Gordie, Teddy, and Chris are all hanging out in the treehouse they claimed as theirs. Chris and Teddy are playing poker while Gordie admires the way Teddy and Chris argue and mock each other. Occasionally he notices the way that they silently judge each other by who wins.
Gordie loves writing. He's been writing a lot since his older brother, Denny, passed away. He's been writing notes and letters to himself, poems, and angst reminders that everything that happened was supposed to happen. After the funeral, his father has been telling Gordie that he was the one that was supposed to die, not Denny. Everybody loved Denny, and why would they love his little brother? He hangs out with a bad group unlike his brother. Gordie has been recently hanging out in the treehouse. Not wanting to bother his mother or father some more, he decided only to go back home for dinner and bed. Chris has been realizing Gordie's actions, but he promised not to tell the group.
Chris has the same family back home. An alcoholic father and a mother who isn't there. He hates to even call his father his own, but he loves him. He knows how bad of a person he is but he raised him who he is. If he wasn't an alcoholic Chris wouldn't be friends with the group. They wouldv'e went their separate ways in school and have never known each other.
Teddy also has an alcoholic father. His father got so mad at him that he dragged him by the ear and almost burnt it off. He doesn't even want to know how bad of a father his father is. Even though people call his such awful names, deep down he knows, behind all that alcohol, he wouldn't have done anything.
Vern is the closest friend with Teddy. When Gordie and Chris are hanging out, Vern and Teddy will always be with each other. Even if Vern is the chubbiest and shortest out of the friend group, they will never leave him. The other three guys are jealous that he has a perfect family at home. They all know that Vern is the good friend, but he's a pussy at some times. He gets picked on by his brother, Ace, and that gang. He never gets the bad thoughts though, he loves all his friends and his family. Little did the other boys know, but Vern had a secret.
"I'm not supposed to tell anyone." Vern interrupts as the boys are howling to know.
"I just think you're a pussy then." Teddy says while Vern looks at his face.
"No i'm not a pussy, i just can't say or my brother will kill me."
"Fine man, but you're still a pussy." Chris says while knocking on the table while saying 'i knocked' to Teddy.
Gordie looks back to the magazine that he's reading while he notices Vern thinking to himself, Chris putting a cigarette in his mouth, and Teddy talking nonsense.
"You guys wanna see a dead body?" Vern blurts out.
"A dead body?" Teddy echoes.
"Yes, i know where one is at."
"No you don't man. You don't even remember where you planted those coins under your house." Chris says.
"But guys! I know where a dead body is at." Vern whines, he wants his friends to believe him.
"I don't think he's lying," Gordie begins. "On the news it said that a kid our age got killed near the train track. But i'm not sure if his body is still there."
"Shit man, if we find the body we will be on tv!" Teddy enthusiastically yells.
"Yea! But won't people suspect why us middle schoolers finds a dead body?" Chris wonders, still with a cigarette in his mouth.
"That's fair." the other three mumble.
Later on after that the four boys continued to talk about their plan about finding the body. They barely get out of town so it'll be hard for them to find a dead body. In Castle Rock, everyone knows everyone and everywhere. If they start walking now, they might find the body later this week.
All the boys go to their houses because it's dinnertime, and no one misses dinnertime. All at their own homes they eat their dinner and go straight to bed. Three of the boys are continually getting yelled at throughout the night, while the other is still frightened to go find a body.
The next morning, Gordie and Chris both meet up downtown of Gordie's street. Gordie doesn't know if he should tell Chris the big secret or not. They are only twelve year olds living in rough age of time.
Little does Gordie know, Chris has a gun with him. Just in case they need help if they get caught with a wild animal or with a crazy person.
"Where are you going loser 1 and loser 2?" Eyeball runs into a familiar face and his friend.
"The opposite from where you came from." Chris remarked to his brother.
"What did you say?" Chris says while wanting to pick a fight.
"Oh you heard me, and you couldn't just wait till we at home to fight. No need to have any witnesses of someone else dying in this town."
"Yea i don't think your friend here wants to see one of his closest friends dying doesn't he?" Eyeball says while winking and walking backwards with a member of his gang.
"Let's just go." Gordie says while pulling his arm away and starts walking.
"Yea." Chris mutters while turning away from his brother to walk down the block to get to Vern's house.
"You promise that you won't leave me?" Gordie mumbles his words together.
"Gordie, if ya wanna talk you needa talk louder so i can hear."
"It was nothing anyway, let's just get to Vern's so we can leave soon."
The boys occasionally run into each other's arms while bumping back to where they originally stood. They would occasionally push each other while walking down the narrow street. Not caring about anything except each other at that moment.
They reach Vern's house and what a surprise Teddy is already there. The boys are both behind the house near a tree waiting for the boys to notice they are at the tree.
"It took you guys like 10 minutes, it should've been a five minute walk!" Teddy exclaims while throwing his arms up in the air for enthusiasm.
"We ran into people." Gordie says while walking closer to Vern with Chris following behind him.
"Still not an excuse." Teddy says. He then fishes for his bag and slaps Vern on the shoulder.
"Aye that hurt." Vern says while clutching on where he previously got hit at.
"Pussy."
That's the last thing the boys had heard after they started walking. Chris and Gordie would be in the front. Then something would happen then Vern and Teddy would be in the front. They took turns. They reached about 2 miles before talking again.
"Everyone brought everything right?" Chris asks.
"I think so." Gordie answers, looking directly at Chris and smiling.
"How much food did you bring?" Chris motioned himself to Vern.
Vern just stood there.
"Vern.. How much food did you bring?" Teddy taunts.
"I didn't know i was the one that was supposed to bring the food!" He exclaims hitting his sides in anger.
"It's alright. Did we bring money?" Chris questions, wanting the answer as yes.
"I brought a couple dollars just in case." Gordie says while reaching in his pocket to show the others.
"Yea i probably have a couple cents at the bottom of my backpack." Teddy agrees with bring money.
"Aight that's cool now let's start walking. Let me know if any of yous is hungry so one of us can stop in to get some food." Chris tells the group.
He's walking next to Teddy which is kinda boring. He likes to keep his distance away, not sure why. He starts walking slower then Teddy so he can be by Vern. He's kind of upset with Vern so he starts walking slow again, until he reaches Gordie.
"You hungry yet?" Chris interrogates his friend.
"Unless you keep talking 'bout it i will."
"Fine, Fine." Chris throws his hands up to his chest to surrender. He chuckles a bit and looks at Gordie.
"You ready to see a dead body?" He asks his lean friend.
"Yes." He nonchalantly answers while looking down at his feet, placing one foot in front of another on the train track, then coming to a halt.
"What the fuck why'd you two stop." Chris angrily asks.
"I think a train is coming." Teddy says.
"Then let's not become the next bodies to be founded dead in this town!" Chris exclaims while pulling everyone off the track to a prairie.
Gordie looks of in the distance and motions Chris to look at the train.
"Come on here off the track." Christ pats his thighs for Teddy to get off the track.
"Just a few seconds, i want the conductor to be afraid."
The other boys look at the train and Teddy back and forth until they realize that the train not Teddy are moving.
"Get the fuck off the train track right now Teddy!" The three friends exclaim while reaching their hands out at Teddy.
"Fine, fine." Teddy says while jumping down to the other friends while pulling him away from the train track. Chris then turns Teddy around to look at the train passing by. It could've been him laying down lifelessly next to his best friends, but gladly it's not.
"If we continue a little bit longer i think we would reach the town." Vern finally spoke.
"Yea he's right. Let's go." Chris says while hopping back on the train track.
This time, Gordie and Chris are at the front and Vern and Teddy are about 28 feet behind them. They make sure to keep their distance.
"If we stay on the train tracks we will guarantee get there," Chris overhears Teddy soothingly talking to Vern.
"I think Vern is scared." Chris leans to Gordie's ear and whispers to him.
"Don't you think we are all scared? I mean, wouldn't we get traumatized after we see it?" Gordie wonders.
"Only if you wanna be." Chris then puts his right arm around Gordie's shoulders pulling him closer. The boys continue to walk further and further until they hear a tired Vern's voice call out 'I'm hungry.'
"We are almost into town. The sun is still up so we have time to get food and hike somewhere to sleep." The leader says, still having his arm around Gordie.
"Get the money outta your pockets or bags." Gordie calls out from being them. "Did you bring any?" Gordie asks Chris. "Yea about three dollars." Gordie nods to Chris and continue to walk.
They walk for another 4 minutes until reaching a new town. The track has a fork in the road, they can either go left or right. They all need to go right so Teddy and Gordie stay at the right spot. Vern and Chris get handed the money to go grab 4 drinks and a few snacks. While waiting at the track, Gordie and Teddy talk.
"What's up with you two?" Teddy asks and Gordie knows he's asking about Chris.
"I don't know what you mean, man." Gordie says while looking into the store. Even though it's a couple hundred feet, he wishes that the other two boys can walk out at any second so they don't have to continue the conversation.
"Yes you do!" His voice cracks. "You two have been connected at the hip even since we left Vern's."
"As if you and Vern aren't?" Gordie remarks.
"Hey this isn't the time to switch the question. Now tell me, how and why are you and Chris suddenly so close?"
Gordie wonders. Why is he connected with Chris suddenly? Is it because they have the same life at home? Is it because Vern and Teddy didn't talk to him this whole trip? Before he could answer he hears that the door of the store has opened and it's Chris and Vern. Gordie sighs in relief until Teddy says one more thing.
"Don't think we arent don't talking about this."
Both the boys hand out drinks to their friends.
"Here keep this in your bag." Chris gives Gordie a plastic bag full of snacks. He slides his backpack off his shoulder and shoved the bag into it. Gordie still has a hold of the drink, though. The boys start walking onto the right of the tracks near an open field, off to the distance you see dense forest. They all know what's coming up next.
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