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By the time Chris came to, the clown was already gone, though its presence could still be felt all around her.
She sat up, wincing at the stinging bruise forming on her back as she rolled her neck. Blinking away the stars from her eyes, she gasped. Where the table once stood, Eddie now lay flat on his back. He was breathing, but he was completely passed out. Shit shit shit shit, Chris knelt down, nudging his shoulder. He stirred briefly, brows knitting together in discomfort.
"Eddie? Eddie - come on, man - wake up."
His eyes fluttered open before he shot upward, sharply gasping as his head whipped around the room.
"Chris?" he wheezed.
She pulled at his arm with one hand against his back, helping him sit up.
"Get up, we gotta find Bill and Richie so we can get the fuck out of here."
Eddie didn't respond.
"Eds?"
He held up his right arm, only for it to slump downward unnaturally. Her eyes went wide.
"U-Uh - jesus - don't move, I'll find the others, just stay.."
A soft tapping sound interrupted her thought, coming from somewhere in the room. Begrudgingly, she looked up. Popping out from behind the fridge door like a curtain was a single gloved hand, tapping against it impatiently. Eddie cradled his arm close to him as he stared dead ahead.
"Get up." she said, though it came out sounding like nothing more than a whisper.
The fridge swung open, groaning from disuse. Within, she could barely see the outline of something crammed inside. The hand retreated from the door, now sitting on the bottom of the fridge. A dark chuckle emanated from inside.
We have to leave, she repeated inside her head. But no matter how much she thought to herself, she couldn't move an inch, paralyzed by fear.
Bones cracking and joints popping, the clown unfolded itself from the fridge. Its hands dug into the floor and the side of the fridge, anchoring itself as it pulled the rest of its body out. One leg sprung out, and then another. Its head rotated as it unfolded itself like a tangled spring, all the while keeping that strange half-smile. Chris could do nothing but look on in horror as It stood at its full height, untwisting its torso like taffy. With a crack, its head snapped into place. Shaking itself, the bells hidden in its suit jingled, it bent toward them.
"Time to float."
Grabbing Eddie, Chris pulled him backward. It took a step closer in a theatrical way, a mocking grin spreading across its face. Moving away as fast and as far as they could, It continued its pursuit. As Eddie kicked at the clown, she could hear his breath starting to wheeze again. The clown seemed to notice too. In a cruel act of mimicry, It also began to wheeze, its hands flailing around its throat and eyes blown wide open. The fear Chris felt was slowly dissolving into anger, until her back bumped against the far side of the wall.
