𝐋𝐈𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐌𝐄, tommy eaton

two

𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟑𝐫𝐝 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟗𝟖𝟒

richie tozier rode up the driveway of his family home, his older sister following closely behind. they had gotten out of school around an hour beforehand but had gone over to bill's house as they usually do every friday.

there was a blue car parked on their driveway, where their father's car would usually be. richie had pointed it out a few minutes before they arrived home, however, courtney quickly dismissed it saying it was probably at a neighbor's house. they assumed it was a relative or one of their mother's close friends.

"what if it's someone we don't know?" richie began, courtney staring at him.

"rich," she smiled. "who do we not know in this town?"

richie nodded in agreement, she had a fair point, it was a small town. "yeah, never mind" he dismissed his thought.

"mrs hoods son is probably dropping her off or something" she stated, locking up her bike on the fence outside the house.

their parents didn't socialize with people who weren't local, and the pair were already familiar with all of them.

the siblings made their way into the house, exchanging stories about the days they had. kerry tozier was sitting at the dining table drinking a cup of coffee, engrossed in a magazine she had stolen from courtney's stash.

"nice choice mom," courtney grinned. "i was wondering where that went"

"doesn't madonna look so fucking good" she added on.

"language!" kerry shot her a stern look before nodding in agreement. "yes though, she looks amazing."

"i read that one last week, you're not gonna believe what she did"

the older woman's eyes widened as she quickly flicked through the pages of the magazine, letting out a loud gasp as she found the right one.

richie tossed his bag down next to the coat rack before making his way towards the stairs. "this is my time to leave" he waved, walking up.

"wait, richie" his mother spoke up - causing him to stop. "i need to talk to you both"

richie groaned, turning around and making his way back down. once he had reached the kitchen he took a seat next to his sister.

"what's up mom?" courtney asked, an unsettled feeling bubbling in her stomach.

"well, as the two of you know your father and i have a very busy work life," she spoke softly. "and we try our hardest to make sure that it doesn't impact our time as a family"

the two children nodded at her, both following along fully aware there was bad news coming.

kerry took a moment before she started to speak again. "however, your father and i have been asked to work on a case abroad for the summer"

courtney and richie glanced at each other, both sharing a look of confusion and hurt. their parents always pushed them to the sidelines to make room for their careers, ever since they were young.

"obviously, we declined at first." she continued. "but they threatened to fire us, and with no income, we wouldn't be able to afford the house."

"it's okay mom, we understand" courtney spoke sadly. although she was upset she knew there were no other options. richie, on the other hand, remained silent and avoided his mother's gaze.

"we have found you both a place to stay for the time we will be gone, i don't expect it to be the whole summer but i can't be too sure of that yet" this sentence caused both of the siblings to groan.

"why can't we stay here? i don't want to stay with beverly's creepy dad" courtney pouted, folding her arms.

"you won't be." her mother replied, turning her attention to her son. "richie, you will be staying with the denbroughs. do not break anything and please be polite and behave, they're doing a big favour for us by letting you stay."

richie let out a sigh of relief, nodding at her. staying with bill wouldn't be too bad, but maybe for bill, it would be.

"hello," courtney spoke up. "what about me? my turn!"

kerry looked over to her, a look of guilt washing over her face, a look that made courtney want to disappear.

"you will be staying with the eatons," she informed her. "in oregon."

"excuse me?" courtney's face dropped. the name sounded familiar but she couldn't place it. "fucking oregon? who even are these people?"

"why does richie get to stay here but you're sending me to fucking oregon?!" she was in shock.

"watch your language!" her mother scolded. "i'm sorry, they weren't my first choice but they said they would love to see you again"

"again? i don't know the people for fuck sake" she shouted, getting up from her chair and storming up towards her room.

"they're a nice family courtney!" kerry shouted up to her, quickly silenced by the slamming of her daughter's bedroom door.

"well, that went well" richie joked, trying to calm the atmosphere.

"shut up richie" his mother sighed.

"right, yeah, sorry" he mumbled before leaving for his room.

kerry sat staring down at the magazine once again, left alone feeling guilty.