june 17, wednesday. 1989.
"THANKS GUYS. BUT YOU SHOULDN'T have done that. they'll be after you now," mike spoke as the losers walked through an old train yard.
"oh, no no no, bowers, hes always after us," eddie explained.
"i guess thats one th-thing we all have in common," bill spoke, and cass and bev looked at each other and smiled, tightening their pinkies.
"yeah homeschool," richie started, "welcome to the losers club!"
june 17, wednesday. 1989.
CASS AND BEV LAID ON CASSANDRAS bed, pinkies laced together. they were talking about the fair that was coming up, but bev didn't seem all that interested in the conversation. she kept fiddling with her fingers and glancing towards cass, then away.
"okay, stop that," cass commanded, and beverly reddened.
"stop what?"
"you know what, carrots. whats wrong?" bev sighed, and turned her head towards cass. she sat up, and cass followed suit.
"its been twelve days since we, ya know, and i-i like you. i want you to keep kissing me like that, and i don't want to flirt with ben and i don't want you to flirt and cuddle with stan and i want you to myself but i-" bev was cut off by cassandras lips on hers, and she soon moved her own against the shorter brunette. she sighed into the kiss, feeling the butterflies in her stomach take flight. she could faintly taste the strawberries on cass' lips, and she smiled. cass pulled away slowly, smiling up at beverly.
"i'm yours, miss marsh."
"as- as in you're my girlfriend, and i'm your girlfriend?"
"whatever you want us to be babe," cass smiled cheekily as bev blushed at the nickname.
"i wanna be yours," bev began, "cass, will you- will you bemygirlfriend?"
"of course ya big goof!" bev smiled widely and pulled cass in for a slow kiss, sighing when their lips touched again. cass smiled widely onto bevs lips and pulled away, breathing slightly heavy.
"please don't ever leave me bev."
"i won't as long as you promise the same."
"whats left of my heart is yours forever," cass smiled after she spoke and snuggled into bevs chest, dosing off. "sing to me."
"i can't sing."
"yes you can, i listen when you think i'm sleeping or not listening," cass listened as bevs heart rate sped up.
"okay, but only because its your birthday," with that bev began to sung, the words making cassandras heart speed up.
"you are my sunshine, my only sunshine."
"you make me happy, when skies are gray."
"you'll never know dear, how much i love you."
"please don't take my sunshine away."
after that night, that song became the two girls song.
the lyrics on repeat in each of their heads every time they were together.
BEV AND CASS TOLD THE OTHERS the others about them the next day. they were more than supportive.
yet stan was only upset.
he had loved her.
a lot.
july 4, friday. 1989.
"I'LL HAVE A STRAWBERRY ICE-cream please," cass smiled at the man scooping their ice-cream as they ordered. eddie was already holding his and richies in his hands. the man handed her the cone, eyeing her up and down creepily. cass scoffed silently.
"that'll be 5.67," the man behind the counter said, and eddie tried to hand cass one of the cones he was holding so he could pay.
"not this time eds, i got it." eddie tried to object but cass shushed him, passing the worker six dollars. "keep the change."
the two walked back towards their friends laughing with each other as they watched as richie tried to play the trombone from a distance. as they got closer the boy who the instrument belonged to ripped it away from richie.
"what the fuck dude!" cass snorted loudly as eddie handed richie his ice cream.
"what are we talking about," eddie asked.
"what they always talk about," richie groaned.
"i actually think it'll end, for a little while at least," ben continued, ignoring richie. cass took her rightful spot next to bev, holding her ice cream up near the redheads face she she could have a lick.
"what do you mean?" bev asked, icking the strawberry ice cream in front of her.
"i was going over all of my derry research and i chartered out the big events. the iron work explosion in 1908, the bradley gang in '35, and the blackspot in '62, and now kids being..." ben glanced up at bill, not wanting to say the word 'murdered,' "i realized it happens every-"
"twenty seven years," bill finished.
"shit," cass muttered, and looked around at all of her friends and girlfriend.
"SO LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT, IT comes out from wherever, to eat kids for a year and then what? goes into hibernation?" eddie asked.
"maybe its like- what do you call it? cicadas! you know the bugs that come out every seventeen years," stan suggested.
"my grandfather thinks this town is cursed," mike began, and cass laid her head on beverlys shoulder. "he thinks that everything that happens in this town is because of one thing, an evil thing, and it feeds off the people of derry."
"but it can't be one thing. we all saw something different," stan argued.
"i saw a leper," eddie shivered with his words. "it was like a walking infection."
"but you didn't. none of this is real, you guys. not eddies leper, or bill seeing georgie, or the woman i keep seeing," stan basically demanded.
"she hot?" richie asked, and cass slapped him.
"no, richie, shes not hot! her face is all messed up..." stan trailed off slowly, but perked back up seconds later. "none of this makes sense. they're all bad dreams!"
"i don't think so," mike argued, "i know the difference between a bad dream and real life, okay?"
"what did you see mike?" cass asked.
"you know the house that burnt down? i was inside when it happened. before i was rescued my mom and dad were trapped in the room next to me. they were pushing and pounding on the door trying to get to me," cass watched as mikes eyes clouded over, "but- but it was too hot. when the fireman finally got to them, the skin on them had melted to the bone. everybodys afraid of something."
"w-what did you see, c-cass?" bill asked.
"i- i saw my mom. she looked just like she did the last time i saw her, but there was something off." bev pressed a chaste kiss to cassandras forehead.
"how about you rich? what are you afraid of?" eddie asked.
richie glanced behind him and stared at the stage for a few moments before turning back to his friends.
"clowns."
•••
ya'll ain't ready for what i have planned.