ℕ𝕠𝕥 𝕀𝕗 𝕀 𝕊𝕖𝕖 𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝔽𝕚𝕣𝕤𝕥// A Chris Chambers fanfic

ᴇɴɪᴅ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ꜰᴏʀɢᴏᴛ

Enid saw less of Teddy and Vern as time went on, until they became two familiar faces in the hall. They exchanged the occasional smile, but the search for Ray Brower's body was the last time they all hung out together. They rarely even spoke anymore. 
It happens sometimes with friends. They come in and out of your life like busboys. Although, Enid didn't feel depression towards the drifted-apart friendships; she liked to remember what they used to be like, and be grateful for the memories. 

Last she heard, Vern got married after high school, had four kids and worked as the forklift operator at the Arsenal Lumberyard. 

Teddy tried several times to get into the army, but his eyes and ear kept him out. Last Enid heard, he was in and out of jail, then doing the odd jobs around Castle Rock. She saw him around sometimes.

Gordie did his college courses and went on to be an amazing writer. He had a kid with his beautiful wife, and they moved into an enormous house out of town. He even wrote a novel about the Ray Brower search, a few years after he graduated. Of course, his old friends stayed up all night reading it. 

Enid's big brother, Ace, never disbanded the Cobras. Their gang remained intact, except they didn't go around terrorising people or committing crimes. As they grew into their 20's and 30's, they mostly just hung out while all their kids were at school and talked about their lives over a beer or a cup of coffee. Most of them were dads, including Ace. His kids' mom had left, so Enid helped him take care of them often. They were sweet kids.

As for Chris, he enrolled in the college courses with Enid and Gordie. It only made sense that he went to be a respected lawyer; he'd spent his entire life wishing someone would stick up for him. He and Enid moved into a small house together, just out of Castle Rock, and got married. They made big plans to have a few kids and a dog, and move into a city. Until one day.

He walked into a fast food restaurant, where two guys just ahead of him had gotten into an argument. One of them pulled a knife. 
Chris, who had always tried to make the best peace, tried to break it up. He was stabbed in the throat, and he died almost instantly. 

Enid never forgot receiving that phone call, or running to the diner and finding him on the floor, surrounded in his own blood, or when she had to call his brother and Gordie to tell them the news.

She never forgot their wedding day, and how Chris looked so beautiful, smiling at the alter.
She never forgot buying their first house together, and decorating it with everything that made them happy.
She never forgot graduating alongside Chris and Gordie, and celebrating with one another afterwards.
She never forgot the last time she saw Teddy and Vern in the halls, or how happy she was that they at least stayed close to one another.
She never forgot the goodbyes on her front lawn, where she knew deep down that the friend group was changing.
She never forgot the talk she had with Ace in the car, who changed the gang's dynamic shortly after, for the better.
She never forgot seeing Ray Brower's body, and how it felt like time had stopped for a moment.
She never forgot the leeches, or how it led to such a ridiculous fight afterwards. That fight felt like a huge deal, until they stepped into the real world.
She never forgot kissing Chris for the first time in the woods, how it felt like ever ounce of anxiety disintegrated.
She never forgot Gordie's story about Lardass, or the tears of laughter that ran down Vern's face.
She never forgot the ultimate train dodge, or how she and Gordie almost died just because Vern skipped PE class too often.
She never forgot running from and seeing Chopper for the first time. It was her first lesson in expectation vs reality.
She never forgot shooting a barrel behind the diner, or how she Chris found it absolutely hilarious.
She never forgot sitting in the treehouse, and how the five had no idea that their lives were about to change forever.
Enid never forgot.

Enid always remembered her friends, and how happy they all were to be on one of their stupid adventures that turned out to be something much bigger. She hoped that Gordie was happy, and that he'd continue writing forever, because she loved his novels. She hoped that Vern and Teddy were still just as childish as they were at 16, and that they never grew up. She hoped that Chris rested easy, knowing that he did everything he wanted to. He got out of town, he married the girl he loved, and he died doing what he thought was the right thing. 

Enid never had any friends like the ones she had at 16. Hell, does anyone?