𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡.

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 |𝐞 & 𝐫

There was a deep pain in Richie's chest. Well, he couldn't quite place where the pain was, but he knew it was intense. The type of pain that stayed with someone. He didn't want to feel this way. He wanted to be the person that he thought Eddie wanted him to be - funny, charming, intelligent, independent, healthy... But everytime he interacted with Eddie, he felt the list of things he "needed to be" was only growing. He could barely focus on one thing at a time, let alone be this fully realized, trophy friend, or boyfriend, or ex-friend, or whatever the hell their established relationship was supposed to be. His urges were growing strong, and with going to his childhood town, he knew they'd only get stronger. He needed Eddie to like him, or at least tolerate him enough to help him survive the visit.

It was a particularly chilly morning, in contrast to the blazing temperatures that there had been for a few days. The sky was gloomy and overcast, and there was an ongoing steady rain that made Richie jump each time he heard the droplets press upon the rain clad windows of the car. He was driving, and he had been for almost an hour.

An hour.

Huh. Derry had always felt so much further away from Richie's new place. Maybe it was the thought of it that felt further away, and not the actual location. All of his childhood memories were there, the good ones, the grim ones... It felt hard to associate one location with such an abundance of thoughts.

He traced the elastic like steering wheel of the old car, feeling the texture around the corroded rubber pieces. It was nice to not feel the burning warmth when he gripped it like before.

He was chewing on the spearmint Orbit gum he'd bought a few days back, having the minty burst fill his senses. Inhaling gum was a good suppressant from some of his more unsavory habits.

In his peripheral vision, he saw Eddie, his head against the window as usual. His honey brown eyes weren't as illuminated as they were when the sun was shining - that he missed. Despite him being pretty sure that Eddie couldn't stand him anymore, it was clear that he needed someone to talk to, no matter how awkward Richie had made things.

Besides - they were almost at their location, and they would definitely need someone to talk with to soothe that awkwardness.
➵

The two arrived at the address given to Richie - it was Bill's house. Bill Denbrough. Hearing the call from him yesterday with his shaky voice made Richie's legs nearly give out. It was strange. Seeing the oddly familiar number, hearing the even more familiar voice. As soon as he heard the "H-Hello?" all of his memories of the Losers club came rushing back to him in an instant. All of the laughter, all of the bullying, all of the times they'd spent together.

It was strange to think about how much they romanticized the idea of growing up as kids. They all thought they'd be friends forever - going to each others graduations, prom, sneaking out of their homes past curfew - normal teenager stuff. But now, when Richie first saw Eddie, he panicked and wanted to run away. Things had changed. They'd changed.

The one thing Richie wasn't surprised about was that Bill delivered the news. He'd always been like a savior to the group. A real leader, even with many setbacks. It was nice to see that aspect hadn't changed.

Eddie was out of the car, standing right next to Richie. It was chilly outside. Eddie would say it was the wind that made his knees wobble, but he knew it was his nervousness and paranoia. He didn't know what to say, or what to expect. They hadn't seen each other in years.

Years.

It was a weird concept for Eddie, who had previously been seeing them every day of the week.

He drew in a deep breath, letting the cold fill his lungs, like sinking in the cold water back at the lake. His cold, lifeless body sinking into the water. The immediate deprivation of oxygen. Feeling the water compress him-

Without warning, Richie knocked on the door, pulling Eddie out of the water. Eddie's eyes darted to him as a reaction, Richie not looking back at him. Eddie looked back to the door. He saw Richie lean forward a bit to listen to what was going on inside - there was no noise.

The porch felt lonely - there were vines clinging on the pillars, the overcast skies didn't let any sun shine on it, and the door was faded, with vertical scratches on it. There was still a toy on the landing, assumedly from Ben's brother, who'd passed a while back.

The entire place, the entire town, just reeked of death and desperation.

Eddie let out a sigh. He wasn't ready, but he had to be. He couldn't even imagine what Richie was thinking right now. This town had brought him enough pain for the two of them. He felt bad, and not just for himself.

"Richie-"

Before he could continue, the door opened. It was Bev.

Beverly Marsh opened the door, looking at the two of them with her piercing green eyes softening. She was the same, but not really. Her vibrant, once long, crimson hair was short, almost a pixie cut. The ends faded into a deeper brown, and the freckles across her nose and cheeks seemed to be less prominent. She still had an ethereal look, that was for sure - she was always a unique type of beautiful, though. Her skin was glass-like, with freckles lightly scattered across her shoulders like dripping paint.

"Wow. Hey, Tozier. And-" She tilted her head about to see Eddie, who was subconsciously hiding behind the frame of the door. "Eddie. Hi." She said, in a surprisingly chipper voice for someone who's friend had just died.

They both didn't say anything for a second, not knowing who was going to speak first. "Bev. Hey," the name almost hurt to say as it crept out of Eddie's mouth, for no apparent reason. "Did you guys come here together?" She said, immediately after.

"No."

"Yes."

They look at each other again, switching up their answers.

"Yes."

"No."

"Right. Well, come in." Beverely said, with an awkward smirk.

It was almost unsettling how 'okay' Bev was. Maybe Eddie was just being dramatic. Maybe they were all okay. They were probably fine, right?

Eddie followed Bev inside, stepping up after hearing the door's high pitched shrill.

It was real. This was happening. Everyone was there -

Besides Stan.