𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙗𝙞𝙖 ➹ 𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙯𝙞𝙚𝙧

11.

ELEVEN.

❝BETTY?❞

THE HIDEOUS CLOWN REACHED OUT to grab one of us and Beverly hid her face in one arm as I tightly shut my eyes. Instead of the feeling of being grabbed by monstrous claws, I felt Beverly wrap her arms around me and dig her head into the crook of my neck. My eyes opened and I squinted as bright sunlight came through the now-open garage door.

Glancing up, the giant clown was no longer there and it felt exactly like the other night with the spiders. Beverly and I let go of each other as we stumbled back to the other.

Panting and coughing came from everyone all because this torturous moment. My ears deafened as Richie enveloped me in a hug. Slowly, I loosened and put my arms around him as well. My face was buried into his shoulder and my breath came out in short shudders. He rubbed circles into my back and soothed me, whispering sweet nothings into my ear.

I zoned back into reality and calmed down as Eddie flipped out. My arms unraveled from Richie but he kept one of his around my shoulder. "It saw us. It saw us, and it knows where we are." His voice quivered but Bill replied unfazed from this whole mess, "It always did. S-So let's go,"
"Go? Go where?"
"Neibolt." He said nonchalantly, even in a tone that seemed annoyed. "That's where G-G—Guh-Georgie is."

"After that?" Stanley shook. "Yeah, it's summer. We should be outside," Richie agreed with Eddie's previous statement. "If you say it's summer one more f—hucking time." His chest rose up and down before he turned and got on his bike. "Bill!" Beverly threw her hands up, "Wait!"

He pedalled away and refused to even turn back. Beverly sprinted over to her bike and followed his trail. We all ran after her and imitated her actions.

It took a few minutes to catch up with him but we already knew where he was headed: The old house on Neibolt Street. "Is he insane?" I questioned.

"Bill! Bill, you can't go in there," Beverly shouted as he stepped up onto the porch, muttering something to himself.
"This is crazy."
"Look, you don't have to come in with me," he snapped back, "What happens when another Georgie goes missing? . . . Or another Betty, or another Ed Corcoran? Or one of us?" His voice finally broke from the dullness he had before and he panted while speaking. "Are you just going to ignore it like everyone else in this town? . . . Because I can't. I go home, and . . all I see is that Georgie isn't there. His clothes, his toys, his stupid stuffed animals, but . . He isn't. So walking into this house, for me, is easier than walking into my home." His voice was firm now on his decision and he continued up the steps.

"Wow,"
"What?"
"He didn't stutter once," Richie commented, following after Bill. "Wait! Uhm. Shouldn't we have . . some people keep watch?" Stan asked. Bill was ready to open the door as he continued, "Just incase something bad happens."

"Who wants to stay out here?" Bill quizzed. Everyone in the gang (including myself) expect Beverly raised their hand, but slowly lowered it as they looked around. I heard Richie utter a 'fuck' and it was decided to pull straws.

After pulling straws, it was decided that Bill, Eddie, Richie and I had to go in. The worn-out door creaked as we stepped through. Cobwebs littered the walls and ceiling corners and the floor was black with dust. "I can't believe I pulled the short straw. You guys are lucky we're not measuring dicks," retorted Richie, earring a soft 'shut up, Richie' from Eddie.

A hand loosely grabbed onto mine and my eyes travelled up it, locking with Richie's. I shot him a quick smile as we ventured further into the abandoned house. "I can smell it," Eddie muttered, referring to the old, strange stench coming from the place. "Don't breathe through your nose," Richie informed as we looked through rooms.
"How come?"
"Because then you're eating it," he cringed. Eddie gagged and took multiple puffs of his inhaler.

Richie stopped in his place and I glanced to him to find his eyes captured on a tangle of branches from a tree that grew through. He brought me into the room with him and I shivered from the thought of how many spiders were in this wreck.

My hand slipped from his as he reached out to a flier stuck in the tree. He held it in his hands and slowly looked up at me, shaking as he did so. "Richie?" I stepped closer to him and caught a glimpse of the sheet. A gasp came from me as I saw the contents. It was a  missing poster, more specifically, a missing poster for Richie. "What?" Asked Bill, following us into the room along with Eddie. He stepped back and started to panic. "It—It says I'm missing."
"You're not missing Richie," Bill assured him but he was still going nuts. "'Police Department, City of Derry.' That's my shirt. That's my hair. That's my face."
"Calm down, this isn't real." Bill tried to snatch it off him but he wouldn't let him, still reading the poster aloud.

"That's my name. That's my age. That's the date!" He managed to rip it from his hands, all the while trying to convince him it wasn't real."
He was screaming at this point and throwing his hands everywhere, asking if he was going to go missing. I gripped onto his shoulders and forced him to face me while saying, "Richie, stop. You're not missing. You're here, nothing going to happen to you. I promise. It's just trying to mess with you." His nerves calmed slightly but his breathing was still shallow from all the hollering he was doing. "Promise?"
"Promise."

'Hello' echoed through the building from upstairs. A repeated 'Hello' came again and we all followed Bill. We exited the room and looked upstairs. "Help me, please," was heard as we started our way up the staircase. The voice was slightly recognisable, sounded feminine too, but I still couldn't place my finger on it.

We reached the landing of the second floor and peeked through the halls. At the end of one was a slightly opened door. Light shined through it and I saw a girl, dirtied, lying on the floor, coughing. I was ready to run and help her but Richie clutched my hand and yanked me back.

"Betty?" The girl's attention shot upwards and I realised it was her. "Rimpson?" Right as Richie spoke, it was as if he had pulled a lever. My classmate was forcefully tugged backwards into the room. We cautiously made our way to the room she was in. Bill peered in first, making sure it was safe and Richie and I went after him.

"She was just here. Where the fuck did she go?"  When we entered, the room was void of people and the door shut behind us.

"Guys! Guys!" Eddie was left on the other side, alone, screaming for us. "Y/n! Help me." I heard a whisper from another room as Bill banged on the door for Eddie. I stepped into the connecting room before glancing back. From the corner of my eye, I saw Richie head into another room, then the door rapidly shut.

My eyes widened but I tried to be strong. I wish I could be as brave as Beverly, I hoped to myself.