hard times// eddie + richie // IT

cherry cola and heat waves

here's a little fluff while i'm thinking of what to write :)))
*from the pov of bill*

THIS WAS BEFORE THE FIRST CHAPTER EVEN STARTED SO IT WAS BEFORE ANY DRAMA.

the radio played an old song as i sat on my back porch, a cherry cola in hand. i heard georgie's blissful giggle from the pool. his head emerged from the water.
"come in, bill!" georgie called. i laughed.
"i'm good here, g-georgie," i told him. he frowned.
"you always go swimming with your friends at the quarry and i'm never allowed to go," he pouted. i pondered for a moment. georgie was too little to go to the quarry, because the water was too deep. but our pool was just the right size for him and six other people i knew...
after making a few calls, the plans were set. i asked my parents to run out and get cookout supplies. richie showed up first, which was nice because he was georgie's favorite.
"richie!" georgie cheered. richie gave me a knowing glance, and then he picked up georgie.
"how are you, kid?" he asked, using the accent georgie loved. he giggled.
"i'm happy, now that you're here! also, bill let me try cherry soda for the first time today and it's so good!" georgie explained, trying to mimic richie's accent. richie laughed.
"why are you here, though?" georgie asked. richie put him on the floor.
"oh, i was in the neighborhood, so i just stopped by," he answered. suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
stan had shown up, right on time, at exactly 4:00. georgie grabbed richie by the hand and dragged him to stan.
"hiya stan!" he joked, and stan smiled down at him.
"what's up, georgie?" stan asked, and crouched down so his face was level with georgie.
"i was swimming! and you and richie are here so that's really fun!" he cried, almost bouncing with excitement. stan smirked at richie, and then at me.
"can i show you the new lego turtle i built?" georgie asked, before grabbing stan's hang and dragging him and richie to his room.
my mother and father entered through the screen door of the patio and started grilling burgers and hotdogs. i put a few boxes of ice pops in the freezer.
next to arrive was mike and ben.
luckily, georgie was consumed with showing stan and richie his legos that he didn't hear then come in.
i set up ben and mike to prepare the drinks. they filled a cooler with ice, and then they stuck every kind of soda we had in the fridge in it. mike carried it out to the patio.
eddie arrived about five minutes later. he had brought an assortment of fruit, which is very much like him. we set it on the table on the patio. georgie walked out of his room, with stan and richie, who both looked quite worn out. georgie probably talked their ears off.
georgie gasped, but before we could say anything, the doorbell rang.
"t-that must b-be our la-last guest," i told everyone, opening the door to reveal beverly. she smiled.
"hey everyone," she said. georgie was beaming.
"this is like a party!" he squealed, throwing his hands up in the air.
"that's because it is a party," mike answered, smiling sweetly at georgie.
"come outside," eddie beckoned.
the pool was decorated with lights, the tables were filled with food. music was blaring from the radio. the perfect cookout with the perfect people. georgie giggled.
"wow!" he exclaimed, before running to jump into the pool.
"aren't you guys coming?" he asked, after surfacing from the water.
"hel-i mean heck yes!" richie yelled, before running towards the pool. beverly followed him. stan and eddie walked to the shallow end of the pool and slowly climbed in. mike and ben followed. soon, it was just me standing on the patio.
"c'mon, bill!" richie exclaimed, before getting dunked in the water by stan.
"yeah, what are you waiting for?" beverly asked.
"n-nothing, i'm j-just happy to have y-you all h-here," i said. then, i had an idea.
"i'll b-be right b-back!" i told everyone, before running into my house. i came back with a polaroid camera and my mother.
"i w-want some p-pictures." everyone got out of the water and posed for pictures. my mother took one for each of us.
after my mother was finished and she had gone inside, i smiled.
"i-i'm happy y-you guys could m-make it," i told everyone. before i could react, they all picked me up and carried me to the pool. they tossed me in, and then jumped in after.
who knew something as simple as a pool party for your brother could be the best moments of your life? chicken fights ensued, which i should have won, but mike and georgie were super strong.
richie's karaoke was actually pretty good, and i think he should be a singer one day. eddie made sure everyone was hydrated. ben told us new games he learned at his old school, and they turned out to be super fun. when it got dark, beverly told scary stories while we ate ice pops in lawn chairs. i had never seen georgie so happy.
he fell asleep in his chair, and my parents carried him upstairs. before he left, everyone said bye to him.
"bye guys," georgie said, weakly. he gave a small wave.
"bye georgie, i had a lot of fun," eddie said.
"we'll always be the best chicken fighters!" mike exclaimed.
"sleep well, georgie," ben said.
"night, kiddo!" richie joked.
"goodnight, georgie," stan said.
"sweet dreams!" beverly called.
"s-see you i-in the m-morning georgie," i told him.
"thanks guys," georgie mumbled.
"thanks for planning this, bill. i love you," he told me, before being carried off.
without georgie, the innocence melted away from out party, and we became like normal teens. richie, who hadn't sworn all day for the sake of georgie, really let loose with his language. truth or dare was played, and many people were kissed.
i had to kiss stan, beverly, and eddie.
weird.
by the time the moon was high in the sky, we were worn out. one by one, people started to leave. mike left first.
"i've got a ways to bike, so i should probably get going," he told everyone.
we told him goodbye, and he left.
next, eddie left.
"it's getting late and my mom's probably waiting," he said.
then, stan left.
"i've got to be at the temple early in the morning, so i should probably get going."
beverly left soon after.
"i'm tired so i'm gonna head home."
ben left not long after beverly.
"thanks for having me, but i should probably get going."
finally, richie left.
"well this party is officially over, so i'm gonna head home."
i shut the door behind richie.
today was a great day, and i knew i would cherish it forever. i loved my friends, and knowing that they would come out and hang with georgie like that made me feel warm inside.
i crawled into my bed and dreamed of summer and good memories.

i hope that's enough fluff to hold everyone over.. i liked writing this. so wholesome. :)