When the Clock Strikes Midnight

9:35 p.m

A/N: I tried to get out this next part as fast as possible. I hope that you guys are enjoying this book so far. I know that it's really dark. I'm sorry. During this part we have a surprise visit from someone. Anywho, thank you guys for reading. I probably won't write again till winter break starts. Which will be the mark of the first year of this story! Thanks for reading. 

A loud scream rings through the air and I shoot up, all sleepiness leaving my body as I try to figure out what's going on. I look around at the others. Jack and Anthony are starting to sit up, rubbing their eyes. Jackson is stirring on the ground, while Hailey and Veronica haven't started moving yet. I turn towards the middle of the room. Elizabeth is standing there, her hand having just dropped the blanket that was covering Theo. I quickly get up, running over to her and scooping her up in my arms. I quickly carry her back over to the others. Jack and Anthony are now alert, both of them watching the situation with concern on their faces. Jackson has sat up but is still confused, and Hailey and Veronica are just now starting to sit up. I sit down and place Elizabeth gently on the ground across from me. There are tears streaming down her face as she stares into the distance, her jaw still dropped. I gently touch the side of her face and she flinches, coming back to reality. She screams again, a haunted look behind her eyes. I pull her to me, wrapping my arms tightly around her and forcing her to do the same to me. She stays stiff against me though, my shoulder muffling the sound of her screams. I rub her back gently, trying my best to calm her down.

"Elizabeth. Elizabeth! Honey, I need you to calm down so that you can hear me." I gently move her away from me again and this time her jaw closes. Tears are streaming down her face as her eyes slowly meet mine. I smile weakly, not completely sure how to address the situation.

"Honey. I told you not to look underneath those blankets. I'm sorry that you saw that. You should have listened to me though." I feel a hand on my back and I look over. Jackson is smiling down gently at Elizabeth, a haunted look also in his eyes.

"Elizabeth, you should have listened to Peach sweetheart. But it's okay. You are safe. We are all here now." She moves over to him, crawling into his arms. He wraps his arms around her, resting his chin on top of her head. She is shaking with tears, the shock of what she just saw finally meeting up with her. I look around the room again. Jack and Anthony are staring at the middle of the room. Hailey and Veronica have just turned their attention to the center of the room. I quickly move over to Veronica, not wanting her to realize who is underneath that blanket. I stop right in front of her, reaching out and turning her face to look at me. She flinches, her eyes making contact with mine.

"He's under there? Theo is under one of those blankets?" I just nod, the emotions clogging my throat. A strangled sob leaves her body and she tries to get up but I force her to stay down.

"Veronica. You don't want to see him. They killed him in an awful way. His killer was someone in a Pennywise mask. You don't want to see him. You won't be able to remember him in any other way." She shakes her head and tries to get up again. I hold her hand tightly, not letting her move towards him. She forces me up and forces me to look at her.

"You don't understand Peach. I need to see him. One last time. I need to." I grab her other hand and hold on tightly, knowing that she needs to know what happened.

"Veronica. His killer, he had no mercy. He tried to cut off Theo's head Veronica. You don't want to see that. Please just stay over here." Another strangled sob leaves her body and she rips herself away from me. I try to grab her hand again but miss. She runs over to him and throws the blanket off of him. I look away before I see anything, not being able to see his body again. I hear her scream and I squeeze my eyes closed, the image of his body rising to my mind. She continues screaming and I start crying, forcing myself to move over and pull her away. She has dropped to her knees and is covering his throat with her hands. I grab her shoulder and pull her away, my tears starting to drop onto her shirt.