sunshine. // it 2017

viii.

The two kids were oblivious to the parade marchers walking around them. Richie twirled Lola around in circles in the summer sun, not even thinking about anything else. She giggled at his horrible jokes, he smiled at her laugh. They just didn't notice the serious conversation coming from the alleyway full of losers. Richie grabbed a trumpet off a passing marcher and tried to play it, the sounds coming from it made it sound like a two year old was playing. Lola stood on the sidewalk and giggled at the marcher reaching for his instrument, ripping it out of Richie's grip finally.

"What the fuck dude?"

He adjusted his glasses to glance at the young girl leaning against the brick work of a store.

"You, Richard Tozier, are a troublemaker," the white dress she wore swung down to her knees.

"But trouble never looked so good," he winked and flashed that famous smirk.

And she smiled. That real smile, the real smile that Richie went crazy for. And he was losing his mind.

"What are you guys talking about?" Eddie questioned as he walked to the group, licking his ice-cream as Richie took the other from his hand.

"What they always talk about," Richie started to eat his ice cream quickly.

Before Lola took it from his grasp.

"L! Give it back! That's my ice-cream you bitch!"

So, the chase began. Lola's famous white summer dress trailing behind her and in front of the love struck boy. And he giggled while chasing after her without a hope of catching her.

"They are the perfect duo," Eddie spoke jokingly, watching the two giggle at each other, "the heart and the head."

"I'm guessing Richie is neither," Bev replied to him, smiling at her own come back.

"No, he's the heart."

"Richie having a heart? You're joking."

"Richie's different around L, he's softer, more protective. And he's in love, definitely," Eddie watched his best friend run after the girl. Trying to tickle her, even though she was already laughing, "but he's too much of a pussy to tell her, and no balls to tell anyone else."

Beverly giggled at Eddie's statement, her shortcut red hair shining in the Derry summer sun. She wanted what was best for Lola and Richie, even if he treated Bev like she was invisible most of the time.

"I suppose he is," Richie grabbed hold of Lola's waist and spun her in the air, like they were doing moments before, "scratch that he totally is in love."

"A-are you gu-guys even pa-paying attention?" Bill questioned after talking about the missing kid posters on the brick surface.

"But their being cute for once!" Eddie whined.

~

"Okay so let me get this straight...it comes out from wherever to eat kids for like a year and then what? It just goes into hibernation?" Eddie asks, confused at the conversation that was being held.

"Maybe it's like, what do you call them? Cicadas. You know, the bugs that came out every seventeen years," Stanley suggested.

Lola felt scared, no, terrified. She didn't want to continue with this mystery of missing children.

"My grandfather says this town is cursed. He says that all the bad things that happen in this town are because of one thing...an evil thing that feeds off the people in Derry," Mike added, his voice shaky and broken in parts.

"But it can't be one thing...we all saw something different," Stan looked at them all, clearly scared.

"Maybe, or maybe it knows what scares us most and that's what we see."

Unknowing, Lola began to hide into Richie's side. He looked down at the girl, curling a arm around her side and pulling her closer.

"I-I saw a lepor. He was like a walking infection," Eddie's face screwed at the memory.

Stan's breathing began to grow faster, he looks nervous.

"But you didn't. Because it isn't real. None of this is. Not Eddie's lepor, or Bill seeing Georgie, or Lola and that stupid clown," Lola's grip tightened on Richie, and he whispered to her 'it's okay, I'm here', "or the woman I keep seeing-"

"Is she hot?" Richie asked, jokingly.

But this wasn't a time to joke.

Lola hit Richie gently, a butterfly tap.

"I had to sunshine."

"No you didn't."

"No Richie! She's not hot! Her face is all messed up," Beverly stared off into space while running a hand through her hair, "none of this makes any sense. They're all like bad dreams," Stanley concludes.

"I don't think so. I know the difference between bad dreams and real life, okay?" Mike argues.

"What'd you see? You saw something too?" Eddie questioned.

"Yes. You guys know that burnt down house on Harris avenue? I was inside when it burned down. Before I was rescued...my mom and dad were trapped in the next room over from me. They were pounding and pushing on the door, trying to get to me, but it was too hot. When the firemen found them, the skin on their hands had melted down to the bone," everybody was in shock, "we're all afraid of something," Mike finished.

"Got that right," Richie chimed in, turning and looking at the clown performing on the stage behind them all.

Lola was the only one to know of his fear. She interlocked her fingers with him, causing Richie to look away from the stage and adjust his glasses up onto his face.

"Why Rich? What are you afraid of?" Eddie was asking a lot of questions.

"Clowns."

"Lola?" all eyes were on her, as Stan asked her, "what are you scared of?"

"Clowns," she took in another broken breath, 

"and Henry Bowers."