𝗙𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗥, billy loomis & stu macher

16 there goes the neighborhood

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(   chapter sixteen,   there goes the neighborhood   )
❝ me and truth, we sit in silence, baby girl, it's just me and you ❞

october 11th,   1996

AS THE PARTY dwindled, more people trickled out, leaving only a small group in the living room. Kathryn, half-asleep on some stranger's shoulder, was jolted awake by Randy's voice.

"Look!" Randy exclaimed, calmer now as he pointed at the TV. "Here comes the obligatory tit shot!"

Everyone crowded closer to the screen, too absorbed to notice the faint thumping sound from upstairs. But Kathryn heard it. The sour taste in her mouth told her she hadn't forgotten Sidney and Billy were still up there. Her good mood vanished instantly.

Just as the moment on screen, everyone was waiting for approached, the phone rang. Randy ignored it, hoping someone else would pick up, but it kept ringing.

With a groan, Randy finally stood and grabbed the receiver near the TV. "Hello? Yeah?" his relaxed face then shifted into shock. "Holy shit."

Kathryn, now fully awake, watched Randy hang up the phone and pause the movie, ignoring the protests from the room.

"Listen up," he announced, his voice quiet and mournful. "They found Principal Himbry dead. He was gutted and hung from the football field goalpost."

Kathryn's eyes widened as the room went silent. Damn, she drunkenly thought. This killer has some major psychological issues.

Everyone in the room processed the news differently - some in disbelief, others horrified, and even a few grief-stricken individuals.

Then, breaking the tension, one of the boys shouted, "What are we waiting for?! Let's go see before they take him down!"

"Yeah, let's go!"

Within seconds, the room emptied as the group whooped and hollered, eager to witness the gruesome scene. Randy stood dumbfounded, trying to convince them to stay, while Kathryn tossed a jerky stick at her brother's head as he lingered in the doorway.

"Uh, where do you think you're going?" Kathryn demanded, arms crossed.

"Ow!" Nathan groaned, rubbing the back of his head, though it hadn't hurt. "Wha - why?"

Kathryn raised an eyebrow. "Come back here, Nate. Now."

Randy, now beside her, shrugged. "Let 'em go, Kat. They won't get close to it anyway," he convinced just as Nathan left the house, following after his freak show friends.

Left alone in the now quiet house, Kathryn flopped onto the couch. A sudden noise from upstairs caught her attention - a loud noise, much different from the dull, repetitive thumps she heard earlier.

"You heard that, right?" she asked, glancing at Randy, who had taken a seat next to her.

"Yeah," he said, cracking open another beer and handing her one. "Probably another kid heading out to go pry our Principal dead body off the football field."

"Ex-principal," she corrected with a raised brow. They clinked their drinks and took long sips, relaxing back on the couch with a sigh.

"Cheers to that."

Minutes passed in silence as they watched the movie, though Randy's gaze lingered on Kathryn. He thought back to what Stu had said earlier - about Kathryn giving him a chance. He hadn't taken it as a joke like Stu intended it to be.