Bittersweet Love || Reddie [COMPLETED]

Bittersweet Love

LAST CHAPTER

27 years later

Richie couldn't even cry at his funeral: he wanted to, but tears never appeared. That made him feel guilty, like he was insulting his honor.

Standing in front of his grave, he saw the coffin of the man who had shared most of his life with.
Bill hugged him before leaving.

"Beautiful ceremony, I'm sure he would've loved it."

"Thanks. That means a lot."

"How are you holding up?"

Richie just shrugged. No words could describe his pain.

"Yeah, I understand you." Bill said. "I've been there."

Richie knew that. It didn't matter how many years passed, Bill would always be sad when somebody mentioned him.

"I just..." he sobbed, trying not to cry. "He killed himself, you know? Why would he do that? Didn't he love me? Wasn't I enough?"

Bill always felt awkward crying over him... again and again. He wished one day he could hear his name or talk about him without tears rolling down his face.
Richie hugged him, comforting his friend.

"Sorry, shit, I-"

"It's a funeral." Richie told him. "Feel free to cry every time you want. I wish I could, too."

Bill wiped his tears and chuckled.

"You loved him and he knew that, that's what matters."

"I guess. Thanks for coming, Bill."

"Always."

They kept talking for a while, Richie asking Bill about his books and the movie that would be soon released. He then realized all his friends were becoming celebrities while he was staying in the shadows. Like he always did.

Beverly joined them, followed by Ben and their two daughters. Richie smiled widely when he saw the beautiful family they made.

"Oh, Richie..." she hugged him tight, taking Richie's air with her strength. "I'm so sorry for you loss. How are you? Can I do something?"

"I'm fine, Bev." he admired her gorgeous face and then looked at Ben, who had also grown up a lot. "Wow. You two look amazing. What the fuck happened to me?"

Ben and Beverly laughed at the man's words.

"How's your marriage going?" Richie asked them.

"Oh, Ben and I are good. Sophia's the one that worries me," she whispered him in his ear "she's a teenager now and I can't stand her most of the time."

"Sounds familiar to me." Richie said, winking at him.

"Trashmouth!" Beverly slapped him in the arm, friendly.

"I want to talk with him too, Bev." Ben walked in between them and hugged Richie, too. "Glad to see you, dude."

"Yeah, well, I had no other option. He was my family."

Ben and Beverly smiled shyly and told the girls to go play elsewhere. Sophia took Sarah with her, not leaving her phone one second. Sarah was ten years old, but she looked more responsible than her older sister who was fifteen.

"So, The Losers Club reunite again, huh?" spoke a man behind them.

They all turned around and saw Mike, who was opening his arms to welcome Richie. The man smiled at him and hugged him, happy to see him again.

"Not crying, huh? I imagined it."

"Am I a bad person for not crying at his funeral? 'Cause I feel that exact way."

"Richie, how many times do I have to tell you: you're a good person. Okay?"

Richie believed his words and surrounded Mike's shoulder with his arm, bringing him towards their group of friends. They hadn't seen each other over a year, but they hadn't changed much.
But two members were missing. Bill and Richie looked at each other and comprehended their pain.

Minutes passed by and they kept talking. Food was served and they soon started drinking. They even laughed. Like old times.

"So, wait, Mike, you're dating someone?" Richie asked him after taking a shot of alcohol.

"Yeah, why's that so fucking funny, dickwad?"

"What? Like, a woman?"

"Fuck you, bro." he drank a little bit. "Her name's Diane. Maybe I'll let you all meet her, except you Richie."

Richie laughed.

"Is Stanley coming or what?" Ben asked.

They all stayed in silent. Bill looked down, avoiding eye contact with anyone.

"Stan Uris. Stan Urine." Richie repeated. "Stanley Urine. No, no, he's a fucking pussy. He's not gonna show."

"Say what now?" someone placed a bottle of wine in front of Richie, scaring him.

Richie turned his head around and saw Stanley with a proud smile.

"Stan!" he quickly stood up and hugged the man. "You came!"

"I had to. Bill wouldn't stop bugging me."

"Didn't you have work in the office or something?"

"I did, baby." he sat at the chair next to Bill. "Work can wait."

Bill giggled like a teenager in love. Stanley found his laugh so cute that he had to kiss him. Everyone cheered on them and Richie sat again.

"I propose a toast" Beverly said, raising her glass. "to the Losers."

Richie grabbed his drink and looked at Ben and Beverly so in love, just like Bill and Stan, or even Mike. He couldn't toast with them. Not without his love missing.

"Shouldn't we wait for Eddie?" Mike insisted, seeing Richie so sad.

"Oh, I don't think he'll come."

"You broke up?"

"What? No, Stan, why would you even suggest that?" he pointed at the distance with his eyes. "He's with his mother, she's been devastated since my dad died. There's no way to calm her down."

"I feel sorry for her." Bill said. "Losing your soulmate must suck."

"Yeah." Richie talked. "I don't know what I would do without Eddie. Or Kyle."

"Where's he? I want to say hi to him."

"Oh, you know my son, Bev. He could be anywhere. Last time I checked him, he had stole my wallet to go buy some comics. Can you believe it? It's 2048 and he reads comics. God, I'm so proud of him."

"Oh, there they come." Ben said, seeing Eddie and Kyle coming together.

Richie stood up and walked towards them.

"How's your mother?"

"Better. She needs some time alone." Eddie told him with a sigh. "She won't stop crying, though."

"Come join us, Eds. We're having some drinks."

"Fine." he looked at his son, who was twelve now. "Wanna go play with Sarah? I saw her right over there."

The kid nodded and ran away. Eddie held Richie's hand and sat next to him, joining his friends.

"Finally, The Losers Club as its best." Beverly said, proposing the toast again.

The seven friends grabbed their drinks and raised them, bumping them all together. They laughed and drank, sharing news and everything they had missed.

Because, no matter how much time could they go on without seeing each other, they would always have a Bittersweet Love for each other.
The Losers Club, united, again.

And don't ever forget...

We're Losers, and we always will be.