**Say What You Mean Out Loud**

~ T H R E E ~

Reconnecting

Greyson Elliot decided to walk to the Chinese restaurant from the hotel.
She had spent so much of her life in cars, she forgot how much she liked walking.

And she definitely forgot how much she like jackets! These things were awesome, Emmet never let her wear them during the warm season.

Not to mention the extreme cold of Derry, even if it was warm.
She hugged herself in her jacket, and opened the door to the Chinese place.

Nothing about it looked familiar or struck a cord with her, u til she saw a table in the back.
She gasped at the sight, al the people sitting there.

The man who's lip quivered with a stutter.
The only black man at the table, who's smile was a mile wide.
The red headed girl talking to the super masculine dude.
The guy arguing with the man in glasses and... interesting? Hair.

And then the man on the end.
Her heart thumped faster when she saw him, but he didn't see her.
She approached the table, just as she heard someone say, "Wait, we're missing someone."

"Yah, the braces girl with the bloody nose."
Her bloody noses. She had forgotten about those.

She smiled and stepped into the dining area.
"The term is 'hemophilia' and you can suck it because that hasn't happened in years."

The group smiled and cheered for the girl, who hugged and greeted all her long lost friends.
How could she have forgotten these people?
They were all so wonderful to her.
She forgot what that was like.

She took a seat next to Richie, shoving the trashmouth with a smile.
"Hey, you look weird without uh.. without the braces."

She snorted.
"Well I hope you didn't think I'd have them now."

He shrugged and handed Grey a shot.
"Oh no, I don't drink." She smiled.
"Aw, come on!"
"No really-"
"Come on the rest of us are drunk!"

The rest of the losers shook their heads.
"No we're not." Swol man chuckled.
That had to be Ben.

In turn, they ordered a round of shots and all drank, except Grey.
Alcohol is a blood thinner, she couldn't risk it.
Plus it just wasn't her thing.

Richie had the shot glass in his mouth, and dropped it onto the table.
"So wait Eddie, you got married?" He laughed.

"Yah, why's that so fuckin' funny dickwad?"
He still talked at the speed of freight train. Not much really had changed.

"What to like, a woman?"
Grey choked on her gross Chinese food. Even the food in Derry was still bad.

Was it bad before? She didn't recall any really good food.
Everything was still hitting them, and I was all fresh.

"Fuck you bro." Eddie pointed at Richie with a chopstick.
Richie broke into hysterical laughter. "Fuck you!"

Grey laughed and looked over at Stanley, who was looking right at her.
He had glasses now, which were sticking out of his front pocket.

"Okay what about you trashmouth, you married?" Bill asked.
Bill Denbrough. God, how could she forget their fearless leader.

The adults laughed, completely denying it.
"No, I got married." He insisted. "You didn't hear this?"

"No." Eddie shook his head.
"You didn't know I got married?"
"No!"

"Yah me and your mom are very happy."
Bill spit out his drink and Grey laughed heinously, nearly coughing up her own drink.

"Fuck you." Eddie frowned. Grey pat his shoulder and laughed.
Richie continued to make fat jokes, resorting to his impressions and referring to Eddie's mom as Jabba the Hut.

Eddie rolled his eyes, and more drinks were poured.
Beer after beer, laugh after laugh.
All kind of fun was had, but Grey couldn't help but feel it wouldn't last.

She looked over at Stanley, who had the same skeptical look on his face.
Something like this had happened before.
The fun didn't last for long.

"I'm surprised you showed up man!" Richie laughed, throwing a wrapper ball at Stan.
"What?" He laughed.
"You're a fucking pussy man!"

The gang laughed, and Stan laughed along uncomfortably.
"Yah well, at least I know when to shut my mouth."

Richie nodded and shrugged.
"That was always my specialty."

Eddie piped up, tapping Ben on the arm.
"Hey, if I remember correctly I was the one who basically performed surgery on you. After uh..."

"Bowers cut you up." Grey finished for him, sinking in her seat and playing with her drawstring.
"Bowers! That's right!"

"Please tell me you ended up becoming a doctor Ed." Beverly asked him, leaning on her beer bottle.

"No uh, I ended up becoming a risk analyst."
Grey rolled her eyes and sunk lower in her seat, putting her feet up on the chair so she was resting her arms on her knees.

"Wow, that sounds really interesting. So what does that entail?" Richie asked him.
"So I work for like a big insurance firm, and like-"

He was interrupted by loud, obnoxious snoring, and Richie was zonking away with his eyes closed.
The losers laughed at Richie's antics, Grey hugging her Knees to her chest.

"Fuck you dude." He scoffed. "Fuck you."
"So was this job invented before fun?"
"Fuck you!"

Grey smacked Eddie in the arm.
"Oh come on, someone's gotta pick on you sometimes. Otherwise you'd never realize how boring you are."

Eddie scoffed.
"Well what about you? What is it you do?" He asked Grey.

She smirked and hugged her knees tighter.
"I actually am a doctor, of sorts. I'm a hematopathologist."

"Blood." Stanley piped up from his beer. Probably only his second drink.
"Hematopathologist specialize in blood right?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yes, we do."
Richie laughed and pointed at the ring on her finger.

"So you and Stan the Man getting married yet?" He asked.
She looked down at the ring, her hysterical expression getting frowny-er.

"I uh... no I'm engaged."
She looked at Stanley who stared at the ring on her finger with a blank expression.

"It's not Eddie's mom is it?" Richie snorted. "Because I already made that joke, and buying a ring is taking it a step too far."

She laughed and fiddled with the band.
"No, uh his name is Emmet Waters, and he-"

"Whoa whoa whoa, Waters?" Bill chuckled, making all the other losers snicker.
"You mean to tell me your name is going to be Grey Waters?"

The group burst into laughter, and Grey's face burned with embarrassment. She hadn't thought about that.
"Okay, well to be fair no one has called me Grey in 27 years."

She fiddled with the ring more, unknowingly taking it off and sticking it in her pocket.

"I propose a toast!" Bev announced, holding up her beer bottle.
"To the losers."

They whooped and smiled, happy to be called the horrible nickname again.
They laughed and cheered for each other, making jokes and antics.

But soon the fortune cookies arrived.