Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
~
"Piece of shit!"
Richie Tozier was not one to be angry often, being a kind-hearted, comedic guy most of the time. But when he got home, canceling one of his many stand up shows that he would never normally do, slamming the front door of the apartment shut and throwing his phone across the room for it to smash to pieces, this was one of the times that he was angry. The apartment wasn't the best. The best that they could afford. They. Yes, they. The high school sweethearts that never left. Richie sat down at the second-hand dining table, playing with the ring that sat gently on his finger. 'Forever and always' the ring had engraved. Richie and Lola Tozier. What a couple. With the noise that was made, Lola walked out of their shared bedroom, only one of Richie's t-shirts to cover her baby bump. A whole twelve weeks pregnant and she has begun to show. Richie adored it. A small bump, but still there.
"Richard? What happened? Why are you not doing your show?" her British accent still held strong.
He couldn't tell her. He couldn't say that they had to go back to Derry Maine again. Back to the place that had so many horrible memories for both of them. He made a promise to her that he intended to keep. Richie beckoned her closer, their hands intertwining as he pulled her gently onto his lap.
"Have I ever told you that you are the love of my life?" he placed his head onto her shoulder, kissing the clothed skin while his hands snaked around her waist. He couldn't bare to look at her in the eyes.
"Everyday Richard," Lola's mind spun in circles. Did I do something wrong?Is there something wrong? Does he not want this baby anymore? Is he leaving me?
His eyes glistened with tears from the fluorescent kitchen lights of their apartment. The lights were so bright, maybe too bright sometimes. He took in a deep breath, looking up into her hazel eyes that were full of fear and worry.
"I have to go."
The words were so calm from his lips. Like he had been wondering what to say for the past couple of hours. He made her stand up before he himself stood up and dashed to their room and grabbed the duffle bag in the messy wardrobe. Lola had tried to keep it clean, but it only lasted a few days before it was a complete mess again.
"Go where? Richard where are you going?"
To say that Lola was worried would have been an understatement. She was scared, almost terrified. He had never acted like this before. He had never gone anywhere without explanation. Lola followed Richie aimlessly as he pulled clothes from drawers and ripped them off of hangers without any questions or concerns. He was in a rush. He needed to get back.
He spun around and put his hands on Lola's fragile shoulders. She was so skinny, almost too skinny for a pregnant woman, "princess, I can't explain it right now, but I need you to stay right here. Don't leave this apartment till I call you-"
"You're going back to Derry...aren't you?" silence, you could almost hear a pin drop if it wasn't for Richie's heavy breathing, "Richard tell me the truth right now."
He swallowed hard as if there was a balloon stuck in his throat, "...yes...I got a call from Mike and-"
Lola didn't listen, grabbing her own duffle bag from the wardrobe and stuffing the aimless amount of clothes into its content. This time, Richie followed her around.
"Lola you are not going back there! I need you here!" now, he grew frustrated with his own wife, "I can't have my wife and my baby at risk in that town!"
"Then you shouldn't be going either because I need my husband here!"
Richie hadn't heard Lola yell since they were thirteen. He stood back, eyes wide and mouth open. Pure shock. But it didn't last long. Lola grabbed the bag, swinging it over her shoulder.
"Lola no!"
She didn't listen. She ran to the front door, grabbing the car keys off the kitchen counter.
"I'm taking your fucking car!"
~
Lola had never seen that Chinese restaurant before in Derry. The bright neon lights and foreign signs and curtains in the window seemed so strange to her. But she walked towards it anyways. No boy was holding her back. She never fought with Richie, but when they did fight, it was bad. One argument even caused Lola to leave and for Richie to almost go insane. Lola shivered and stood in the gutter across from the entrance. It was cold outside, colder than usual for summer in Derry. She gripped harder onto the backpack, her anxiety building more and more with the ticking of her watch. At this point, she wished that Richie was by her side. Maybe then the panic in her chest would've settled. Maybe then, she wouldn't have walked into that restaurant alone. Because when she entered the meeting room, the panic set in even more. But it lifted a small amount when the first person she saw was the medical-kid himself. Well, the medical-man now.
"Holy shit," the first words that left Eddie Kaspbrak's mouth when he saw his childhood best friend, "oh my god Lola."
She instantly collapsed into his arms. He was taller than last time. He was skinnier than last time. But those facial features still showed the Eddie that Lola knew and loved. She clung onto him tighter as she began to cry. Happy tears.
"Ssh Lola I'm here it's okay I'm here," Eddie's words were still calm and still gentle.
Eddie pulled away to cup Lola's face, but then his eyes trailed down to the bump in her shirt, "oh my god, Lola you're...oh my god I can't believe it! Lola Duffey is gonna be a mama!"
Lola giggled lightly as she dried her cheeks from tears. Hugging Mike then Bill with a warm greeting, she held her belly proudly. She just wondered what Richie would be doing at this time. But her question was answered for her, as the famous trashmouth ran into the room, grabbing her roughly and pulling her into a hard hug. But not too hard to squash the baby.
"Fucking hell princess you scared the shit out of me," it obvious to everybody that Richie had been crying. When he was scared, he always cried, "don't do that. I didn't know where you went or if you were safe or-"
Richie looked up to the men's surprised faces. He didn't even notice anybody else in the room besides Lola. His main focus was her.
"Oh, what's up fuckers."
"What the fuck?!" Eddie exclaimed.
They were surprised that the high school sweethearts actually stayed together, that Richie's sex drive didn't force them apart. When the truth is, that it was that same sex drive that forced them together. Lola walked over to the circled table surrounded by chairs. She didn't want to speak to Richie. She was still so angry that he was trying to control her over something so close to her heart. She still has those nightmares and those PTSD moments.
"So I'm guessing you two are married," Bill Denbrough had lost most of his stutter when he left Derry, shortly after the incident with the clown the first time.
Richie walked behind Lola, placing his hand on her shoulder, "yep! She's my girl forever now!" Lola just shoved his hand off her, causing Richie to frown slightly, "or for however long she will put up with me for."
"You two seemed okay when I spoke to you on the phone, Richie," Mike sat in the seat beside Lola, facing the woman, "what happened?" Richie didn't speak, shoving his hands in his pockets with his head tilted down. And the couple answered in unison.
