Chapter Text
"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 brisk warm 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 implies quite the opposite. 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. Not to get personal or touchy or anything, but this guy has quite the issue with expressing his feelings, but we'll... get to that later? ...
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 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, 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 definitely 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 his soon-to-be graduating class, 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, nobody would want to hear the end of it. Point made? I hope so.
Fueled by the power of friendship, absolutely nothing could get in the way of these Losers' strong bond. 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'll be napping 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.
Bill laughed, quirking his head to the side as if to say 'yeah, definitely'.
Ben groaned at that. "Seriously? It's been days since she actually taught something in that class" he complained, Mike nodding in agreement beside him.
"I'd rather watch an uneducational educational video than listen to her sad attempts at teaching in front of the classroom. Chemistry makes no fucking sense with her anyways," Beverly waves off, speeding to reach the front bike racks before the others.
Eddie huffs, "I wonder why she isn't fucking fired yet," he shrugs.
"The day she gets fired, I will literally propose to my crush!" Bill jokes. "The school loves her for no reason!" he shakes his head incredulously, unmounting his bike.
Stan whistled, "Ooh, I'd love to see that!" he cackles, mirroring Bill's actions. Bill merely purses his lips and adverts his gaze.
"I don't remember you ever actually telling us who your crush is, Bill," Ben says in a querying tone, hopping off his bike and raising his eyebrows at the school that stood before them.
"Ugh, gag me with a spoon," Beverly rolls her eyes. "Remember when he had a crush on me in the third grade? Denbrough falls easily," she sighs, patting Bill on the shoulder with a shake of her head. "Could literally be anyone in sight."
"Oh yeah? Well maybe because I don't want to tell anyone. Ever considered that?" Bill retorts with a wave of his hand, ignoring Beverly and attempting to brush it off as he pulls open one of the double doors of the entrance, holding it open for the others.
"Jeesh, someone's getting snappy" Beverly comments from the side, recieving a joking scowl from the auburn haired boy in front of her.
Mike nods in understanding, hopping into the building first. "You heard the man, private life is private," he shrugs, high-fiving Bill as he passes.
"Thank you, Mikey" Bill nods, eyeing the others as they begin to walk in.
One by one the Losers step into the main building of Derry High, quickly being engulfed by the rowdy chattering and goings on of the halls. It's usually like this in the mornings, and unfortunately there's hardly an escape from the noise. So their typical route nearly every day is to go to Bill's locker and chat till the bell rings.
That's what they do now, as they push and squeeze their way through the flood of students, making their way to the familiar hall up ahead. Hall 14.
Mike, merely weeks after enrolling in classes last March, jokingly told the Losers that he'd be labelling the halls of the school with numbers to make it easier for himself navigating the place. These numbers had no real correlation whatsoever -an erratic and odd mixture of numbers and hallways that wouldn't make sense to the average person- but soon enough, the rest of the Losers caught on and it's simply an everyday thing for them to mention. Hey, I need to stop by Hall 27 to put this on the bulletin board. Watch out for Hall 6, Bowers has detention there today.
They enter Hall 14 and pass by one row of lockers, the entrance to another hall, then finally the row of lockers where Bill resides. Which so luckily happens to be by Eddie's locker too.
Hall 14 is Bill and Eddie's. Mike and Beverly share Hall 9 with one another's lockers, and Stan and Ben have separate ones in Halls 113, and 45, respectively.
Eddie sighs and puts in his code, "Y'know, I'm starting to think maybe having Physics as a first period isn't all too bad anymore" he thinks aloud, pulling open his locker and shoving a book or two in the shelf above.
Beverly scoffed and blew a raspberry in response. "Only you, Eddie Kaspbrak" she shook her head.
"Like, maybe that just makes me a bit more focused! It's a benefit, right?" Eddie continues, blindly plucking out some books and shutting it quickly.
Mike shrugs, "That's... one way to look at it."
"It's the best way to look at it," Bill corrects with a matter-of-fact tone as he shuts his locker. "Don't discourage him."
Just then, Beverly gasps suddenly as though she had suddenly remembered something. Everyone turned to her confusedly. "Oh Eddie! The guys and me were planning to see a movie tonight at the Aladdin. You in?" Beverly queries, beaming with an eyebrow raised. "We're still deciding on whether we should watch Jurassic Park, or Sandlot" she shrugs.
"First of all, it's The Sandlot, and sec-second of all, why is this even up for discussion! I think a movie about a bunch of ki-kids having fun is right up our alley!" Bill complains, eyeing the others as though he were trying to persuade them.
"This is a democracy, Bill, not Debate Club," Stan reminds him with a tired sigh.
"Fuck you, and plus! Eddie and Ben are going to lose their shit if we watch a scary movie like Jurassic Park, I heard some people had to w-walk out of the theatre because there was so. Much. Blood!" Bill says, trying hard to make it sound gory and intimidating as he shakes his head like it's unbelievable.
"Hey! I'd be fine with a scary movie! And speaking of Debate Club, I think we have a meeting today, thanks for the reminder," Eddie huffs, spitting that last part to Stan coldly.
The bell rings above them, and they all quickly say goodbye to one another before parting ways to their first period.
"Oh fuck! These are my third period books, not my first!" Eddie exclaims, cursing under his breath and rushing back to his locker. "I'll catch up with you later, Mike!" he hollered, to which Mike simply nodded and saluted goodbye.
Eddie fumbled with the lock of his locker as the halls emptied out quickly, and soon, he was flinging the little metal door open and rushing to find the right books in the silence of Hall 14.
Eddie suspects it's mostly Bill's fault for persuading him into joining into such a tempting sleepover last night. He'd been studying pretty much all weekend, and the idea seemed so sweet to him that he simply couldn't refuse. But then again, he always forgets his bike back at his house when Bill comes to pick him up. And now, he's forgetting things, misplacing items, and being grumpy. All symptoms of a sleepless night. He knew this would happen. He knew th-
"Shitshitshitshitshit" a voice mutters from nearby, Eddie furrowing his eyebrows into his search for the books.
Curious, Eddie peeked beside himself, gazing across the hall, where a boy seemed to be doing the exact same thing he was. Scrambling through his locker in search of something important.
This boy was lankier than Eddie was. Taller, with seemingly much darker and shaggier hair. He couldn't exactly see much of his appearance other than that, and Eddie couldn't help but simply watch as a concerning amount of profanities tumbled out of the boy's mouth and he shuffled papers through his locker.
A plain white t-shirt hugged his narrow frame, along with black jeans that made him look skinnier than he probably actually was. And if that would have been it, Eddie's eyes likely wouldn't be bugging out of his freaking head right now, because not only is he sporting an utterly hideous button up with a pattern of cheesy pizzas on it over the t-shirt, but also an odd assortment of headbands clung to his head. Like, a lot.
The most prominent one Eddie immediately noticed were a pair of reindeer ears that protruded into the air, small bells on the ends of em that jingled with each tiny move he made. It's not even October yet! Then, closer to the front of his head, was a floral patterned bandana tied under his chin, making him look like a wannabe grandma who lived in a cottage far in the hills. What in the... hell?? And on top of that- a flower crown, a workout headband, a bridal veil, a tiara, and probably more that Eddie couldn't see from this angle. Gee, he must be getting a headache from all of that.
Alas, the boy seemed to finally find his missing item as he sighed in relief, and pulled out a crisp and crumpled pack of cigarettes and a yellow folder labeled -in pristine chicken scratch- "HomeWorK".
After a minute, once the boy already shut his locker with a relieved exhale, he seemed to notice Eddie frozen there, watching. He leaned a shoulder on his own locker and his lips stretched into an odd smile, looking amused. Uhh. Eddie's heartbeat skipped up a few paces, and in a fit of jittery nerves, he weirdly began shuffling on his feet like he didn't know whether to stay and say hi or rush to his class before the late bell rings.
Then, in a quite friendly manner, the boy held out the hand that had the pack of cigarettes in his grasp and nudged his head to the side, gesturing to outside and making the bells atop his head clatter and chime. "Want one?" he said, his boyish voice echoing throughout the empty hall in query and reaching Eddie's ears. Eddie clutched his books closer to his chest, and choked out an incredulous laugh. Who does this guy think he is? He must be a senior or something. Being late, slacking off, forgetting his homework of all things! Offering Eddie, a junior who hasn't had a single kind of drug touch him ever, mind you, fucking nicotine! A gateway drug! Not to mention the weird situation going on with his head.
Without a single word, Eddie spun on his heel and walked in the opposite direction of his class, pretending that he knew exactly where he was going.
He had no choice, his class was a walk that headed toward the boy by the lockers. He wasn't going to spend another awkward minute with him. A drug addict, of all people. (Okay, maybe not everyone who owns cigarettes are drug addicts, but Eddie is almost 90 percent sure that 70 percent of students at Derry High who has any drugs at all on the usual are technically stoners and will be a failure by the age of 26)
As Eddie trudged out of Hall 14 and into Hall 36, he listened in to the obvious jingling of bells in the distance, growing further and further away. Oooookay then. Eddie can't let that distract him. Today, in Physics, they're doing a review for their first test of the year coming this Friday, and Eddie is determined to study aggressively, no matter the fact that he'll ace it anyway.
He hurls into his first period classroom frantically, rushing to his seat in the corner of the room. Thankfully, the teacher refrains from mentioning anything about him being late. Just the perks of being the teacher's pet.
Mike greets him as Eddie sighs into the chair of their table. The shorter boy waved back cheerily as he quickly began pulling out his binder and setting down his books on the table.
"Hey Eddie, did you finish the homework from Friday?" Mike queried, flipping through his notes and pulling out his own papers.
Eddie snorted, "Hah, very funny."
They both held out their homework pages as the teacher passed by to pick them up.
"I just think it's great that you agreed on that sleepover last night," Mike comments with a happy shrug. "You're making progress with letting a bit loose. Baby steps, you know?"
Eddie furrows his eyebrows, and shakes his head aggressively. "It was fun, but I doubt I'd ever do that again. I don't know what I was thinking, a school night? I mean, c'mon, I'm better than that!"
Mike sighs out a laugh and turns back to the board. "Well, you're fine now, aren't you?"
Eddie ponders on that for a moment. Making a smart-assed remark wouldn't do him any good, but he could somewhat feel a hint of sleepiness digging under his eyes, just a bit. He doesn't know what the whole deal with the whole letting loose thing is about. Sure, sleepovers are cool, but having them on weekdays are just asking for bad grades and foggy-brained mornings! He needs to stay on top of things, he just has to.
Instead, Eddie just shrugs with an 'eh' of ambiguity and focuses on the teacher beginning instruction.
A day in the life of Eddie Kaspbrak is... fucking exhausting. At least to others that's what it seems. The amount of shit he gets done in a days work is- fuckin' out of this world! But the truth is, Eddie is a raging workaholic. It's just who he is, so he doesn't really see it as a bad thing, or as a weird thing at all! He just wants to succeed! ... preferably ahead of everyone else as well? Yeah, well let's take a tour of his everyday schedule, shall we?
Eddie's class schedule goes a little like this:
1st class: Advanced Physics
2nd class: Physical Education.
3rd: Advanced English Literature
4th: Advanced Statistics
5th: US Government and Politics
6th: Lunch!
7th: Study Hall
And lastly, 8th period: Advanced Pre-Calculus
Just from looking at this I'm sure you can easily point out the issues.
So, first period, obviously. An intense, yet thought-provokingly stimulating Physics class with Mike. But Eddie, being the way he is, sees it as a sort of mental exercise. It gets his brain going right off the bat every morning! Some might call it torture, but he considers it as an opportunity, if anything.
Second period: Fu-cking torture! PE! Horrifying, I know, right? And for it to be the second class of the day??
Eddie had tried finishing off his credit of PE back in freshman year, but surprise! He failed the entire class, resulting in him almost fainting when they received report cards that first year. Imagine that: Eddie Kaspbrak, star academic, failing the easiest class in the history of classes! Luckily he and his mother saved his GPA before it could beeline to the floor.
God knows how they did it, but of course, the only other condition was that he get his credits done correctly by the end of his high school career, as it's supposed to be done. Now that was an easy yes.
The beginning of his sophomore year, Eddie shrugged it off as he wrote in his new class schedule, excluding his PE credit in favor of an extra math class that would totally boost his college resume. Looking back, Eddie wishes he could smack past-Eddie for giving him up to this demeaning position in junior year; stuck doing laps around the football field at the ass crack of dawn, wearing booty shorts and wiping his forehead from sweat he knows will ruefully stick to his skin till 8th period.
Then, apart from the hyper-aware feeling of sweat cooling into his pores, Eddie relatively enjoys third period. It's the one with most of his friends in it. Ben, Mike, Beverly, and Stan all share this class; scattered throughout the desks and entertaining themselves in hushed whispers every now and then. Usually there's not much shenanigans going on in that class, courtesy of Eddie's stubborn glances any time either of them try to talk about anything other than the curriculum specifically. But English is pretty easy for Eddie, so he can sometimes find himself easing a bit when it comes to strictness and focus.
Fourth period is his Statistics class. Not much to say about it, really. His mom thought it'd be a great-looking class for his college admissions, so he went with it. The most to say about it is that this is the class where he finds himself getting pretty fucking hungry. But, unfortunately, to no avail.
Sixth period! Eddie enjoys US Government and Politics about as much as he enjoys watching paint dry. Don't get him wrong, when they have class seminars and debates, he sure as fuck has a lot to argue and get riled up about, but sadly, those are rare occasions in his classroom. So he usually just sits there with his chin in his palm, taking notes and trying hard not to doze off.
Luckily, his next period happens to be his lunch period, where frankly anything with his schedule could happen. Sometimes, he sits with the Losers and eats his lunch like normal, and other times he'll head over to a teacher's classroom to berate them about a certain assignment or topic. And sometimes, Eddie may even go or get called to the principals office to check over his standpoint in his grades and the.... the thing that we're going to get to talking about in just a second... But generally, lunch is a completely undefined wild card. It's just how it is.
Seventh period is probably one of the best classes out of them all. It's technically supposed to be Eddie's free period, but Eddie doesn't believe in those. He should always be working if he has the time.
Study Hall, or more well-known as the library, is located in the lower floor of the school. So, practically the fucking basement. One of the worst things about Derry High, aside from the students, is this fact that the library is practically hidden from sight. No windows, other than the three horizontally lined ones right near the ceiling on the right side of the room, only ever displaying grass, dirt, and students' shoes as they pass it by outside. You could ask a junior where the library is and they probably wouldn't fucking know! So, believe it or not, students and staff hardly go to the library. Eddie finds peace and quiet there, and occupies himself for the hour by happily studying his classes in silence.
Lastly, Pre-Calculus. Again, not much to say about this one other than that it's quite a handful because of his teacher. She's not exactly the most generous of staff, in terms of kindness and mercy, and he usually ends up with stacks of homework to be done at the end of the day. Perfect time to lose all hope in a personal life is his eight period.
So that, topped off with all of his other classes' homework and study time adds up quite a fucking lot. And he tries to remind himself that it's not his fault he's busy all the time. The Losers apparently think it's a voluntary thing, that he locks himself away to do schoolwork. But not at all! He doesn't necessarily enjoy all of this, mind you. Sure, some of his math or science homework can be fun in his eyes, but its the success that catches his eye.
It's the A+ he gets in return that makes it all worth the while. He's been programmed his entire life to want that for himself, and he doesn't expect his friends to understand that all too much. They seem to be content with their A B averages, with the occasional failed test in return for some nights out and a normal teenage experience. See, that is something Eddie simply wouldn't be able to handle. He doesn't know why or how, but he won't let himself do that to his record, to his reputation... to his mother. He can't. Sonia and him have striven for his success ever since he could get a coherent grade on paper!
You could call it an obsession, or you can call it being responsible. Eddie can't have it going any other way. His goal has always been to be the best of the best. Top of his classes, which is pretty much what he's succeeded in so far.
And that brings us back to what we were getting to earlier. The principal and Eddie are very close confidants, courtesy of Eddie's mom constantly coming in and checking up on his grades every now and then. When Sonia can't come in for a check up, Eddie does it himself over lunchtime. Recently he's been going an extra lot of times because of a certain thing going on at the end of the year. Something so serious and high-priority, it exceeds practically everything else he cares about.
Junior Valedictorian. That's what this is about.
Derry High had recently applied this new addition to the end of the year students, around the time that Eddie was a freshman. It's where both Juniors and Seniors get to have one Valedictorian and Salutatorian for their respective end of the year ceremonies. The school said that it would urge students to try harder in class and it'd make things more interesting. According to the principal, it's not supposed to be anything competitive, per say, but Eddie takes anything as a challenge.
And this? Holy shit, it's everything he's been waiting for since the first grade! How could he not want the title? This is his chance to grasp the success he's always wanted.
So... hell yeah he was going to take it for himself! No matter what it takes.
"Eddie! So glad you could join us today," Mike exclaims as Eddie approaches the table to his spot in between Ben and Stan.
"So, so glad you could join us..." he checks his invisible watch for comedic effect, "Ten minutes late!" Mike exclaims with feigned glee. Eddie raises his eyebrows at the hint of passive-aggressiveness in Mike's tone, and huffs out a noise of protest at that.
"Jeez, sorry that I have places to be sometimes," Eddie says with his hands up in defense, sitting down as everyone greets him.
"You should be," Beverly jokes, swirling the straw of her red slushie in the cup hastily as she offers him a warm smile. "Seriously though. We're glad you're here today, Eddie."
Eddie smiles back happily, but his face quickly grows ashen when his eyes land on her cup. He abruptly scoffs and gestures wildly at the polar bear with sunglasses on beside her. "You assholes went to get slushies without me?" he exclaimed, only half-jokingly distraught.
Bill rolled his eyes, "She and Ben went to the convenience store down the street during their free period for it, genius," he explains. "Y'know, where people take their free time to do fun things? Remember fun things, Eddie?"
Just then is where Eddie spots the blue slushie that Ben had been holding with him this whole time. He purses his lips and lets out a 'Ha. Ha. Ha.' of straight-faced sarcasm. Everyone laughs together at that.
"Yeah, Bill and I are gonna go after lunch on our free period, if you want to come," Stan suggests, nudging Bill with his shoulder and a smile.
Eddie sighs with a frown. "Sorry guys, but I think you know the answer to that one," Eddie says ruefully, shrugging his shoulders sheepishly. Everyone then gets their fair share of eye-rolling and groans, but then again, they're all used to it by now.
Stan shrugs, "Guess it's just you and me, then, Denbrough," he laughs, and Bill chuckles dryly with a quiet nod in response, staring at his tray intensely as if there was a bug crawling or a ghost actively possessing his food.
Lunch flies by quickly as it always does around the Losers' table, and soon they're hurrying out of the cafeteria and to their next class. Eddie flashes Bill and Stan an apologetic glance before barreling down the mostly secluded pathway down to the library.
There's rarely a librarian on duty, since they never really have to check in or out any books for anyone other than Eddie, so he skips his way into the empty library, only mostly illuminated by the lamps here and there scattered amongst the room.
The computers are very very new, and Eddie is frankly very glad that none of the students know about them, or else they'd be swarming the place like bees with honey. The students would know if they'd ever gone to the parent teacher council meetings taken place twice a semester, but Eddie's only ever seen himself there, and everyone else is over 40.
As for himself, Eddie has been way too scared to turn one of the computers on alone. Big and new technology like that is supposed to be awesome and groundbreaking, but it's also fragile and expensive, and Eddie gets frustrated easily, so he'd rather not risk anything happening.
But what he does use to his advantage is the phones on the front desk counter, with wires so annoyingly short that he sometimes ends up lying down on the desk during a conversation as a last resort.
Occasionally he'll call his mom, maybe his english teacher if he gets the damn room number right this time, and sometimes even Stan or Bill if they head home early and decide to skip eighth period. But he mostly calls his mom, though. And that's what he plans to do now.
He dials the number, let's it ring once, going twice, thrice now.... annndd.. there she is.
"Hello?" she queries, voice groggy and timid through the static of the receiver. "Eddie bear, is that you?"
"Hi momma," Eddie says timidly, crawling onto the desk to sit criss-crossed near the phone's base.
"Baby, you know I sleep throughout the day so I can work my night shifts properly," she sighs, and Eddie can hear rummaging from her side. He frowns, of course he remembers.
"Right. Sorry mommy, I just- I wanted... to let you know that I got an A on my Statistics test this morning," he says, pursing his lips and awaiting a reaction.
After a moment, she sighs heavily and Eddie's heart sinks to his feet. "Yes yes, honey, good," she encourages listlessly, and Eddie can practically see the way she nods her head absentmindedly. "But this is no matter that I should be awoken for. I'll be gone by the time you get home today, but I've got some leftovers in the fridge for your dinner tonight," she says, and Eddie hums out a noise of acknowledgment.
Soon after, Eddie hears the long tone of the receiver cutting off, and he huffs into the phone. Gently placing it back onto its base, he hops off of the counter and walks back to the little table he set up for himself with all of his textbooks and homework pages. So quiet.
Usually ringing up his mom worked as some sort of wake-up call for him, her low demanding voice and disappointed sighs tended to fuel his need to study more and more. Get it all done and give her something to be proud of.
So he gets back to studying, trying hard to block out the idea of ditching his free period to hang out with Stan and Bill, and hastily gets all of his work done before the bell rings for next period. He likes to deem it as some sort of superpower. Makes it seem cooler than it actually is.
Eddie Kaspbrak's his name, but The Whiz Kid is his dangerous alter ego... well, the name is a work in progress.
Eight period seems negative twice as cool as being some awesome academic hero who saves people with... math problems? Or english passages. Yep, still a work in progress.
Math is fun, but only for so long. By the last twenty minutes, Eddie is struggling to keep his damn eyes open. Again, what was he thinking, agreeing to that sleepover?! Sure, it was fun, but the downsides... they should outweigh the fun he had. They don't, but they should and that's how he should be thinking when it comes to this. He can't afford slip-ups like that. Not with his mom and junior valedictorian right around the corner, just out of his reach.
No matter what it takes, Eddie is going to claim this year's junior valedictorian honor. He'd kick Bill in the shins, or push an old lady if it meant he'd get that fucking title. He's capable, and he's sure as hell going to make sure he shows it.
He's just so close. Anything it takes.
Anything.