Reddie: Richie Returns

4: Back To Neibolt

Richie sat in his car silently for a while, almost too afraid to get out. He gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands in his anxious state, and watched what was left of the house closely from his seat. The well-house still scared the shit out of him even as a grown adult, but even more so now knowing what had once lurked in the depths beneath it. But he knew Eddie was still down there somewhere.
He eventually took a deep breath and psyched himself up to leave the car to get a proper look at what was left of the house that had haunted him since childhood. He felt a sharp shudder come over him as he looked out at all the rubble still lying on the floor. All of the memories of the previous year came flooding back to him, and he quietly began to shiver again with various emotions but also because his clothes were still damp from throwing himself into the water earlier that afternoon.

Slowly, Richie began to walk onto the property and began moving bits of wood from the fallen house to try and find the entrance to the drains. He didn't care much for the wood that once held the house up; he almost hated the house itself because of what happened beneath it. He began flinging planks of wood across the area around him and became more and more frantic as he desperately searched for the entrance.
After several minutes of searching and throwing planks of wood around him, he finally found it. He felt his heart stop as he looked down into the endless darkness of the well. He felt the shakes rise up inside him again as he filled with emotions; Eddie could be down there waiting for him. He could have been down there waiting this entire time.

Richie finally plucked up the courage to begin lowering himself down into the well, he tried not to climb down too hastily as the walls were still a little slippery from the rain in Derry the previous day. He was breathing heavily as he slowly and carefully climbed down into the darkness, and the memories of how cold it felt down there came rushing back to him. He tried his best not to begin sobbing again, and tried to focus on the climbing.
After a short while of lowering himself into the darkness, he looked back upwards to the sky. He was half expecting Pennywise to appear at the top of it and shut him in forever with his manic and painful laughter. But Pennywise was gone for good now, and that brought Richie a great deal of comfort as he continued his journey down the well.

Suddenly, Richie lost his footing on the slippery sides of the stone walls. His hands slipped too and he grazed both his palms on the walls as he tried to grab for something to hold onto, "Shit", he exclaimed to himself as he fell. Luckily for Richie, he was almost at the bottom of the well when he slipped and lost his footing, and he landed on something soft.
"Hey! Asshole!" the cushion yelled out angrily. Richie flew back onto his feet in horror that someone else was already down here in the drains. He panted heavily in fear "The fuck is wrong with you?" the voice yelled again. Richie turned around violently, only to have his fear be immediately replaced with shock. "Eddie!?" he yelped in surprise.
"...Richie!?" Eddie yelped back, "You came back!" Richie began to immediately sob and violently pulled Eddie in by his t-shirt for a hug "Of course I came back, you dipshit" he sobbed again. Eddie didn't quite know what to make of Richie being so emotional, but hugged him tightly in return anyway. He was just glad that someone had finally come looking for him.

"I thought I lost you" Richie sobbed tenderly as he squeezed even tighter, ignoring Eddie's wheezing. He couldn't bear the thought of letting him go again.
"Richie" Eddie wheezed as he was still being squeezed and patted Richie on the back a little, "Can you let go?" he wheezed again, "I can't... breathe"
"Oh shit, sorry" he finally released Eddie from his arms. He suddenly remembered the inhaler he'd found in his pocket while he was at the quarry and handed it to Eddie. "Forgot I had this" he said sheepishly and looked down towards his feet like a slightly embarrassed teenager.
Eddie looked him up and down with a slight frown of confusion on his face, still wheezing, and on closer inspection he realised why Richie looked so different.
"Is that my hoodie?" he asked, slightly horrified that Richie had stolen it in the first place.
"Just take the damn inhaler" Richie snapped in return. He already felt at ease again even if he and Eddie were already bickering the way they used to.