The New Kid

Chapter One

Richie's POV

"Carry on my wayward son! There'll be peace when you are done!" A fifteen year old, Richard Tozier's phone alarm yelled throughout his silent, dark bedroom. He groaned and walked over to the light switch. With a click, the room came to life. He stumbled over to his desk, which was littered in comic books and graphic novels. He searched through the mess to find his bug eye glasses, that made his eyes appear to pop out of their sockets. Once he located them, he shoved them back into their normal place. He walked over to the mirror and as always in the morning, his hair was shot out in every direction like an afro. He looked down at his scrawny body and sighed. He wished desperately to look like Mike. Michael Hanlon had been working all summer long on his Granddad's farm and he had gotten muscular. His body seemed to be perfect. He had a little resemblance of a six pack, his arm muscles had gotten way more defined and noticeable, he was tall and lean. Richie knew that by the time he got to the first day of school today, the girls would be all over Mike. Richie himself had gone through some changes. He had gotten taller. He was now the tallest of the Losers and skinnier than all of them. Even Beverly. The losers had commented on his boniness, they all worried about him. Richie snapped back into reality and opened his closet. He pulled out a Led Zeppelin tee and one of his famous Hawaiian button ups. He then pulled out a pair of his jeans that had big rips in the knees. He had gotten into a minor bike wreck that left his knees open and bloody. Now, all he could see through the holes, was his pale skin that looked unhealthy. Richie headed to the bathroom. He wet his hair and tried to comb it down. As always, it popped right back up. It took him some time, but eventually he got it back to its iconic Richie Tozier look. He brushed his teeth, put deodorant on, grabbed his backpack and rushed out of the quiet house without bothering to eat any breakfast. Richie jumped on his fairly beaten up bike and pedaled to Derry Highschool. It would be his second year there. He was in the tenth grade, starting today. A part of him hoped that this year would be different, but the rest of him knew that it would turn out like it always did. Sucky. The only thing he liked about school was getting to see the losers. They were his saving grace. Without them, he had nothing to live for. His parents barely acknowledged him anymore. They left him home alone all the time. They stayed in their room and Richie stayed in his. He rarely came out of his room. That is why he had been starting to look like a skeleton. Richie was glad to be out of the house, but unhappy that he had to go to the hell that is Highschool. He finally rode up into Derry Highschool's parking lot and put his bike in the bike rack. He walked around the strip of land and Immediately saw what looked like at least five hundred kids greeting each other happily. The losers wouldn't get here until a little later, so he sat down at one of the picnic tables that was empty. He pulled out his head phones and started to listen to music. Not just any music. HIS music. Music soothed Richie. It was his medicine for when he felt like life had turned to shit. It was his own little get away from the world, when even the losers couldn't even make him feel better. To him, the music told a story. More times than not, it related to his life. He got lost into the various chords and notes. He closed his eyes and got absorbed. Richie felt someone tap on his shoulder. His eyes shot open. "Hiya, Big Bill. How are ya?" He asked in one of his ridiculous voices. "I-I-I'm fine. D-d-did you h-hear that t-there is a n-new kid? Bill stuttered. This particular piece of information was very bizarre. There were never any new kids in Derry. "Oh yeah?" Richie asked, becoming very interested. "Yeah. He's right over there." Beverly pointed over towards a tree. There was someone sitting under it, reading. Tozier stood up, trying to get a better look. When he got a better angle, he saw the most adorable creature that he had ever laid his eyes on. There was a smaller, shorter boy that was wearing short red shorts and a pink polo shirt. His short brown hair was combed precisely over to the side. Richie got a better look at the book that he was reading. It was the Princess Bride. I love that movie, he thought to himself. He kept staring. The precious boy had freckles that littered his face everywhere. His eyelashes were long and beautiful. He had a notebook and a pencil beside him. I wonder what he writes about? Richie thought. He turned back to the losers and asked. "What's his name?" They all turned to the tiny boy. "Why don't you go ask?" Stan suggested. Richie didn't want to seem shy, but he didn't want to embarrass himself in front of the new and peculiar boy either. Building up his confidence, Richie started to walk over to the tree. He walked right beside the new kid. "Can I help you?" The boy asked him, never looking up from his book. "U-u-ummmm what's y-y-your name? I was just wondering." Tozier sounded worse than his pal stuttering Bill. He felt his whole face heat up. "Who wants to know?" The smaller boy asked. "My name's Richard Tozier. You can call me Richie. But everyone pretty much just calls me Trashmouth." Richie said sticking his hand out to shake. The boy's face erupted into a gigantic, beautiful smile. "My name is Edward Kaspbrak. You can call me Eddie, but everyone pretty much just calls me "The New Kid".