Our Last Summer- Reddie

Richie's POV

The journey to Derry was a long and boring one. Since it was a two-day journey by car, I decided to catch a flight, but as I sat behind a screaming baby and with the person next to me snoring loudly, I regretted my decision. I thought longingly of the silence of my car; all of a sudden, a two-day journey didn't seem so bad.

Another advantage, as I now realised, of driving was that I would be too busy concentrating on the road to get lost in my thoughts. Being in an overly-loud plane with no entertainment made it way too easy to question what the hell I was doing.

Is this really a good idea, Tozier? I asked myself. No, it's really not, but I made a promise, we all did.

That is the biggest problem. "We". I haven't seen these people in years. What is it's awkward? What if we've changed too much? How am I supposed to trust these people with my life? I suppose that, if I trusted them when I was 15, I could now.

That thought relaxed me and I spent the rest of the flight looking out of the window and trying desperately to block out that goddamn baby's crying.

*

By the time I arrived in Derry, night had already fallen and the moon illuminated everything with an eerily dim glow. When I got out of the rental car, I quickly scanned my surroundings. No psycho alien-clown hybrid. Great. Still, the thought that It's out there somewhere, waiting, sent a shiver down my spine.

After scrabbling through the many pockets of my coat for it, I held up the hastily-scribbled note that detailed Mike Hanlon's address and double-checked that I was at the right place. Satisfied, I collected my bags from the car and started towards the front door. There were only five other cars in the drive. At least I'm not last, I thought.

I hesitated before knocking on the door but, realising that I had literally come too far to go back, I took a deep breath and knocked. Here goes nothing.

A woman with fiery ginger hair that barely brushed her shoulders answered the door. She was wearing a smart suit and a crisp white blouse but there was no mistaking who it was. Beverly. I smiled in spite of myself.

"Richie! Oh my god, look at you, Rich!" She exclaimed, pulling me into a tight hug. It was only when I was hugging her that I noticed the man standing not far behind her. Mike. Beverly had clearly gotten to the door before he could.

"Hey, Mike." I panted, Beverly's hug having knocked all the air out of my lungs.

Mike walked forward with his hand outstretched, before thinking better of that and pulling me into a not-as-tight hug.

"How's it going, Tozier?"

"Not bad. Could be a lot better but not bad."

Mike nodded solemnly and gestured towards a room at the end of the hall. "Everyone's in the kitchen. We're still waiting on Stan though."

I walked to the room he pointed at, following Beverly. I didn't even realise that I was walking slower than usual until I saw that Bev had already disappeared into the room. I sprinted after her, hearing the phone by the front door ring. I turned around, wondering whether or not to answer it but saw that Mike was already on it.

With a deep breath, I pushed the door to the kitchen open and walked in. Sat around the table were Bev and three other men. One of them was tall and surprisingly muscular. It was surprising because I thought that Ben Hanscom was allergic to exercise. He smiled warmly and mumbled a hello. One of the men, Bill, stood up when he saw me and threw his arms around me.

"Richie! It's amazing to see you."

I stared at him in disbelief when he pulled away.

"What?" He asked self-consciously.

"Bill... your stutter..."

He chuckled lightly. "Yeah, it's weird, isn't it? It went away without me even trying."

The final man at the table didn't smile, didn't get up to hug me. In fact, he barely acknowledged my presence, only giving me a quick glare that was full of venom. This man was Eddie Kaspbrak and I didn't blame him for his hostility. I would be equally as pissed if I was in his position.