AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hey!! Welcome to the end credits part of the story, and basically a BTS, bonus pack, insider look or whatever you'd like to call it.

First of all, I'd just like to say how happy I am with the end result of this story, and how lucky I feel to have readers and voters and commenters like you guys. You honestly make my day when you comment funny things or let me know how you liked the chapters. It was a wild ride, and I couldn't be happier with the experience that this has brought me.

I learned a lot from Dramatic. Not just about grammar and shit, but also lots of future deeply-seated stuff that I will be able to pick up and carry into my next works. Things like the correct structure of a story, or what readers really enjoy! (But honestly, the truth is, Dramatic taught me that there really is no specific structure to a story, and the people that enjoy your work are your people) Obviously there's lots of things to work on, and by a lot I mean A LOT. But when trying to be positive, and I think back, I'm really proud of this and see it as a large improvement compared to my previous works, which some aren't even published lol.

Also I'm gonna quickly address Psychotic, my other published book haha. Honestly, don't EVER read that please LMFAO. I was in like the 6th grade and had no idea what I was doing. It was a creative outlet I used that garnered a ton of attention, and I simply keep it up now because others liked it. It would be gone now if it weren't for the dozens and dozens of people adding it to their library almost every day. It's crazy, and sometimes I wished it wasn't that story of mine that went sort of viral out of the two lol. But it's okay, because hopefully Dramatic will be a bit more known later on. Anyways, moral of the story, it's truly not my best work, suuuuper bad and never waste your time on it LOL.

I guess at the time of writing it, I didn't know Reddie was a thing (the movie had just come out or something, idk) or maybe I just wasn't as interested at the time, because for some reason I wrote a Richie x fem!oc. Which, honestly, I hated the way I wrote that character, and basically everything else in the story, but I shouldn't fret. I didn't come here to bash my old self LMDHJ. But yeah, that happened.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, we can get on to the juicy stuff. Put your thinking caps on, because this is probably going to be a lot to digest. Here in this Author's Note chapter, we will be going over everything Dramatic. From the tiniest minute detail to the stupidest of references made by- yours truly, the author. Viewer discretion is advised. lol

So! Let's get this party started.

As you all know, Dramatic was shaped to become some sort of warped version of Romeo and Juliet. *swooning* Star-crossed lovers, destined to be together, forced to stay apart. Yada yada yada. I gladly put my own twist into the classic story, and hopefully had you guys interested.

At first, it was a simple enemies to lovers. In fact, they were forced to be together in the beginning. Everything they didn't want to do. But they grew fond and, eventually, things happened. Matters progressed.

Stan and Bill separating again after the first party chapter was obviously supposed to mimic the Montague and Capulet rivalry. Thus, kicking off the story to spiral into the chaotic Romeo and Juliet replica it was meant to be. All the while, they literally have to perform the said Shakespeare play for their Theatre class. Essentially, script seeping into reality. I've read a few books and watched movies similar to that idea, which is sort of how it got to be that way in Dramatic.

Which is meant to be extremely ironic, because though Richie plays the infamous Mercutio in his school play, he's truly portraying the Romeo of the general story while he's at it. Same for Eddie, and being the Juliet of their "tragic" romance.

The balcony scene in Dramatic is where we solidify and establish the fact that Romeo and Juliet is truly what this story is turning into. Where Richie and Eddie literally recite lines from the show, and are in the exact same positions as Romeo and Juliet, situation-wise. Lmao.

But wait! I forgot to mention something. Let's take our last rewind of Dramatic, and scoot scoot back a little. To the very first Party scene!:

PARTY SCENE

The very first party scene... I really like to compare to the party scene of Romeo and Juliet, where, obviously, Romeo and Juliet kiss for the first time. It's a bit in disarray lol, since in the actual play, Romeo refused to dance at all, similar to Eddie being embarrassed to dance at first but then eventually giving in. So it's a little weird because suddenly the roles are switched and Eddie is Romeo for a bit here instead of Richie.

When they first almost kiss, Richie reluctantly stops and mentions that this isn't right. And obviously, in that sense, he meant they're two boys, and it can't possibly be right that they're messing around like this. Eddie basically says yeah whatever and they kiss anyway.

In Romeo and Juliet, they consider the kiss between them a sin, and repeatedly call it as so. When Juliet expresses concern because of that fact as they are just about to kiss, Romeo (translated to make sense for us lol, thanks SparkNotes) says "Sin from my lips? You encourage crime with your sweetness. Give me my sin back." and they kiss anyway.

With Richie and Eddie, their friends weren't exactly broken up at the time, but they sort of were in the literal process of doing so.

And that's what that meant. The first party scene was quite a ride to write, and I mean that in a good way, because it challenged me to hop from points of view constantly (and don't even begin to mention the second party, now that was something)

And I'm sure you all noticed how the kiss was super... how do I say this... organic? Natural? Easy? Well, you get it. The essence of this first kiss was meant to be sloppy and foggy, because although the narrator isn't exactly a character in particular, when both main characters- let me rephrase- when all characters are stoned and drunk as shit, with no one to rely on for a decent point of view, you can count on the story to be warped just a bit. Forgetful and all over the place.

And that compared to their first remembered kiss, is just so extremely different. The second (first) kiss is careful, calculated, and unsure. It's the genuine "should we be doing this?" and the answer is obviously no lmfao. It's where the whole process of freaking out and figuring out what it all means when it should have happened before.

SYMBOLISM

Okay so I'd say there was a lot of symbolism in this story, but I can't decide if that'd be an understatement or an overstatement. So I'll just let you decide...

Number one:

Richie's cloud dream

Now, you could go back and reread, and basically replace the cloud analogy with the idea that he is in fact gay, and it would make a lot more sense. Haha, but I knew building the analogy would help confuse him even more, which is what needed to happen. His subconscious was obviously telling him something.

That's why Beverly later told him that he probably had a dream that had to do with his -quote unquote- "psyche", because it literally did. You guys probably already knew about that, but I just like to clear it up.

I continued to reference the dream he had throughout the book, just every once in a while, and especially when he has his revelation about his sexuality in one of the chapters. Even in the last chapter, when they kiss under the rain, I suppose it could be interpreted as a literal take on the dream he had, and almost sort of coming to terms with sexuality and his identity in general.

As for the dream, I just liked to add the confusion into it for him, so he wouldn't really know what it was all about till it really hit him hard and he realized what he'd been battling with all his life. (Homosexuality isn't something that needs to be "battled" btw, but the idea that he may be denying it is a completely different story that is widely considered a harsh challenge for lots of youth. Denial sucks.)

It sucks having to write internalized homophobia too, and sexual awakenings LMFAO. I really felt for Richie in those chapters, because it can be really relatable for lots of people.

OOF, and I almost forgot to mention,

Invidia!

I heard you guys saying how much her name was absolutely ridiculous, and let me tell you, the feelings are completely mutual. It pained me to write in her name as Invidia, but I had to do it. For the symbolism!!

Invidia, in latin, means envy, or jealousy. And guess what! She just so happens to pop up almost every time Richie gets this seething hatred in his gut. Some type of feeling, whenever Myra and Eddie are around in the same room. *cough* richiethejealousprotectiveoverlydramaticbutstillcuteasfuckboyfriend*cough* sorry haha, something in my throat :)

Trust me, I, too, think Invidia is a horrible thing to name your child, never do that please haha, but it was a sacrifice that had to be made. For the symbolism!!

Anyways, next:

This is where we enter the big leagues I think. So listen closely :)

The end of Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy. You simply can't have the complete Romeo and Juliet tale without tragedy at the end. So this is how I incorporated tragedy without killing everyone :D

Rain and Thunder

The rain in the last few chapters helped to symbolize death and disaster. It was used in many ways to signal bad things. For example; thunder struck when Bowers was nearby, the snowstorm thundered on when that incident happened between Richie and Eddie in the Intermission, the rain constantly had Richie feeling more and more helpless again and again in the last few chapters, and so on. It seemed to signal misfortune, essentially. And, over the course of the day, eventually led to the story's tragedy.

Romeo and Juliet isn't Romeo and Juliet without the tragedy, so, mirroring the end of the actual Shakespeare play, I had Richie and Eddie's idiot versions of themselves figuratively die in the rain, leaving behind their doubt and suffering so they could be together in the end.

I even had Richie run out into the rain first, like how Romeo did, completing his role as the Romeo of the story, and him thinking Eddie (Juliet) had gone out before him. Only for Eddie to follow behind as the Juliet. Therefore, killing the characters without actually killing them lol.

Also an added tragedy is the fact that THEY NEVER GOT TO PERFORM ROMEO AND JULIET PROPERLY?!?! what a disaster

The Universe (The World)

I know I know, The Universe and The World are two very different things, but in this case, pretend they mean the same lol.

So, The Universe could easily be considered a recurring character in Dramatic because of how many times it's mentioned as some sort of approachable thing, purposefully written with certain elements of personification. Richie, or more specifically, the narrator, mentions the Universe plenty of times in moments of distress, and the last few chapters alone held around 5 mentions (5 "universe"s and 6 "world"s in total) LOL that's kinda weird.

To Richie, the world seemed just too harsh and unforgiving. He unknowingly expresses his feelings about this image of the world he sees -where he simply just doesn't belong- when he has that dream. The one where he's just- too different. Eddie blatantly asks him "Do you ever feel like this world just isn't meant for you?"

Lots of people feel like that when there's something that keeps them, metaphorically -or even literally- separated from people that seem most normal, and Richie evidently felt it heavily on his road to self-discovery. Not knowing why you're different from others for so damn long takes one hell of a toll. And I hoped to portray that correctly in this performance of Richies in Dramatic.

(You must have forgotten that it was a play all along HAHAHA. The chapters are obviously the acts, and I even had an intermission thrown in for ya there. But there's nothing deeper for that, it just fits well for the theatre theme. Hence its name "Dramatic" LOL anyways)

So there has always been that thing that oddly tethered Richie to the world/universe in a way that he wasn't meant to be tethered by. He was floating on a string half the time like an astronaut with no jet pack or whatever those things are called. And Eddie too. They both just easily felt so out of place in the world that they had to fit in with. Had to, or else, y'know?

Then there's the music that played at the first party. This might come as a shock to you.

"Everybody Wants To Rule The World"

"I'll Stop The World And Melt With You"

It all meant something in the end. All Richie and Eddie really wanted at first was to escape this stupid world together. They were both different in ways that they sensed within one another. Subconsciously, perhaps, but ways nonetheless. One of my favourite lines from the last few chapters was this:

"His hand fell back to his side, and for a moment, he let himself remember what it was like back then. When they hadn't yet decided on this irrational way of life, hidden from the world together. And hidden from each other, alone."

They were never truly together when the whole friends with benefits thing came into effect. They weren't willing to accept each other or themselves into the world as who they're meant to be. Which, it frankly sucks to be in that situation, and spreading it out into this book took a hot minute. But it all ended up making sense in the end.

"Why, Universe? Whyyyy" is basically what ran through Richie's head the whole time he went looking for Eddie in the end, and lots more times just scattered throughout the story. And for good reason, I guess. There were some pretty harsh things barreling his way throughout the story. Major turn of events nearly all the time, so it's understandable for Richie to... I guess not be fond of the Universe itself.

But... y'know, he had to end up forgiving it in the end. Because after all, him and Eddie figured things out. And technically lived happily ever after, even despite inevitable oncoming challenges headed their way. There's always those.

Loose ends like Bowers, Richie's mom and Eddie's mom and all that, I left it open-ended on purpose because, well... that's real life. You don't fix those things right away in the end. They're things you gradually overcome throughout life, after the triumphant story has already ended. And it takes a while, trust me. I don't know when this turned into a therapy session, but seriously. There always will be bullies left and right, and unforgiving mothers who will hate you for who you are (not trying to be specific, but you get what I mean). Fuck those people, those detours you'll encounter all the time. What matters is in you. It's about whether you know that you don't deserve it or not. That alone makes all the difference in the world. It's about knowing that there is a place for you in this universe, because why else would you be here in the first place?!

And that takes me to the very last few mentions of "universe" in Dramatic history:

"You hear that universe!? I love Richie Tozier!!"     -  Chapter XVI

"And now the universe has left them at peace. No more Oh no's or What if's for these two, for now. Who would've thought that all it took for the universe to leave them be is for each other to confess."   - EPILOGUE

Eddie seals the deal by confessing his undying love for Richie out to the utterly unforgiving universe, confessing his final sin to the skies and shedding his and Richie's old self away. This was how it was meant to be. And apparently that's all it takes. Suddenly, the universe is just a tad bit forgiving after all.

Whew! I did not mean to get that deep. But it's the truth. The lesson of the story. So I guess I'm just gonna get back to the rest of this  LMDBDN

Casting

I casted Richie as Mercutio not only because of the character similarities (According to a website I found, "Mercutio is described as a loyal best friend. Witty, funny, hotheaded, and perhaps even a bit crude." The only differences I'd found was that Richie was somewhat of a romantic, whereas Mercutio did not believe in the idea of true love at all. But you see the similarity lol), but in the play, Mercutio seemed to be deeply jealous of Rosaline and Juliet (both of Romeo's love interests in the play) and the interest that Romeo showed toward her.

Just like in theatre class, when Richie would scowl constantly at the thought of Eddie (Romeo) hanging out with Myra (Juliet) and them getting along. Also, according to another website, "It's not just "love" that Mercutio has a problem with. He's also pretty hostile toward women and female sexuality in general." Ring any bells? :)

Anyways, here's a good sort of analysis I found about Mercutio, if you wanna take a look. It's pretty interesting lol.

https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/romeo-and-juliet/mercutio

Myra, obviously, was the one to pick for Juliet. Mostly for the benefit of the story, and because it'd cause juicy conflict HAHA. It'd have Richie really have to come face to face with his emotions, and why the fuck he was feeling so protective and jealous over Eddie?!

And Eddie as Romeo because of the irony, since he is the literal Juliet in reality, and because it'd make everyone freak out. Also so he could show off how well Richie taught him!! :) bc Richie is a good teacher.

Janitors Closet

The janitors closet symbolized them both being hidden away. Obviously, it was very literal, in the sense that they were literally 'in the closet' together, and were afraid of taking their relationship (whatever it was meant to be at the time) out of the closet. This and Richie and Eddie's personal journeys were a bit hard to write, considering internalized homophobia was once a big part of my life as well, and is oftentimes hard to put down on paper because of it.

But luckily, they gain redemption from that at the dance in the epilogue.

The slow dance scene is meant to show that they don't need that closet anymore. They're basically taunting it by dancing in front of the hall and being their true selves together in its face. Fuck you, homophobia! It shows that they're ready for each other, and are not afraid of what their relationship is bound to bring to their lives anymore.

EVEN MORE REFERENCES AND FORESHADOWING

Lmfao yes, we need a separate tab for this, because I put a lot of work into the subtle nods and don't want them to go unnoticed.

ok so first of all:

Dumbass References

Here's a humbly placed reference that I added:

" Both Richie and Beverly's head cocked to the sky at this noise, so abrupt.

"Is it a full moon tonight, Bevvy? Oh, carry me! Werewolves are my worst fear" he says, high and shrilly, his arms coming up to drape around Beverly's shoulders. She shrugs them off of herself stubbornly, letting out a snort. "

This is when they're stranded in the woods after party number 2, and are trying to find one another, then they hear Eddie's voice. This was a small reference to the book/miniseries, where Richie's literal fear is werewolves, courtesy of the movie he watched with the Losers. Lol.

Anyways, next:

" Eddie returned shortly with cotton balls and a bottle of some kind. "You honestly could've gotten yourself killed talking to Bowers that way, or worse, fucking expelled" Eddie rolled his eyes, approaching Richie, who sat perched on the edge of the bed. "

Yes... I am indeed an idiot. But I just had to do it to em.

This disaster is a horrible nod to one of my favourite series', Harry Potter. Eddie always sort of reminded me of Hermione in certain fics I'd read, and I simply couldn't resist. That's all.

My Subtle Horny-Boy Bashing

Moral of this foreshadowing: I hate gay people So Much  /j

Next up:

" They're both gazing up, and Eddie sighs dreamily, cocking his head to the side. "You think you could write a poem about this?"

Ben is quiet for a moment. "About what?"

"The sky tonight," Eddie responds like it's obvious. "It's beautiful" he breathes out, quiet, almost to himself.

"I can't say it's that easy, but... maybe" he says, and Eddie gives him a confused look.

"Maybe?"

"Alright, yes actually, I probably could" he nods, smiling appreciatively at the sky one last time before returning to looking forward into the distance. "I just.. think it's deeper than that."

"How do you mean?" Eddie queries in wonder.

"I dunno, I just think it'd be easier, better, if some sort of emotion were connected to it" he says, and Eddie listens intently.

"Like, it's pretty and all, I could write about that, but it wouldn't really mean anything if there was no feelings behind it. And the truth is, everything has feelings, just depends on whether you let em show or not."

And Ben was right. Nothing is really all that good when there's no emotions to go with it. It's just... external. Physical. Superficial. "

Sorry it's long lol, but this is also in the party number two chapter, when they're in the woods. This is basically just me subtly bashing Richie and Eddie for being in a friends with benefits relationship, bc it was so annoying to write that. DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT WAS TO NOT MAKE THEM SAY I LOVE YOU?!?;&): welp. anyways i hated them for being idiots about hiding their feelings LMAO

And The Prom (gay gay gay, in subtext)

Another thing that is just straight up painfully obvious; The fact that the school named the prom Spring Awakening. HA! Even that made me laugh for some reason. In case you don't know, Spring Awakening (according to wikipedia lmfao) "is a major play written sometime between 1890 and 1891, but did not receive its first performance until 1906. The play criticizes the sexually oppressive culture of nineteenth century and offers a vivid dramatization of the erotic fantasies that it breeds. Due to its controversial subject matter, the play has often been banned or censored."

But there's a much more recent adaptation of it in musical form that, set in late 19th-century Germany, tells the story of teenagers discovering the inner and outer chaos and confusion of adolescent sexuality. Wink wonk, what a coincidence!

Anyways yeah, Derry high really fucked up with that one LOL. Obviously, the musical hadn't been made back in 1992-93 when this all took place, but the ancient play alone was pretty widely known as very controversial and *gasp* homosexual.

Richie and Stan's Initial Dynamic

First of all, you guys might've noticed. Here in the second chapter, there's a specific paragraph that sort of foreshadows certain things that happen in Richie's brain;

" Usually he's open to thinking about people during the day. All of the time! It's something he quite frankly cannot control.

He thinks about Beverly during his classes. About how eager he is to go to the next football game together and shout insults to the jocks that trip him in the halls "as an accident". He thinks about ways to get her out of her house; calling her home with a (surprisingly accurate) girl voice and chatting into the phone obnoxiously until her father hands it to her. He thinks about Stan a lot too. About his dumb noodle hair and funny monotone voice and his much too formal clothing style. If he had a Sunday best, it'd be fucking exquisite, Richie used to think to himself with a chuckle. "

Notice how when he talks about Beverly, it's not exactly her physical features as much as how fun she is as a friend. And on the contrary, with Stan, he almost unknowingly showers Stan in compliments and things he literally likes about him as a person in his life. He likes a lot about Stan in the first chapter, evidently.

And tbh I'll leave it up to you guys as to whether you think Richie still had a crush on him in the very first chapter. It arguably talks a fucking lot about how he's jealous. And I ambiguously placed the fact that he misses being that close with Stan the way Bill is once Bill is in the picture. So I wouldn't be surprised.

When Stan first stated that Bill talked to him at the lunch table that day, Richie immediately got jittery and actually quite defensive. It'd make more sense if you looked back on it, so yeah. Richie probably definitely was still hung up on Stan all that time. Holy shit. My poor Tozier boy is honestly always obliviously lovesick.

I just love how I'm figuring things out about my own story as I type things LMFAO. I just think Stozier is neat! Scratch that, i love them so much istg lol.

Act V, And What The Beginning Of It Offered To The Story

The chapter that starts up that Eddie has never been one to scream... at first I didn't like it very much, but then I realized that it was meant to show the fact that, in the end, Richie makes Eddie dramatic. Lmao. Obviously, it goes so much deeper than just Eddie being more vocal, because they're just generally meant to be each other's guide in the world when they first meet. A line from the story I wrote that I think might be generally overlooked is this:

"Richie is aware that he has self control. And he's also aware that the best times he's had with Eddie in fact weren't the ones locked in the janitors closet together, or doing any of that stuff. It was when they were friends, bickering and teasing and being each other's new eyes to the world."

That sort of circles back to the whole world/universe thing I mentioned earlier.

When you meet someone new (try and look at this through a main character point of view haha), it's inevitable that you'll be seeing things in a different light than before, once you get to know them. How their mind works, the cracks and crevices that you may notice within them that just make them different. In Richie and Eddie's case, Richie's personality and Dramatic demeanor rubbed off on Eddie easily. Richie opened him up to a world where you can freely express yourself. And I guess that must be a reason as to why Richie loves Theatre so much in the first place. Because it lets him express himself and even become a different person for a while. Which is depressing, but is a seriously real form of coping. HAH I'd definitely know.

Anyways, Eddie in the end, was not nearly as quiet and reserved as he once was. I would've added a parallel if I hadn't forgotten to lmfao. Where in the beginning, just first meeting Eddie, he was mostly silent, good posture and too respectful. Then compared to the end of the book, where he can finally sit next to Richie again after so long, but this time he looks so much more relaxed. Less tamed, because maybe tame isn't always a good thing.

As for Richie, well, the story isn't really about Eddie rubbing off on him as much as it is vice versa. I mean, the book is literally called Dramatic. But I can confirm that they do get married, and Richie ends up being much cleaner than he once was as an unhygienic teenager because of Eddie. Either way, that's just what happens in relationships over time. You gain similar habits and mirroring one another subconsciously is super normal. Which is reflected HEAVILY in the meaning behind the whole book HAHAHA. so yeah. That's Dramatic for ya.

And last but not least..

MY NOTES, A VERY EMBARRASSING REVEAL

So, incase you guys might not know, I keep a chapter in this book forever unpublished that is basically my notes and reminders for writing the book. Complete with timeline order, character personalities and hobbies and an extremely basic walk-through of almost every scene ever written in Dramatic. You might think that sounds impressive, but its the exact opposite. And to further prove this point, I just thought it'd be funny to post a small snippet of one of my insanely incoherent idea strikes. This particular excerpt is from my notes, of me waking up at the ass crack of dawn because id just gotten the best idea ever for the 2nd party that the losers go to seperately. I give my full permission for you to laugh at borderline-delusional me:

p.s. none of this is edited. this is exactly how it looks in my notes chap. good luck.

"

they keep just barely missing one another, expecting that the other party just isn't around FALSE

bill and stan wandering around separately then seeing eachother like wtf

cut to whatever ben and beverly are doing (separately) (probably pass by eachother just by chance and don't see one another)

cut to richie wandering around, then something happens that connects to bens story and he shouts FUCK and eddies all they way across the house, but he hears it and is like "richie?" and chases it, but after a second shakes it off

then a similar thing happens to eddie that connects to stan's story, and eddie does something else insane from it, and richies like what the fawk and tries to check it out, but eddies gone already. oh well

then cut to bill and stan fucking barging into some room upstairs and making the fuck out. "i still hate you, bitch" "this doesn't change a single thing" "fuck you" "fuck you". angry making out. then they get interrupted by LITERALLY THE COPS COME.

ben is like omfg and finds eddie, and is like shit let's DIP and eddie is like fuck ur right. catching onto his inhaler from the fanny pack like oh gOD, and the camera slips out he doesn't see it fall. and further away beverly is like fUCK where's stan we need to DIP and richie is like ur right, and they leave from the back door and richie finds eddie's camera and is like what the shit, but says nothing and keeps it. basically cinderella. and the end i think

edit: it was, in fact, not the end.

"

whew.

Anywayssss, I transcribed the whole book onto my google docs, and apparently this has around +360 pages in book form! Insanity!!

Just saying, if any of you guys have anything to analyze or point out in this book that you think meant a lot and that maybe I just didn't mention, TELL ME HERE RIGHT THE HECK NOW. i know yall are smart, so if you wanna one-up me on my analysis skills, feel free :) you guys are just so awesome istg

Welp. I guess this is the end of the line. I'm gonna miss this story SO BAAAAD, but hopefully with all this extra insight to what this book was all about, you'll feel more connected to it than before. I know I do by just writing it. So yeah. It's been a long ride. Definitely my most favorite book I've ever written. (i have a few WIPs, but I feel like none of them could amount to this. It couldn't possibly be the same) Again, this was such an amazing experience, and I will literally never forget it. You guys made it just so so So so so so so much more amazing. Seriously. You made me feel so much better about what I do, and encourage me to do what I love. So thanks. For a final time. Love and light!

- author

Alright hey, I lied. Not over yet, sorry lol. But because you're here, and you made it this far, I'm just giving y'all a itty bitty tiny mini snippet of the new reddie book that's in progress right now. Lucky bastards, you are. Anyways, here you go; *new curtain opens as the old one comes to a close* *cries silently*

"

CHAPTER 1: THE WEIRDO IN HALL 14

"Try and keep up, Eddie! This is as slow as I'm willing to go," Stan chimes, swiftly passing the shorter boy on his bike in the crisp September air.

"Cut him some slack. He forgot his bike again," Mike says, rolling his eyes with a smile.

I have but one question for you this fine morning. Have you ever seen a more prestigious group of friends than The Losers Club?

...Probably.

Although they might as well look like the average friend group you'd see, they're actually a handful of weirdos. Hence the name, Losers Club.

For the sake of cinema, I advise you to imagine the following as a string of freeze frames.

So let's see. Bill Denbrough! Jeesh, poor guy. He could be considered the leader of the pack if you ask the rest, but his quiet, shy manner says otherwise. He has a long reputation of being bullied in elementary, middle, and high school for his stutter. It's mostly gone by now, but that doesn't stop people from shitting all over him for it. Oh yeah, not to mention his dead brother. It was too long ago to be a touchy topic by now, but the bullies would never let him forget it.

Stanley Uris! Now there's a prestigious face in the crowd. Somewhat prestigious, at least. He's an all A-minus student, no extracurriculars whatsoever, and a sarcastic-little-shit addition to the Losers Club. Also one of the only Jewish students in the entirety of Derry High, which results in almost daily torment from the bullies that rule the school. Stan is a very logical, straightforward kid who, when in need, never fails to step up and save his friends' asses in the occasion that requires such skills.

Then there's Mike Hanlon! One of the sweetest souls of the Losers. He's been regularly tormented for his dark skin by the racist assholes surrounding the school, but that doesn't stop him from being a total sweetheart to everyone around him. He'd just recently enrolled in school the previous spring before summer, but he'd grown into the swing of things easily enough after the first few months. High School Junior? He doesn't know what the fuck that means, but he knows that's what he is this year. And that's pretty much all that matters, as long as he has his friends by his side.

Also Beverly Marsh! The only female known to the Losers Club, though some might say she's the toughest of them all. When in the Losers Club, womanhood is like a superpower! She considers her gender a gift and a curse all at once, depending on her mood of the day, but the boys barely see anything other than just Beverly. She's an asshole when she needs to be, but she can also be a motherly, caring friend at all the right times. She likes hanging out with them, even if it means she's a Loser too.

Along with Benny Boy, Ben Hanscom! A lovesick chum who spends a lot of his time in the library, and is likely the most antisocial of them all. He enjoys writing poems too... like I said, lovesick. And his reasoning with fitting into the Losers so well? Apparently he's just not the right weight to meet the standards of some assholes in this town. He's no stranger to getting teased about his gut, even if it's already beginning to fade slowly.

Last but not least there's Eddie Kaspbrak! Gosh, how could I begin to explain the wonder that is Edward Kaspbrak... Let's start with this. He likes to win. Like, a lot. Straight A+ student and aspiring valedictorian of the school, Eddie has his goals set straight, and his whole life ahead to achieve them. Academically speaking, Eddie is well aware that his friends aren't nearly as intense as he is about all of this, but nevertheless, he appreciates the lack of extra competition. He's a problem solver, an over-thinker, and most of all- a sore fuckin' loser. There's rarely anything stopping him from getting what he wants, and if there is? Well... there just isn't. Point made? I hope so...

Fuelled by the power of friendship, absolutely nothing could get in the way of these Losers' strong bond. They're the definition of Ride or Die. Definitely never mad at each other!

Eddie rushes to keep up with his group of friends as they bike down the street toward their high school. It was typical of him to forget his bike at his house when he needed it most, and the heavy contents of his backpack were not helping him go any faster.

"I never should have agreed to a sleepover on a school night!" Eddie exclaims with a huff, eyeing the Denbrough boy angrily from ahead.

He hears Bill laugh, "Your agreement, not mine." Earning a flick of the finger in response.

.... Okay yeah, they have their arguments sometimes, but still! Nothing —and I mean nothing— could tear them apart or make them turn against each other. That's just a known fact at this point!

"If I fall asleep in class today and get behind in my lessons, I'm blaming you" Eddie says as he stubbornly crosses his arms over his chest.

Alright I just won't try anymore at this point.

"Doubtful, considering your eyes are practically taped open for every lesson" Beverly hums, nonchalant as she zips by in the breeze of the morning. "Not to mention it's impossible for you to fall behind... you're constantly like, five lessons ahead!" Eddie simply scoffs and ignores that.

"You think Mrs. Smith left a substitute today? Or she's hungover again" Stan queried in wonder as the five of them biked down the street, Eddie on the curb as they catch sight of the high school around the corner.

"

Welp, that's all I can reveal for now, but I hope you're excited, cause I sure as fuck am!!

So this is it for Dramatic. See you later, I guess, till next time. Love and light!

- author

p.s. this is -unfortunately- literally it. you can add it to your archives or something i guess. *cries a lot bc im gonna miss you guys and this storyline and these characters but they have a happy ending so its okay*

bye.