Floating On Air

by Winchestergirl123

Gwen Tozier always had a sinking feeling that something was off in the small town of Derry. So when her younger brother and his close group of friends tell her an evil entity in the form of a clown is the one responsible for all the deaths and missing kids, she believes them. She finds out for herself though just how real this clown is and what IT wants from her.

32. Chapter 32

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: I wrote this chapter mainly using the new tablet/laptop I recently purchased. I'm trying to get used to it because I got way too comfortable with my old Chrome book. I'll fix any spelling errors later. Anyways, this was an intense chapter to write but also fun? I'm messed up :p but I am assuming you guys already knew that. Also please excuse Gwen's language...but I mean she wouldn't be Gwen if she didn't cuss every now and then. Same with Richie.

Here's something random I want to share with you guys, I wrote most of this chapter while listening to the official soundtrack of Euphoria. Labrinth recently dropped the album and I haven't been able to stop listening to it. Do yourself a favor and listen to the soundtrack. Gosh it's so amazing. If you haven't seen Euphoria...what the shit man? Go watch it. Regardless the soundtrack is great. It was a bit weird listening to it while writing this chapter because of how intense it was, mainly the fortune cookie scene. It did help me finish the chapter though. Oddly motivated me. Especially the song, Still Don't Know My Name. That has to be one of my favorite songs that's on the soundtrack.

Anyways...

Special shout to wolfanddragon98 on Tumblr! They wrote some very fluffy pieces on Gwen and Stan. They honestly made me smile and gave me heart eyes. Reading them just made me excited for the future chapters that focus more on Gwen and Stan's life once defeating IT and focusing on their marriage, kids, and etc. Super adorable stuff. Made me momentarily forget about the damn angst we have to endure first xP

*TO CLARIFY*

Gwen in this chapter now does remember that IT bit her but she has yet to remember about the actual assault that was done to her. That comes later. It's going to be rather intense when she does remember, so I'll will put a trigger warning at the beginning of that chapter for you guys.

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"Oh, I am fortune's fool!"― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

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Chapter 32: Fortune cookie mishap

The churning that Gwen now felt in her stomach kept getting worse the longer the silence grew inside the party room. It was so damn quiet that Gwen thought if she were to drop a pen on the floor it would have sounded as loud as a plate being smashed. The Tozier woman didn't even need to look around the table to know that each of the Losers looked beyond petrified.

"Oh, the fucking clown." Eddie nervously breathed out, ending the silence. However, him speaking did nothing to lessen everyone's restlessness. Eddie looked even worse than before he spoke. He once again went to reach for his inhaler only to realize he didn't have it there with him.

Ben, who was siting between Eddie and Gwen, leaned back against his chair, horrified. "Shit." He lowly said as he felt chills throughout his body. The memory of that evil entity existing and how IT tormented his friends and him as kids left Ben momentarily still.

Beverly had lowered her gaze onto the table, hands shaking in her lap. Richie's eyes behind his glasses widened and after managing to gain a (somewhat) hold of himself he immediately looked at his sister. Aside from the fear that was growing inside him, concern grew as well. Concern that was aimed at Gwen. That same concern made him want to get up from his seat to comfort her when Richie saw how Gwen was roughly rubbing her right shoulder. Her face was as white as a sheet, and her eyes held this gleam that made Richie think she was thinking of something terrible. All in all, Richie felt that one simple push would immediately have her falling to the ground. That's how weak she appeared to be.

However, before he was even a few inches off his seat, movement from Richie's left side caused him to stay in his seat as he turned to look at Stan. Richie's eyes widened even more if that were possible from what he was seeing. The curly haired man had an unreadable expression as one of his hands was briefly touching the sides of his face. The veins under Stan's eyes were extremely prominent. He looked just as sickly as Gwen did now.

Richie could understand why Stan's reaction would be the same way as his sister's since he now remembered. Richie in fact remembered just how exactly both Gwen and Stan got their scars.

IT.

Richie Tozier felt like he was freakin' thirteen years old again. Feeling young though didn't make him feel any better. No...he just felt scared because he felt like he was the same thirteen year old that went with his friends into the sewers to rescue Gwen and Beverly. He was thirteen years old when he and the Losers found Gwen, bloody and unconscious on the sewer floor. Richie had cried his eyes out because he thought Gwen was died. She looked dead. The blood oozing from her right shoulder because of the bite mark IT left made him think that way. Along with the blood going down her legs because of the scratch marks that had been there. The blood going down her legs though wasn't just because of the scratch marks...but that was something Richie wasn't aware of yet. Soon enough the truth about what happened to Gwen would be revealed, and that sadly was only going to add to his already existing anguish.

At the moment all Richie could think about was how despite finding his sister bit, scratched, and bloody, that she at least wasn't dead. The same was to be said about Stan. The curly haired boy back then got separated from the group but Richie and the others had been luckily enough to find him. However, Richie remembered the hysterical state they found Stan in. Not at all good. They found him right when that disfigured lady from the painting Stan was scared of was eating his face...or at least trying to. Richie and the others were able to drive IT away but the damage unfortunately had already been done...damage that Stan, twenty-seven years, had the scars to show.

The whole thing, going down to the sewers, finding Gwen and Stan after being attacked by IT, was a fuckin' nightmare...and now Richie and the others remembered. Gwen and Stan now remembered...and Richie felt both sadness and anger. Out of all of them, Richie felt that his sister and Stan shouldn't have to remember the fucked up shit they went through as kids. Gwen especially since Richie was starting to realize just how creepy that clown entity was towards her.

"Mike you said you wanted our help with something, what was that?" Bill asked without his stutter. Like the rest of his friends, Bill too was just as spooked. Despite not stuttering the rest of the Losers were able to hear just how unease he sounded.

Mike looked at each of his friends as he began speaking again. "There's an echo here in Derry that bounces back every twenty-seven years―"

"What are you talking about?" Eddie interrupted with a deep frown.

Mike held up his hand. "Hold up listen."

From beside Mike, Gwen let out a low hiss from the pain coming from her shoulder. Biting her lip hard, she let go of her shoulder and went to grab her glass of Chardonnay. She drowned what was left of the drink within seconds. That had the others (particularity Richie, Ben, and Stan) look at her with worry. When there was nothing left, Gwen set aside the empty glass carelessly. The Tozier woman still felt pain coming from her shoulder but the alcohol sure made her forget about it.

Richie right away could see that Gwen was close to wanting to order another drink and he knew the reason for this. He gave Mike a warning look. "Mike." What he was saying was getting to Gwen to point where she needed alcohol to sooth her. Richie knew this conversation had to stop.

Mike either ignored the warning look Richie threw his way, or he hadn't seen it at all. A very unhappy Richie thought it was most likely the first choice. "We thought we stopped it back then, we thought it was done but―" He stopped talking and reached under the table or to set a journal. Gwen was baffled by that. Mike opened the journal and turned a few pages before he came to a stop. From where she sat Gwen saw a few drawings when Mike was turning the page. The one drawing of a clown with sharp teeth (IT) had her going cold and had her gripping the table again because of her damn shoulder. "A week ago, a man named Adrian Mellon, slaughtered."

For some unexplained reason that made the pain on her right shoulder go away. Gwen's grip loosened, and all her attention was on Mike. "Slaughtered?" She asked, deeply disturbed. "Where exactly did this happen?" Even though she was still in shock from remembering IT and how IT bit her, Gwen had a need to know about the death of Adrian Mellon.

"Near the town's main bridge." Mike answered right away, ready to explain the horrible fate that had befallen Adrian Mellon. "He was actually pushed off the bridge first."

Pushed off the bridge? That made Gwen furrow her eyebrows. "What? Why?" She hurriedly asked. Who in the world would push somebody off a damn bridge? Was it an accident? Like some prank gone wrong? What Mike ended up saying though caused a whole different reaction to arise within Gwen.

Mike let out a sigh. "It was a hate crime."

The annoyance Richie had felt towards Mike with bringing up the damn clown faltered. "A hate crime?" He questioned, his throat going dry.

"He was with his boyfriend Don Hagarty when a group of guys went after them." Mike clarified to him and the others who were listening. "They beat both of them up and then threw Adrian off the bridge."

All the Losers felt sick hearing this but Gwen Tozier felt something else. "You're telling me he was pushed off a damn bridge because he was gay?" Gwen asked, sounding severely aggravated now. The coldness she had felt before changed into warmth. She was really fuckin' angry. Gwen wasn't naive when it came to hate crimes towards the LGBT community. Over the years she'd heard lots of horrible stories but what happened to Adrian Mellon was probably the worst one she'd heard because of just how he died.

Gwen's anger was so strong from hearing what happened to Adrian Mellon that she completely missed the way her brother was fidgeting with his glasses. Before any of the other Losers noticed him, Richie forced his hands down. He counted to ten before releasing the pressure he had on his hand. While that had been going on, Mike began speaking again.

"Sadly, yes. And there's more." Mike pointed to his journal that was set on the table. "A young girl named Lisa Albron went missing the other night. There's already been other deaths and there will be more!"

"I don't want to hear about the more." Eddie quietly said as he tried to keep his breathing in check.

"Other deaths?" Stan repeated, frowning. Despite not wanting to know more morbid details the lack of why there was no logic took over. "Why...why hasn't this been on the damn news?" The Uris man was having such a hard time with hearing all that. How were these deaths and missing kids not on the news yet? He heard about the delusional cop that killed all those women in Castle Rock, Maine a couple of years ago. Patty had talked nonstop about it. The tragedy of that incident struck a lot of people emotionally and had even trended online. Yet there was nothing online or on the news about what was happening in Derry. How was that possible?

"Because of this town." Mike fervently answered him. "Because of IT." Mike then picked up his journal and went to the person who was more closer to him at the moment. That happened to be Gwen. Richie right away reacted to that.

"Hey! Calm down man!" Richie shouted at Mike when he saw him try to basically throw the journal at Gwen's face. Based on how Gwen reacted (she jumped in her seat a little) Richie wasn't sure whether she really wanted to look in the journal (because of how sudden Mike's move was) or if she wanted to throw it away from her. Richie decided it was mostly likely the first thought.

Bill swiftly got into the scene. "Let's just get him another drink." He said trying to get Mike to sit still.

Ben, who was a much better peacemaker, thankfully got involved. "Hang on, just let him explain."

Mike sighed as he lowered his journal and he remained seated now. He briefly gave Gwen an apologetic look which had the Tozier woman nod her head, basically saying it was okay. In reality, Gwen hadn't been bothered. She was just taken by surprise.

Once the there was no more commotion, Mike took a deep breath before eyeing all of his friends again. His eyes held seriousness. "That echo, we might have changed IT, just like IT changed us, but we didn't stop IT because IT just bounced back. We made an oath, that's why I brought you back, that's why you're here to finish IT, for good."

Gwen let out a shaky breath. "IT." After she said this she found herself making eye contact with Stan. The curly haired man didn't stop looking at her until she lowered her gaze. He instantly felt as a sense a pain radiated from his heart when he was no longer able to look into those dark eyes he adored.

"There's more." Mike then said causing Stan and the others to look his way.

Richie slightly shook his head. "Of course."

Mike did well to ignore his side comment. "I've done a lot of research, and most of that research has to do with Native American Mythology that ties back to IT."

Stan made a face at that. It was one of slight disbelief but also intrigue. "Native American Mythology?" It wasn't like he didn't know about Native American Mythology. He wasn't an expert or anything but he'd read and heard a few stories over the years. He found it bemusing though that Mike would suddenly start talking about that. Though in hindsight perhaps he shouldn't have been too bemused. As Mike stated the research he did connected to IT but how exactly did the research connect? Stan's curious expression didn't waver just yet.

"I read that with evil there has to be a balance." Mike told his friends as he started to movie his hands. To the Losers it appeared as if Mike was forming a small circle with his hands.

"What, like Yin and Yang?" Stan questioned evenly.

Mike nodded his head as his hand movements came to an end. "Yes! So in this case IT is evil."

"I think we got that buddy." Richie shortly replied this time. "So who's good? Us humans?" He asked even though he sounded completely done with the conversation. He still held the same thought from before with how they needed to stop talking about this. Richie though felt a little better once he had seen how Gwen had stopped rubbing her shoulder. That look from before (that let him know she wanted to drink) wasn't there anymore, so that made him feel somewhat relaxed.

"No, not really." Mike began explaining as clear as possible. "I mean, humans can be good and bad but the issue is that we're too flawed. We can't compare to an entity like IT."

"Too flawed indeed." Gwen blurted out making the Losers look her way. She let out a sigh. That was supposed to stay inside her head but of course her word vomit got the better of her again. The forty-two year old woman she did her best to ignore everyone's stares. Stan's especially.

"Anyways, with all the research I've done I came to realize that there's one entity who matches up to IT." Mike continued explaining. "There's many names for this entity. Cosmic Turtle, World-bearing Turtle, but the most common one seems to be Maturin. An entity that takes the form of a Turtle. From what I read Maturin is said to have created our main universe."

"Maturin." Gwen whispered. Only both Mike and Ben heard her say that. To them is sounded as if she knew the name already. Ben's questioning gaze lingered more than Mike's. In a way Mike didn't feel as surprised that Gwen sounded as if she already knew the name.

"This Turtle created our universe?" Beverly softly questioned making Mike and Ben turns towards the redhead.

Mike nodded his head. "Yes."

"How?" Richie questioned, deciding to humor him.

Mike tried to answer as professionally as possible. Though really how professional can one sound with what he was about to say? "The Turtle had a stomachache and because of that stomachache our universe came to be."

"Are you saying that this Turtle threw up the universe we live in because of some stomachache?" Bill asked slowly, still trying to understand. Mike nodded his head.

"Are you fuckin' kidding me?" Eddie asked, voice raised.

Stan looked just as thrown off but kept quiet. Bill, Ben, Beverly, and Gwen though were still intently listening to Mike. Richie on the other hand was on the same track of disbelief and annoyance. Except unlike Stan he was more vocal like Eddie. "That's the stupidest thing I have ever heard. And believe me I have heard my fair share of stupid things over the years."

Mike remained cool. "That's just from what I've read."

"A space Turtle?" Richie scoffed. "You're shitting me."

"I'm not."

"Well, I don't believe that for a second." Richie announced and then looked at his sister, as if for backup. "Gwen?"

The Tozier woman locked gazes with her brother but had yet to say anything. Richie felt somewhat upset by her lack of a reaction. That only made him think that she was leaning towards believing Mike. What the fuck? Was she really buying what Mike said about that Turtle thing? Richie didn't want his sister to be involved. Not again. He was about to say something to Gwen when Bill's voice filled the air.

"Yet you believe in an evil entity that can transform into anything you fear?" Bill inquired making Richie look his way.

All of Richie's attention landed on Bill, and it wasn't good. "Because we've dealt with that piece of shit!" He vehemently replied to him. "What Mike's suggesting about this God like Turtle entity existing is absolute crap. None of us have seen this majestic Turtle. So, why should I believe in it?" Richie shook his head. "Why even put your faith in some supposed benevolent entity like that if you don't even know they're real." He let out a sigh as he ran a hand through his already tousled hair. "All I know for certain is that is this little reunion of ours turned dark fast. It's shit now." Richie looked at Mike with an unhappy expression. "Thanks a lot, Mike."

Gwen gave her brother a sad look. It hurt to hear Richie speak in such an negative way...as if he had no faith whatsoever. Gwen didn't want to turn this whole thing into a religious thing seeing as she herself wasn't religious, but from a young age Richie was more open to there being a higher being. Except now Gwen wouldn't be surprised if Richie flat out told her he was an Atheist. For all she knew maybe he was. That's how distant she'd been from him. She didn't even know what he believed in anymore. Maybe the faith he had as a kid was still there...he just needed a reason to believe again. That could be said for a lot of people though. Including her indecisive-self.

The look that Gwen had faltered when saw Eddie crack his fortune cookie open. He didn't appear to be amused when he read what the little piece of paper said. "My fortune cookie just says One."

Richie opened his own fortune cookie. "They don't know how to do fortunes here. You're not gonna want this one, Gwen." He told her, frowning. "Mine just says For."

"That's okay, Richie." Gwen replied so low, and nervous. She couldn't even enjoy the little touching moment of Richie remembering how she liked collecting the fortunes from her fortune cookies. "Somehow I don't think I'm going to want to keep my fortune anyways." She continued to say after she opened her fortune cookie. Her fortune said one single word like Eddie and Richie's. Except her said: Taste. The single word made a chill go down her spine.

"They should really hire new people to write the fortunes here." Stan added into the conversation as he showed everyone his fortune. Everyone was puzzled by what his said. Takes

Gwen frowned as she felt another chill go down her spine. What the hell was going on?

"You guys want to throw those over here?" Bill gestured for his friends to give their fortunes over. His said All. After Bill gave that order, Ben cracked his fortune cookie and then gave his fortune to him. Ben was left feeling confused after he saw that his fortune said Is.

Richie and Eddie gave their fortunes to Bill without asking any questions either. Gwen and Stan seemed to hesitate a little before they finally slid their fortunes over towards the others. As that was going on everyone had yet to notice that Beverly hadn't handed over her fortune yet. It seemed that Mike got all of their attention with the way he was intently staring at his fortune.

"What you got, Mikey?" Bill asked and then gasped a little when Mike handed over his fortune. Mike got It as his fortune.

"What the fuck?" Richie asked as Bill started rearranging the fortunes around to form a proper sentence.

"It's a message." Mike stated the obvious but as to what the message was exactly was still the mystery.

Eddie look at Bill, hands mid air. "When it says It is it talking about It? Is that what It means?"

Bill let out a huff as he tried to stay focused. He continued to move the small pieces of paper around, his heart racing against his chest. When he started running a hand through his hand, a sign of irritation, Ben pointed to the fortune that said It.

"It goes at the beginning?" He suggested and Bill immediately moved It at the beginning but then shook his head.

"No that doesn't make any sense." Bill said trying to remained composed. However, it was obvious he was getting frustrated. So was everyone else. The only ones that looked somewhat calm on the outside were Gwen and Stan. Inside was a whole other story.

"Did you fuck with the fortune cookies, Mike?" Richie heatedly asked Mike.

Mike shook his head. "No! This is not me. This is what IT does."

Richie though wasn't listening to him. Neither was Eddie who was now pacing back forth.

"I need my fuckin' inhaler!"

Hearing Eddie sound so panicked increased Richie's discontent. "What is wrong with you man?" He angrily asked Mike. "Why'd you call us?!"

More comments from both ends started to come in after Richie said that. Gwen was about to step in and tell the guys that yelling wasn't going to get them anywhere when she finally caught sight of Beverly. The Tozier woman felt so dumb that it had taken her this long to notice how withdrawn and quiet her red haired friend had gotten.

"Bev?" Gwen softly called out causing the others to stop their bickering. She didn't like how Beverly was refusing to make eye contact with her. Gwen could tell she was upset with how she heard the low sounds of gasps, as if she was trying to hold in the cries she wanted to desperately let out. When Beverly finally did lift up her gaze, Gwen and the others saw how Beverly's eyes were filled with tears. A few ran down her face as she finally showed her friends the fortune she got. The last missing in order to compete the sentence. Taste. With a shaky hand she put the fortune on the table and slid it over with the others.

With a gulp Bill put the word in the exact spot it was supposed to be, as if he already knew where it had to go. The complete sentence now read: All It Takes Is One Bite For Taste

Beverly with tears still in her eyes looked at Gwen and then at Stan.

"Why the fuck does it say that?" Eddie demanded. His pacing had stopped as looked at his friends frantically. "Somebody fuckin' answer me!" But in a way he knew exactly what that meant. He was just too scared to admit he knew.

All the Losers jumped in their seats when the table shook violently. Several noises of surprise were heard, and more were released when the remaining fortune cookies that were inside the bowl placed in the middle of table began to move on their own. One of those remaining fortune cookies jumped out of the bowl and landed on the table. With horrified faces the eight adults (aside from Beverly and Stan) got out of their seats and watched as the fortune cookie began to crack open on its own.

"What the fuck is that man?" Richie pointed at the fortune cookie as it started to reveal more of itself. "Oh my God." At first none of the Losers knew what was coming out exactly but then they saw a leg that looked like it belonged to a crab like being. Soon enough the whole creature's body was out in the open and it was terrifying to look at. The creature appeared to be some sort of twisted bug like being with wings, crab legs, and a baby's head. The creature's crying that sounded like a baby's just added to the disturbance.

"What the dick?!" Gwen yelled, eyes wide. "What in the fuck is that?"

As if looking at the creature wasn't bad enough, Gwen started to hear a voice that sounded like a young child's voice.

"Feed me, Mommy! Feed me! I'm so hungry!"

Mommy? Gwen thought with absolute dread. I ain't nobody's fuckin' mommy. Why did such a sentence that used to not bother her now caused her to not only feel fear, but also sadness within her? Gwen did the smart thing with pushing those feelings to the side as the same sentence from before was repeated by the creature. She quickly looked around at the rest of the Losers.

Were they hearing this too? Were they hearing what she was hearing? If they were they certainly didn't make any reactions that they did. Well, maybe they were. Everyone did look flat out scared.

Just as the creature began crawling around the table another fortune cookie jumped out of the bowl. A live eyeball began made its way towards Richie, frightening him. The bespectacled man backed away in a hurry. "Hey! That fortune cookie is looking at me!" He shouted as his back hit the party room's wall.

"Get away from the table." Gwen said when she saw most of the Losers, minus her brother and her, were still close to the table. She panicked more when she saw how Beverly and Stan remained frozen in their seats, eyes wide. The Tozier woman repeated herself even louder in fear of their safety. "Get away from the fuckin' table!"

Beverly who was able to get over her shock, did just that. Stan almost fell from his chair when he got up. He caught himself at the last second and then went towards where Richie was. Mike and Bill had backed away together near where the fancy looking fish tank was at. Eddie began shaking his head as Ben hurriedly went to his side.

"I don't want to be here. I want to go home. I don't want to be here." Eddie kept repeating as he covered his face with his hands. Ben from behind gathered him in his arms, trying to calm him down. Gwen was about to make her way over to them when Beverly's scream filled her and the rest of the Losers ears. Gwen from where she was standing quickly found the reason for her scream. Another fortune cookie had cracked open. Only this one was of a bat's wing. The whole creature didn't even come out as it started to fly around the party room.

With a nervous expression Gwen watched as the bat's wing start to go crazy around each Loser. As this was happening another fortune cookie cracked open. This time what came out of it was a newborn baby bird that was struggling with its crawling. This fortune in particular had Stan shaking in place as heard the new born baby birds' cries. The the veins under his eyes became noticeable again, as well as the scars around his face.

"Don't look man!" Richie began telling him. "Just don't look!" Though that was easier said than done since he was still looking at that live damn eyeball. The attention he had on the eyeball though faltered when he heard Eddie release a cry. It seemed that the bat's wing found a victim to focus on...Eddie.

Richie from where he was standing looked at the smaller male that was across the party room with a panicked expression. "Eddie!" He shouted when the bat's wing got close to his face. The concern he had for him didn't go away even with Ben trying to help Eddie.

"Get the fuck away from him!" Gwen yelled as she started hitting the bat's wing with her blazer. She had taken it off and ran towards him once she saw how the bat's wing was attacking Eddie. Within seconds of her hitting the bat's wing the attack on Eddie stopped. Which was good. What was bad was how she was now the main target.

The bat's wing got right in her face causing her to drop her blazer onto the floor. Gwen in a panic stumbled right into the table. "Ah, fuck!"

"Gwen!" Richie shouted in sheer dread.

Not only was Gwen now trying to stop the bat's wing from getting her face but she felt something start to crawl up her body. Gwen started spinning around like crazy when she gazed down and saw that baby creature from before. "Get it off! Get it off!"

Richie ran towards his sister and he was somewhat taken aback when he saw that Stan had followed him. Richie immediately started to swat at the bat's wing, getting it away from Gwen, while Stan tried getting that baby creature off of her. The others were about to help but they all either gasped or screamed when they saw the the various head skulls that were obviously of children inside the fancy fish tank. Bill nearly fell to the floor when he had seen them.

Stan was doing his absolute best to get that thing off of Gwen but it kept moving around her body. At one point the creature even got near her chest that he had almost touched her there. Stan didn't have time to feel embarrassment or even guilt because Gwen ended up doing something that completely shocked him.

"Fuck this shit!" Gwen suddenly exclaimed and then Stan with wide eyes watched how she took off her blouse, leaving her in a black lace trim camisole. She then threw her blouse onto the table which now had dark weird looking liquid surrounding it. Richie, who had been able to get the bat's attention off of his sister, didn't even question where her blouse was once he was next to her and Stan. He instead just took a hold of her and Stan's hand and brought them back to where he had been originally standing.

Gwen was now sandwiched in between Richie and Stan as they watched Mike regain composure from seeing the skulls in the fish tank. "This isn't real!" He yelled out to his friends. Mike then took hold of a chair and started to hit the chair onto the table. The Losers saw how he was trying to kill the weird baby looking creature that Gwen put there once taking off her blouse. "It's not real!" He repeated again as he hit the chair on the table. By the third time he managed to hit the baby creature, crushing it. The creature kept crying out, so Mike continued to hit the chair onto the table all while repeating, "It's not real" over and over.

Gwen, who closed her eyes, now leaned her head on one of Stan's shoulder. Stan immediately wrapped his arms around her as he closed his eyes too. He did his best to ignore the loud music that was playing inside the party room along with Mike's yelling. He instead tried thinking of one of Gwen's songs. That seemed to help...but maybe it had more to do with him being able to hold Gwen in his arms again.

Suddenly there was another voice.

"Is everything alright?"

All the Losers froze, then turned towards the party room's entrance and saw the waitress from before standing there. Gwen lifted her head from Stan's shoulder. She fixed her posture causing the hold he had on her to drop...much to his disappointment. As she now stared at the waitress, Gwen saw how was looking at them with a confused was perfectly understandable...they all must have looked odd.

However, it was more aimed at Mike who had frozen with the chair still in his hands. That made for an extremely awkward scene considering that everything was now gone. And by everything that meant the weird baby looking creature, the live eyeball, the dark liquid that was around the table, the sickly looking newborn baby bird, the skulls that were inside the fish tank, and the bat's wing. They were all gone. What was left was the mess Mike had made with his hitting.

Richie forced a smile. "Yeah, can we get the check?" He asked the waitress.

The waitress nodded her head and started making her way out but then halted when she saw how unclothed Gwen was. She once again frowned and she looked ready to question her appearance. Richie was quick to step in.

"She got her blouse dirty."

Thankfully that was an enough explanation since the waitress just nodded her head. Once she was gone, Richie turned to look at his sister. "Gwen hurry, put your blouse on before you give Stan and Eddie a nose bleed." He said as a way to falter the horror they just experienced. Unfortunately that wasn't the case because neither Eddie or Stan reacted to his comment in the way he had hoped. Eddie was still trying to compose himself and Stan had his gaze on floor. Richie though could still see how pink his cheeks were.

The only one who reacted to him was Gwen but for a totally different reason. There's was no fuckin' she was ever going to wear that blouse again, let alone blazer. Not after all that. "Fuck that." Gwen told her brother just what she was thinking.

Richie was about to offer his jacket to her when Stan lifted his gaze and started taking off his grey cardigan. Managing to look at her, Stan gestured for her to take it.

Gwen at first did nothing, too in disbelief that he was actually offering. She quickly got a hold of herself and accepted the offer. "Thank you, Stan." She softly said as she put on his grey cardigan. It definitely wasn't her exact size but she wasn't swimming in it either. She actually felt comfortable wearing it. Before either of them were able to say anything else, the waitress came back with the check.

Mike quickly got out a load of cash that he had in his pocket and handed it over to the waitress, telling her to keep the change. Each of the Losers wanted to fight on who was paying but given the situation that fight would later have to take place. Mike would pay the full price now but he was a fool if he thought the others weren't going to pay him back.

"Can we please get out of here now?" Eddie pleaded to his friends once the waitress left. He didn't need to repeat himself. They began making their way out of of the party room. Gwen who was walking between Richie and Stan slowed down a bit when Eddie called her name. When she turned around she saw how Eddie had her purse in hand.

"Here...and thank you, Gwen." Eddie quietly told her. "For getting that thing away from me. I'm sorry that it went after you." He felt like a jerk. He had just stood there paralyzed with fear as that bat creature had gone after her. What kind of friend was he?

Gwen gave him a smile as she took hold of her purse. "Don't apologize. I'd do anything for you, Eds."

Eddie felt his cheeks warm up. What Gwen said made him feel worse for his lack of bravery. He turned more serious as he now spoke to all his friends. "That's what Pennywise does right?" He rambled, his hands mid-air. "Fucks with us?

The mention of IT made Gwen's mood sour. "Fuckin' troll is what IT is." She angrily said as she faced forward again and continued walking with her friends. "What I would give just to shove my foot right up that evil entity's―"

"Hey, Richie!"

All the Losers stopped walking (and Gwen's case, she stopped talking too) when they heard a small voice come from behind them. When they turned around they saw that it was a young boy who called out Richie's name. All the Losers were puzzled. Richie was puzzled and nervous. He was nervous as much as when Mike called him. "How do you know my name?" He shakily asked him.

The boy smiled, wide. "The fun's just beginning, right?"

Eddie's brown eyes widened in terror. "Is..is that?" He couldn't finish his sentence and and ran to hide behind Bill and Beverly.

Anger can be seen on Richie's face now. Though fear was also there as well. "Listen, you think this is funny?" Richie asked as he pushed Gwen behind him. If this really was IT then he was going to put as much space between them as possible. Stan immediately stood in front of Gwen, gently holding one of her hands. Gwen found herself giving his hand a squeeze, which he right away returned as they anxiously watched the scene play out in front of them. "You think this is some sort of game? Well, fuck you!" Richie grabbed one boy's arm and roughly shook him. "Fuck you!"

"Richie, be careful!" Bill warned him.

"Fuck you!" Richie continued to yell at the boy's face as he pointed a finger at him. "I'm not afraid of you!"

The boy blinked rapidly, his smile now gone. Anxiousness could be seen in his eyes. "The fun's just beginning. It's a line from your act, dude. I'm a fan."

Well, shit. Gwen let out a sigh of relief but also of slight embarrassment. Stan giving her another squeeze made her look down at their hands. She enjoyed the view for a few more seconds before she let go. She did her best to not look at Stan who she could tell was looking at her.

"Are those your parents?" Richie asked point to an older couple and a younger girl that was with them.

The boy quickly nodded his head. "Yeah."

Well, double shit. Gwen thought as soon as she saw the boy's parents and a young girl (who she assumed was their daughter) coming their way. She gripped her purse tighter.

"Do you want a picture?" Richie smiled trying to appear friendlier than before. He no longer had a hold on the boy but his smile came out all awkward like.

The boy still had on a nervous expression, letting others know he was done with this conversation. "I think I'm good."

"You okay, Dean? Come on, let's go." The boy's dad said. Dean gave Richie one more look before he scurried off.

"Cool...cute kid." Richie awkwardly said as the boy's parents glared at him. He let out a sigh as he turned around and made his way towards the others.

"You do realize you probably just traumatized that boy, right?" Gwen right away told her brother once he was walking beside her.

"Yeah but better me than you know who."

Gwen felt her stomach drop a little. "Yeah, I know."

Ben then spoke, voice low. "Jesus, Rich. You don't remember a line from your own show?"

"I don't write my own material." Richie quietly admitted.

Eddie, who was now slightly behind, nodded his head fervently. "I fuckin' knew it!" He pointed at Richie's back. "I fuckin' knew it!"

"I didn't." Gwen answered, crestfallen. "What the hell Richie? Do you really not write your own material?"

Richie did his best to not look at her. "Not as much as I used to."

"Wow." Gwen shook her head.

"What? Like you write all your songs?" Richie curtly replied as he kept walking.

"Yeah." Gwen drawled, offended that he would even think she didn't. "I do."

"Oh well, we can't all be perfect like you." Richie replied with more attitude. He had rolled his eyes at the same time and that been enough for Gwen.

"Hey." Gwen rose her voice. It had been so loud that it caused Richie along with the others Losers to come to a halt. "Cool it with the attitude mister." She lightly hit one of his forearms.

Richie raised his eyebrows. He briefly looked down towards where he barely felt her hit. "That didn't even hurt."

Gwen narrowed her eyes at him. "Do you want it to hurt?"

Richie almost said "no, mom" because of how Gwen in that moment reminded him of their mother Maggie. Not that Maggie ever hit them. Gwen right now just had that motherly scolding tone Maggie used to have. The one she would use whenever he got in trouble. He got a hold of himself and shook his head. "No." He muttered. "I wouldn't want you to break your hand because of how strong my muscles are." He said getting the last word before walking off.

Gwen shook her head at her brother's response.

"Did he really just say that?" Stan asked staying with her as the others kept walking. He had managed to hold in the eye-roll he wanted to release.

Gwen nodded her head. "Yup."

Stan looked at her (in that loving way of his), and then down at the ring she was wearing around her neck. "Gwen―" He began saying.

"Come on, let's not fall behind." Gwen hurriedly said, interrupting him. She hadn't meant on actually saying that but her damn word vomit got to her again. Not wanting Stan to look at her cheeks (that were now surely bright pink) she walked passed him.

Stan sighed but followed her. They caught up with the others who were now outside. Both Gwen and Stan saw how most of them were standing in the parking lot. Minus Beverly who had sat down on one of the parking lot curbs. Stan remained standing next to Bill, while Gwen took a seat next to Beverly.

"You lied to us, and that's not okay." Eddie immediately began lecturing Mike.

"Yeah, the first words out of your mouth should have been, hey man, you want come back to Derry and get murdered?" Richie said with fake enthusiasm. "Cause then I would've said no, and I would've never given you Gwen's number." His expression was now of irritation, as was his voice. "Getting her and the rest of us involved with this shit...fuck." He shook his head. "Fuckin' entrapment, man."

"Guys." Ben said as a way to calm things down.

As the argument between the guys occurred, Gwen turned her head to look at Beverly. "Bev, you alright?" It was a stupid question to ask but she asked it regardless.

"I...I don't know." Beverly managed to say. She swallowed the lump she had in her throat. "I..." She was unable to finish her sentence. How was she going to tell them about what she remembered now? What she had seen when under the deadlights as a kid? Beverly didn't have the exact the full details but she got the picture and it wasn't a good one. In fact, it was beyond fucked up. "I saw..." She trailed off, once again lost her voice. She had no clue that Ben had heard her start to say that last part.

Gwen frowned, not at all understanding. "What?"

"Never mind. I just need a smoke." Beverly ended up saying and pulled a cigarette and her lighter from her backpack.

"Do you mind if I bum one?" Gwen asked her. She had to do something to lessen her anxiety. Her flask that was inside her purse was calling out to her but she didn't want to take it out in front of Richie and the others. The next best thing to distress her was smoking. Beverly swiftly pulled out another cigarette and handed it to Gwen. After lighting her cigarette, Beverly passed her lighter to Gwen.

Gwen had no issues lighting hers up. She took a drag from her cigarette as she handed Beverly her lighter back. The two of them began smoking together, and a memory of them smoking when they were younger entered their minds. If they weren't so scared shitless from what happened in the party room they would have properly enjoyed the memory.

"I know I should have been more upfront and I'm sorry that I wasn't." Mike sincerely started telling them. Gwen let out a round of smoke when she looked his way. "But I needed you guys to come here. I needed all of you because I have a plan."

"I have a plan too. Getting the fuck out of dodge before this ends worse than one of Bill's books. Who's with me?" Richie said raising his hand. Eddie right away did the same. Richie looked over to his sister expecting her to agree but was flabbergasted when he saw that she hadn't rose her hand.

"You gotta be fuckin' kidding me. Gwen!" Richie yelled, lowering his hand. He walked over to where she was sitting on the curb next to Beverly. "You want to stay? After what IT did to you?"

"IT did a lot of things to all of us." Gwen briefly glanced at Stan who was looking at the ground. "I'm not the only one."

Richie looked at her with even more urgency. "Exactly, which is why we should leave."

"If we leave IT will continue terrorizing this town." Gwen quietly said, the hold on her cigarette tightening a bit. It was as if she was trying to convince herself more than her brother.

"We made a promise to each other." Mike earnestly reminded him.

Richie threw his hands out in exasperation. "Well, then let's unmake that promise!"

"Richie, other people are going to die." Ben solemnly reminded him.

"Other people die every day man! That's not our problem." Richie practically shouted and he saw how the others were looking at him. He began to feel awful for saying that but he did his best to ignore such feeling. He shook his head, voice more calm. "I'm sorry but it isn't. We tried once already. I'm done. You'e done too." He said looking at Gwen. "We don't owe this town shit. None of us do. Besides, I barely remembered I was even born here anyways." He pointed at himself and then at Gwen. "We're leaving. Us Tozier siblings are out. Adiós." Richie said and then looked at his sister again, suddenly smaller and nervous to hear her answer. When she continued to stay silent he was able to find his voice again.

"Gwen, you're leaving even if I have to throw you over my damn shoulder."

Gwen didn't look the least bothered. "Richie, if you were to try that I'd have you thrown on the ground within seconds." She simply told her brother after she took another drag from her cigarette.

Richie sighed, she had a point there. However, he wasn't going to give her the full satisfaction of her being right. "Doesn't matter. The point is we're not staying."

Gwen was quiet again as she took in everything her brother had said. It didn't take long for her to feel as if she had been slapped in the face. She once again remembered the scar she had on her right shoulder, the scars Stan had around his face. She felt guilty as shit for convincing him to come. If she hadn't he would have remained safe at home...with his wife. She let out a shaky breath at having thought about her.

Not wanting to think about the great (and probably beautiful) Mrs. Uris, Gwen turned her attention onto her brother. "You're right." She muttered, standing up again. She threw the cigarette on the ground and then stepped on it. All the Losers were quite shocked that she had come to this conclusion. She, Gwen Tozier, was giving up? Was the world ending? Maybe.

Richie, however, didn't see a problem with Gwen's sudden decision. "Jesus, finally you agree with me. Let's get out of this shit hole."

Mike hurriedly rushed to her side. "No, Gwen, please."

Gwen backed away from Mike a little. "I'm sorry, Mike. But I-I can't do this."

"Yes, you can because you have that fiery spirit from when you were fifteen." Mike began warmly telling her. "The one I still admire."

Gwen gave him a sad smile. Oh, how she wished what Mike said was still true. That girl he was referring to though was no longer there. "I'm not that same fifteen year old, Mike. I've changed."

Mike shook his head. "No, you haven't. Not really. She's still in there, buried underneath. All you need to do is remember, and I know how."

Richie put a stop to this. "No, no, no to the hell no." He sang the last part out. "My sister is not getting involved with this shit again. Bill already did that once, and she got a fuckin' shoulder bite to prove it."

From the side, Richie saw how Bill was looking at him with a deep frown. He then watched as Bill switched over his gaze towards Gwen, his expression softening. Bill looked absolutely wrecked as he stared at Gwen. He stopped his staring before Gwen noticed. It didn't take Richie long to know Bill must have been feeling guilt of some sorts. Still, the bespectacled man shook his head, letting Bill and the others know he was being serious. "Not again. Not on my watch. Gwen, let's go." He let his gaze wander around the parking lot. "Where's your car?"

"I didn't drive from the Townhouse." Gwen quietly told him. "I walked."

Richie gave his sister a look of disbelief. "You walked? What the fuck, Gwen?!"

"Well, it's not like I knew about the psychotic entity that's after us." Gwen answered, her voice louder than before.

"Regardless, you really shouldn't have walked here by yourself." Eddie began gently lecturing her by using his work voice. "Statistically speaking, women have a higher chance than men with getting mugged, or worse when walking somewhere by themselves, especially when the sun is down."

"What's the percentage of that exactly?" Gwen asked, curious.

Eddie hesitated with his answer. Not because it wasn't accurate but because of how Gwen would react. "Sixty-five percent."

Gwen's eyes widened. "You're fuckin' with me right?" Eddie's bashful expression made her furrow her eyebrows. "No? So, you're telling me that if I had a dick I'd be safe?" She knew that wasn't the case since guys got attacked too. Take what happened to Adrian Mellon. The Tozier woman was just upset that women seemed to be the ones that for the most part got the short end of the stick. First there's the lack of attention with girls sports (brought up by Izzy), and now women having the higher chance at being attacked when out and about simply because they had breasts...how fucked was that?

"Not completely." Eddie rapidly clarified in that neurotic way of his. Gwen's firm expression softened somewhat as Eddie continued talking. "Because no one is ever one hundred percent safe...but you'd be safer." He answered, and almost in a way said what she had thought.

Gwen scoffed. "Well, that's some bullshit."

"That's just facts." Eddie sheepishly told her. Gwen continued to shake her head as Mike turned his attention towards him.

"Eddie?" Mike looked at him, hopeful.

"I'm sorry man, but I'm leaving too." Eddie said raising his hands a bit.

"Eddie, no!"

"What? We stay we die? I'm going back to the Townhouse with Richie and Gwen and I'm gonna pack my shit and I'm gonna drive to my home. I'm sorry man, good luck." Eddie said and then rushed to where his car was parked.

"Eddie!" Mike called after him.

Eddie did end up stopping halfway but only to look at Richie and Gwen. "Guys?"

"We're right behind you, Eds." Richie let him know.

"Don't call me that." Eddie halfheartedly mumbled before he resumed with his walking. Richie shook his head as he watched Eddie get inside his car. The expression he had on was one of relief. He did well to mask his expression once he turned his attention to his sister again.

"You can ride with me." Richie told Gwen. She started to look around the parking lot.

"Which one's your car?"

"That one." Richie pointed to a fancy looking car. Gwen's had a reaction alright. Except her reaction had nothing to do with how fancy or expensive the car looked. It had more to do with the color.

"Seriously? Red?" Gwen asked, grimacing.

Richie took offense to that. "What?"

"I don't like it." Gwen muttered, not at all caring how childish that must have sounded.

"Are you seriously not gonna get inside my car because it's red?" Richie asked his sister with a tone that was mixture of irritation and puzzlement. If only he knew the exact reason why she despised the color red so much...then he would have understood.

"I can always take her." Stan suddenly said. When everyone turned to look at him he tried to remain composed, as if his heart wasn't ready to jump out of his chest. "We're both heading to the Townhouse anyways."

"You're leaving too?" Mike asked, surprised and hurt. The curly haired man had been so quiet the last few minutes that Mike actually thought that meant he was staying.

Stan scoffed, shaking his head slightly that he had even asked that question. "Mike, come on. The only reason I came here was for..." He didn't finish his sentence but he did spare Gwen a glance. That was enough of an answer for the Losers to understand. Except Gwen, who's feelings were crushed with what he said next. "I just can't do this. I don't belong here. I belong at home...with my wife." He added the last part quietly. "Sorry."

"Gwen?" Richie called out. Gwen was quiet for a few seconds there. Then suddenly she reached her ring around her neck, felt the coolness of the diamond, and found her voice again.

"I'll ride with Stan. I'll meet you at the Townhouse." Gwen informed her brother. The pain she had felt from hearing Stan mention his wife was now being pushed to the side. In order to do that she had to remind herself that she had no damn reason to feel hurt, let alone jealous. They were just friends now...no matter how much that stung her heart.

Now unlike before, Gwen had no problem with being alone with Stan anymore. If she were to really leave Derry then that meant the car ride would be the only moment they would have together without the rest of the Losers being there. She had no idea if they'd ever seen each other again after tonight...so she was going to try to enjoy being in Stan's presence as much as possible.

Richie nodded his head, accepting the change of plans. "Fine, but if you guys aren't there the second I arrive I'm sending out the damn Batman signal."

"I don't think that'll be necessary." Stan evenly told him.

"Hopefully not." Richie replied looking between Gwen and Stan. His voice softened. "See you guys there." He gave them one more glance before he made his way to his car.

Beverly put out her cigarette as she got up to stand. "I'm going to the Townhouse too." She looked over at Ben who was now closer to her. "You coming?"

Ben nodded his head but not necessarily because he really wanted to leave like the rest. His reason had more to do with wanting to speak to Beverly over what he heard her say to Gwen. "Yeah." He answered and then followed behind the lovely redhead.

"I parked over here." Stan said catching Gwen's attention again. The dark haired woman saw how he was gesturing towards further into the parking lot.

"Okay." Gwen replied but before she started walking she looked at the remaining Losers...which happened to be Bill and Mike. Bill had his back turned, watching the street that was across from them. Mike on the other hand was looking at her, expression still pleading. Gwen felt like shit and her voice wavered as she apologized again.

"I'm sorry."

Gwen then turned around and began walking alongside the curly haired man. She felt those damn butterflies from before return in her stomach now that she was about to be alone with Stanley Uris.

Stanley Uris who she'd cared dearly for during her youth. Stanley Uris who'd given her the diamond ring she'd kept all these years. Stanley Uris who she'd kissed and then rejected because she'd been trying to protect him. Stanley Uris who she was still in love with.

Gwen glanced at Stan hoping he wouldn't notice. Unfortunately for the singer she wasn't nearly as discreet as before. Stan's lighter brown eyes ended up connecting with darker brown eyes as their hands brushed against one another. That was enough to have Gwen almost swooning. However, panic quickly settled in.

What the fuck had she been thinking accepting a car ride from him?

Gwen once again felt like an idiot. A huge fuckin' idiot.