March 23rd, 1986
Eddie grumbled, standing up on the boat and stepping onto the hardwood floor. He peeked through the window, seeing if anyone was out there. He could see two guys sitting in a small boat, fishing. His mind was trying to occupate itself with something other than everything that had been going on. Talking to Lorraine helped, but she was tired and also in a state of shock still. They were adapting, the best they could.
"I'm starving." Lorraine whispered, leaning her head against the wall, crossing her arms.
"Then let's get something to eat." He smirked, heading to the door placing his hand on the doorknob. Before he could open it Lorraine stopped him, placing a hand on his.
"Are you sure we can just…" She said, motioning her head towards the door.
"We'll be fine." He said, confidently. He wasn't sure if that was true, but he wasn't going to act like he was terrified of leaving the shack. Lorraine scrambled to get the walkie-talkie before quickly following Eddie, almost stumbling on her own feet.
They both crouched low as they almost crawled to the steps of Rick's house, moving quickly and quietly as they could. Lorraine grabbed a hold of the chain that bounced up and down as Eddie walked, hoping that it wouldn't make any more noise. That, and the reassurance that she wouldn't lose him on the way, somehow.
Eddie opened the screen door slowly, trying to make no noise as he did, finally entering and giving a sigh as he held the door open for her to come in. He quickly shut it, backing away from the windows, just in case.
Lorraine sighed, throwing herself onto the couch, closing her eyes. "Holy crap, a cushion".
Eddie laughed as he gave her a quick glance before moving towards the kitchen, opening cabinets left and right. He couldn't find anything decent, only finding either empty cabinets or plates and cups. Finally, he reached for one just above eyesight, swinging it open he saw a can of Spaghettios. He pursed his lips, giving a sharp sigh.
"Yeah," He snorted ironically. "You'll do."
Lorraine watched from the couch as Eddie tried to find a pan that wasn't covered in dust. Finally settling on a medium-sized one, which he blew in, almost sneezing as he did. She giggled, incorporating herself and leaning to watch Eddie turn on the stove.
"What's for dinner then, Eddie?" She smirked, watching him struggle to open the can.
"Roast beef." He said, ironically, turning his face only slightly to look over to her, giving her a small smirk. He took a wooden spoon from the drawer in front of him, plopping the not so delightful food into the pot. He swirled the contents for a few seconds, letting it rest as it heated up.
Lorraine stood up and wandered the living room just beside the open kitchen, looking around the house for something that could entertain them. She gleamed when she saw a small radio on the shelf, quickly turning it on and leaving the volume almost to the lowest it could go. The house was so quiet, it sounded almost like the music was blaring at a festival.
She walked over to Eddie who was still fiddling with the pasta. Beside him, she left her hand dangling around his back, marking circles with her finger as she peered into the pot.
"Mm, yummy." She said sarcastically, turning and leaning against the countertop. She placed her hands on the broken plastic and hoisted herself up, sitting there as she watched Eddie. Her legs swung back and forth, almost like a kid waiting for their midday sandwich.
"It's the 'on-the-run' diet." Eddie laughed, turning off the stove as he scooped some of the pasta into the wooden spoon and blew on it. He reached the spoon out, placing a hand below the spoon as he motioned for Lorraine to take a bite.
Giggling, she took a bite from the wooden spoon. The mushy pasta and hotdog was luke-warm, but it really did feel like she was eating roast beef. She licked her lips as she continued to laugh, covering her mouth so as to not let the food spill out.
Eddie laughed, loudly, only for a moment before he caught himself. He also took a few bites from the pot, almost devouring it. "It's shit but damn," He said laughing, his mouth full. "Hits the spot."
Lorraine swallowed, trying to control her laughter as she did so. She looked over to Eddie, watching the smile across his face, the fine lines marking deep into his skin, his eyes almost shut as he looked down at the food. He must have felt her gaze, as he lifted his eyes to hers. Without breaking the smile, they both looked into each other. In the midst of the end of the world, Lorraine felt like she could never love him more than she did in this very moment.
Wiping his lips, Eddie walked over to Lorraine, placing himself between her legs. His hands landed on her face, cupping it. The radio in the background crackled, sounds of old jazz music playing through. Lorraine took a hand to Eddie's, pushing her face more into his grasp.
"Don't move," He said, smiling. Lorraine lifted her brows in shock, giggling softly.
"Why not?"
He pursed his lips and he titled his head, caressing her cheek with his thumb. A small smirk grew on the corner of his lips, Lorraine bouncing her eyes from his lips to his chocolate brown eyes, to his cheekbones and back down.
He whispered, barely audible, "I want to remember this."
Lorraine's heart dropped suddenly. The sadness, the love that she felt in those words. Her chest raised and buckled as she began to breathe deeply, pushing away the tears that threatened to form around her eyes. Before she could say anything, Eddie leaned down and began to kiss her, softly, pressing his upper lip against her.
She returned the kiss, reaching her hands to his face as Eddie's dropped to her waist, slightly squeezing. The kiss grew in intensity, as his tongue caressed her lips, begging for her to let him in. With a soft sigh of pleasure, exhaling through her nose, she let him in. Her hand wrapped around his neck, pushing herself more into him. Eddie pulled on her jeans, pressing himself against her.
Lorraine slowly slid to the floor, as Eddie guided her backwards towards the living room. Stumbling on a few pieces of furniture, only their soft giggles broke the kiss, only to lunge at each other once more. Eddie turned her around, softly bending down and Lorraine climbed onto the couch.
scene cut
Realizing that they had been spending too much time in the house, scared someone might find them, they quickly ate the rest of the food they had cooked earlier. Lorraine went to the bathroom, splashing water in her face as Eddie tried to make contact with the others.
With only a "stay put, we'll be there", and a quick good-bye, Eddie was left hanging as he softly shouted into the walkie for Nancy to come back. He swore, as he continued to chew on the pasta in his mouth. He could really use that six-pack right now.
Leaving the pan on the counter, he turned to put his jacket on, waiting for Lorraine by the doorway. Once she had gotten back, they both quietly looked out of the windows, seeing that the coast was clear. Lorraine opened the door slowly, creeping out of the house and down the stairs, Eddie's hand tightly woven in her fingers.
Waiting for the others, Lorraine was half asleep as Eddie tossed some pebbles into an empty can he found lying around. He tried to make as little noise as possible, as her head rested on his thigh. She could only see the back of her head, but could imagine the drool spilling out of the corner of her mouth, like it usually did, and smiled at the thought.
Suddenly, Eddie heard car doors slamming way too close for comfort. Lorraine jolted as she woke up to the noise, quickly turning and facing Eddie. He looked down at her, a worried look on his face. He stood up quickly, only to crouch as he stepped closer to the window.
"It's Jason." He shouted under his breath. "Shit. Shit. Shit." He was beginning to lose it, watching as the group of boys slowly went closer to the house that had been in only hours before. Lorraine sprawled across the floor, reaching for the walkie.
She pressed down nervously, hoping that someone would be at the other end. "Dustin, are you there?"
Eddie came crawling to her, rapidly taking the walkie from her hand. "Dustin, remember me, right? It's Eddie."
Silence.
"Hey, if anyone's there, I really think we might be in a bit of trouble here." He frantically released the button, only to hold it down again, almost shouting in a panic induced state into the radio. "Okay? Wheeler?" He smacked the radio forcefully, impatiently. "Anybody?!"
Lorraine watched from the window, seeing if she could find any movement inside of the house, as Eddie lunged towards her, setting the radio on a box beside them.
"Okay we're definitely alone in this." He said, his voice pitching higher as his nerves were getting the best of him.
"Don't worry," she said, turning to him, grabbing his shoulders so that his attention was fully on her. "They won't come in here. Got it, Eddie? They're not getting to you."
Eddie watched as the rays of sunlight slowly traveled down Lorraine's face, marking every little detail he had always tried to memorize. The sun was setting, the sky falling into a deeper blue and purple shade, as they both stared at each other in silence, their breath getting caught in their throats as they both tried their best to stay calm.
They stared at each other, only taking their gaze away to look at the window next to them whenever they heard the smallest noise. The sun had gone down already, the only light that helped them see what was going on was the overhead porch lamp directly above them outside of the shack.
Lorraine felt like it was eerily quiet, and shot a look at Eddie, before whispering. "Get in the boat."
Confused, he furrowed his brows as Lorraine grabbed his denim jacket in her fists, almost throwing him towards the boat. "I said. Get. In. The. Boat."
She stood up, confidently, trying to fix her hair like she hadn't been there for the past 40 hours. She turned to Eddie, untying the boat from the dock.
"What are you doing?!" He shouted under his breath, trying to stand up on the rocky boat.
"Just. Go." She said, pushing the boat out of the dock as she threw him an oar.
"Lorraine!" He screeched angrily, but quickly turned and sat on the boat, quietly rowing himself away.
She whipped around on her heel, reaching for the door and opening it slowly, only to find Jason and his ghoul right in her face. Lorraine almost screamed, but composed herself, giving off a chuckle mixed in her sigh.
"Where is he." He stated angrily.
"Who?" She said, raising her brows, turning around and looking at the empty dock.
"You're fucking freak boyfriend." He spat, his fist clenching.
"I have no idea who you're talking about, I'm just helping out my uncle." She said, slyly, pushing Jason away as she walked out of the shack towards the house. Her pace quickened as she heard them follow her.
"Don't play dumb, you bitch." Jason snarled, feeling a hand grab her arm as she was spun around to face him. Only inches from her face, she gasped for breath, the anxiety closing her throat, unable to speak.
"Lorraine!" A shout came from the dark sea of water, echoing across the lake. Jason and Lorraine both turned and saw Eddie, his face in fear and anger.
Jason immediately let her go, trying to get past her and towards Eddie. However, the anger, the sleep deprivation, the fear she was feeling made her do something she never thought she would have done under normal circumstances.
She pushed him away from the shore, as Jason opened his mouth to say something her fist clenched and swung at him, hitting him right in the nose and front teeth. She winced at the pain, feeling how his bone broke her skin. He lifted his head, at first completely surprised by what she had just done, only to turn into anger in just a few seconds.
Realizing what she had just done, her jaw unclenched and she felt the adrenaline kick in as she quickly turned around and ran to the shore. Without hesitation she flung herself in the water, kicking her legs as fast as she could until she could reach the boat.
"Come on!" Eddie screamed, trying to get the motor going as Lorraine scrambled into the boat, almost tipping them over. "Gotta help me out here, man." He said smacking the motor forcefully, hoping that it would work.
Lorraine tried to wipe the water out of her eyes, pulling her hair back. She saw Jason had already taken his clothes off, his buddy following as he was inching nearer to the boat. Eddie continued to fight the motor. "Come on! Come on you piece of shit!" He screeched, his voice cracking in fear.
"God damnit!" He screamed, flinging himself over the boards, "Nope? Okay. All right. Okay." He grabbed the ore and began to paddle as fast as he could, without spinning them around in circles.
"Eddie…" Lorraine said, worryingly.
"I got it, Lor." He said forcefully, spit almost covering her as he bit his lip trying to row faster. Seeing he was growing tired, he stood up, making Lorraine follow his actions without thought, waving the ore at Jason.
"Hey, stay back man!" He shouted at Jason, pointing the ore at him. "Stay back!"
He started swinging the ore, like it would somehow stop him from coming any closer. Trying to keep her balance, Lorraine rested a hand on Eddie's shoulder.
Jason stopped for a moment, looking at his friend behind him almost frozen in fear. "Hey, come on. We almost have him!"
The boy didn't answer, Eddie lowering the ore without letting it go as Lorraine slowly let go of his shoulder. It looked like he was looking at someone else, someone who wasn't there.
"Hey Patrick!" Jason screamed, "Patrick."
But the boy didn't even look at him, unbothered by what was going on. All he was at that moment was a head floating and bouncing with the waves of the lake. Until, the floating head wasn't there anymore.
Jason began to repeat the boy's name several times, like he could call him back. All three were shocked to see that the boy had been pulled under by something. Lorraine's eyes widened, wondering what monster would have grabbed him.
Suddenly, the boy's body flung out of the water and started to lift into the air, like he was being pulled by something high above the heavens. Eddie's heart stopped as he saw him, dangling from something no one could see, losing his balance and falling backwards into the water.
Lorraine couldn't grab a hold of air before she was suddenly under water, the cold shocking her body like a thousand volts of electricity. For a moment she couldn't move, her eyes closed shut as she could see images of her mother reading a book at her bedside table, or preparing her lunch; Robin was trying on clothes, trying to empress Vickie, the girl she liked and wanted Lorraine's opinion; Steve, although infuriating sometimes, giving her a warm smile and nod whenever he asked how she was doing; Dustin's smile glowing as he talked on and on about D&D to her. Finally, Eddie's laugh rang in her head, a million photographs flashing in her mind of them growing up, only to stop at the memory of giving him Lord of The Rings for his birthday, and how he couldn't put the book down.
Her lungs begged for air at the surface, huffing and coughing as she almost swallowed half of the lake in the few seconds she was under. Neither of them noticed each other floating beside one another, only fixating their eyes to the boy now floating in the air.
Lorraine could hear the crack in his bones, the pain he must have felt, she could feel the sorrow of the family who would find the boy like this. His body continued to snap, bending in ways no human body should ever bend, until finally his eyes seemed to pop out of place, leaving bloody dark holes.
She screamed, her body shaking in fear and in the cold, the scream was the most visceral thing that had ever come out of her mouth. It was like she could feel her throat bleed, like she was never going to get out of this nightmare. The only other thing that could be heard was the splash of the body dropping into the lake once more, continued by silence.