On your way back home, you tried to process what just happened. It was difficult to think about the power and control he had over you. You just wanted it to end. You didn't want to be vulnerable to it anymore. You were running and running, out of breath, and properly shaken. You ignored Amy's calls and texts, you didn't want to hear from her and you knew she had many questions but you were not going to answer any of them. How could you tell her that the clown had his way with you or you think he did? Or did you imagine it? You didn't know. You didn't even want to go back home but you had to.
When you arrived back home, the place was as quiet as ever. You assumed your mom was at work and so you had the place all to yourself. You returned to your room and started pacing back and worth, replaying the words Pennywise said to you in that dream, or whatever it was. You needed him out of your head, some way, somehow, but was that even possible now? Was there any way to truly move past this horrible thing that occurred? Could you even trust anything Amy said? You did believe that Tyler visited you before and that everything he said about seeing the clown was true but you discovered that was what Pennywise wanted you to see, that it was all a ploy just to further mess with your mental state. He was playing game after game with you, and you were trapped in a tortuous maze that had no end in sight. You just wanted your simple life back, you didn't know what you did to deserve any of this. Was there any way to beat this? Was there any way to get rid of the clown? Or was your end inevitable?
Suddenly, the monologue running in your head came to a halt when a thunderous knock sounded at the door. Was it the police? Did they find something out about Lily? Did they find her? Were they bringing her home? Could it be Lily?
You raced to the door without a second thought and while you made your way towards it, another loud knock pounded on the door, making your anxiety spike.
You opened the door and your eyes widened the second they met the person standing at the doorway.
"Dad?" you asked, raising your brows in confusion.
Your father had a solemn expression on his wrinkled face and he seemed to have more grey hair than usual. It had been quite some time since you last saw him, which was mainly because of the divorce getting in the way of your relationship with him, but also because of his frequent trips overseas with his new girlfriend. He divorced your mother after the constant fighting over nothing and everything and the screaming matches that were never ending. Shortly after the divorce, your mother started drinking heavily, it was a problem that she had when she was younger, but with all the divorce papers and battles over custody, she returned to old habits. You were always in the middle of everything, and so it made your childhood very unexciting and stressful. You and your father had a normal father and daughter relationship when you were younger but now it was like you were strangers—strangers with history attached.
"I thought you were still overseas," you said, crossing your arms over your chest in an 'I'm very uncomfortable sort of way'.
"I came back home a couple of days ago," he said seriously. He was a no-nonsense kind of man, very blunt and frank.
"Oh," you answered as you avoided his intense gaze.
"I've been trying to call you, but I guess your mother blocked my number on your phone. She's been ignoring my letters too, and all my other phone calls," your dad continued. "She's being unreasonable."
"I saw them. The letters," you said with a frown. "You could have come sooner. You should have."
"I know, but there was a situation with... We were visiting family and some complications..." he trailed off before he continued, "presented itself," he finished, being way too vague.
"Family, huh... Yeah, because this one is clearly not your family anymore," you said, stepping away from the doorway and you were about to slam the door shut on him but he put his foot in the way.
"Hey, that's not what I meant. We really need to talk," he said with a firm stare, looking like he was having trouble keeping his composure.
"About what? What do you have time for?" you challenged, being an absolute smart ass. "I'm sorry I just don't want to inconvenience you."
"I'm here to talk about Lily," he started, his tone somber and humorless, a look of dread etched on his face.
You opened the door wider as you stared at him with your arms crossed. "Yeah, where were you? You should have been here. You're her father, and God knows what she's going through at this very second! Do you know how hard it's been? Do you even care? Are we even a priority to you—"
"Lily came to my apartment. She's with me," your dad began, making your eyes widen in shock and your heart jumped to your throat.
"What—What are you talking about?" you questioned, stumbling upon your words.
"She ran away from here, correct?" he asked, but that was clearly rhetorical and he already knew the answer.
You didn't answer, you just kept your arms crossed over your chest, shooting him a glance then back down on the ground.
"Right?" he questioned, and suddenly you felt a sense of pressure to give him the answer he wanted to hear.
You gave a barely-there movement of your head that you did not intend to be a nod but you were sure that was what he assumed it was.
"She was telling me how horrible living here was, that she was scared of Mom, and that you were trying your best but she still didn't feel safe. Lily told me she's drinking again, and it's getting out of control," your dad explained, making you feel sick to your stomach as you listened to every word.
You remained silent and he definitely noticed the initial surprise on your face.
"Did you know anything about this?" he asked, raising his brows.
"She's been drinking, yeah, but it's not like I could tell you or anything. I figured it was just the stress, you know, of everything. You not being here, her working so much. Things haven't been easy, for any of us," you answered, once again staring hard at the floor.
"Hey, look at me," your dad ordered.
You looked up hesitantly, and he started to examine your face more closely with a scrutinizing stare. Without even looking in the mirror, you knew you had cuts and bruises on your face, especially after the incident with Pennywise in that abandoned building.
"What — what happened to your face?" he asked, making you feel all the more vulnerable when you could hear the worry in his tone.
"N-Nothing. I'm fine. Don't worry about it," you whispered, pushing his hand back weakly when he lifted your chin up to make you face him once again.
"You're not fine. Has she been hitting you? Has she laid a finger on you?" your dad said in an accusatory tone.
"What? No, no she hasn't hit me. Jesus," you scowled and started shaking your head.
"Lily told me that she hurt her. She told me everything. You can't hide this from me, okay? Tell me the truth," your dad commanded, his tone firm and sharp.
"I said no! She hasn't hit me, alright?" you raised your voice. Your mother wasn't hurting you, and you were sure that she didn't hurt Lily either. Things would get bad when she would drink, but not that bad, not bad like that. Lily wasn't really here. The Lily that he was speaking to, that you were speaking to, the Lily that you chased into the abandoned building, that wasn't your Lily. But you couldn't explain this to your dad, he wouldn't understand, hell, you could hardly understand any of this yourself.
"Did she tell you to say that? Is she home right now?" he asked, pushing the door open wider and stepping inside of the house.
"No, she's not home. She's at work, working her ass off because someone needs to keep this family together!" you called out in her defense.
Your dad stepped in further, looking about the place.
"You need to pack your bags and come with me, this is not a good environment for you girls to live in," your dad warned, making his way into the hallway and entering your little sister's room. "I'm going to grab some of the things Lily needed back to my place. She wants some of her dolls."
"Dad, she's not dangerous alright? We're fine, I'm fine!" you told him, following him and standing at the doorway as he stuffed some of Lily's things in a bag.
"Then what happened to your face? Did a boy hit you? Someone at school?" he questioned, turning back to glance at you as he hastily grabbed some of Lily's essentials.
"I fell, flat on my face, okay? That's where it came from!" you said, and it was partially true, just not the whole truth.
"I don't know what to believe. I just know that I cannot have my daughters living another day here in this house. It's not safe. She's not home and it's the perfect time for you to leave. I can take care of you both, and money is a non issue, so you don't have to worry about getting a job," your dad explained.
"I don't want to leave," you said with a frown, crossing your arms.
He walked towards you before he finally said, "Your little sister said that she needs you. She said that she'll stay with me if you come too. She doesn't want to be without her older sister. She needs you to look after her."
You were reluctant when you heard those words. That didn't come from your Lily. It couldn't be. But you couldn't tell him that. He was seeing her. Pennywise got to him.
"So please, pack your things," he said, trying a more gentle approach.
"Okay, okay, fine," you answered with a sigh, and that was when you went to your room, grabbed your bag, and started stuffing it with things that you knew you were going to need. As you started to fill your bag, you felt hot tears run down your face, and you closed your eyes, trying to chase them away but they only came back stronger. You were angry and frustrated and sad, and you didn't know what to do anymore. You bit your lower lip hard, almost hard enough to bleed, but still that did nothing to ease the pain.
Once you filled your bag, you zipped it up and carried it on your back. Your dad was standing in the doorway of your room.
"Lily's birthday is in a few days. She said she wants a big birthday party," he started, and you hiccuped, though you were trying to hide the fact that you were just crying.
"What?" you asked, raising your brows.
"You heard me, she wants a big birthday party and that's exactly what we are going to give her. She deserves it," your dad explained, holding a couple of bags of Lily's things.
"Is Mom going to be there?" you questioned, rubbing the tears off your face with a subtle wave of your hand.
"No, Mom is not going to be there. We are not going to tell her where the party will be at. She won't be happy about it, but she needs to keep away from Lily," he said firmly. "And I will take legal action against her if she throws a fit. The woman needs help, real psychological help."
You crossed your arms over your chest and sighed deeply, looking at a stained spot on the floor like it was the most fascinating thing just to direct your attention elsewhere, anything from this discussion.
"Did you get anything for her yet? Got any surprises planned?" your dad inquired, his eyes locked on yours the entire time.
"No, no I haven't gotten her anything, yet," you managed. She was missing. She was still missing. What gift could you get for a missing girl?
"Well she's going to be expecting something from you. I can take you to the mall later if you want," your dad offered, and you nodded your head at that.
"Yeah, yeah that would be fine," you answered softly.
"I still gotta book some clowns for the big party," he said, scratching the back of his head as his brows furrowed, looking more than a little stressed out.
Did he really say that?
Clowns?
"Wait what?" you spat, eyes widening in horror and shock. "What do you mean clowns?"
"Lily mentioned that she wanted clowns at her party. I want her to have a great time and it's her tenth birthday, she should get whatever she wants. This is a big deal for her," he continued on but all you heard was the part about the clowns.
You were shaking; twitching, and your heart was beating frantically, you thought it was going to burst right out of your chest.
"You know what's crazy?" he started. "Lots of kids are afraid of clowns, but she seems to love them. I guess they are still a hit with the kids. Personally, I'm not a fan, but that doesn't matter."
"I don't think that's a good idea. I don't want clowns to be there," you told him, your voice shaky.
"You don't want clowns to be there? This is not your birthday. This is your little sister's birthday. Didn't I teach you about compromise?" he asked in that fatherly tone.
"God, you never listen to anything I say, huh? I don't want clowns there!" you raised your voice and it quavered despite yourself.
"Well like it or not, the clowns are going to be there. I'll research them thoroughly, make sure they have no criminal record and that they aren't on the sex offender list, so you don't have to worry about a thing," your dad assured.
"That's not enough. I don't want them there," you persisted.
"Well, unless you have a legitimate reason, they are gonna be there, and that's final," he maintained, letting out a heavy breath of annoyance. "Now go pack your things, and let's go," he added, pointing to your room.
You sighed loudly, a frown marred your features as you grabbed a few more essentials and stuffed the rest of it in your bag.
Before you left the room, you ripped out a piece of paper from a notebook and placed it on the bedside table, making sure to leave a note for your mom on your whereabouts.
Maybe when things cooled down, you could come back.
You headed outside and entered your dad's car, expecting to find Lily in the backseat but instead you just saw an empty seat.
"Where is she? Is she home by herself?" you asked. Your dad entered the vehicle as well and plugged in his seatbelt.
"She's at home with Vanessa," he finally said after a long pause. Vanessa was his new girlfriend.
"Oh," you answered quietly, a sense of dread washing over you.
You really didn't want to go back there and see Lily.
The ride back to your dad's place was very quiet, there wasn't much conversation, especially on your end, you would only speak when spoken to and give one-worded responses. You were feeling several intense waves of anxiety but you couldn't share a word of it. He wouldn't understand, and he would just think you were crazy like the rest of them did. It was futile. The game was rigged in the clown's favor.
When you finally arrived at your dad's place, it was strangely quiet. You found Vanessa and Lily sitting on the couch watching TV but the moment Lily laid eyes on you, she rushed over to you with her arms stretched out wide, a big toothy smile on her face.
"Yay! Big sis is here! I missed you!" she cheered and practically jumped up and down with excitement. She clung to you for a long moment but you merely looked down at her with a frown.
"C'mon, let's go play! Let's go play in my room!" she giggled loudly and grinned up at you before running off in a hurry down the hallway without even getting an answer from you.
Vanessa stood up from the couch and straightened out her long skirt before she approached you, hand extended out towards you.
"Hi, it's nice to finally meet you, I'm Van-"
"I know who you are," you interrupted her and then glanced down at her hand, refusing to shake it.
"Hey, where's your manners?" your dad said with a glare, further wrinkling his face.
"It's fine, I get it. I don't want to overstep," Vanessa said with an uneasy, nervous smile.
"I taught her better than that. There's no reason for her to be so rude," your dad complained, staring you down with a harsh glower.
"Where am I going to be staying?" you asked, changing the subject.
"In the guest room to your right," your dad said, pointing to a room down the hall.
"Thanks," you mumbled, throwing your bag over your shoulder and then started walking down the hall.
"Will you be joining us for dinner?" your dad called out to you, but you pretended that you didn't hear him.
Your dad and Vanessa exchanged looks, and then you could feel his stare lingering at your back.
Instead of heading to the guest room, you made your way over to Lily's room, and her door was left wide open. You peeked in and stood by the doorway, examining her.
Lily was playing with her dolls and laughing, a wide smile on her face. She was playing with two dolls in particular and making them talk to one another.
"You have to go down in the sewers!" Lily made the blonde doll say.
"But I don't want to!" cried the brunette doll in a more high pitched voice. The brunette's doll was in long, flowy and shiny pigtails. She had freckles dotted on her young face.
"I said do it! Go in the sewers!" Lily raised her voice with the blonde doll, keeping them in the air in front of her face.
"No! Don't make me!" whined the brunette doll, sounding totally hopeless.
"Don't you want to float? We all float down here! Don't you want to float?" persisted the blonde doll.
"No! Please no!" the brunette doll cried out which Lily continued to mimic in a more gentle voice.
"We all float down here! We all float down here! Don't you want to float forever? Don't you?" Lily continued, her voice slowly becoming more deranged and a maniacal laugh poured from her mouth.
"Lily!" you interrupted, shouting her name out.
Lily immediately turned her head towards you, her brows raised and eyes wide as she looked at you curiously. "Yes?"
"Please stop doing that, please," you pleaded, your body stiff as you stood at the doorway.
"Will you play with me?" Lily asked, a pout on her lips as she brought out her best puppy dog face.
"I don't really want to play right now," you answered shakily.
"Come on! Please?" Lily persisted, her voice high and soft.
"No, I said no," you told her, trying to sound as firm as possible but your voice failed you.
"Pretty please?" Lily begged, tilting her head to the side as she batted her eyelashes at you.
"Lily, I said no," you continued, putting your hands in front of yourself.
"Play with me! I don't have anyone to play with!" Lily cried, looking like you might as well have kicked her.
You sighed deeply and entered the room, albeit nervously. You looked about the room, biting on your lower lip and then finally closed the door. You started to scan the room, and the moment you did, a series of violent shudders ran through your body. One glance at the wall and you were quick to notice that it was decorated with clown paintings and drawings, covered in them, some even looked like Lily's own art. There were some of Pennywise as well as various clowns, some just plain menacing, others that seemed more friendly, but it was all the same to you; absolutely horrifying.
"Lily what is this? Why do you have all of these?" you asked in a shaky voice.
"Oh those! Those are my favorite pictures! They make the room look more alive, right?" she giggled and acted like it was the most normal thing.
"No, no they don't," you whispered, shaking your head before you sat down in front of her, on the ground.
"You will play with me because I have no one to play with," Lily said, more calmly, but it sounded like an order.
"What do you want me to do?" you asked nervously.
"Get another doll," Lily said nonchalantly.
"Where?" you questioned as you glanced back at her dolls.
"Over there," Lily nodded her head towards the bag under her bed. That was where the rest of her dolls were.
"Oh. I-I don't know. I don't really want to play with dolls," you started, but Lily shook her head in response.
"Get another doll," Lily ordered again before adding, "and play with me," sounding much too serious about playing with a couple of dolls.
You hesitated for a long moment, staring at her and searching for a change in expression on her face, but there was none. She was wearing nonchalance like a mask, and it was unwavering. Your lips were parted and they just barely uttered a hopeless, "Please," but it was hardly audible, you weren't sure if you even heard it yourself.
You knelt down and extended your hand out under the bed, searching for this doll she told you to get, but the only thing in your field of vision was complete and utter darkness. You didn't like small and tight spaces, so even slipping your hand under there gave you a sense of anxiety and dread.
"Where—where is it?" you asked, glancing back at her, lips curved into a frown.
"You have to crawl under the bed. It's in there, trust me," she said, a mischievous smile creeping its way onto her face.
"I-I don't want to go under there," you protested, nervousness clear in your tone.
"C'mon, don't be a scaredy cat," she mocked with a pout just to rub it in.
You did not want to go under there.
"Please don't make me. You already have two, I can just play with the other one," you begged, your lower lip shaking as you spoke.
"Get my doll! Get my doll now!" she shouted, her voice eerily raising in a more hoarse, raspy tone that made you nearly jolt in response. It sounded nothing like your Lily. It was almost monstrous. It was monstrous.
"Okay, okay, please stop yelling," you pleaded softly, kneeling down on the ground and inching closer to the space under the bed. You could only see stretches of black. It looked empty.
You lingered for a long moment; hesitant. You started to make your way underneath the bed, swallowing a thick gulp.
You began wiggling half of your body under the bed and kept your head down so it was level with the ground. Your hand was stretched out and you were trying to grab at anything you could, waving it back and forth, but you couldn't find anything.
"I-I don't think there's anything. I can't see," you urged, but your plea fell on deaf ears.
"Keep looking, don't give up," Lily answered in a sing-song voice that was eerily similar to what sounded like a possessed child.
You delved deeper under the bed, and you were met with more and more darkness, nothing was clear, and suddenly you felt confined in the tight space, hardly able to move. Your heart began racing and your breathing quickened.
You kept trying to grab in every direction that you possibly could but you didn't feel or hear anything that assured you that there was a doll under this bed. Your skin was spiked with an abrupt wave of intense heat, from your chest to your toes, it was like your whole body was on fire, your anxieties crashing in on you.
"Please, can I get out now?" you asked, but you could only vaguely hear a muffled 'no' in response.
"You can't leave until you find my doll!" she cried out, throwing a hissy fit.
You let out a frustrated puff and you slid further under the bed, grasping and pulling at anything in an attempt to find what you were looking for. But still there was nothing. It was futile.
You were just about to crawl away when you saw a strange shape in the darkness. Your eyes widened and you stayed there, trying to figure out what was staring back at you. It was still; unmoving. You made out what appeared to be an oval-shaped head and the rest of the figure's body was lying flat against the ground. Then you saw glowing yellow eyes, and they pierced right through yours, making you freeze up in shock. The rest of the tall figure's face came to view and you noticed the clown makeup that adorned his face and the orange hair and the red lips and-
"Peek-a-boo!" shouted the clown with the widest smile on his twisted face.
You screamed the moment you realized who the monster was under the bed and then before you could crawl away, hands and claws forcibly grabbed you, dragging you further and further away from freedom.
"Let me go! Please! Let me go!" you cried out in agony but you only heard maniacal, raspy laughter in response. Your head hit the roof of the bed in your attempt to escape and through your primal fear and adrenaline taking over, you flailed about as much as possible, scratching and pushing but your body continued to be mercilessly dragged away to what felt like you were being sucked into the darkness.
"Come play with me poppet! I've missed you already!" the clown mocked, his grip becoming tighter and his long claws piercing your delicate skin.
"Let me go! Please! Let me go!" you screamed hoarsely, in fear and in agony. You were being hauled away further and further, making you feel like you were becoming one with the void, part of the neverending darkness that stretched on and on.
"Won't you play with me? You don't want to miss out on the party, do ya? Do ya poppet?" he taunted, his hold on your arms were relentless, breaking more of your skin, and leaving you crying louder for help, but it felt like you were screaming out to nothingness, that no one could hear you.
"No! Please! Stop! Please just let me go!" you screeched, kicking and screaming, your throat burning with the intense effort.
His maniacal cackling only became louder and more menacing, making your whole body alight with gooseflesh and overcome with violent shudders.
Then at a moment's notice, you were pulled back to the empty space at the front of the bed, flat on your stomach, back on the floor of the room, and free from the confines of the expanding darkness under the bed.
You were a sweating, panting mess, and your hairs were sticking up and all around your flushed, burning face. You could barely catch your breath. The air around you was thick and suffocating, and you could hardly stomach it. Every bit of air you took in made you cough and the world around you spun around in rapid, blurred lines.
"What are you doing? Get up!" Lily shouted, looking you over.
You lifted your head up and then allowed it to drop back down, feeling like a ton of bricks fell on your head and like your whole body was heavy, unable to move itself.
"Did you get the doll?" she questioned aloud, but you didn't answer, and you merely rested your eyes, about ready to pass out.
"Ooh! There it is!" Lily exclaimed with an excited giggle. "Penny the clown!"
"What? Who?" you asked weakly, your eyes still shut and your cheek against the carpet.
"Penny the clown! My favorite doll! He wants to join the circus!" Lily explained, her eyes lighting up like a Christmas tree. "Come on! Get up! It's time to play with my dolls!"
Lily waved the doll in front of your face and when you opened your eyes to look at it, they immediately widened in terror, your body shaking and your heart beating frantically.
The clown looked just like Pennywise, from head to toe, the doll was identical to the real thing, there wasn't a difference in sight.
"I call him Penny for short. He has such a pretty smile, and you can make him dance and sing and he'll do all kinds of tricks!" Lily continued, her voice all giggly and cheery.
"I don't want to play with that doll," you whined, a frown on your face as you fidgeted on the ground.
"Oh but you will! Come on! Play dollies with me!" she cried, forcing the doll into your hand. You accepted it because you knew you didn't have a choice in the matter. You stared at the doll then back at her, your eyes pleading yet so hopeless at the same time. "It's make believe! You'll have fun!"
"Why are you doing this to me? Why?" you begged, your voice shaky.
"I'm your little sister, I'm supposed to give you trouble," she said, tilting her head to the side, pretending to be innocent.
"You're not my little sister," you accused, staring back at her with the harshest glare you could muster.
"What are you talking about? Of course I am. Who else would I be?" she asked, sounding like you were speaking absolute nonsense.
"I know who you are, and you're not her. She would never do this," you shot back, gritting your teeth.
"You're going to play dollies with me now or else I'm going to tell Daddy that you're the one that hurt me," Lily started, a devious and vile look in her eyes.
"Will you stop? Please? Will you just please stop?" you cried, biting down on your lower lip, feeling utterly and completely powerless.
"No I won't. I won't stop until I've had my fill," Lily stated firmly, looking at you dead in the eye.
"This is not fair," you wept, glancing back at your doll who was in your shaking hand, and you couldn't help but feel a shiver run through you as you stared into his eyes, they felt like they were looking right into your soul, it was piercing and unrelenting.
"Life isn't fair, that's something you should be used to by now," Lily chuckled, a wicked grin on her face. "Now, let's play with our dolls!" she stretched her hands out and grabbed each doll, holding them up.
You held up your doll, and you swallowed a thick gulp, feeling your body tremble as you considered what you had in your hands.
"I'm scared. I'm really scared," you quavered, sighing deeply and hot tears were clouding your vision now.
"You don't have to be. Don't you want to float down with us?" Lily started impersonating the blonde doll once more, making her voice more high pitch.
"No, no I don't want to," you replied in a broken voice.
"That's not the spirit! We all want to float down and dance with the clowns! But we can't do that without him!" Lily demanded, pointing right at your clown doll. "He has to guide us all down there!"
"What do you mean he has to guide us all down there?" you questioned, tears sliding down your face as you barely managed to get the words out.
"It's a special place where he lives! You have to go down there! It is where he will remain until he gets what he needs," Lily explained, but it was all so vague that you did not understand.
"Where is this place?" you begged, but she merely shook her head.
"You're not ready to go there. It is when he decides," Lily answered in an eerie sing song voice.
"What are you doing to her? Where is she? Where is my sister?" you demanded, you didn't know what this thing was, but you knew it wasn't your innocent, beloved sister, she would never talk to you this way or act so strange and creepy, as if she was happy to see you suffer. Your Lily was nothing like this, and you couldn't bear it.
"Please just tell me. I need to know. I just want it to stop. I want it all to stop," you started bawling, gripping onto the clown doll, but you wanted nothing more than to rip it apart, limb from limb. "You're not her. You're not my sister. You're a monster!"
You were weeping and you could feel the pressure and tightness in your chest stretch on, making it difficult to breathe, or even think clearly.
Then came a loud knock at the door, startling you and making you nearly jump in surprise at the suddenness of it.
"Open!" Lily called out in her sweet sing-song voice then glared at you, her eyes piercing and cruel.
The person behind the door finally opened it and then looked you two over. It was your dad. You noticed the look of confusion that took over his face when his eyes met yours, you were all disheveled, from head to toe, especially your hair, and you were sweating, beads of it clinging to your skin, even though the room was well air conditioned. He also seemed to notice the tears staining your face, and how distressed you looked, how utterly exhausted you were while Lily played the role of the smiling, innocent angel that could do no wrong, that wicked smile was practically painted on her face.
"What's going on here? I heard screaming," he said, sounding concerned as a frown marred his features.
"Nothing! Nothing at all, Daddy, we were just playing with our dollies!" Lily chirped, perking up and making her voice even more high pitched. She gave you a grimace, it was a silent warning, telling you to keep your mouth shut.
"Are you sure everything's okay?" your dad turned his attention to you now, raising a brow and looking like he didn't quite believe Lily's answer.
"Yeah, yeah everything's fine," you told him through the tears, sniffing and wiping at your face, but you tried to make it look as casual as you could, though you failed miserably.
"Seriously Daddy, we are totally fine! Just two girls having fun! We would tell you if something was wrong," Lily chimed in, playing up the cheerful, angelic little girl a little too much.
"I don't know. Sweetie, do you want to talk in private?" he offered, you could feel his eyes scanning your every movement, he knew something was wrong and you didn't think you had it in you to lie to his face again.
"I'm okay, really," you merely coughed the words out, and your disheveled appearance was not doing you any favors.
"She's having really bad cramps, you know, girl problems," Lily lied, making up an excuse for you because you were clearly a terrible liar, and you looked like you were about to pass out.
"Oh, I see. Well you should probably let her rest, Lily, I don't think you should be making her play with dollies if she's feeling like that," your dad frowned, giving you a look of complete and utter pity. "Is this true? Is it that time of the month?"
"Yes, yes, exactly," you nodded your head in agreement and your lower lip was quivering and you felt like throwing up. You didn't exactly mean to, but your eyes were pleading for him to help you, for him to recognize that there was something very wrong with this picture, and to save you from the wicked monster in front of you. And of course Lily noticed this, and nudged you in the arm, it appeared to be playful, but you were no fool and you knew it was another silent way of telling you to zip your mouth.
"Okay, if you say so," your dad said, sounding defeated and like he was ready to drop it because he wasn't getting anywhere with his questions. "Dinner will be here shortly, feel free to join us Lily, and you," he pointed directly at you, "better get some rest soon."
You gave him a tight-lipped smile and nodded your head just barely.
And then that was it. He shut the door and the pronounced click rang in your ears, it was almost deafening. Lily's wide and fake smile was on him until the very last second and until he was completely out of sight, and it made your stomach drop in the most intense way.
Then she gave the slowest turn of her head towards you, a menacing but dark smile stretched dangerously wide on that small, babyface that made you nearly jump to your feet.
"I told you to keep your mouth shut," she spat, her voice laced with venom. "Now he's probably wondering what the hell's wrong with you."
"I'm sorry, please," you begged for forgiveness, a frown on your face that made you look like a kicked puppy.
"Now we have to go down there and pretend that you weren't crying like a little baby. Put a smile on that face or I'll force one on you," she threatened, leaning over to tug at the sides of your lips to make it look like you were smiling. "My birthday's coming up, and I'm not going to let you ruin it."
"Okay, okay, I'll put a smile on my face, just stop already," you protested, pushing her hands away from your face.
"Playtime's over, for now, but try any funny business and Daddy will pay the price for your negligence," she warned in a dangerous sing-song voice. "Play nice, poppet."
You nearly froze up once you heard that word, that nickname, that dreaded pet name, whatever it was, you could feel that burning in your stomach churning and bubbling.
Lily stood up and spun her way towards the door, beckoning you to follow her and play another game of pretend. You followed her because you didn't have a choice, and when she was already skipping down, you lingered at the doorway, looking about her room one more time.
Your eyes scanned the various paintings and pieces of art that covered her walls, and you stared directly at the painting in front of the room, focusing all of your attention on it. It was a picture of Pennywise standing in a field of grass, a red balloon in his hand. There was a smile on his face, but you could have sworn that you saw his yellow eyes follow yours, and in the blink of an eye, his wicked smile stretched wider, revealing more of his teeth. You looked behind you to check if Lily was still down the hall. She wasn't. When you turned back to the painting, his white gloved finger was pointing at you, and his mouth appeared to be pouring with laughter. He was laughing at you, taunting you.
It was demonic. There couldn't be another word for it. The image of it grated on your soul and twisted your insides like nails on a chalkboard, filled you with that icy sort of terror that must only come when the end was nigh. You couldn't overcome the violent shudder that overcame you.
You gave one last lingering look, dread in your sorrowful eyes, and then shut the door.