Maybe my life was over, then again maybe I was dreaming. Maybe if I pinched myself hard enough, I'd eventually wake up— or faint. Either would have been optional at the moment.

Bill looked back and forth between us. Penny looked at me, waiting for a word to come out of my mouth. What was I supposed to say when a 6'4 man-child is hanging out with you? 'I met him on the streets, we're good friends now.'

"He—This is, uh—" I stammered with my words. I looked at Penny as my face starting heating up with embarrassment. Or maybe it was anger, I never really knew which.

"—I heard a loud noise coming from the house next door. Thought I might check it out." Penny cut in, his act remaining calm and persuasive. Penny looked at me. "Just to make sure everyone's safe."

Bill narrowed his eyes at him. "You live in t-the neighborhood? T-This neighborhood?" Bill asked, his voice growing concerned as he crossed his arms. "That's funny. I've never seen you here before."

"Staying with a few close friends of mine." Penny slowed his words, his voice soothing, but yet intimidating. Bill stepped a foot closer, his suspicion making me nervous.

"And who are you, m-may I ask?"

Oh no. Was it too late to turn around and run? The fact that they met was insane. Like two worlds colliding for the first time. Romeo and Juliet. A crossover. Not the same storyline.

Penny cleared his throat. His actions were smooth, but the way I knew him, it wasn't for too long he'd lash out at Bill. Without hesitating, Penny held out his hand. Bill and I both flinched slightly.

"Bob Gray. Pleased to meet you." Penny smirked.

Nice knowing you, I said to myself. Penny hadn't been apart of my life for a while. He had just come back in it and maybe it was for good. Or maybe he was a temporary mistake. Whatever was happening in this exact moment either changes things or brings Penny closer to my life.

Bill shook his hand, slowly pulling it away as he stood closer to me. His chest puffed out, as he straightened his posture. "Thanks for the...concern," Bill murmured, once again, looking him up and down. "B-But I think we've got it from here." Bill finished.

Penny looked over to me, and I looked over to him. With a slight hesitation, Penny lowered his head and turned around. He walked away towards the intersection to the neighborhood, and in just a few moments his tall figure was gone.

Bill hadn't questioned me about him ever since.

I didn't give much thought into where he'd gone. He would leave for small amounts of times, and come back later as if I'd just seen him. I'd never given much thought to how something so unreal could be real. How something so beautiful could exist. But maybe it wasn't just this.

Sometimes people can be beautiful enough to where their existence annoys you. Maybe not in looks. Maybe not in what they say. But maybe it's just the way they are. And he was undeniably beautiful. Penny, "Bob Gray," whoever he considered himself as stayed in my thoughts ever since he walked away. Ever since the last time I saw him.

The next week was like everything had gone back to normal. Bill was back at school and acted like it never happened, and the boys continued to mess around with him even though I knew he was in pain. After the complaining from his parents, Bill had finally decided to get crutches, even though they were already provided. A day after another, the time seemed to pass by. Everything seemed completely normal, except for the fact that no one had seen or heard from Henry Bowers in days.

The nights were harder to bear. I had stayed alone in my room, waiting for Penny to come out of the shadows. He never showed, even in the day. The day that he walked away from Bill and I was the last time I had seen him. Maybe it was because he was scared. I couldn't imagine someone like him being afraid of anything, bigger or smaller. It was as if he was an iron shield; he protected himself so no one could hurt him.

Another week had passed. My father was gone, and nowhere to be found. I'd stay in my room with the door locked, constantly looking out the window to imagine his car pulling into the driveway. But knowing him, he wouldn't be back until he was sober enough to remember he had a daughter. And, well, drive. I had to take care of our house myself. It was like it was my own home, and I hoped one day it would be. The changes I could make to this place seem far beyond my imagination.

It was now Friday night, and the boys had wanted to do something fun. Not only was I looking forward to going somewhere other than my home or school, but I was also happy to be with them for the first time without it being because of trouble. Without much of a decision, Richie had suggested the movie theater. Not everything Richie suggests is horrible, but sometimes he has a hard time deciding what's legal and right to what's illegal and wrong.                                                                          

The school's new kid, Ben Hanscom, had also been asked to tag along by all four of them. He was a quiet kid, but different from the rest of us. He was shorter and a little bit broad, with a red "H" carved into his stomach. He needed people to stick around with, and we were just that. We had all met up outside of the beaten-down theater.

"Woah, woah! Feels like I haven't seen any of you losers in five months!" Richie walked towards us, his hand in the air as he was waiting for a high-five. Eddie cringed, crossing his arms as the sun hit his face.

"You just got here and you're already giving me a freaking migraine."

"Oh, I'll show you a migraine-" Richie walked closer to Eddie.

"Guys!" Bill piped up. All of our eyes locked to his, waiting for the aftermath of his outburst. Bill pointed ahead of him, keeping hold of his crutches. Our heads turned to the side of the movie theater. Henry Bowers was standing there, and he wasn't alone. Patrick Hockstetter and Victor Criss stood by his side, glancing at us. None of us had seen Henry for days. While he was gone, his "so-called" friends would roam around the school, and cause no harm. It's like they were waiting for him to come back.

"He's up to something. I know he is."

The tension between the two groups got uneasy. I looked towards Ben, who looked as if he was about to run away from the Three Stooges. I grabbed ahold of his arm, and he looked up at me with a panicked look.

"Hey," I announced to all of them. "We're here to see a movie and have fun. Don't worry about them."

Enough said. The boys and I mindlessly walked into the small building. Henry Bowers attacking us in a public place was the least of our worries. But attacking us in school was a different story. He had an audience. He had people cheering him on to keep going. But we were safe.

Richie wanted to see "Cutting Class," which starred Brad Pitt, but the other boys wanted to see something less gruesome. It didn't make sense to me how we ended up seeing the movie anyway.
We all sat on a balcony, all hunched together as we started shaking from the horror of the film. Ben was seated to the right of me, as Bill was seated to the left. But for some odd reason, Bill wasn't scared. The other boys were covering their eyes and partly yelling at the screen, while Bill was too concentrated to focus, (if that made any sense.)

About in the middle of the movie, our attention was guided to the right-doors of the movie theater. The light was shining through the open gap, and the three, now four, teenaged boys walked in, only to find that we weren't alone. The theater was packed, and their scam would have to wait for another time.

The dirtbags sat right below us. We all looked down at them, as they tried their best to devote their attention to the large screen ahead of them. My friends and I exchanged looks, as Bill spoke up.

"W-What do we do?" He asked, clutching his crutches that were displayed to the side of him. I shifted in my seat, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear as I gulped. Sometimes it was better just to do nothing.

"Stay quiet," I responded, slumping down in my seat as I pretended to watch the film. Within a matter of seconds, I heard the voice of Richie.

"No problemó," He said. Standing out of his chair, Richie grabbed his Diet Coke, taking the lid off. He tilted the bottle over the edge of the balcony.

"Richie, no!"

The soda spilled over the ledge. In just a few moments, yelling was heard from the space below us. Richie grabbed his large popcorn, tipping the bag over the edge as it soon hit the ground.

"Who the he—"

"My hair is soaked!"

"You are so dead!"

Without a warning, everyone stood up, scramming towards the entrance as the people around us continued to give us strange looks. The door was hit open by Stanley, and without his permission, Stanley grabbed Bill by the legs and draped him over his back. His crutches fell to the floor. Footsteps were heard from behind us, along with the grunting of the teenaged boys. We ran out of the theater. My small legs were going as fast as they could, which still wasn't fast enough.

Why did Richie have to make them mad?

We ran until we found a safe spot—the arcade that belonged to Richie. All of us managed to get inside, and we were secure once we hid behind the large claw machine. As soon as we hit the wall, Stanley dropped Bill onto the floor.

"What the freaking—what even was that!" Eddie yelled, panicking, as his hands were located over his head, lightly pulling at his hair.

"I almost had a freaking aneurism, what were you thinking?" Stanley slid down the wall, holding his hands over his face.

"Do you guys think he'll come back?" Ben asked, crossing his arms as he went back and forth between all of us.

"No," Bill answered, his words sounding shaky and out of breath. "He's tired. He'll g-give up eventually."

Richie looked at all of us, a sly smirk coming up to his face. "But hey, we got revenge on the reptilian douchebag, am I right?" He held his hand up for a high-five. Everyone surely rejected it.

I hadn't said a word. Once again, all of us were in deep trouble. And once again, it was with Henry Bowers. Being us, we never really had to find trouble. The trouble always found us, no matter the situation.

That night, it was harder to imagine where Henry had gone. Forgetting what had happened wasn't an option. With him, revenge was the only option. I knew who he was, and he was someone who wouldn't give up on getting what he wanted. He would kill to get what he wanted.

I was worried for my friends and their safety. It was only a matter of time until we left this town. Maybe for a college, or maybe because we just wanted to leave once we were adults. Another year of this place, and we would all be on our separate ways. Or maybe we would all be together.

Penny came to my mind. It was usually at this time where I would constantly be reminded of how much I missed him.

As I drifted off to sleep, I couldn't keep my mind off of him. The way he existed. The way that he was alive, somewhere in the world. Somewhere in this town. I couldn't help but think about him thinking of me. Was he ever thinking about me, or was I just imagining this?

I hadn't seen him in three weeks. Paranoia was taking over my mind—my body. Thinking he was never coming back made me anxious. Was this all too much for him? Was I too much for him? I didn't want him to go.

The light from the streetlamps shined through my window. I didn't know what time it was, and I didn't care. I wasn't conscious enough to think. The house was quiet, and the room was warm. My heart rate slowed, and my eyes slowly closed.

A scream was heard. The floor was made of metal, and my body ached with pain. I didn't know where I was, and I didn't know if I could tell. My eyes were closed—that was the only thing I could comprehend.

Open them.

My eyes slowly seethed light. The brightness burned, but I needed to know what was happening to keep myself safe. I wasn't safe.
Another scream was heard. My body jumped, and I quickly shifted my body upward, my eyes wide open as my breathing quickened.

I was in the sewers. I was covered in filthy water, so damp that I started to freeze. It was slightly dark but light enough to where I couldn't keep my eyes open. The scream was heard once more. A male's scream, deafening.

I stood up. My legs were numb. I walked towards a hallway-looking entrance, only to come in contact with a brick wall. My mind seemed to hurt, and so did my body. Every inch of me was in pain, and I had no idea why. The fumes of fire smelled around me—a dark whiff of smoke. A noise was heard from behind me. I turned around quickly, my mind spinning. The dizziness settled in. Standing there was a large creature, but familiar. The white skin, the monstrous growl, and the smell of mint.

It was Penny.

He moved slightly to the side, and I tried my best to make out who made the death-curtailing noise. To my surprise, the boy stood there. Terrified, with a gun in his hand, pointing it towards Penny. And with just a blink of an eye, my heart exploded.
Bill clutched the gun but looked at me. His face was filled with anger.

"You! How could you do this!" Bill yelled, my stomach falling as I walked towards the green-eyed beast. I was shaking. But more importantly, so was Penny—he looked down at me. His face was different. The monster inside of him was showing, and it was ugly. But this wasn't who he was. This was who he thought of himself to be. A killer—a beast. I knew well that he wasn't.

"Stay back," Penny whispered to me. I couldn't comprehend what was happening. Bill wasn't the enemy; there wasn't an enemy. Not in this story.

The gun was raised. I screamed and jumped in front of him. The pain in my chest increased right after it had started quickly, and I felt myself hit the floor with a loud thud.

"Ariana—" My body jumped from my bed. Sweat climbed to my forehead, as well as the rest of my body. I was shaking, in a state of an anxiety attack. My throat hurt, and my mouth was dry. It was too good to be true—it was all a dream.

"You're alright, Ariana." He spoke, his body close to mine as he placed both of his hands on the sides of my face. He was warm, almost too warm for this cold room. He was here—he was really here. And within a few moments, I collapsed into his arms. My body relaxed for the first time in a while. He caught me, his arms wrapping around me as I felt safe.

He made me feel safe.

I had never really felt what it was like to hug someone that you felt strongly for. But at this very moment, I knew. We had stayed like this, and I never wanted it to stop. I wanted him to stay here for the rest of the night, hugging me, telling me that everything is okay.

"Don't leave me," I whispered. I breathed steadily and quietly. I was pressed against his chest, listening to the rhythm of his heartbeat. It was the most amazing thing I had ever heard of. He was, and always will be, my special person.

"I'm afraid that's quite impossible." He chuckled lightly, his hands in my hair as he stroked the stands. I wanted him to be there when I woke up. It never seemed possible for that to happen, but maybe just this once, I would see him when I woke up.

I drifted off.

The only thing I could think of was the feeling I had when I was with him. He was beautiful. Unbelievably and unconditionally beautiful.

And I was in love with him.

➢➢➢

Holy moly! Thank you so much for your support! I'm so sorry for waiting for such a long time to update. It's currently 3 am, and I just finished this chapter. I really hope you guys like it, and if so, make sure to vote and leave comments! I love you guys! ♥︎

Quote of the Day: "I don't understand that reference." -Castiel