Eddie's Time Apart from The Losers
Eddie Kaspbrak spent the first 2 days after the event at Neibolt resulting in his broken arm in the hospital. His mother Sonia made sure they did every test they knew to make sure he didn't have anything else wrong with him. Once all the testing came back stating that he was fine, they went home.
The first few days after were uneventful, but then Mrs. Kaspbrak saw an odd shift in Eddie. He had stopped taking some of his medicine and was staying awake way past unreasonable. When questioned about it, Eddie just closed off even further.
"Just can't sleep mom. 'Mfine.", the young teen would tell her blankly before turning away from her. But Sonia knew Eddie wasn't fine, and she knew this went beyond sleep deprivation. She gave him another day to relax, to see if this would fade, but when he remained the same, she had to do something.
For two weeks, his mother made Eddie go see numerous doctors, psychiatrists, and therapists. Each time they saw him, they just told Sonia this was normal teenage rebellion. That it was to be expected. She wasn't so sure that it was. She knew her son. Her Eddie wouldn't do this normally. So she decided to question Eddie on her own. But all she got were more short and vague answers.
To Eddie this just pissed him off. He didn't want or need people poking and prodding at him, because no one would believe the truth. They would all think he was crazy. Hell, he wasn't even sure he wasn't crazy. And all these thoughts just kept irritating his anger and pushing his emotions. He wasn't a normally angry person, but seeing what he's seen has made him spiral. No one, not even Eddie himself knew he was a ticking time bomb, just waiting to explode.
The mother and son duo were on their way home from the latest therapy appointment and Eddie was staring out of the window emotionless and Sonia was trying to talk to him once again.
"Eddie, you can't leave the house except to go get your medicine when I can't until you are better." the big woman told her son dramatically. Eddie said nothing, just looked down and fiddled with his fingers. He honestly wasn't paying attention to anything his mom was lecturing about. The only thing he could focus on was what happened back at the Neibolt House. There was no way that what he saw was real. It couldn't be. He could still see her broken unconscious form being carried in bridle-style by Richie. He could still hear the weak scream that was forced out when she landed on the pile of wood.
He didn't even get to say anything to Lorie, and her form flying through the air was the only thing playing in his mind. He didn't even know what to think, all this time he actually thought she was dead. There was logically no way she could have survived this long like she was, especially with her captor being what he was. It didn't make sense, and messed with his emotions so much that his mind was becoming hazy. He was even more upset because he didn't even get to really talk about it with everyone, and he didn't get a chance to check on Richie. He remembers every detail of that event too vividly to be fake, yet he couldn't bring himself to fully accept it as reality.
Eddie's mind was being split in half from his internal war of conflict, and it was starting to affect him worse and worse each day.
"Eddie-bear, did you hear me?", the young teen was shaken from his thoughts by his mom's fake sweet voice. He quickly nodded his head.
"Yes, mommy." Mrs. Kaspbrak nodded, somewhat pleased with his progress of communication.
"Okay, just making sure. It's important that you do as told. It will help you get better." and Eddie just hummed in agreement. The rest of the ride home was spent in a semi-awkward silence. As soon as the car was put in park, Eddie went to get out of the car but he was stopped by his mother who was once again trying to question his behavior.
"Okay Eddie-bear, be serious with momma for a second. What is going on? I don't like these new behaviors you have been presenting. Your defiance to take your medicine, you need these pills! And your attitude has been horrible and you have been short with me. I know something is wrong, so what can I do to get you hel- " her interrogation is interrupted by Eddie cutting her off.
"I don't need help, I'm fine. I told you, I am just not sleeping well. What more could you possibly need from me?" he snaps out with anger. He was tired of his mother's constant questions and just wanted to be alone. But Sonia was stubborn and just knew he would give in and tell her so she could make it all better.
"Eddie, I know it goes beyond that! There is no way your behavior lately is just the result of your lack of proper sleep. It's those rebellious delinquents you were hanging out with isn't it? I knew it! That rude boy with the glasses has gotten into you hasn't he?! I knew he was a bad influence on you!"
"You're wrong!'' Eddie mumbles, but his mom is too focused on her rant to hear him.
"But it's not just him though is it? That whole group of yours has been tainted and corrupted! They have been since that Sympox girl went missing! She's gone, Eddie! Don't let this ruin you! You need to let go and move o- "
That was it. The floodgates opened and Eddie let it all out. He was done listening to people question him. He was done pushing it down. Eddie fucking hated everything at the moment and let his mom know it.
"Shut up! Don't talk about Annie! You're wrong! They are my friends! They have been there for me a hell of a lot more than you have! Richie is the only thing keeping me from going fucking insane! He's my person! You don't know anything! Fuck off! I hate you!" Eddie exploded in tearful fury before moving to get out of the car. He was successful this time. Eddie ignored his mother's calls and ran inside his house to his room. By the time that Sonia got to her front porch Eddie had slammed the door and locked himself in his room. A minute later Sonia squeezed out of the car and marched to her son's door to hear him sobbing. She tried to jiggle the doorknob but as expected it didn't budge.
"Eddie? Are you ok? I- " she is cut off by an aggressive Eddie.
"God fucking shit Ma! Take a damn hint! I don't want a hint! Please go away! Leave me the fuck alone!" This shocks her to the core. Eddie never used that kind of vulgar language around her. Mrs. Kaspbrak didn't understand why he was so upset. He seemed out of it before they got home, but now he just seemed really closed off. This worried her, and she went to yell at him, but she stopped. His doctor told the both of them that Eddie had high blood pressure that was caused by anxiety and he needed to be in a stress-free environment for a while. And it took everything in her being to not hover and smother him. So for the first time ever in her time as a mother she heard her son and gave him his space.
"Okay baby, I'll be in the living room if you need something!" and Sonia walked away, leaving Eddie to finally break down and get all of his grief out.
Eddie hardly left his room at all for the rest of the week. His mother tried to get him to come out several times a day, but was unsuccessful each time. It became his solace from the outside world. He didn't want to do anything anymore. He had finally accepted that what he saw was real. It actually happened. But the more he thought and kept to himself, the worse he felt. Eddie was falling apart. It was one thing to just have Lorie gone from his life, and always have that small question of the unknown possibility in the back of his mind. But he literally watched her die. He knows now that he will never see her again. And so, he became depressed.
Eddie became broken.
*-*-*-*
Bill's Time Apart From The Losers
On the way to his house after the fight, all Bill could think about was how angry he felt. He was furious with Richie. Now, if Bill wasn't already so worked up from Neibolt and Richie's hurtful but true words about Georgie and her death when he found out the truth about Lorie, it might have gone differently. He might have been hurt and devastated, but it probably wouldn't have ended with everyone in shambles with themselves and each other. He was just so hurt that Richie not only gave up hope for Lorie, but would keep something like the identity of their soulmate to himself. Especially so, when it wasn't just his secret to keep. All of them deserved to know, and it hurt Bill deeply that he found out during a huge ugly fight.
And it pissed him off everyone thought he was crazy for wanting to find her; That he was in denial about Georgie and Lorie. Bill knew in his gut that they were all wrong. And he was. The proof that she was alive was right in there faces in the Well House. Lorie was alive and being held captive by that monster. And it just didn't make sense to him that since they saw her, why Eddie, Richie, and Stan weren't all busting down his door to raid the sewer system.
Their loss. He was going to be the one to bring her home.
Bill became more determined to find Georgie and Lorie as the. Seeing her, the real actual her gave him a whole new wave of hope. It didn't even matter to Bill that he saw Lorie impaled on a piece of wood. Bill wanted to prove them wrong and make everybody happy again. He felt like if she has been alive this whole time, then there was a really good chance she is alive now. To him, there was absolutely no way Lorie was dead now. And she went missing before Georgie did, so if she was alive, then there's no doubt that Georgie was too.
By the time Bill got to his house, he was still extremely upset, but was now a lot calmer and that rush of intense emotions exhausted his body. He was ready to go to bed and be done with this horrible fucking ass day. Bill haphazardly put his bike away and headed straight to his room, ignoring his parent's questioning and concerned glances.
With the slam of his door, the broken stuttering teen collapsed on his bed and crashed, and didn't even stir until the next morning.
When he woke up, he had a new wave of determination and hope hit him. With the right planning, he could bring Lorie and Georgie home. Bill had spent the next three weeks obsessing over a couple different plans to get to the clown's lair and destroy him. Bev came over a few times the first week in between hanging out with Ben, but eventually just tapered off.
This didn't bother Bill much. He wanted to be able to focus on the plans as much as possible. He went over the plans again and again, until he felt prepared enough for literally anything the clown threw at him. He fueled his anger and despair into motivation to find them. He knew if they were found, then everything would go back to normal.
Mr. and Mrs. Denbrough watched their son and soon grew very concerned. They noticed that he hardly left his room excluding meal times and bathroom breaks. They tried to get him to come out and spend some time outside, but he would hastily protest saying he's busy and he can't and run back into his room. They were lenient with this for a few days, but then decided he really needed the Vitamin D. They gave him the ultimatum of being grounded, or go outside for a few hours, so Bill reluctantly stomped outside to his bike. He went to mount it when something shiny gleamed, catching his eye.
The gleam was in the grassy weeds by the garage. Bill leans down to get a closer look. Upon further inspection his eyes widen and water when he figures out it was Lorie's necklace that he and the other's found that day at the Barren's. Bill somehow dropped it that day when he came home. He picked the piece of jewelry up and placed it in his palm to examine it. He remembers the day they got it for her like it was yesterday.
December 1, 1988 Derry Jewelers
4 out of the 5 Amigos stood outside the only jewelry shop in town. They were all huddled in a circle to talk about their plan.
"Okay so did everyone bring their share?" Stan questioned the other 3. All four boys stuffed their hands in their pockets to grab their twenty-five-dollar part. The boys had all decided that they would pitch in to get their best friend a really nice gift for her birthday, and agreed on getting her an engraved necklace.
"Do you think she'll like it?" Eddie questions worriedly, but Richie rolls his eyes and cuts him off.
"This is Lorie we're talking about fuckface! We could give her wilted grass and tell her they're flowers and she would tear up and thank us!" The teen with glasses snarked playfully. Eddie rolls his eyes back at Richie, and responds with attitude.
"Yea I know that! But that doesn't mean that she will truly like it dumbass! It could be one of those presents that you get from someone and they're like "Oh yeah! This is so nice and thoughtful! Thank you so much!" and then they will put it in the bottom of their closet, never to be seen or appreciated again." he rambles in panic.
"Oh my God stop being so fucking dramatic, you idiot! Lorie will love it! Relax dude!" Richie snaps at him. Eddie replies and begins round 3,164 of "The Argument of Reddie". Stan and Bill look at the others in annoyance, and choose to ignore them in favor of buying Lorie's gift. They enter the store and are greeted by an elderly man who gives them a kind smile.
"What can I do for you boys?" the man asks with a shaky voice.
"We are wanting to look at buying an engraved necklace for our best friend, can you show us where the simple pendants are?", Stan said to him politely. He was going to do most of the talking since Bill was insecure with his stutter.
The jeweler's eyes sparkled in excitement, almost as if he knew the perfect gift already, "Of course! Right this way sirs."
The entire time Stan and Bill are inside the shop, Eddie and Richie argue, not even realizing they're gone.
"Jesus Fucking Christ you guys! Can you guys even pretend you are 14? This is embarrassing!", Stanley chastises them. Richie turns to Stan and quirks an eyebrow before shifting his weight to one leg.
"First off Stanward, you are Jewish, so you can't say that shit, right? Isn't that like against the rules or something?". Stan glares at him, but chooses not to start anything with him. Bill rolls his eyes at Richie and quickly intervenes to change the topic.
"R-Richie, g-good idea f-for the engraving. I-I-It turned out g-great!" Richie beams and rushes over causing Stan and Eddie to follow and take a look at the necklace. It was very simple, but it was so pretty and turned out great.
"She's gonna love this!" Eddie says, smiling happily. Richie smirks and responds, unable to keep his mouth shut.
"I told you Eddie-Spaghetti! And your dumbass thought we were wrong." Richie snarks out.
"Oh shut the fuck up Richie!"
End Flashback
The smile on her face was completely worth the money and the arguments they spent. That day and her face will be forever ingrained in his mind. He looked at the necklace for a minute longer and smiled softly before mounting his bike to go enjoy a little bit of sunshine before getting back to work on saving his little brother and the love of his life.
Bill refused to give up and was determined to bring his loved ones home.
*-*-*-*
Richie's Time Apart From The Losers
Laycey and Mike walked Richie home in silence, neither really knew what to say. Richie was off in his head, walking dazedly down the street. He doesn't even realize that he made it home until Mike snapped him back to reality by gently shaking his shoulder. The action made Richie roughly flinch. He swatted the hand away and jumped back from the two.
"Don't touch me. 'Mfine.", he tells the two rudely. Laycey raises her eyebrows in amusement and annoyance.
"Dude are you ok- " but then Richie cuts her off, his voice filled with anger. Today was already too much, and the questioning he felt like he was getting was not something he needed right now.
"I said I.Am.Fine! Now fucking back off!" Richie growls out aggressively before stomping into his empty house with a slam of the front door. Laycey and Mike stare in shock before hesitantly turning away, unsure if it was safe to try and check on him again. They wait a few minutes to see if Richie would come out again. But when they hear his angered screams and the sound of glass shattering and wood breaking, they rush to a window to see the teen destroying the house. Mike and Laycey knew then that going in there and trying to be there for Richie would make it worse so they reluctantly turn away.
"Okay, let's take you home, where you should have been this entire time." Mike tells the blonde girl with a knowing look. Laycey groans in annoyance at the thought of being cooped up in her room again. She was going insane as it was. Now she had to spend more time in that god forsaken room?
"But I'm fine! I haven't had any issues with my head today! No dizzy spells or nausea! I'm fine Mikey!" The blonde pouts at Mike with big eyes. He looks at her for a moment and almost caves but decides against it.
"And that's great! But there's a reason for that! You haven't been stressed like today in a long time. We shouldn't push our luck. You said you would go for a bike ride with us earlier and that's it. We have finished the bike ride, now it's time for you to get some more rest." Laycey just rolls her eyes at Mike who smiles at her sweetly, and gestures for her to get on the bike they turn and head to Laycey's house to watch Pretty In Pink, one of Mike's new favorites.
Richie watches them leave from his living room window with enraged eyes. He was furious. He was mad at Stanley for being a motherfucking pussy and ditching them the moment it got too much, and he was mad at Bill for not hearing him out. He was mad that Eddie still didn't know about his connection to Lorie and hadn't called or tried to see him. But then again, with Sonia Kasprak as his mother, Eddie's cold shoulder wasn't exactly surprising. Richie was also furious at himself for being stupid enough to lose the love of his life, twice. Her beaten and bloody face burned into his mind, her weak screams of pain echoing off the walls of his skull. He felt like he was going crazy.
'Lorie is dead.'
'She's gone!'
'You will never see her smiling face'
'Your friends will hate you for keeping the soulmate secret'
'You'll never fall in love'
'And it's all your fault Richie!'
'All.Your.Fault'
Richie shook with anger as his thoughts continued to race. His breath gets heavier and he loses control of his body. Richie turns to grab a vase from the table next to him and he throws it against the wall, making it shatter into a million pieces, just like his heart. He stared at the mess he made with a glare and turned and smash many other things in his house.
Two weeks went by extremely slowly for the young Tozier. He spent it mostly alone in his house. He did go to the arcade once, but it didn't end well for him.
Flashback
Richie was playing his favorite game in the arcade, Street Fighter. He was trying to beat the new high score made by this other kid. He was actually standing beside Richie to see if he could actually do it. Richie actually made the new high score by just a few points.
"Yes!", Richie cheered, excited he had one good thing come out of this week. He turns to the boy and offers his hand.
"Good game dude! You were sick!" The boy accepts a cool handshake from Richie and smiles.
"Thanks! You apparently are way sicker at this! Awesome game!". Richie beams, "Yea man, hey we should do this again I'm sure we both could learn some mov- " Richie is interrupted by Henry Bowers who slams him against the wall.
"Are you trying to bone my little cousin you fag?", Henry sneers in the younger teen's face. Richie doesn't say anything, just stares back.
"First you lose your little slut, so you take my Laycey in replacement. Then I heard you and your fucktards for friends got in a fight and you're not talking. You are taking my little cousin to fuck to replace your fags aren't you? AREN'T YOU?" Henry bellows out, getting louder with each word. Richie is seeing red by the time Henry is finished. His shaking form gains enough strength to actually punch Henry in the mouth hard enough to knock him to the ground.
"First off, keep your motherfucking mouth shut about my friends. It's none of your goddamn business! Second, I am not trying to 'bone' your cousin Henry. I was just trying to play a game, you dumbass. I didn't even know I was bothering him, and unaware I wasn't allowed near him you fucking idiot. I'm leaving, and I'm leaving peacefully. Do not follow me.", Richie roared out, surprisingly scaring Henry a little. Richie gives one last devilish glare and leaves, throwing the door open on the way out. He is almost out of speaking range of Henry before he quickly turns around to meet Henry's eyes.
"And for someone who claims to be homophobic, you seem to be very obsessed with that type of lifestyle. Something you wanna share, Henry?" Richie winks, darting out before Henry could register what he said.
End Flashback
Richie destroyed the entire living room after that. And his anger just kept growing and growing, that by the time the third week of his enraged isolation was beginning his house was trashed, every wall littered with holes from him punching his fist through them. His floor was covered in broken glass and debris that accumulated. His mother was too drunk or high to register the damage her son made. She didn't even spare anything a glance, basically ignoring Richie who was obviously hurting and in need of help. And the only thing he had to look forward to was the few hours he was going to have to see Stan's Bar Mitzvah this weekend.
Richie only had his negative thoughts and angry emotions as company now. And he hated it.
*-*-*-*
Stan's Time Apart From The Losers
Stan didn't even really remember his trip home from Eddie's. He remembers Richie spilling his secret, and he remembers telling them that he couldn't deal with this information properly, and then everything else was a blur. Once he got to his house, he all but threw his bike on the front lawn before he dashed to his room. The house shook with the force he put behind slamming his door, but luckily his parents weren't home to hear it. They were in a meeting at the church.
Stan locked his door and collapsed on his bed and cried. He cried for Eddie, he cried for Bill, he cried for himself, and Richie too. But he mostly cried for Lorie. Lorie will be one of those kind souls whose memory was forgotten. She will become nothing but a statistic for death rates for this town. And that was the worst part. Lorie wasn't just a statistic. She was so much more than that. She was everything to him, and to his friends. These lingering thoughts and feelings made Stan cry himself to sleep that night, skipping dinner and seeing his parents, despite their efforts to get him out of his room. Rabbi and Mrs. Uris eventually concluded that their son was just tired and wanted a night in to himself.
The next day, when Stan got up, it was like he was a completely different person. He looked in the mirror in his room and examined his reflection. His hair was messy and knotted, and face was tired and puffy from his tears. His eyes were emotionless, they were unfocused, numb. It was almost as if he cried all of his emotions out yesterday, and all that was left was a shell of a person.
With a sigh he left his room and got ready for the day, and headed down stairs to see his parents. Rabbi and Mrs. Uris were seated at the kitchen table, eating their breakfast and talking about their plans for the day. Both looked up at the sound of Stan walking in, and tried to greet him with a smile.
"Good morning sweetie. There's some pancakes on the stove. They're still warm and everything for you!" Mrs. Uris spoke with a soft smile.
"Good morning son, sleep well?" Stanley just stared distantly, hearing them, but not responding. Mrs. and Rabbi Uris glanced at each other before turning back to their son.
"Stanley? Did you hear your mother?" Stanley nodded back numbly in reply.
"I'm not hungry, but thank you for telling me." His lack of emotion concerned his mother, but she just nodded. Perhaps he was still exhausted from his day.
"Okay sweetie." There was an awkward silence before Rabbi Uris cleared his throat and turned to his son.
"Stanley, we need to go practice your reading today, so whenever you are ready, we will go." this was answered with a blank nod.
A little while later, the father and son duo are sitting in the church, with Stan up at the podium. For the first time since he started practicing, Stan recited his speech perfectly. Rabbi Uris couldn't find any errors in that run and it made him immensely proud. He was so proud that he didn't look closer at Stan. He didn't see Stan's vacant expression, his blank posture. He didn't even try to notice that his son was hurting and becoming more and more distant each day.
"That was done brilliantly Stanley! Well done! If you keep this up, your Bar Mitzvah speech will be the best one in years!" Rabbi Uris beamed as he looked at his son with pride. But he didn't really see his son. Stan had been stressing for weeks to get this right to please his father, he didn't look proud of this accomplishment now. He didn't feel proud. He didn't feel anything. He was empty. The blank expression on his face was blatant and obvious, but his father was too blind to see that his son was not okay.
Stanley stayed this way until the night before his big day. He was going through some of his clothes to clean out his closet and pick out his attire for tomorrow when he saw something shoved in the back crevasse of the small area. It was a piece of paper that had been balled up. Stan grabbed it and went to throw it away. He was about to drop it in the trash when he noticed a very familiar swirl of handwriting. He uncrumpled the paper and saw that it was a note from Lorie.
'My Birdy!
I saw you were unhappy today in science class. You never get sad in there; I know because it's your favorite class in school! I assumed it was because your dad was harping on you for the whole 'becoming a man thing' so I decided to try and cheer you up!
You need to remember that becoming an adult isn't done with a ceremony. It's experiencing life and all the blessings that come with it. It's learning to appreciate the beautiful things around us. It's learning to love, to laugh, to cry. It's learning to know it's ok to not be ok! It's knowing your mistakes and owning up to them and moving on.
Don't let anyone tell you who you are. That's not their place. You know who you want to be. Be it! I believe in you Bird!
Be Great,
BabyLove <3'
Stan read her words over and over. It was like a light was switched on in him as he faintly smiled. He knew what he needed to do in order to be who he wants to be. With a few lingering thoughts on new resolutions, Stan went to bed for the first time in weeks filled with one emotion. Hope.
A/N:
Another Posty-Post, this time an actual chapter!
I don't really have a lot to say about this chapter, to me it's a bit of a filler. But juicier stuff is soon to come!
I hope you guys are enjoying this!
All my love,
Savannahxx
Edited 8/17/21