so lesbians provided this blood.

In addition to blood drives, lesbians also took place as physical caretakers for gay men with AIDS, who were often abandoned by their families and even nursing staff who refused to go into their rooms. Lesbians held hands, fed, and took care of them.

Riche grows up in a shitty, conservative little town in the middle of the AIDs epidemic, where one of his best friends (read love of his life) is terrified of all types of germs and sickness and spouts statistics left right and centre about everything, including AIDs.

It's all over the news, known as 'the gay disease' and he's 14. They don't have proper sex ed at Derry high.

He's aware he's gay, and he feels like he's unlovable and disgusting and inherently bad because of it. And he's alone.

For all he knows, it's inevitable.

Eventually he moves away from Derry and learns that it's not as clear cut as that, but life still isn't great.

He still could get sick.

He could get hate-crimed.

Richie’s smart but his brain doesn't work the way other people's do and that was fine in high school but not-so-great in university and he's flunking out.

He's trying out comedy, but the early days are rough and he's in a tiny apartment with 4 other people.

He's also kinda reckless, and impulsive, and doesn't like sitting in his own head, so when offered?

Sure, drugs sound fun!

Especially when Richie thinks he might die anyways. After all, its 1995 and AIDS is the leading cause of death for men in America; he's got no prospects, no friends, and no self-worth, so does it really matter?

There'd be a long, slow descent into depression, no one that knows him really notices, and Richie might think, 'hmm, that's probably not the healthiest mindset to have'about certain things, but he doesn't think he has depression.

He's not crying all the time or actively suicidal, so, he's fine, right?

Like sure, he hates himself, but that's most people.

And nobody really wants to get out of bed in the morning.

Richie'll just mess around and 'have fun' and if it kills him, well, he's just one of those people destined to die tragically young.

Ofc eventually his career gets going and it actually matters somewhat whether he lives or dies, and somehow he's turning 28, 29, 30, passing by the 27 club, and life's not great but he's still going so....he can't really complain, even though somethings missing....

Bill Finn didn't write it just to be a downer ending. He wrote it so Marvin would have to overcome his misogyny and take on a caregiving role and so he could learn to rely on his family for support.

He wrote it so Whizzer would have to overcome his pride and allow himself to be cared for and loved. To bring him and his family together.

He wrote it to knock Mendel down from his g-d complex. To show him he doesn't have the answers, that he has to help his family process their feelings instead of just pretending everything is fine.

He wrote it to teach Jason to give up his king, to concede, to learn from his mistakes. To teach him about being a man.

AIDS is devastating London lives, and Aziraphale tries to help at St Barts Hospital.

Words: 7,350

Status: Complete

Rating: Teen And Up - mind the tags