"God, will you ever stop smoking?"
"You're very funny, Tozier."
Holly Taylor and Richie Tozier had never associated with one another, it just wasn't normal. But when summer starts, she befriended them in the oddest wa...
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Monday, September 4th, 1989
"Deep breaths, Holly. And then just jump."
Holly repeated the sentence to herself over and over again. Looking down at the black water below, the shivering girl could see the reflection of the moon. Sharp, jagged points poked out of the water like pencil tips. Holly had been to every part of the quarry except this one, when she used to explore with her friends. The girl didn't have any friends with her tonight.
A crunch.
Holly jerked around a record speed, feeling the wind nip at her bare legs. There was no one there. For the beginning of September, it was absolutely freezing. Was it even September? Holly couldn't remember. After seeing that the dark, frightening woods were empty, Holly slowly turned back to the water.
The pencil tips were even higher now, coming almost to the top of the cliff. Holly sucked in a deep breath, reaching for the ring around her finger, then froze.
The ring was gone, only a red circle were it was.
It was now or never, Holly knew it was time. She stepped towards the cliff, looked over the edge, and repeated those same words again. "Deep breaths, Holly. And then just jump."
So she did.
She was screaming, more afraid then ever. Holly desperately grabbed for something, anything, but there was nothing. She should've already reached the bottom, right? But she just kept falling, screaming, while those same words repeated in her ear. "Deep breaths, Holly. And then just jump." Except this time, the voice wasn't her own.
It was that motherfucking clown's.
Holly jolted awake, gasping for air. She gripped the edge of her bed-sheets, looked around the room, and stood up. Stumbling to the bathroom, she looked at the small clock on the counter that displayed the time in neon blue.
3:24 AM.
What the hell was that? Holly was beyond confused as she downed a Dixie cup of water, throwing it in the trash. She knew that it was the clown's voice after hearing it all summer, but it was dead. Why was it's voice still in her dreams? Holly walked back to her room, wide awake now.
She knew that in exactly twenty-four hours, they'd be in New York. Cass wanted to leave at night, saying it was going to be a seven hour drive. And by five in the morning, Holly would be snuggled up in the Big Apple. That meant Holly had less than a day here, and yesterday was her last day with Richie.
She made him promise that he wouldn't come on the night before school started, to which he obliged. holly only hoped that he would keep his promise. The girl twirled the ring around her finger as she sat in her desk chair, the emerald stone shining in the moonlight. Looking out the window, Holly could see most of Derry, as her house was on a hill.
Her old house, she thought. Derry was dark now, Holly was only able to make out the tops of buildings and the light on the Standpipe. The Stan-pipe as she once called it, joking about how much time Stanley spent there.
Stanley Uris, one of her best friends. She was sad to leave him, she really was. And Ben Hanscom. And Mike Hanlon, and Eddie Kaspbrak. And, of course, the boy she considered a brother, Billy Denbrough. She hadn't spoken to him in a couple of days, since Beverly left. Holly made sure to remember and call them in the morning.
But before she knew it, Holly was dialing the Denbrough household, specifically the line in Bill's room. He wouldn't be up, most likely, and his phone was the kind it you couldn't leave voice-mails. As was hers. But surprisingly, the boy with stutter had picked up the phone.
"Hello?" he asked, very quietly. "Oh, hi. I-I didn't think you were going to answer. It's Holly." sputtered the girl. "I know. Why are you up?" said Bill. "Couldn't sleep. You?" she replied. "Same thing. Nervous about school, I guess." Bill exclaimed. Holly gulped. "Me-me, too." she said.
"I miss Beverly." blurted Bill. Holly chuckled. "Yeah, me too." The pair talked for a bit, about everything and anything. The boy announced that he had to go to sleep, tired after staying up all night. "Night, Bill. I-I love you." Holly whispered. She never had said that to the boy. "I love you, too, Holly. You're the best sister I never had." he replied. Holly laughed, saying goodbye.
Only after she crawled back into bed for a few hours to get some sleep, Holly noticed how Bill hadn't stuttered once.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ omg omg omg omg. two more chapters. and almost 1k reads. i can't believe this. after i'm done with LOC, my wyatt book will be published, so I hope you stick around to read that. sorry this chapter is short. please vote, comment and follow!
