Disclaimer: I do not own IT or any of the characters. That all belongs to the awesome and talented Stephen King. I only own my OC and other characters I make up along the way.

A/N: Once again you guys continue to surprise me by all the love you guys give this story. It means a lot it really does! I hope you like this chapter. We are now moving along with the movies plot (as you can already tell from the last two chapters). So enjoy this fluff of a chapter...before you know shit hits the fan. Also if you want to follow me on Tumblr and ask questions regarding any of my stories, the account name is: dreaming-for-an-escape

I also found a perfect song for Gwen. It's Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths. I think it's sad/beautiful and the lyrics reminded me of Gwen. I can just imagine all the Losers' hugging her while she's feeling sad with this song playing in the background.

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born." ― Anaïs Nin, The Diary of Anaïs Nin, Vol. 1: 1931-1934

Chapter 8: Patching and scheming

Gwen expected to wake up in a terrible mood because of what happened last night...but she didn't. She still woke up early because of Francine's phone call. Just like she had she would do, her blonde best friend called before she left for Florida.

They two girls talked for nearly thirty minutes straight. Sadly their phone call finally came to an end when Gwen heard Francine's mother in the background telling her they needed to go now. They said their goodbyes, with Francine saying she would call whenever she had the time to spare. Gwen in return just told her to not worry about it and to have a nice summer with her family. She also wished the best for her grandmother since she would have also have to be looking out for her too because of her Alzheimer's. A disease that still frightened Gwen to her core.

Now when the call did end, that was when Gwen began to feel her mood go down. She just felt...lonely.

Her best friend had just left Derry.

What was she supposed to do now? She didn't want to go back into that hole of depression again.

She was very unhappy, but she wasn't going to let her sadden mood get to her. After the phone call she stuck to her normal routine. She got up from bed, went to the bathroom, did her business, and then ate breakfast with her family. She even said with a bright smile "have a good day" to her father when he left for work and even went as far as to help her mother wash the dishes. Anything really that would help distract her from her feeling of loneliness.

Due to her mission to keep those lonely feelings away, Gwen failed to notice how Richie had tried to talking to her throughout breakfast. Although that was easily their mother's fault. Since every time he was close to telling his sister something, Maggie interrupted him. Finally, disgruntled by this the youngest Tozier left the household saying he was going out.

This time Gwen had managed to give him a nod, but was brought right back into the conversation she was having with her mother. It was about how she and her should go shopping together some time soon. Now Gwen was lonely, but she in no way wanted to spend her free time shopping with her mother. Whenever she went out shopping with her mother she never got to pick the things she wanted. No, instead she got stuck being a barbie doll for her mother, and she would force the Tozier girl to try on all sorts of dresses and other clothes she would never want to be caught dead in.

So no...shopping was the last thing she wanted to do.

Still, to please her mother (and for her to not cause a scene), Gwen halfheartedly said maybe they would later on.

Her mother pleased by this answer finally let her go back to her room. Which is where she had been the last couple of hours. At first she'd been a little nervous to go back in there because of the nightmare she had, but she just reminded herself that it was just that...a nightmare. None of it had been real. Not the blood, the laugh, or those yellow eyes...

After that little self-reassurance, Gwen stayed in her bedroom with no terror daring to come out.

The rest of her time was spent reading the poetry book she had checked out and listening to music. Only this time she wasn't listening to her Walkman. No, the music was coming from the boombox her mother and father given to her. A gift that she very much liked. First of all because it was another device that played music, and second because it had been a gift from her parents.

She knew the relationship between her parents and her wasn't always the strongest. There were definitely places that needed improvement (mainly with the way her parents behaved with Richie and her) but at the end of the day she loved them. Even if they didn't have the most understanding attitudes. Although that was something she wished for. For her parents to treat them more fairly and openly.

A sudden knock on her door made Gwen lift up her head from her book. Her previous thoughts faltered as she now stared at her mother. The familiar song of Inside Out by The Might Lemon Drops was being played on the radio but all of Gwen's attention was on her mother. "What's up?" She asked her as she put her book down on her bed.

"Someone's at the front door for you." Her mother Maggie told her and Gwen right away could hear some discontent in her tone of voice.

Gwen frowned. She had no idea who could be looking for her. Whoever that person was, it was obvious that her mother did not like them. This just made her even more curious. "Who is it?" Gwen questioned as she got up from her bed.

Maggie crossed her arms over her chest. "Beverly Marsh."

That made Gwen pause for a moment. Beverly was here? Happiness surged through her but also a small ounce of disbelief. She needed to see for herself that she was really her. She moved to turn off her boombox before making her way downstairs. Her mothers uptight voice made her stop by her bedroom door.

"I didn't know you two were friends." Maggie narrowed her eyes. "When did this happen?"

Gwen loved her mother...she really did. Except she didn't love the way she was being right now. And she especially didn't love the way she sounded when speaking about Beverly. "Recently." She replied with a firm voice. "Now if you'll excuse me." She moved passed her and felt an odd sense of content when she saw the shocked expression that had set on her face after she said that to her.

Thankfully her mother did not go after her and Gwen made it downstairs just fine. When she walked towards the front door right away did she see that Beverly really was there. She was standing outside looking a little bit awkward and out of place. When the redhead caught sight of her the smallest of smiles appeared of her fair freckled covered face.

"Hi." Beverly gave the older girl a quick wave.

Gwen smiled at the redhead. "Hi yourself."

The whole time Beverly made her way to the Tozier residence it had been a, should I just forget it and leave, or should I continue? The redhead was mainly worried that she was going to be interrupting Gwen from her busy day or from her just wanting to sleep in. But judging from the black The Smiths t-shirt, shorts, and black converse she had on, Beverly knew the teen hadn't been sleeping in. Still...maybe she had other things planned. "Um, are you busy right now?" Beverly evenly asked her. She sounded very reserved.

Gwen shook her head. "No, why, what's up?"

Beverly grew more bashful. She briefly bit the inside of her cheek."Remember how you told me if I wanted to talk to someone or just hang out, that you'd be up for it."

Gwen nodded her head. "Yeah, I remember."

God this was embarrassing...but she couldn't back out now from asking her. She had come all this way for her help...

Beverly let out a sigh. "I don't really have anyone else to talk to about this." Her cheeks grew warm as she picked at the ends of her long red hair. "But I think I'm about to get my period soon and I have no clue with what the hell to do next. I mean, I know what I need to do...but I'm still confused." Her blue greenish eyes met her dark eyes pleadingly. "Can you help me...please?"

When she heard such a question being asked memories from when she got her period for the first time entered Gwen's mind again. Reliving those embarrassing memories made Gwen cringe inwardly. How could she say no to her? If anything she wanted to help her more than ever. Gwen nodded her head, making the redhead feel relief. The dark haired girl told her to wait a few seconds before she went upstairs to grab a few dollar bills from her room. When she went downstairs she didn't even acknowledge the disapproving stare her mother was giving her. She didn't have time to do so. She had to help out Beverly.

"Alright." Gwen said, closing the front door behind them. Beverly was now beside her. They were starting to make their way to the one place the dark haired teen knew had the right supplies that Beverly would need.

"Come on. I know exactly where we need to go."

Although they had walked, the two girls made it to the pharmacy pretty fast. Beverly felt glad when she saw the pharmacy was practically empty (for now anyways).

Gwen had immediately brought her to the aisle that had all the feminine hygiene stuff. The redhead felt overwhelmed just being in the this specific aisle. She was thankful that Gwen was here, it made the visit less awful. She stared at all the boxes that were lined up with uneasiness.

"Which one do you recommend?" Beverly inquired. Her eyes widened when seeing all different brands of pads and tampons the store had. This was just too much and too weird for her. Why did there have to be more than one brand? Weren't they all just the same? She looked at Gwen for guidance.

The teenager could feel the younger girl's nervousness, so she sent her a soothing gaze. "Would you prefer pads or tampons?" She calmly asked her.

Beverly still looked unsure. "I don't know."

"Each of them have their pros and cons." Gwen started explaining to her. "I personally always preferred tampons over pads because of how active I am. Especially for whenever I played softball. Tampons make it easier for me to move around without feeling like I'm wearing a diaper."

Beverly thought over what she said. Like Gwen, she considered herself to be more of an out and about person. So with that being thought over, she reached for a decision. "I think I would prefer tampons." She sounded so ashamed of herself for saying that answer aloud.

Gwen nodded her head. "That's alright. Like I said, I use tampons too. There's nothing wrong with that." She grabbed the one that would work best for the redhead. "Here, get the tampax pearls. This is the brand I used when I first got my period." She advised, giving the box to her. "By the way, always make sure to get the ones that say regular. Unless of course you're having a heavy flow." Her voice suddenly turned serious. "But never get the ones that say they have cardboard applicators. Those ones hurt like a bitch."

This was a lot to process but Beverly was doing her best to follow along. She nodded her head. "Okay." She said as she examined the tampon box she was now holding. Based on the cover this specific brand looked simple enough to use. She gave Gwen a small smile. "Thanks, Gwen."

Gwen smiled. "No need to thank me. That's what friends are for."

"Friends?" Beverly softly questioned. The word sounded so foreign to her.

"Yes, friends." Gwen repeated strongly. "What? You think I go out and help every girl who's about to get their periods soon? What kind of girl do you think I am?" She asked sounding hurt. A smile broke out on her face when she couldn't keep up the act any longer.

Yes, Gwen had told her that if she ever ended someone, that she'd be there. That should have been enough of an answer for Beverly, but it wasn't. She needed an actual verbal answer in order to believe her. "Do you really consider me a friend?"

Gwen didn't have to ponder for long. Did she consider Beverly a friend? Why yes, yes she did. If she were her age, Gwen knew they would have been best friend. But since Beverly was younger than her, Gwen saw her more as a little sister, but also as a friend. She gave the redhead a smile before releasing a laugh. "Bev, we're in the tampon and pad section. If that doesn't make us friends, then I have no idea what will."

That got Beverly to crack a smile.

Gwen grew earnest and focused on track again. "Anyways..." She cleared her throat. "You're also gonna need some kind of cramp medication."

"Why?" Beverly asked furrowing her eyebrows. "I mean, I have some cramps but they're bearable."

"They're bearable right now, sure. Trust me, the worse ones always come when you least expect them. Cramps are sneaky bastards like that." Gwen rambled on. She was speaking from personal experience, which is why she was taking this seriously."Now hopefully they won't be as bad as mine, but it's better to be prepared."

Beverly found herself agreeing with her. "Okay...but I only brought enough money for the tampons."

Gwen waved her hand. "Don't worry, I'll buy the cramp medication."

"You don't have to." Beverly said trying to deny her offer nicely. That didn't stop the teen whatsoever.

"Nah, I want to." Gwen said with a smile. "I'm gonna go on the other side to go get it. I'll be right back."

After that the dark haired teen took off towards said aisle. That left Beverly standing there awkwardly, waiting for her to return. Another familiar girl's voice though had her eyes going wide. It was Greta saying goodbye to her father. If there was a downside about going to the pharmacy, it was the large chances of running to Greta Keene. It sucked major that her father owned the pharmacy. She did not want to deal with her crap at the moment. So Beverly swiftly moved to the next aisle over before Greta was able to catch a glimpse of her.

However, when she went to the next aisle she was met with a set of familiar faces. Bill's, Eddie's, and Stan's from school. Embarrassed, the redhead hurriedly hid the box of tampons behind her the exact moment they turned to look at her. All three boy's eyes widened in surprise when they saw her. Bill though noticed how diffident her eyes were. The same eyes he liked staring into. "You o-o-okay?" He asked her.

Beverly got a hold of herself. "Yeah..." She saw all the medical supplies they were each carrying. She narrowed her eyes a bit. "What are you guys doing?" She found herself asking them.

"None of your business." Stan responded, levelheaded.

It was that moment that Gwen finally showed up adding more hilarity to the scene that was unfolding.

"Bev, so I found the medication for cra―" Gwen stopped talking when she saw the familiar group of boys. She quickly hid the cramp medication behind her back. "Uh, hey guys."

Bill gave Gwen a friendly smile. Eddie did as well, only his smile was more shier and along the way of greeting her he had almost dropped the medical supplies he was holding. "Hey."

Stan on the other hand was more affected by the older girl's presence. He felt his face start to grow warm at the sight of his crush. "Uh..." Thankfully the slight discreet nudge Eddie gave him allowed composure to resurface. So he spoke in a much brighter tone. "Hi, Gwen."

"Small word, huh?" Gwen decided to joke with an awkward smile. "So...what are you guys up to with all those supplies?" She asked once she saw everything they were holding. What exactly were they up to? Was Richie with them? She decided to ask. "Is my brother with you guys?"

Eddie nodded his head. "Yeah, but he's waiting for us in the back. He's with the other boy."

This had Gwen and Beverly nonplussed.

"What other boy?" Beverly asked.

Bill cleared his throat gaining their attention. "There's a b-b-boy outside that got hurt pretty b-b-badly. We're t-t-trying to h-h-help him, but we don't have enough m-m-money for s-s-supplies."

Using one of her hands (the one that wasn't still hiding the cramp medication), Gwen quickly counted the money she had. She let out a low curse when she realized she had nowhere near enough for even half of the supplies they needed. "Shit. Sorry guys, I'd buy them, but I have nowhere near the amount that's needed."

All three boys gave her looks of "it's okay." From beside her, Beverly spoke up softly. "I have an idea." She said gaining their attention. She became more confident after that. "Stay here. I'm gonna up front to talk to Mr. Keene. I'll distract him and then when I give you the signal, just go."

"What's the s-s-signal?" Bill stuttered as he stared at her with adulation.

Beverly's eyes gleamed and her lips curled upwards. "You'll see." She began walking towards the counter, still hiding the box of tampons she had from the boys, but stopped when Gwen briefly yet gently touched her shoulder.

"You sure?" Gwen asked her. She couldn't help but worry a little for Beverly. Yes, Gwen knew stealing was wrong, but at the moment she didn't care about that. She was more concerned about Mr. Keene, the man who owned the pharmacy. From all the interactions she has had with him, he had been polite. Except Gwen always felt that something about him was a little off. It was as if he was just too nice. Plus, just his overall look didn't help the creepy vibe he had going on.

Beverly, although touched by her concern, reassured her with a winning smile. "Don't worry, I got this in the bag." Which was true. Stealing items from the pharmacy wasn't nothing new for her. It was mainly cigarettes, but every once in a while it'd be other things. Except this was going to be different. She had no doubts though. She would be able to do this. "Just stay with them and go when the coast is clear. I'll meet you outside after."

Without saying anything else, Beverly started to casually walk towards the front counter. Even from where she and the boys were standing at, Gwen could tell whatever she was saying to Mr. Keene, he was obviously eating it up. While that was happening, Gwen looked at the cramp medication she had. From the way things were going it seemed like she wasn't going to need pay for it after all. She went to put the pill bottle inside one of short pockets but mentally cursed herself when she realized the pockets didn't have enough room for it. She then decided to do something else. The Tozier girl swiftly put the medication inside her shirt, hiding it inside her bra. She took a few seconds to adjust her bra in order to make it more comfortable.

She failed to notice the three boys that were beside her looking at her.

Bill felt awkward that he had seen her do that and his eyes were wide. Eddie's mouth was agape and his cheeks tinted with a pinkish color. And Stan...well, the Uris boy had felt his mouth go dry and the butterflies in his stomach were out of control.

When she finally felt their staring, Gwen slowly turned to look at them. "What?" She whispered unaware that they had seen her hide the pill bottle inside her bra.

All three boys just shook their heads. They couldn't form a verbal answer for her. Gwen just gave them a mild perplexed expression before her attention focused on Beverly again. She saw how the redhead was now wearing Mr. Keene's glasses. They exchanged a few more words before she was handing the glasses back to him. As she did this, Beverly knocked something over the counter. Gwen heard her apologize before Mr. Keene turned his back to clean up the mess. It was then that Beverly glanced over her shoulder and gave them an engaging smile.

That was the signal.

Gwen quickly went to the door and opened it. The three boys were in a very much daze like state as they made their way to leave. Bill more so because of Beverly's presence and smile. And Stan and Eddie were still dumbfounded by Gwen. Stan more than Eddie. Although it was the small fragile looking boy who had accidentally bumped into her making him drop some of the supplies. The Tozier girl went to help pick up the supplies that fell and once she had them all, the four of them finally got out of the store. They were lucky they hadn't been caught.

"So who's this boy that got hurt?" Gwen asked as they were making their way towards the alleyway. It had been the same one where Beverly and her had been throwing pebbles.

With a small dream like gaze towards the Tozier girl, Eddie answered her. "The new kid."

Gwen became puzzled. "New kid?" She repeated as she juggled with the supplies she was carrying. Stan quietly took some of the things she had and added it to his hands. The Tozier girl gave him a thankful look. Stan just blushed and looked away. As usual she didn't think much of his reaction. To her that was just Stan being Stan.

Bill nodded his head. "Yeah, he s-s-said his name was B-B-Ben."

Ben? Gwen's furrowed her eyebrows. There was only one Ben she knew in Derry...was it him? That question was right away answered when they went further into the alleyway. Right away did she see a seriously injured boy with a huge blood stain on his stomach sitting beside the mural wall. Her brother was there keeping him company. When he saw her coming their way, the Tozier boy waved and smiled. Gwen returned the gesture, but was more focused on poor injured Ben.

"Ben!" Gwen called out his name in alarm. She was now standing in front of him. She carefully handed the medical supplies she had to Eddie as did the rest of the boys. Eddie then started to clean up Ben's wound.

Ben gave the older girl an awkward smile as the small boy patched him up. "Hi, Gwen." He greeted trying to sound cool. In an honest point of view, Ben felt pretty crappy right now. First he had seen that frightening headless boy in the library and then that scary looking clown, and then to top it off Henry Bowers carved into his stomach...today was just not his day.

Richie (along with everyone else) looked at both of them bemused at how friendly they already were with each other. His dark eyes then zeroed in on Ben. "Wait, hold the phone, you know my sister?" He asked him.

Before Ben was even able to let out a word, Gwen spoke for him. "We met at the library." She informed not only to Richie, but to everyone else as well.

"Oh, so he's a library nerd too." Richie playfully teased.

Gwen rolled her eyes at her brother. "Beep beep, Richie." She then looked at Ben again, her dark eyes becoming soft with concern. "What happened to you?"

Before he was able to explain to her what happened, footsteps approaching caught all of their attention. Gwen used this moment to really see Ben's injury. Now that Eddie had somewhat cleaned the wound she was able to see what looked like a letter H carved on his stomach. She had a sick knowing feeling about who had done that to him.

"You okay? That looks like it hurts." Beverly's soft concerned voice filled the air. Her sudden appearance next to her and Bill, allowed Gwen to have a moment to control her emotions.

Ben's heart skipped a beat when he saw Beverly. He gently pushed Eddie's hand to the side and pulled his t-shirt back down so that it covered his stomach. He tried to appear more intrepid and nonchalant. He didn't want the girl he liked to see him as a weakling. Even though she probably already did...still, he kept the composed appearance up. "Nah, I'll be fine. I just fell is all."

"Yeah, right into Henry Bowers." Richie said, his loud-mouth getting the better of him.

Bill, Stan, and Eddie threw Richie looks, but it was Bill who was more vocal. "Sh-Sh-Shut it, Richie."

"Why it's the truth?" The bespectacled boy retorted back.

"Wait, so he did do this to you." Gwen said with a hard voice. Now she knew for sure that the H on Ben's stomach was because of Bowers' crazy ass. A full on scowl had broken out onto her face. "That demented fuckturd."

Her voice was hard and not at all playful, but her choice of curse word had Richie and the others (including Ben) laughing. "Demented fuckturd, yeah that's Bowers in a nutshell." Her brother commented full on amused.

Their laughter made Gwen's anger go away momentarily and she too joined in with the laughing. Her laughter was making the pill bottle she had in her bra move around. Slightly annoyed, Gwen decided to take it out. Embarrassment be damned. She reached into her shirt and once she had the bottle in her hand, Gwen threw it to Beverly who skillfully caught it. The redhead then put it inside the plastic bag she had. The whole thing had been done fast enough so that the boys wouldn't see the label on the bottle.

They hadn't said anything aloud, just had on slightly shocked faces. Aside from Richie...he looked severely grossed that he had seen his sister reach into her shirt. And then Stan, who felt his whole face start to warm up. However, a few seconds later it was Eddie who spoke up and without clearly thinking at all either.

"What was that? Were those birth control pills?"

Gwen was taken back by such a question. Where the hell had that question come from? Her face twisted in puzzlement and a laugh escaped her. "No, why in the world would I have or be giving her birth control pills?"

"Ya, Eddie. Why ever would you assume such things?" Richie knowingly asked his small friend. He wanted break into hysterics but controlled himself from doing so.

Eddie now felt really stupid for blurting that question. Seeing Gwen with an unfamiliar looking bottle of pills reminded him of the witty response he had told Richie earlier from when he had seen all his medications and made fun of him.

"Hey Eddie, are these your birth control pills?"

"Yeah, I'm saving them for your sister!"

He hadn't meant his comment. It was just a joke. But to see Gwen with a bottle of pills that he thought was birth control was bizarre and it had him blurting out an embarrassing question. Now he couldn't find a reasonable excuse, so he just went with a lame one. "It was just a question..." He uttered, averting his eyes from the pretty dark haired girl.

Gwen didn't take his question to heart. If anything she found it more amusing, and she was pretty sure Beverly did too. "Well, alright then." She mused. From the corner of one of her eyes she saw Stan looking at her. She turned to look at him, and once she did Stan's gaze lowered. Huh? Gwen thought that was a little odd but didn't look into it. Once again, that was Stan just being Stan.

"Anyways, are you sure they got the right stuff, to fix you up?" Beverly asked moving the conversation along. As she said this, she gave Ben a knowing smile.

Ben right away got the joke. He blushed and nodded his head. The inside joke between the two of them was making him forget about the carved H on his stomach and the pain that was attached to it.

"W-W-We'll take care of him. Thanks again, Gwen, Beverly." Bill stuttered out. He thanked them both, but the awe-struck look he had in his eyes was aimed solely at the redhead.

Beverly was looking at Bill in almost the same way. "Sure. See you around."

Gwen was reluctant to leave them, but the reassuring smile Ben gave her made her nod her head. "Okay." Something within told her Ben was going to be okay now that he found her brother and his friends.

Out of nowhere an idea entered Bill's head and it was one that he had to ask. Yes, he wanted to focus on something bigger and more important during his summer, but the idea of just hanging with his friends was something serene that needed to be done. "We're g-g-going swimming t-t-tomorrow at the quarry." He looked at both girls and offered them a sociable smile. "You guys are welcome t-t-to come."

The idea of having Gwen with them tomorrow had Stan seeing bright colors. "Yeah!" He quickly added making everyone look at him oddly. He right away saw Gwen's stare and his confidence faltered. The butterflies were now fluttering around in his stomach. His cheeks and ears felt warm now. "It'll be fun..." He shyly and lamely told the Tozier girl. Even though he was looking at Gwen, the curly haired boy still felt Richie's pity, yet amused stare.

Gwen smiled at how excited and shy Stan had become. She turned to look at Beverly waiting to see what she had to say. The redhead was smiling at the invitation that was thrown at them. She hadn't answered yet because she was waiting for Gwen to do so. The older girl noticed this but she didn't want to be the one who decided. That was all on Beverly. So she shrugged her shoulders at the redhead. Sure swimming did sound pretty fun but she would only go if Beverly went. She didn't want to be the only girl there. Her friendship with her brother's friends hadn't reached that non-awkward and comfortable level yet.

Beverly saw her shrug and she threw Gwen a quick "I got this" kind of smile. She focused her gaze towards the boys again. "We'll think about it." She said leaving them with a sort of cliff-hanger of an answer. She looked at Gwen and gave her nod, letting her know it was time to go.

"I'll catch you guys on the flip side." Gwen said her usual goodbye. She gave all five of them a goodbye wave before she turned around and starting walking away with Beverly by her side.

"I didn't know Gwen was f-f-friends with B-B-Beverly." Bill said as he watched both of the girls walk away. Even when they turned the corner, and were out of sight, his heartbeat went fast. His thoughts were all about Beverly.

Richie was just as surprised as him. "I didn't know either." The youngest Tozier then looked at Eddie who was still feeling foolish. "By the way, that was a great question you blurted out." Originally he hated that facetious comment Eddie had made about his sister while they were at his house. But now he was finding humor in it because it had backfired on Eddie.

Eddie groaned and told him to shut up.

"Do you think they'll show up tomorrow?" Stan asked, sounding hopeful.

"I hope so." Bill responded, once again his mind was mainly thinking about Beverly.

Richie threw Stan a pointed look. "You just want my sister to go because you want to see her half naked." After saying that he made a noise as if he was going to throw up. He let out a shudder as well. "Gah, that's gross."

"Shut up, Richie!" Stan shouted, embarrassed. "And way to go bringing up Bowers in front of them." The curly haired boy said giving Richie a firm look. "Especially Beverly."

Eddie pushed aside his embarrassed feelings. "Yeah, didn't you hear what she did?" He asked keeping his voice low but steady.

Ben who had been quiet and watching, had a confused expression set on his face. "What did she do?" He asked.

"More like who'd she do." Richie answered him. He was trying to make the conversation lighthearted. "From what I hear the list is longer than my wang." He joked to his friends as he pointed to his member.

Stan scoffed. "That's not saying much."

"They're j-j-just rumors. Kind of like the ones about G-G-Gwen." Bill stuttered out. Although he had a hard time speaking all four boys could tell how earnest he was being. "And we d-d-don't b-b-believe those either."

"What are the rumors about her?" Ben asked with a frown. He couldn't understand why anyone would want to spread rumors about Gwen...she was nice. He felt the same way about Beverly. Why did nice people have to suffer the most?

Richie grew sober now that he was talking about the rumors regarding his sister. "That she's a lesbian." He muttered. "It's not true. Henry Bowers just made that up because she wouldn't give him the time of day. And even if it was true, who the fuck cares. She could like whoever. People are assholes. Especially fuckturds like Henry Bowers."

Ben found himself nodding alongside the other boys, agreeing with everything Richie had just said.

Richie suddenly cleared his throat going back to his ebullient ways. "Yeah...anyways, Bill had Beverly back in the third grade. They kissed in the school play. The reviews said you can't fake that sort of passion!" After saying this, he along with Stan and Eddie, sent Bill knowing looks causing the Denbrough boy to smile sheepishly.

Ouch.

Ben's feelings towards Beverly were hurt when hearing this. Except none of the boys noticed the crestfallen expression that overshadowed his face. It wounded him to hear that, but by now he was good at not making his dejected feelings real noticeable. Richie clapping his hands made him jump a little from where he was sitting.

"Pip-pip and tally-ho, my good fellows!" Richie continued talking, only now with a terrible British accent. "I do believe this chap requires our utmost attention. Get in there Doctor K, c'mon, fix him up!" He said moving Eddie closer to Ben again.

The small boy rolled his eyes at how juvenile his friend was acting. "Why don't you shut the fuck up Einstein, because I know what I'm doing and I don't want you doing that British accent guy with me right now. "

"Suck the wound, you gotta suck the wound!" Richie hollered with laughter as Eddie began fixing Ben up again. As he did this, Bill was the one who was trying to settle down their banter every time they were close to getting out of control. Stan was too. Well, not really.

The curly haired boy wasn't one hundred percent there with his friends. No, his mind was elsewhere.

All his thoughts at the moment were about Gwen.

Stan kept wondering if the dark haired girl would show up tomorrow...he felt his heartbeat pick up speed.

He really hoped that she would.