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A boy with messy brownish blackish hair and freckles all over , making his dark eyes pop walked into the small classroom. He was lean and lanky, his black and blue knees poked through a rip in his jeans. He shyly looked into the room of third grade boys and girls. “Students, we have a new kid here, would you care to introduce yourself?” the teacher, Mr. Gold said, going to put his hands on the lanky boys boney shoulder. The boy leaned away from the hand reaching out to his shoulder and shook his head. “ Well, this is Richard Tozier, and he will be joining us on our wonderful learning adventure” “ My names Richie” the lanky boy said, looking impatiently at the empty desk in the back of the classroom. The teacher nodded and pointed to two desks; one in the front, of to the far right, or one in the very back of the class, collecting dust. The desk seemed very isolated from the other desks in the class. Before the teacher could ask Richie which desk he’d prefer he was already in the back and wiping the thick layer of dust off the lonesome desk. He couldn't see shit from where he was sitting, but its not he would be able to see anything if it were close up, either. The class went on with their work and went back to their conversations. A short boy with neat hair that matched his focused brown irises and had light freckles scattered across his face turned to look at the awkwardly tall boy in the back of the class, watching him taking out a disorganized folder that had been falling about and was worn along with a chewed up pencil as Mr.Gold explained the classroom rules. “ Eddie, get your head out of the clouds!” a neat boy with curly light brown hair said with growing hints of agitation in his tone. Eddie turned back to face his class partner and best friend. “Maybe at lunch we can…talk to the new kid?” Eddie knew his friend wouldn't want to . He himself didn’t know why he wanted to. He liked things clean and organized, but he was intrigued by the lanky boy with a messy way of living. The small, dainty boy played with the zipper on his fanny pack that never left his side. The agitated boy sighed. “ Him? He might get us in trouble of something! And you know the outsiders rule. Don't hang out with anyone outside our group unless we have to, no exceptions to other outsiders.” Eddie sighed and looked back Richie, who was now sketching on the back of his worksheet. “ Come on Stan, can we make just one little exception? Please?” Eddie whined.Stan shot Eddie a irritated glare without a response before the teacher announced that it was time for lunch. At lunch, while the other kids were laughing with their friend group and either buying or taking out their lunches, Richie sat near the teachers and simply searched through his filled pages for even just a corner of a blank page to sketch in. Much to his surprise, a young boy sat down near Richie and started to unpack his lunch. “ Oh..i’m sorry, am I in one of your friends spots? I’ll move-” Richie picked up his worn notepad and started to get up when the the boy shook his head. “ No, don't go.” Eddies fingers slid across the brim of Richies loose black shirt with torn sleeves. Richie looked at Eddie, in slight shockUsually, all people could ever tell Richie to do was to go away, he was confused hearing someone didn't want him to leave for a change. He sat back down, not losing eye contact with the small boy. “ My name is Eddie. Eddie Kaspbrak” Eddie reached to shake Richies long, thin hands. Richie looked at the hand and lightly held it. He felt a spark of joy rise in his chest. Eddie pulled his hand away and poured sanitizer into his left palm and vigorously rubbed his hands together. Richie looked down at the hands that held Eddies dainty little hand that Eddie was now cleansing. He hates me . “ I’m sorry” Richie whispered. He took a pen from a teacher and started drawing a cartoon character on his thin hand. Eddie leaned towards the messy boy to see a shakily drawn Invader Zim on Richies wrist, as well as multiple other doodles spread out on his palm and hand. “ Don't draw on your wrist, you could get ink poisoning or something.” Eddie took the pen out of Richies hand. “ Why does it matter if I get ink poisoning or not?” Richie grabbed the pen from Eddie. Eddie grabbed it back. “ Just stop okay?” Richie dropped the pen. “So um….what are your interests?” Richie asked the dainty boy.“ I like to hang out with my friends, Stan, Bill, Mike and Ben. We go to the quarry together, it's fun.” The small boy now looked over at another table with four kids which Richie could only assume were his friends. “Oh and sometimes Beverly hangs out with us . I think her and Ben like each other.” Eddie fiddled with the zipper of his fanny pack and looked a Richies unkempt hair. “ So why did you have to change classes?” Eddie had been wanting to ask that question ever since Richie took a seat at his desk earlier. Richie seemed hesitant to answer. “ Well uh.. I got hurt in my last class. A lot. And the school saw that my grades were high enough to take this honors class thing, so I forged my mom's signature and here we are” the lanky boy squinted his eyes to try and make out what Eddie looked like, besides short and neat. Richie saw Eddies beautiful brown eyes that reminded him of a doe . The small boys skin was covered in freckles that looked like a constellation of stars . Richie hated his own freckles, but Eddies freckles all fell perfectly on his face and Richie felt his heart race . Eddies tidy brown hair made butterflies dance in Richie’s stomach. Richie unsquinted his eyes and now the beautiful boys features were hidden and turned into a short blur. “ You’re not supposed to forge your signatures….. Did any of your friends have your back at least” the small boy looked up and Richie. “ I don’t have any friends” Richie looked down . Eddie held Richies hand. “Well, you do now.”
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The next day, the class skipped gym to have their eyes and hearing checked. Eddie and Richie were in the back of the line, giggling at nicknames Richie made up for their teacher. “Mr.Gold? More like Mr.Old” Richie remarked with shy laughter. Stan and Bill approached the giggling pair. “Eddie, why did you get in line with-” Stan looked at Richie with disgust. “Why don't you get in line with us?” “Sorry” Eddie said unapologetically. As Stan and Bill walked away, Stan leaned into Eddie and whispered in the small boys ear “ Pick a side, Kaspbrak” and before Eddie could try and reason, Stan had disappeared into the halls. A few minutes later Richie came out of the nurses grungy room, with cracked coke bottle glasses laying on his nose. Eddie couldn’t help but laugh at the thick lenses that made Richie’s eyes look ten times bigger than their actual size. “ What? What’s so funny?” Richie felt himself blush , feeling embarrassment as well as joy as he could see the small boy’s beautiful face as he laughed. “ You look like a dweeb” Eddie giggled. Eddie thought Richie looked cute with his large glasses, but Eddie wouldn't dare say it aloud. Richie took off his glasses now and looked down. Eddie asked what was wrong but Richie would just tell him that nothing was wrong and stay silent. Richie sat by himself at lunch, doodling much better drawings on his arm now that he had glasses. Eddie started to walk past the lanky boy. Eddie looked down at his ripped jeans. “Why do you like wearing ripped jeans?” Eddie said, not sitting down. Richie adjusted his large glasses and looked at Eddie. “ I- I don't. I just wear them a lot.” Eddie seemed to have a puzzled expression on his face. “I don't mean to rip my jeans, I just trip a lot ya know?” Richie said quickly, a shiver going down his spine. Eddie could tell something was off, but he accepted the answer and walked to a table on the opposite side of the table Richie was at, and he sat down to hang out with a group of boys and a girl with long, curly, red hair that reminded Richie of a beautiful fire. Richie looked down at the scribbles on his hand. He folded his arms on the table and put his head in his lanky arms. Richie was incomplete darkness. He stared into it, hoping someone, anyone, would find him, and tell him everything was going to be alright. Nobody came, until a tall boy, taller than Richie, who had a mullet and large muscles approached the boy with an intimidating grin, holding up a switchblade. “No” Richie said, his voice scared and drowned out. Richie realized he was under water and panicked. The blurred strong boys sharp knife came closer to Richie. Richie Richie!Wake up! Richie jolted awake, and Eddie noticed his tear stained face.Eddie examined the lanky figure, and asked him why he had been yelling, no, screaming for help. Richie looked up and saw Eddie’s friends give Richie a judging stare. “Im okay, I just fell asleep. Had a nightmare, I guess.” Richie shivered , recapping the boy putting his knife gradually closer to Richie as he drowned. “What happened, in your nightmare” Eddie said, leaning closer to the lanky boy, softly brushing his hand across Richie’s boney fingers. “Do you know Henry Bowers?” Richie asked looking at the frail freckled boy next to him. Richie took the hand that had been brushing against his fingers. Eddie nodded slightly, almost unsure of if he actually knew whom Richie was referring to. “Well..you know how he always carries his blade? He tried to stab me in the dream.. I think… it felt real though.. I could almost sense his blade getting closer.” A brief look of shock spread across Eddies face. “He carries a knife in school?!!” Eddie looked at the lanky boy as he nodded, practically shaking. Richie folded his arms around a part of his chest Eddie covered his mouth with his hands as unshed tears formed in his eyes. “Did he…” Eddie looked at how the lanky boy had slanted his crossed arms on his chest. Richie gently nodded. “ But Eds… it felt real. Everything around me… felt real. I was drowning. I couldn't breathe, and i can feel the taste of fresh water in my mouth.” Richie squeezed Eddie’s hand tightly. “ Do you want to meet me at the quarry later? It might get your mind off your nightmare” Richie grinned and a light pink glow spread across his usually pale cheeks. “Yeah, i'd love that”