Chapter 8: Hawkins
"T-That was weird, w-wasn't it?" Bill asks as the Losers club sits at the local playground next to the school after the bell had rung.
The rest of the school day went by pretty smoothly after the bullies had been scared off by some unseen force and a girl on the other side of the chain-link fence. Beverly was let off with a warning for punching one of the jerks in the face since it was her first day at school. She was also told that fighting would not be tolerated at Hawkins Middle School. This seemed rather hypocritical considering students of the said middle school had started everything in the first place. She simply nodded and said that she would behave before thanking the office for giving her a second chance and for not calling her foster family. But still, there was a lot of what happened that still plagued the group. What they had seen defied all kinds of explanation and considering that they'd battled a shape-shifting sewer clown last summer, that was saying a lot. Now, they waited on Ben to get out of signing up for a bunch of clubs, none of the extracurriculars being offered seemed to interest the rest of the group.
Bill continues to push his little brother on one of the swings while Eddie sat on the other one. Stan sat on one of the platforms that led up to the rest of the play structure and Richie sat backwards at the entrance to a metal slide. Beverly sat on the monkey bars, allowing her feet to dangle over.
"Dude, it was the weirdest thing I've ever seen," Stan says, still staring out to where they had seen that girl. He looks more haunted than the rest of the group.
"Seriously?" Richie questions. "The weirdest thing you've ever seen?"
"Just shut up Richie," Stan snaps and turns around to face the rest of his friends.
"G-Good, it w-wasn't just me then," the stammering leader of the group says.
"Where the hell did that girl come from anyways?" Eddie asks.
"Maybe she's homeschooled," Beverly suggests.
"Don't understand why if there's a perfectly good school right here," Stan points out.
"She did come near me though," Richie explains.
"What? When?" Eddie demands.
"Before you dorks came to join me for lunch, I was sitting with my back to the fence and she came and tapped me on the shoulder, calling me Mike. Apparently, I look just like him, but more handsome of course."
The group rolled their eyes in annoyance.
"Focus Richie Rich," Eddie says. "Did she say anything else?"
"I didn't exactly take being given a heart attack well, so I kind of got mad for a moment and she was like deer in headlights. She began to leave until I told her I was only joking around."
"S-Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference," Bill says.
"I did get her smile though and then I guess she went off to find this Mike guy."
"I think it was the same Mike who helped us earlier today," Beverly mutters. "I did see the resemblance."
"Only without the glasses," Eddie nods in agreement.
"She was a weird kid, scares very easily, but apparently she was able to scare the shit out of those assholes,"
"Richie, l-language!" Bill barks, as Georgie is still present through everything.
"Push me higher Billy!" the youngest says in excitement, the foul language not affecting him in the least.
Apparently, the younger Denbrough brother didn't have quite as an eventful day, but he came out of the first grade proudly holding a drawing of… a dog or something, it was hard to tell, and he looked forward to having his mother hang it up on the refrigerator. He told his brother all about his teacher, Mrs. Creed, who had two cats, one named Judd and another named Church the Second. She also had a young son named Gage. He talked all about his classmates and how one girl gave him a pudding cup since he didn't have anything besides a sandwich since his mother had yet to go shopping.
"It… it just didn't seem natural," Stan continues, still unable to shake the fear he felt. "The way everything moved like that…and… and it looked like she was doing it."
"Like moving stuff with her mind?" Eddie asks.
"Y-Yeah,"
"We were probably just imagining it," Beverly says, trying to rationalize everything. She then flips upside down on the bars and hangs by her legs, wanting to change the subject.
The boys of the group bite their lips and look at one another. They decide to just drop it, maybe they were just imagining things, but they could never tell what was real and what wasn't anymore after last summer, the world was full of crazy things that none of them could truly understand.
They sit in relative silence for a while, waiting for Ben to reappear and so they could go ride their bikes to explore Hawkins a little bit. They kind of wished Mike was with them, the group didn't seem the same without him.
…
Finally, after what felt like forever, Ben came to the park, walking his bike along and having the biggest smile on his face.
"About time dude," Richie mutters. "We were getting bored over here."
"Sorry, but there were just so many cool things to look at. Did you know the A/V club has an old Morse code transmitter and the latest Heathkit H.A.M system?"
"Whoopee!" Richie says, rolling his eyes. "Who the hell cares?!"
"It's so cool. Mr. Clarke told me that the signals are powerful enough to reach Australia."
"And did the other nerds show up for that?"
"No, Mr. Clarke gave me a private tour and told me what the group does."
"So, I guess this means you're going to sign up then?" Beverly asks.
"What do you think?"
"I think that I have five bucks in my pocket, and I want to find the nearest convenience store and buy a Coke and the newest issue of Playboy. So let's go," the trash-mouth of the group insists, grabbing his bike, ready to explore the tiny town.
The group then begins riding away from the playground and down onto the streets, allowing themselves to get to know their new hometown.
While it was a bit bigger than Derry, it still had its own unique sense of character. It also felt less foreboding than their cursed town was. Little did they know that they had yet to truly feel the menace of this place. They bike down the Main Street, past the clock tower and library, ignoring Ben's pleas to go have a look inside. They bike past a RadioShack, a furniture store, a cinema, a pub called Hideaway and then come to Melvald's General Store, where they park their bikes and go inside for some snacks and other desirables.
A woman behind the counter watches as these new kids go searching through the place. She'd never seen their faces before and wondered where they had come from. She then turns and sees the local town newsletter announcing the arrivals of Derry residents. She'd forgotten all about it and wonders which of the children were in Will's class. She'd have to ask him when she got home.
"Billy can I get a Superman comic book," the littlest of the group asks, tugging on his brother's sleeve.
Joyce Byers immediately smiles, reminded of how Will used to beg Johnathan to buy him things like crayons or a comic book. The two brothers looked to have a very similar age gap to her two sons, it was almost uncanny. She watches as the boy continues to beg until his brother agrees.
When the two come up to the cash, the smaller boy's slightly freckled face and messily combed hair try to peer upwards as Joyce rings the brothers in for their money. She gives the boy a warm smile and the youngster takes it as the chance to make a new friend.
"Hi, I'm Georgie," he says with a smile, revealing a small gap in his teeth.
Bill wants to scold his brother by telling his names to strangers, but Joyce never gives him a chance.
"Hello there Georgie," she responds. "I haven't seen your handsome face here before."
The six-year-old giggles and puts his hands on the edge of the station to pull himself up to see her better.
"We just came from Derry," the little boy announces. "This is my brother, Billy."
"B-Bill," he corrects. He decides it's too late to try and discourage his brother and lets this introduction run its course. "My name is Bill."
"It's nice to meet you both. I'm Mrs. Byers. How do you like Hawkins so far?"
"It's great," Georgie chirps. "I'm in the first grade and I have a nice teacher, and I've already made a friend, she shared her pudding with me…"
"That certainly sounds like a nice friend," Joyce laughs to herself, so happy with the little boy's warm energy. It certainly made her long shift a little bit brighter. After all, since Starcourt had come around, many of the local businesses were experiencing slow sales, to the point where some people are afraid of going out of business. Her warm brown eyes laugh along with her. She then turns to Bill as she finishes ringing up their purchases. "Do you go to Hawkins Middle School?"
The preteen nods.
"Well, you might have a few classes with my son, Will. Keep an eye out for him next time," she says. "Your total is 5.36."
Bill counts the change from his pocket and Joyce decides to do something.
She reaches under the counter and pulls out a container filled with lollipops. She'd often offer them to the younger customers; Holly, Mike's little sister always loved to get a sweet treat, insisting on a "red one" every time.
"Our special customers always get a special treat, would you like one Georgie?"
"Can I Billy?" the boy asks, his hazel eyes full of eagerness.
"Is it okay?"
Joyce nods in reassurance and Bill turns to his brother.
"O-Okay Georgie, but eat-t it now so Mom doesn't find out."
"Don't worry, I can keep a secret," Joyce winks.
"I want a green one!" the child says, taking one.
"W-What do you say?" Bill prompts.
"Thank you, Mrs. Byers," the youngster says sweetly before sticking the lollipop in his mouth.
"You are most welcome sweetheart, I hope you around here soon."
"T-Thank you," Bill says, taking the objects from the counter and beginning to follow his brother out the door of the store.
"You're welcome, stay safe on the roads," she says.
Eventually, she rings up the rest of the young adolescents, all approximately the same age as Will. She smiles at all of them, happy to see some fresh new faces and to get her sales up after such a slow day. The group of kids hang around outside the store with their bikes, almost spitting images of Will and his friends. She begins going around, cleaning up a few things, reducing the prices on the school supplies even further since Labour Day was often one of the busiest times for them... or rather it used to be.
When she comes back to the cash, the kids are still hanging around outside. She hears her boss in the back and knows how he feels about loiterers.
She goes over and sticks her head out.
"Hey kids, this might not be the best place for you to hang out right now. My boss, Mr. Melvald is coming, and he doesn't like people hanging around the front of the store, especially teenagers. Sorry, if it were up to me you could stay, but I'm just warning you now. If you want a good place to hang out, there's a picnic table about of block from here next to the video store. The owner there doesn't care."
"Thank you, Mrs. Byers," the red-haired girl says politely.
The group of friends gather their things and take off to where the store employee told them to go. They continue to hang around until it's time for Eddie and Bill and Georgie to go home for dinner. The Losers part ways, navigating the strange streets of Hawkins, Indiana, their new home. At least, everything seemed as though it would be all right for all of them. No bullies, no clowns, nothing that could make this experience go wrong.
(Famous last words)
…
When Bill and Georgie get home, they find their father in the living room repairing a light fixture and a pot of stew on the stove in the kitchen.
Bill looks up to see his mother talking on the phone, indicating that his father had hooked up the phone lines. She had a rather worried look on her face as she listened to whatever was being said. She even has to wave Georgie away when he tries to show her his drawing. Whatever it was, it was very important. At one point, she blocks the mouthpiece.
"Bill, please wash your hands and set the table for me, Georgie, go wash your hands."
Bill does as he is told, while quietly listening to see if he can pick up anything in the conversation.
When his mother does hang up, she lets out a deep sigh and goes about serving the stew without as much as a word.
After they've sat down to dinner, Mrs. Denbrough clears her throat to get the table's attention.
"I just got a call from my mother; apparently Joel has shown up at the family farm, having followed your cousin home from school. He's parked himself at the edge of the property line, not caring how many times my father threatens to shoot him. My mother insists that they have to get Mia out of there as soon as possible, so she will probably be joining us within the next two weeks."
A/N: Hey everyone, thank you for the reviews, sorry it took me so long to update, with several of my other stories doing well, it takes a while to get around to all of them. I was also having a bit of writer's block. Here's the new chapter, I hope you like it. Please follow and review.