You couldn't believe your eyes. You didn't realize you had been holding your breath this whole time until you finally exhaled. It was surreal.
"Lily!" you gasped in surprise, your hand over your chest.
"Hi big sis!" Lily said with a wide yet eerie smile, her dark brown pigtails swinging as she bounced back on the bed.
"Oh my god, Lily. Where have you been all this time?" you asked aloud.
Your heart was beating so hard it hurt, your lungs shivered with each gasping breath, and your skin felt clammy with sweat.
"I've been away. I had to leave,," Lily said, twirling strands of her hair between her fingers.
"Is it really you?"
You were questioning reality, you couldn't help it. After what happened to Tyler, you didn't know what was real and what wasn't anymore. You wanted to believe she was really here, with everything in you–––you wanted to believe.
"Of course it's really me! Your little sis! You don't recognize me?" Lily asked, tilting her head to the side innocently yet there was something sinister about it, something off.
"I-I don't understand. I've been looking for you for days, searching through every part of Derry, and now you just show up here? How? How is that possible? Why? Why did you leave?" you stammered, barely managing to get the words out.
"You just don't get it, do you? I had to go because Mommy's drinking again. You know how she gets when she drinks," Lily said, a grimace marring her young features.
"But Lily you can't just disappear. It's not going to get that bad again, we won't let it. We can get through this, but you have to come home," you begged, your voice breaking. "I have been worried sick about you!"
"I can't," she said, turning away with a frown on her face. "She––She hurt me.
"What?" you questioned, raising your brows in confusion.
"Mom," she answered, looking away from you. "Mom hurt me."
"Oh god. What happened?" you asked, rushing over to her where she sat on the end of the bed.
"The night before I left, I caught her drinking. I told her to stop, that she was being unfair to me and you, but she kept on drinking. I tried to take the bottle away from her but then she scratched me," Lily recalled with a pained expression.
"Lily, please show me," you begged, crouching down in front of her.
"I'm scared. I'm really scared," Lily whispered, looking back at you with her big doe eyes that were brimming with tears.
"Where did she hit you?" you demanded.
"Right here," she raised her arm up, revealing wide, deep and long cuts that were covered with dried blood. The wounds stretched all the way to her elbow. They were slashes that looked like they were made by big, sharp claws. It looked like a monster had scratched her.
A monster.
"Mom––Mom couldn't have done that," you whispered in disbelief.
"What? Are you saying you don't believe me?" she asked, her voice breaking like she was about to burst into tears.
"Lily, it's not that I don't believe you, but it's just that it's not possible," you answered.
"Then you don't believe me!" Lily cried, jumping off from the bed. She started to wail and then she barged out of your room in a haste.
"Lily wait! Don't go!" you called out to her, running out to chase her.
She rushed out of the house as quickly as her legs could carry her, sobbing loudly. You followed her outside but she was much too fast for you, she took off like lightning.
"Please Lily, let's talk about this!" you yelled out, venturing into the woods but she was already way ahead of you. Trees passed you in a flurry of whipping branches and the world around you tilted. It was a chilly autumn afternoon with slight overcast. Gentle winds rustled the deciduous trees, piling more dead leaves onto the already littered floor of colorful foliage.
Sweat was running down your face, it itched as it slipped down from your neck along the length of your back. You didn't waver, you didn't need a breather, you just needed to bring Lily back home. The air felt tight, hot and thick, every breath you took more of a struggle than the last until your lungs were burning and your throat ached with the effort.
"Lily, come back! Please!" you shouted.
The woods passed you in a haze. You were only truly aware of your feet against the ground and catching up to Lily. She was almost out of sight but then you saw that she took a shortcut somewhere, heading off in a small tight spot under a long branch that you hadn't notice before.
"Lily! Where are you going?!" you begged, your voice tearing straight from your throat. She didn't answer. As you followed her, you stumbled upon a rock on the road and nearly fell on your face. When you looked down, you saw the broken shards of glass on the ground like in your dream. The rock grazed your foot and you released a hiss through your gritted teeth, trying to calm yourself for a moment before you took off again.
But then finally, Lily came to a stop, in front of a large abandoned house.
It was a tall, imposing building with a cold, unwelcoming exterior.
Faded paint peeled from old walls beaten down with weather over the years, and there was a number of unsettling creaks and groans stirred up by the wind. It was worn down and falling apart.
With each step you took, a crunch of dry leaves resounded throughout the barren streets. You leaned forward onto the fence to observe the territory before you. In about a few yards, a decrepit house stood eerily among the unkempt lawn of wilting tall grass. You pulled your jacket around you tighter as the wind whistled and ruffled your disheveled hair. Nodding to yourself, you were going to do this. You scanned about the perimeter, searching for a way past the rotting fence.
Once you had located an opening on the side away from the street, you approached the house with hesitation. You had heard rumors from your peers that the place was haunted, thus no one dared to go near the house, leaving it to deteriorate from neglect.
One thing you had noticed while walking was that the grass farther away from the house was full of life; green and plentiful. But the closer you got, the more the grass looked dead, dry, and scarce. It was almost yellow in color. It filled you with a kind of dread that you couldn't quite understand, but you felt like you should push onward to the best of your ability.
A crow perched onto a nearby tree and squawked, causing you to flinch. The air smelled of rotten wood and like something had died.
Lily stood there, her eyes red and filled with tears.
"Lily, please don't go in there, please," you pleaded, but as soon as the words came out of your mouth she ran inside the abandoned building.
You held your breath, mentally steeling yourself for what was to come. You let the feeling of dread sink in and creep up the back of your neck, flicking up every hair as it went.
The windowpanes were too dirty and smudged to see through, but it wouldn't have done any good anyways. There was only darkness for as far as you could see in. It crept into imaginary corners and spanned the whole field of view, almost like a curtain pulled over whatever it was trying to hide on the inside.
You took a step on the porch, testing the weight to be sure they wouldn't collapse beneath you before heading up and with every single one, the old floorboards creaked. It was overgrown with weeds, roots you nearly trip on before reaching the rotting front steps. You shook your head in attempt to clear your apprehension and proceeded toward the front door, which was left ajar, entering with caution. You noticed that there were a few faint red streaks stained on the door, and you knew almost instantly that it was blood. You swallowed hard. You were scared—terrified—of what you would see on the other side of the door. You could feel your heart in your throat as you took that first step inside.
The lobby of the home was dusty and smelled of mold, the air was stale. The wallpaper was peeling to reveal the cracked stone walls hidden beneath and cobwebs seemed to cover every corner. The charred furniture was swathed with cobwebs and a fine coating of dust covered the area. The floorboards creaked with every step taken upon them. Crooked picture frames lined the entrance way on either side, the beady eyes of the portraits seemed to follow your every moment as you made your way further into the house. The carpets were faded and had holes in them but looked like they had once been bright and colorful.
You entered through into what resembled a dining room. The elongated table stretched the length of most of the room while a broken chandelier dangled above the centre. Cutlery and place settings were positioned around the table, rotten food on the plates left abandoned by whoever had last inhabited this place. You walked through the dining hall and into the kitchen left in disarray by the previous residents. Shards of broken plants scattered the floor while the cupboard door had been thrown open. The refrigerator had no power and was emitting the smell of decay. There were no windows but a chill filled the air, the sounds of panic from the last guests seeming to echo faintly around the room.
A shiver ran down your pain as you moved back through the kitchen and dining room into the corridor before heading into the living area where a long spiraled staircase ascended to the level above.
Only the windows at the base of the staircase provided light, but it was enough to guide you. You gulped before you speeded up the stairs, each step squeaked as it threatened to break under your weight. You frowned when something wet dropped through the crack in the ceiling above to land on your nose the moment you reached the top of the stairs.
You rubbed it dry with the back of your hand, cursing under your breath. The ceiling had a leak.
You exhaled after your sprint and looked to the top of the stairs, searching for any signs of Lily. However, she was nowhere to be seen, so you surmised you must have lagged behind too much. As there were broken glass shards from the cracked pane, you ran up the stairs whilst keeping distance from it.
You turned your head left and right repeatedly, scanning your surroundings. You were in a dimly lit hallway with light coming in from only windows in the rooms that were left open. The mold on the walls and doors provided obvious signs of abandonment. You went off to search through the many doors that lined the corridor. Some led to empty studies, other to rusted bathrooms and dust filled storage closets, but most were bedrooms. Like the rest of the house they had been left an untidy mess. The beds were positioned at random around the rooms, with clothing, sheets and curtains strew about carelessly over the floor and furniture.
You slowed your breathing to focus on any sounds of Lily. It was indistinct, but you could just barely make out the sound of her footsteps coming from the right in the hallway, which disappeared in mere seconds. Without a second thought, you ran toward the sound.
The room you entered looked like a study. Bookshelves lined against the walls and center of the room. Dust particles fluttered among the amber rays of sunlight. You coughed into your sleeve and approached one of the shelves. Although arranged in neat rows, the books were covered with soot and dust; with the bindings falling apart, the books appeared to be deteriorating. However, you had not long to dabble with your curiosity as the familiar sound of Lily's footsteps brought you back to reality. You darted toward the other side of the room and found Lily standing near the wall.
"Lily! Let's leave this place now, we shouldn't be in here."
You sighed in relief, hoping that she had calmed down now. However, as you came closer to Lily, she ran away once again. Wasting no time, you chased after her. You grimaced and cried out to her. As you exited the study, you caught a glimpse of Lily entering a room on the far end of the hallway. You didn't hesitate and only continued your pursuit.
The next room was––by comparison to the other parts of the house––darker as one of the curtains covered up the view of the setting sun. Although far advanced into the day, pulling the shades away allowed light to illuminate the dark room into an orange hue. You pressed your hand against the wall for a moment to catch your breath; your heart pounded rapidly, and your breathing was ragged from exhaustion.
You searched through every nook and cranny in the room but you didn't find her. You must have went to the wrong room. You cursed under your breath and returned to the halls, calling out her name and your voice resonated back to you.
The hallway was empty. With the lights flickering, you made your way down the corridor in your frantic search. You listened for any sounds from the other rooms that might alert you on the other side of the thin walls but you heard nothing. You frowned at the silence that greeted you and there was a stillness in the air that felt like all life around you was non-existent. You walked further down the hall away from the doors leading to the other seemingly vacant rooms.
You froze when you felt the chilling sensation of someone watching you. Turning slow, you nearly cried out when you caught sight of the dark figure standing at the other end of the hall. The silhouette was unmoving, partially hidden by the edge of the wall that seemed to mold into the black outline of its body. The figure faded as the lights brightened but always reappeared with each flicker that turned the hall to a tunnel of shadows. You felt the air around you suddenly grow cold.
The ceiling lights burned out completely and you were left standing in the middle of the corridor as you waited for your eyes to adjust to the darkness. You willed your feet to move, never turning your back to the figure standing, watching you. You practically threw yourself at the wall marking the end of the hallway, your hands rummaging blindly for a light switch. When you finally found it, you flicked it upwards. To your dismay the lights remained off.
You played around with the switch for a bit while your alarmed gaze continuously moved to that of the still being standing on the opposite end of the hallway. Their body now appeared closer than they had a moment ago, you noted with a hint of fear creeping into the back of your mind. You knew it was probably your imagination playing tricks on you, fooling you into seeing something that wasn't really there, but you were in no mood to take any chances. Spinning on your heel, you reached to the staircase and hurried down to the lower level. You didn't stop or even slow until you had reached the entrance to the downstairs bathroom.
You walked across the tiled floor over to the sink, hating the way your footsteps seemed to echo even as you moved as quietly as you could. You turned the tap on and after a slight delay, you felt the icy water gush over your hands, cupping some of the liquid in your palms and bringing it up to your face to splash yourself with. You were sweating, all over. Taking a few seconds to collect yourself, you stood grasping the edge of the sink in your hands. A startled cry escaped your lips before you could prevent it when you caught sight of a faceless figure standing right behind you in the mirror's reflection. You whipped around, your heart pounding in your chest, but found that you were alone.
Your eyes darted around the bathroom for any signs of another being. Upon seeing there was none, you scolded yourself for letting your fear get the better of you. You were just seeing things, yeah that was it. This place was really starting to drive you mad.
You left the bathroom, and walked out into the spacious corridors connecting the downstairs rooms. You were certain you caught a glimpse of a little girl's dress disappear behind the corner ahead of you. You stopped where you were as a hundred different thoughts swarmed your mind at once. There was one that sounded clearest though, one that spurred you to move past whatever fear you were feeling. With hands clenched tight and eyebrows furrowed determinedly, you went after where you had seen it vanish. You weren't going to let her get away this time.
You kept as quiet as you could while you crept through the darkness, staying alert for anything that might jump out at you. You entered another room, the outside sunlight was pouring through the window frame, illuminating the room with a faint glow. The light streamed out over the carpet like white hands stretching out for anything within its reach. There was noise from somewhere outside of the room, the sound of metal on metal, some sort of mechanism clicking to life. You tensed. Silence filled the room again, but you knew something was wrong.
You searched the area for another's presence. Seeing there was no one but yourself and about to take a step forward into the room to continue your search. You looked ahead of you and you found that there were three doors in front of you. Oh god, no.
But then you felt something touch your shoulder from behind and immediately, you flinched.
You twisted around reflectively, but there was nothing. You could have sworn that you felt something. You swallowed a thick gulp, holding your breath.
When you turned to look back at the three doors in front of you, there was something written on every single door with bloodied, bold letters.
The first door read: Not scary at all, the middle one said: Scary, and the last door was: Very Scary.
That wasn't there before.
You stepped back, a sharp gasp escaping from your lips.
What if Lily is in one of them?
You were gonna have to enter every single one, weren't you?
But it didn't matter, whatever it took to bring her back home.
You had to see. You weren't leaving without her.
Without thinking about it for another second, you entered the 'Not scary at all' door, not looking back.
When you entered the room, it was pitch black. You blinked, casting your head around, this way and that way, but everywhere you turned was just another dark wall plastered to your retina. Your fingers caught against your temple, like you were trying to rip a blindfold away, but there was nothing. The door slammed shut behind you and it made you flinch. There was a wide absence, like something's blocked, and once you've managed to shakily get to your feet and put your hands out, you touched a wall, cold to the touch.
You ran your hand over the dry, dusty walls and find that if you put both your arms out, you could touch both sides. How small was this room? You couldn't see anything, and you couldn't tell which why was out. There was no way to tell how deep you were, besides deep enough that there was no light, no breeze, not a hint of any other world than the one around you. Even though it was only a thought, you imagined the ceiling above you, straining, threatening to press down. You wouldn't have a moment's warning before you were crushed. But you were quick to realize that it wasn't just a thought.
You were claustrophobic.
Oh no.
This can't be happening.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
You searched for the door that you entered from, but you couldn't find it. It was nowhere to be found, like it wasn't ever there in the first place.
After some unknowable length of time –– One minute? One hour? The dark had stolen your senses –– the slope of the walls started to change. They pressed in a little more with every step you took until your elbows were bent at your sides, your hands flat up against the walls.
The walls seemed to be shuddering closed all around you and you turned and bolted blindly in the other direction. Your heartbeat thudded in your hot ears, blotting out the sound of your footsteps and the ringing, deafening silence. The air was too dense to breathe, murky and dead and sick in your lungs, but you sucked in ragged, shaky mouthfuls and tried not to gag on the lifeless taste.
The worst part about it was the way that even your breathing echoed, every small sound you made ricocheting off every corner a million times over. The most minuscule hitch of breath became a scream, a whimper despite your best efforts became a roar, and you swore your ears were bleeding, your eardrums rupturing, and at least it would be a mercy when it was over so you no longer had to hear it. Of course, it's never over. It never ends.
You started to believe that you were going to die here, you were sure of it, as your lungs expanded and deflated so furiously you were certain they would burst.
You reminded yourself, in the beginning, to stay calm, that panic wouldn't do you any good. It was a mantra in your head, then, stay calm, stay calm, don't give in, stay calm, but even that had spiraled upward and outward, as though contributing to your own mass in this too-small space until you didn't fit any longer. Trapped in the fetal position, unable to uncurl, to stretch your muscles, you felt smaller, more useless than you ever had under this cruel, slow torture.
The walls rushed past under your fingertips, the only sign you were moving at all, the only way you could feel the space widening. Your eyes strained against the sheet of darkness, trying to pick out shapes, movement, light, but every shimmer was a ghost placed by your brain, so desperate for something to be there.
You realized with sudden clarity that the sides of the walls were narrowing, lowering, coming down and around on you. It was shrinking slowly and you knew it would compress you until you were a tiny cube of smashed flesh and broken bones.
Then you felt something. There must have been a hole in the wall somewhere because you could hear something coming out, it sounded like a bug. No, it was bugs. Plural. You were quick to discover they were spiders once they started to crawl up your legs. It started with one, then another, then another, and another, creeping and wriggling all around your body, your hot skin.
You didn't think it could get any worse, but it just did.
There was spiders. Spiders everywhere. Spiders seemed to cover every inch of your skin, some biting you while others just roamed around your body. You were about to throw up, your stomach was in knots, twisting and churning. You couldn't even smack them away.
A shudder of revolt and terror wracked your curled body from head to toe. Unlike a shiver from the cold or a chill of fear, it doesn't stop. You just kept shaking, trembling so hard you felt like you were going to vibrate your insides to a pulp, vibrate the air right of your lungs. Your lungs, you remembered those and took a gasping breath, realizing you hadn't been breathing. How long? Your exhale came out a sob. You tried to jerk your head up, to open your airway, and it was met only by the hard, unrelenting wall of the room's interior.
You screamed, which was a mistake, it echoed on you and magnified indefinitely, and it scared you. God, you were so scared, you were so paralyzed with fear. You were sure you would have a heart attack and die, that would be less painful, it would be a mercy. But there is no mercy here.
It happened so slowly that you didn't notice; black shifting to deep grey to a beckoning yellowish hue. Fresh air finally, mercifully found you, reached out to you and licked coolly at your hot skin. You chased it up and out of the room, swallowing greedy mouthfuls of air that the room hadn't digested. You fell to the ground, your body curled up as you panted heavily. The door was wide open. Someone must have opened it. You would have died if someone hadn't. You didn't know how much time you had left but you knew it wasn't long.
When you were finally able to muster the strength, you lifted your head and look up ahead of you. You didn't see anyone. Though, you couldn't find yourself to care because all you could think about was how grateful you were to be out of there. It was a nightmare come to life. It felt like a taste of death, a taste of hell. You didn't know which one was worse.
You lied there on the ground for about several long minutes, regaining your breath and allowing your heartbeat to return to a somewhat regular heartbeat. You had to look at the other rooms. Lily could have been in one of them. You had to find her. You weren't going to give up on her and just leave. This was a terrifying place and you had to get to her before she experienced any of the horrors you did.
You staggered to your feet, nearly swaying to the floor, but you had to get back up. You walked over to the door in the middle, placing a shaky hand on the knob before you opened it. You took a cautious step inside and swallowed a thick gulp.
The door slammed shut behind you, once again.
The room was dark but there was a dim green light that shrouded the space and gave a eerie glow in the darkness.
A series of shivers ran down your spine as you looked around the room.
There were clown dolls everywhere––everywhere you turned there was a clown doll. They were wearing polka dotted goofy clown suits, they had vibrant colored hair, their skin was painted white, like ghosts. Some of the dolls wore twisted grins while others had a dead serious expression with soulless eyes, you didn't know which one freaked you out more.
You were quick to notice that whenever you turned your head, their eyes followed you like clockwork.
Then there was laughter; cackling, gleeful laughter that reverberated from all around the room. It sounded like a dozen voices laughing in distorted echoes, then a hundred, each and every one of them tearing at your mind until they turned into screams in your ears. Their mouths weren't moving but you knew it was coming from them. You covered your ears, waiting for it to stop. You needed it to stop.
This was his doing. The clown. Pennywise. He was messing with your head. This was all connected to him.
Then all of sudden, there was silence. You didn't hear the sound of the clowns' mockery anymore.
You stared directly ahead and you discovered that there was what appeared to be a big piece of furniture covered by a large white sheet. You felt drawn to it, like you needed to know what was hidden underneath. You were curious, you couldn't help it.
You walked over, chewing on your lower lip nervously. You placed a hand on the dusty sheet, giving yourself a long moment before you lifted it up and tossed it to the side.
There was a black coffin underneath, a layer of dirt on top of it.
You inhaled, then exhaled. You weren't going to hesitate. You opened up the coffin with trembling hands and what you found inside made you step aback, your hand covering your mouth in horror.
It was a doll of you, bugs scattering all around it. You stared back at the doll's lifeless eyes and the parts of flesh chewed off on her face, the lips were stitched together, frowning.
There was a missing flyer attached at the top of the coffin door. You pulled the piece of paper off and saw that it was you. The flyer said that you had gone missing on October 31st. You trembled all over, your face scrunching up in disgust. Your hands were shaking so much that you dropped the paper.
You released a heavy breath before closing the coffin, unable to stomach it any longer.
You were about to walk away––run away and take your leave, but it was too late.
The second you had shut the coffin, Pennywise rose from the box, like he had been inside of it the whole time. He sat down atop the coffin, a hand propping him up. He gestured his finger toward you, motioning for you to come over.
"Peek-a-boo!" he taunted with a menacing grin.
You jumped back in shock.
He charged toward you with his arms stretched out, and with your flight or fight response kicking in, you scrambled to the door as fast as you could. You made it just in the nick of time, escaping from his clutches and slamming the door before he was able to reach you.
You ran forward, thinking you had a head start but you were dead wrong.
Immediately, you halted in your tracks.
Pennywise stood there, he was already outside, right in front of you. He started prancing toward you, his movements mocking you, fully knowing that he had the upper hand and there was absolutely nothing you could do about it.
When you tried running toward the opposite direction of him, his body swayed over, refusing to let you pass. You did this again and again, and his reaction was always the same, blocking the way out.
Eventually, you stumbled back and fell to your feet. You were over exerting yourself and your whole body hardly had the will to move anymore despite yourself. He towered over you and mocked you, filling you with dread. Your breath caught in your throat and you tried to crawl away but you only backed up against the middle Scary door.
He continued to saunter toward you and then when he was close enough he placed a long finger upon your nose.
"Time to float!" Pennywise said with a devilish grin, bending over as he stared at you with those malevolent, glowing eyes.
You crawled back and bumped your head against the door in the process, causing you to let out a strained yelp.
"W-What do you want? What do you want from me?" you asked meekly, looking up at him with terror in your eyes. You felt completely and utterly hopeless, like there was nothing you could possibly do to get out of this situation. Your heart was pounding so loud you could hear every single beat and it was deafening.
His eyes were flaring and he inched closer to your defenseless body. You were trapped. There was nowhere you could hide or run. You looked up at him with your mouth agape, tears clouding your vision. You made a move to escape but then he grabbed you.
Clawed fingers grasped your chin. They were hot, scorching hot, and the tips of his claws dug into your skin. He forced your head back as his eyes wandered seemingly over every part of your body, like you were under some sick examination. You didn't know what he was looking for or why, you just wanted it to be over. His other gloved hand wrapped around your throat, his hand burned with a biting coldness.
"Oh sweet little poppet, where do you think you're going?" he asked, his grin full of sharp teeth.
"Let me go, please," you croaked brokenly, barely able to get the words out. You shivered, then shivered again when his icy hand slipped down from your throat to dip into the hollow of your collarbone and curled around the neckline of your blouse as if he was about to rip it off and lay you bare. He leaned in and started sniffing the air around you, exhaling deeply.
"Ohhh but the fun has only just started. I have so many plans for you," he chuckled darkly, a trickle of drool dripping from his lips. It fell on your cheek and slid down to your jawline to your neck. You started squirming in his firm hold but it was in vain and only served to amuse him, making him laugh. You could feel his hot breath on your skin and it made you twitch involuntarily.
"Please..." you started, desperately trying to suck in air.
"You want me to let you go? What about Lily? What about your dear little sister?" Pennywise taunted. His hand tightened around your neck momentarily but then right when your face was becoming blue, he loosened his grip and let you fall to the floor.
"What have you done to her?" you asked after a harsh coughing fit. The floor was cold and filthy and a series of shudders washed over you.
"Don't you need to find her? She's here. Lost, waiting for you," he started. He pressed his hand under his ear. "I think I can hear her now! She's calling your name," he said, his voice feigning concern.
"Where is she?" you demanded.
"Why don't I show you where she is? I know this place inside and out," he suggested with a twisted smile, stretching his arm out to you and offering to help you up.
"I don't believe you," you coughed the words out, an unforgiving glare on your face.
"You may not believe my words, but I know that you believe in me, poppet. Oh yes you do," he curled a claw under your chin, lifting it up and making you meet his gaze.
"What are you?" you asked, trying to avert your eyes but he made sure to keep your face where it was.
"Your worst fear. Your nightmare. And a clown! A dancing clown!" he announced in a sing-song voice.
"Why are you doing this to me? Please... Why? Why are you doing this?" you pleaded once more, choking on the air around you.
"You're a frail one; delicate. You're filled with fear, so so full of it. That's why I'm going to savor you, when it's your time. For now, I'll just have to save you for later. It's not time yet. But when it is, I'm going to feast on your flesh, every piece, every little drop. It's inevitable, poppet, no escaping it. Before then, just before the big day, you're going to be so paralyzed with fear you can hardly function, that you'll barely be mobile, and that's when I'll claim what's rightfully mine," he explained, trailing his claw up to your drool-stained cheek and giving it a slow and painful scratch.
You yelped out in sheer agony, your body trembling violently as a result. You turned your head, trying to look away from him but he kept you in place by grabbing your face in his big hand. You noticed there was something under the dusty sheet on the floor in the distance. The outline of the object resembled what appeared to be some kind of weapon, something sharp. You were determined to get it. You needed a something to attack him with. It was your only chance of getting out of here.
"That scent. Oh yes, that beautiful, sweet, perfect scent. I could eat you up this very second, oh, it's so difficult to restrain myself, but I must–––I must. Not yet. I must be patient. I need you at your best. I need you at your most broken," he told you with a wicked full-tooth grin.
"I won't let you," you whispered brokenly, groaning from the pain of his claws digging into your skin. "I won't let you win."
"Try as you might, poppet, but it's beyond your control," he said, his eyes flaring and he shivered with delight at the sight of you squirming to get away from him. His hand slipped away from your face and you grunted under your breath. You started to crawl over to the sheet while he stood over you, chuckling darkly and menacingly. He was enjoying this. Every second of it. He loved your pain and misery.
You twisted around and rummaged with desperate hands until you were finally able to reach what was underneath the sheet. You wasted no time in grabbing it and you then realized that it was only a skinny tree branch. All hope was lost.
"Oh, you silly human, I could keep you around for a good laugh," Pennywise chuckled, a deep rumble in his chest. "You're a little weak in the knees and a little blue in the face, my, your conception of reality doesn't seem to be so clear, you poor feeble thing."
You stood to your feet and impulsively charged toward him, but when you did, he disappeared. He wasn't there anymore. You slowly turned around and found that he was behind you now. You charged toward him again with no plan on how you would attack him, but once again, he was behind you, in the opposite direction of where he previously stood. He was messing with you. He was messing with your head.
"Tag you're it! Ooh, this could be a fun game!" he said in his overly cheerful sing-song voice.
You tried again and again, but it was all futile, and you could never reach him, or even come close.
"Stop! Stop! Just stop!" you screamed out, but devious laughter was your only response. You looked up at the ceiling and you noticed that it was narrowing, lowering, just like they had before. You turned to look at the walls and they were starting to close in on the room. Pennywise was nowhere in sight. You sucked in a harsh breath. You couldn't do this again. You couldn't. You had to get out of here now.
You ran out through the opened doorway and raced downstairs, taking off like a light. You could hear someone crying your name repeatedly, and it sounded like a little girl. It sounded like Lily. She sounded lost, confused, and scared as she called out your name. No, but you couldn't come back. It was too late.
You bolted and finally escaped from the clown. You were desperately trying to catch your breath and your head felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on it. Your chest was tight and your legs were burning intensely. Adrenaline and fear were powerful motivators but once you were outside, you started to stumble on your way away from the building. You could still faintly hear your little sister crying out for you. Your eyes were heavy and you couldn't see straight, everything was spinning and out of focus. You couldn't move. You couldn't walk another step. It was all taking a toll on you.
Before you could even fully register what just happened, everything faded to black and you passed out, collapsing on the ground.