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LOSERS ASSEMBLE!
Eddie wasn't sure what prompted him to call the Hodges number. But he was beginning to regret the idea as he was met with the deafening ring of the line. Nobody answered. Wearily he looked at the word LOSER' that Greta wrote on his cast. He had taken a red sharpie and wrote a V over the S to make it say LOVER instead. However you could still see the S as clear as day under the red marker. It was an everyday reminder that he was in fact a loser.
Eddie sighed. No wonder Veronica wasn't answering her phone. Sure, she didn't know it was him calling but it still stung just the same.
She was popular (well maybe not anyone) and she was beautiful. She would never go for a guy like him. She dated Henry Bowers for fucks sake! But just when Eddie was starting to think that she maybe did like him back, they all disbanded. Sure most of it was his mom's fault. But nobody bothered to try and call him. They all let him be, even Richie, who he considered his best friend.
Giving up, he placed the phone back on the stand.
✰ ✰ ✰
Veronica sat alone in her room. Her brother had gone to a hotel with his girlfriend, leaving her to have the weekend to herself. She thought that they were supposed to be together. I mean their mother had just died! And even though their father had made a promise to watch them, he didn't. He was away on a work trip and expected Lucas to be home. But the Hodges boy figured she would spend the weekend with her friends.
Ha! Lucas didn't know they weren't talking which was mistake one. Mistake number two was Veronica not calling anyone for help. She should've sensed something was wrong.
She, Bev and Bill had made plans to look for the young Denbrough boy the next day. It was going to be the first time they would all see each other since the losers club disbanded.
Her house was quiet, the gentle tap of the oak tree was the only sound noticeable to the young Hodges girl. She sat on her bed playing with the box her mother gave her. The lilac ribbon stared at her tauntingly. How dare her mother leave her. Everything was going wrong and her mother left her.
A small tear dripped from her eye and trickled down her cheek. She couldn't dare be angry at her mother. It wasn't her fault. It was nobody's.
With a small sigh she decided to open the box. She remembered her mother said to open it when she needed protection. Veronica had never felt so alone. Her friends weren't speaking, her mother was dead, and her only two relatives weren't home. Nimbly, her fingers grasped the ribbon and pulled. It slipped open easily. She lifted the lid. Inside the box was silver locket. The locket was beautiful and was shaped in a heart. Ornate detailing covered the edges of locket, swirling in a delicate pattern. Opening the locket Veronica found a picture of her mom and a small note:
