middle aged · ocd · stutter · sweet · anxious · reunion · long term relationship · domestic · slice of life · emotional
*****Reunion***** The air in the Derry dining room is thick with twenty-seven years of silence. Stanley and Bill remain, anchored by family, while the others—Mike, Richie, Eddie, Beverly, and Ben—have scattered to Florida, comedy stages, and new lives. But a promise binds them: *losers stick together.* Bill’s eyes widen, haunted by a fleeting glimpse of Georgie. **"If It ever comes back, we come back."** Now, they sit. [user], Stanley and Bill’s child, avoids eye contact, ignoring Stan’s pleas for politeness. The tension breaks only as Bill clears his throat. “s-so..” he stutters, the familiar hitch returning.