Fading away || Reddie

Four

Includes harsh content

The clocked flashed 12:00 am as the night became the next day. Eddie say on his window sill, feeling the October breeze.

He couldn't sleep, not knowing that in a couple hours he'd be at school. He grabbed another cigarette, it was his fourth in the last hour. He lit it and breathed in the smoke between his lips. It felt euphoric.

Flashes of the random stares from random people came across his mind. Those kids pointing out that he was the new, new kid. The thoughts crowded his mind until he couldn't breathe. He was now picturing behind kicked over and over again but it wasn't his old bullies, it was new ones from his new school.
He couldn't take it, the thoughts. His lungs felt full of air but at the same time empty.

He dropped the cigarette on the window sill and began to look around the room frantically,
I can't breathe at all. He thought
Is this what asthma is?  This thought came through his mind and he ran to his bed and grabbed the inhaler.

Pulling the trigger and releasing the cool air into his mouth finally calmed down his breathing. As his breathing slowed he looked down at the inhaler.

Do I really have asthma? He thought.

Eddie woke up still clutching the inhaler, just in case. The clock read 6:30 am again. He groaned and rolled over in his bed.

"Eddie, dear! Please wake up!" Sonia shouted from across the hall.

He got dressed into a black polo and black jeans. He grabbed his bag of textbooks and stuffed his inhaler and glasses Into a pocket of the bag.

Maybe Sonia was right, maybe I do need all of this stuff to stay heathy.

Eddie was driving to school thirty minutes later, his hand shaking in his lap. He sat on them to keep Sonia from noticing.

"Here you go, take these as the instructions  say" Sonia said hanging Eddie a bottle of different colored pills.

"Erm.. Okay." The boy said hesitantly. What were these gonna do to him?

First period was history, but he had no idea where his classroom was. He wandered the halls and looked into each classroom looking for any sign of a history class.

As he looked to the left he slammed into a person and he doubled back and looked up.

"I am so sorry, I wasn't looking, really." Eddie said looking at someone with long black locks of hair that framed a pale freckled face wearing large square glasses.

"No worries bud, you don't look familiar though, you the new kid?" He asked and Eddie cringed.

"Yep that's me." He said looking down, not even five minutes here and someone has already called me "the new kid"

"Tozier's the name. Richie Tozier. What's yours new kid?" The boy with the glasses asked.

"Eddie Kaspbrak." The boy whispered quietly.

"What was that? Ed?" Richie asked, clearly not able to hear Eddie.

"Erm, no, it's Eddie" he said a bit louder this time.

"Eh, eds it is, it suits you." Richie said and Eddie almost smiled.

"Well ta-ta. I have history to get to." He said and Eddie stopped him.

"History! I have that too!" Eddie almost jumped in excitement.

"Haha alrighty, I'll walk you there, safe and sound buddy." The kid said and Eddie felt like this school could actually have some decent people in it.

The two boys walked side by side until they reached the history classroom, and Richie swung open the door and pointed for Eddie to go first.

One friend. That's more than my old school. Eddie thought to himself as he smiled.

Lunch came before he knew it and Eddie stepped into the very large cafeteria. He looked around for Richie with no luck. Then out of nowhere he heard a familiar voice shout
"Hey! Eds! Over here!!" And he looked left to see none other than Richie, sitting with two other people.

Eddie walked over and sat down at a seat next to the boy with glasses.

"Hi!" Eddie said smiling.
"So, this is Bill and this is Stan, our other friends are gonna be here later." Richie said as Eddie matched names to faces.

"H-h-hello, e-e-e-e-e" one boy stuttered.
"Eddie." The other boy finished his sentence for him.

"I'm Stan and the stuttering one is Bill." Stan said.

"Cool, so, you're richies friends? " Eddie asked, trying to make small talk.

"Yeah, we have two more other in our group, Ben and Bev-." Stan replied.

"Shit! Alright keep your head down eds and down move it Until I tell you okay?" Richie whispered loudly next to him.

"What? Why? Is this a prank or something?" Eddie asked suspiciously.

"No, fuck eds, keep your head low- shits its too late." And with that something came pouring down on his head and down his shirt.

"Oops, sorry, I tripped." He heard a gruff voice say behind him. Eddie aggressively turned around and locked eyes with a tall, tan, muscular boy who was holding a cup of soda.

"What the fuck dude?!" Eddie shouted but immediately regretted it as he saw the muscular guys eyes widen in disbelief.

"Excuse me?" He spat in his face and Eddie immediately pictured Frank and shivered. "You're gonna regret that goth kid." He whispered and then swept off and out of sight.

Eddie shifted back into his seat, shaking. He met eyes with Richie who looked just as scared.

"Who was that, Richie?" Eddie whispered, feeling like his voice was gone.

"Henry bowers, leader of the worst group of kids in this school." Richie whispered back, still not breaking eye contact with Eddie.

"Am I in deep shit?." Eddie whispered even quieter.

"Ohhh, yeah." Richie whispered back. He then grabbed a napkin and patted eddies hair until it was semi dry.

"Thanks.." Eddie whispered but he was still in shock and still could not get out words louder than a whisper.