Chapter 2.2:
Her
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Maya felt happy as she stood with the five men, awaiting the arrival of the final two members.

Maya's nerves increased with each passing second, wondering when she would arrive. She wondered what would happen when they saw each other again.

Maya hoped that it would go well.

"Maya?" A voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Hm?" She hummed, glancing over at Richie. He rose his eye brows before speaking.

"Ya gonna answer the question?" 

"What question?"

"Damn. See I told you she wasn't listening." Richie scoffed, leaning against the wall. "What happened to you and Beverly?"

Maya's face fell slightly, "Oh, uh.. we broke up. A long long time ago."

"What? But you guys were so perfect together-"

"Obviously not." Maya chuckled, "Yeah it didn't last much longer after she left. Distance and shit like that really put a strain on it, so.."

Maya shook her head, "but that's all in the past now."

The group glanced at each other before changing the subject to something more light in tone.
Richie said something dumb, causing Maya to laugh loudly. Her eyes fell shut and she subconsciously turned her head to the side.

Abruptly, her laughter stopped when she opened her eyes.

"Oh my god." She whispered to herself. She turned her body fully to the woman standing awkwardly in the door way.

"Bev-Beverly?" She took slow steps forward as her mouth hung open. "Holy shit.."

She looked as beautiful as ever.

And just like that, she was thirteen again. She felt the same she did all those years ago in nineteen eighty nine.

Maya's eyes began to well up with tears. Emotions began to overwhelm the woman's small frame as she continued to take small steps forward until she was directly in front of Beverly.

Her memories from twenty seven years ago came rushing back like a tsunami. The first time they met, their sleepovers, their time spent running from adults after they stole somethings, and finally... their first kiss.

"Hi," Beverly laughed, tears in her own eyes.

"Hah.. Uh.. H-Hi." Maya stuttered out, shaking her head in disbelief. This certainly wasn't how she saw it going. Maya nervously glanced at Richie behind her, who at the sight of her teary-eyed state shook his head.

"Over it my ass." Richie whispered to Eddie. "They are so fucking later. I call the room next to th-"

"Shut the hell up, dude. They're having a moment." Eddie harshly whispered back.

"I've mis-" Maya started, but stopped abruptly, "How have you been?"

"I've been better, honestly." Beverly admitted, rolling her head.

"Yeah, yeah me too."

"Alright, lesbians. Looks like we're all here! The Loser's Club is officially back together!" Richie interrupted, clapping his hands together. "I'm so down for some Taiwanese food."

"Uh, Rich.. Stan isn't here, and this is a Japanese place." Maya said, turning towards him and moving to sit down.

"I thought it was Chinese?" Beverly asked, pulling out a chair next to Maya.

"Whatever the hell it is, I'm hungry." Mike said with a laugh. The group began ordering from the menu as the waitress arrived.

Conversation flew easily once again. To Maya it felt as if they had never lost connection. As if they'd never stopped being friends.

"So, Maya," Bill began after swallowing his food, "How's Josh?"

Her smile fell to a frown quickly, "Uh.. Josh is.. well, Josh is dead.." She trailed off, swallowing her wine.

"Oh my god! Maya, I'm so sorry."

Maya nodded, "It's okay, I'm okay. I don't really wanna talk about it.."

Beverly sympathetically put her hand on Maya's. She gave it a firm squeeze, lettimg her know that she wasn't alone.

Maya shook her head, "Oh shit! She's bringing more alcohol!"

With the alchohol, the group became more open.

After slamming a shot Richie spoke up, "Wait, so, Eddie. You got married?"

"Yeah, why is that so fucking funny dickwad?" Eddie snapped, glaring at him. Maya let out giggles as the pair began to bicker back and forth.

"What.. to like.. a woman?" Richie rose both his eyebrows.

"Fuck you, bro!"

"Hahaha.. Fuck you!"

The group burst out laughing, Maya wiping away tears in her eyes.

"What about you, trashmouth? You married?"

"No way! There's no way Richie's married!"

"No, no I got married!" Maya's ears perked up at this. Richie and married in the same sentence was something Maya didn't expect to hear.

"Richie, I don't believe it!" Beverly laughed, her eyes glancing at Maya briefly.

"You didn't know I got married?" He began speaking to Eddie directly.

"Uh, no?" Eddie said through his mouthful of food.

"No, yeah, no, me and your mom are very happy together."

Maya choked on her bite of food and began to cough violently, causing more laughter to erupt from the table.

"You good?" Richie joked, "did the same thing twenty-something years ago after prom-"

"Fuck off!" Maya exclaimed, shaking her head.

The table went silent for a few seconds until a collective gasp filled the the room, "Richie! Oh my god!"

"What? It's true!"

"Richie, kindly fuck off to the moon, please." Maya sighed, "I didn't and won't suck your dick!"

"Didn't? What about prom '91?"

Maya rolled her eyes, "Fuck you, dude."

The table erupted in laughter again, but Beverly stayed silent.

"D-Did you actually do that?" She whispered to Maya, confused.

"Oh my god, no. In his dreams!"

"Many times, actually!" Richie interrupted the pair, his lips turned up in a sort of smirk.

"Beep, beep." Bill shook his head, "This whole conversation has been beep beep."

"Oh, please! Anything Richie says is beep beep."

"You guys are so mean." He whined, squeezing his glass of alchohol.

The conversation died down from light-hearted to heavy and dark.

"When, uh, when Mike called me I threw up." Richie sighed, taking another sip of his drink.

"When Mike called me, I crashed my car.."

"Seriously?"

Eddie nodded, "Yeah.."

"I passed out and landed in broken glass... for like seven hours.."

"Damn.."

"I feel that.. my heart was pounding."

"I thought I was the only one." Beverly sighed.

"It was like pure f-f-ffff-" Bill began stuttering on his words.

"Fear." Mime finished the sentence for Bill. "It's fear."

"You remember something we don't, don't you?"

"Something happens to you when you leave this town.. the farther away the hazier it all gets.. but me. I never left. So yeah, I remember all of it."

"Pennywise." Beverly whispered, her eyes becoming teary once again.

With that one word, that one name, Maya's heart became gripped with fear.

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{ Word Count: 1138 }

{ A/n: I'm sorry this chapter is so bad- but don't fret!!!! lots of mayverly content in the next chapter!!! I'll try to get that out as soon as possible. }