Bill waits outside the Wheeler home for Mike to come out and get his bike. It feels like 20 minutes for him to finally shut the front door and come down to where Bill is waiting. Bill can't make out his facial expressions in the twilight, but he bets they are annoyed.
"T-Took awhile," Bill states when Mike finally comes down the driveway with his bike.
"God my mom is annoying. She wanted to make sure that I packed bug spray and a hat. It's night outside, what good is a hat?"
"T-Tell me about it," Bill says. "My mom is th...the same way."
"When do they start to treat us like human beings?" Mike asks as they begin to peddle out of the cul-de-sac.
"Never," Bill replies. "They always want to treat you like b-babies."
"God that's annoying," Mike groans.
The two ride for a bit with only the sounds of crickets and the occasional car interrupting their silence. Bill mainly follows Mike as he knows Hawkins better than anyone else.
"S-So where is this Weathertop?"
"It's just the name Dustin gave for the highest point in Hawkins. It's where he set up his Cerebro."
"S-Sorry what?" Bill asks.
"It's like this massive antenna that allows his radio to reach to Utah to talk to his girlfriend."
"Dustin has a g-girlfriend?"
"Yeah, her name is Susie. He met her at Science Camp over the summer."
"Long distance r-relationship huh?"
"Yeah, they even have gross nicknames for each other."
"What you and E-El don't have those?" Bill teases.
"God no, gross. Do you and Beverly?" Mike grimaces in disgust.
"B-B-Bev and I aren't t-together," Bill swallows.
"Seriously? She likes you, Dude. Why haven't you asked her out?"
"It's c-complicated," he says quickly.
Bill and Mike continue riding their bikes through the twilight-lit streets, taking the route to the schoolyard where everyone had planned to meet up. Eventually, they pull into the playground.
"Over here," Mike directs Bill. The two go and temporarily ditch their bikes. "We'll need them soon, but you can't ride up there; it has to be on foot. And don't forget your stuff."
Bill puts his backpack on and then heads to the baseball diamond where they all agreed to meet. Funnily enough, it was also around the area where the two groups met back when the Bev gave one of the jerks a bloody nose and they were scared off by the wind.
Another silhouette is already standing by home plate, leaning against the chain link fence. and the lit end of a cigarette is seen glowing in the dark.
"Bev?" Bill calls out.
"Hey Bill," she replies, coming closer. Bill pulls out his flashlight and turns it on right in her face, showing her red hair and freckles.
"Damn it don't blind me!" she hisses stepping back and also dropping her cigarette to shield her face.
"S-Sorry," he apologizes, pointing it at the ground so in the light they can see one another. They both smile as Bev pulls out another cigarette.
"So Damian finally got a job," she smirks.
"Where?" Bill asks.
"The Hawkins Post. My foster dad pulled some strings and got him a job there."
YOU ARE READING
Strange as IT Seems
FanfictionWhen Derry is evacuated after an emergency, the Losers Club travels to the quiet town of Hawkins, Indiana, where they should be safe. Joined by his cousin Mia, who carries her own personal demons, Bill and his friends begin to adapt to this new smal...
