I woke up with a sharp pain spreading through my head. My pulse was pounding so hard that I could hear it in my ears. Everything was blurry, and I couldn't see anything besides a small peck of light shining through the ceiling. I couldn't comprehend what happened to me. I couldn't even remember where I was at this moment, or why I was asleep. All I knew was the sharp pain in my head made my eyes water, and my ears weren't adjusting and continued to screech with every move I made. My vision started coming back slowly and I started to sit up. It hurt to move. 

I reached my hand up to my forehead, wincing at the pain. I looked at my hand to see blood on my palm. That's when it hit me. I was running away from Henry Bowers, and I fell on the side of the road. How did I fall? Did I get knocked out? Did Henry get to me? There's no way I fell asleep, not with this kind of pain running through my body. My eyes popped wide open and I was now aware of my surroundings. I was sitting on furniture; a couch, it is a torn-up couch. I was in a sewer drain. A sewer drain? Why am I in a sewer drain?

I stood up, checking my surroundings for any sight with Henry. He did this, he had to have done this to me. I'm in a sewer drain, for crying out loud.

"Where are you?" I called out, slowly turning around. "Let me go!"

I went into full panic mode. I didn't know why I was here, I didn't know how to get out, and I didn't know what time it was. I wasn't going to make it out within an hour. My dad was going to kill me.

"Please!" I yelled as hot tears started boiling in my eyes and soon ran down my cold, red cheeks. I sat down on the old brown couch, burying my head in my hands.

This was it. He won.

I should have listened to Bill. He was right, he was always right. All I needed right now was Bill to tell me that everything was going to be okay and that I would make it out.

Did Henry drag me down here with the rest of his friends? Is that what happened?

I sat there, drowning in my thoughts. My hands were shaking. Putting my face in my hands, I let out a loud groan. This was all my fault. I should have stayed in my room where I was safe. I shouldn't have ever left in the first place.

My legs moved before my thoughts did. I stood up and found myself banging on the walls, trying to find an opening, and screaming for someone to hear me. My hands started turning red from the brutal impact of the dried cement, but I didn't care. All I cared about was making it home safe.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," I heard someone say.

I quickly turned around at the sudden voice in the empty room. It was a man, but it didn't sound like Henry's voice. I tried to find where it was coming from, but I couldn't find anyone. If I didn't know any better, I would have said that I was alone. I would have said I was hearing things.

"I mean, I've lived here for seven years and I still can't find my way through this place," the voice chuckled.

He sounded oddly familiar. I couldn't put a face to him, as much as I wanted to. His voice was soft and quiet, and it was the opposite of what I would have expected. I paced around the room in hope to find him, but I had no luck.

"Let me out," my voice sounded hoarse.

"Don't make it worse," he amplified.

"Don't make what worse?"

"Your head. Worrying will make you stressed and your injury will only hurt more."

"Where am I?" I asked, stumbling back. I backed up until my back hit the wall behind me. I waited for him to show himself.

Who is he and why is he telling me what to do?

In the corner of my eye, I saw him walk out of the shadows. He stopped hiding from me and walked closer. He looked about my age, maybe a little older. His short hair was an auburn color, and a piece of it dangled down his forehead. His eyes, which I could see more clearly than I anticipated, were emerald green. His bone structure seemed flawless. The expression on his face was hard to read. The man was also incredibly tall and slim. He wore a long, black jacket that ran down his body and stopped at his knees. Looking at the bigger picture, he was wearing all black. Black seemed like it was his color.

"You're in the sewers under Derry," the boy responded, walking further towards me. My mouth began to shake when I tried to make out words to speak. I was under Derry.

"Why am I here?"

The boy looked at me with his eyebrows curved into a frown as he bent down to reach my height. He seemed like a giant compared to me. "I found you, soaked and wet, lying out in the cold."

I frowned. "So you brought me to a sewer drain?"

The boy rolled his eyes and faced back towards me. "Just be thankful I saved you in the first place."

I tilted my head as I crossed my arms.

He walked closer to me and mocked my action by crossing his arms.

"And who are you? A fugitive douchebag?" I snapped, squinting my eyes.

The boy smirked, tilting his head to the side. "What? Don't you remember me, Ariana?" the boy asked, leaning against the wall to the side of me.

He knew my name. "How do you know my-"

"C'mon, you'd remember a face like this," he pointed at his face with his pointer finger and a smirk appeared on his light pink lips.

I shook my head slowly, trying to compromise a memory of mine.

He put his hands in his pockets, looking at me in the eyes and leaning closer.

"You don't remember me," the boy looked hurt. "You told me that we'd be best friends forever, remember Ariana? You said that you loved having me around," he paused. "that you loved me."

His face turned into a light shade of red. He looked as if he were getting angrier by the second. I've never seen someone's face turn this red in my entire life. His eyes, which were once jade, were now turning into dark yellow.

"Come on Ariana," the boy paused, leaning down to where our eyes met. "Look me in the eyes and tell me that you remember me."

His eyes looked so familiar. My mind was twisting and turning, and it got harder to recognize him by the second. Should I remember him? He obviously remembers me, but I have no recognition of him.

"Come on, Ari," he told me. "I know I'm in there somewhere."

Ari? No one has called me that name in years. My dad called me that when I was a little girl but stopped after my mom left us. None of my friends had ever called me that. They always called me by my full name or my last name. Why did he think to call me that?

Within a second, my mind flashed an image that I hadn't thought of in years.

October 22nd, 1989.

"Don't you want to play?" Penny asked, his voice breaking with laughter.

I sighed, pushing my brown, wavy hair to the side. "But Penny, we've already played this a million times!" I chuckled, bringing my legs up to my stomach.

Penny brought his hand up to his chin, thinking. "Hmm, maybe we could build a fort or something. Maybe that'll keep us busy for an hour," he chuckled, his eyes sparkling at the light shining from the white lamp.

I did as I was told, and built a fort with my best friend. We placed blankets over chairs, and pillows under the "tent" that we had built.

"Man, this looks amazing," I told Penny, my voice bouncing with joy.

Penny nodded his head in agreement, his smile brightening my own.

Before we could say anything else, a loud thud was heard from behind my door. Penny and I looked at the door and then at each other. "It's my dad," I told him, looking at the floor as I lowered my head in shame. "I think he's mad again."

Penny shook his head at me and grabbed my hand in his.

I looked up to see his eyes looking in mine with concern.

"I won't let him hurt you," Penny informed me. "not now, not ever."

I nodded my head as the corners of my mouth slightly lifted.

"Let's keep building, okay, Ari?" he asked, directing toward the tower of blankets.

I nodded my head once more. Penny smiled at me and grabbed a blanket to toss on my head. I giggled at his attempt to annoy me, and I grabbed the blanket and threw it back at him.

"Penny?" I whispered.

He nodded slowly.

I couldn't believe it. My childhood friend that I hadn't seen in years was standing right in front of me. He is imaginary to me, he was imaginary to me.

"But you were...I thought you were," I paused, reaching my hand out towards his chest. "Unreal."

Penny snickered most darkly. "Unreal? Do I look unreal to you, Ariana?" he snapped, his glare on me getting stronger.

I stuttered to find the right words, looking at him in his now green orbs. "Where have you been?" I asked.

Everything seemed the opposite of surreal. This person that I had fallen in love with when I was a young girl, a very young girl, he was here after seven years.

"Why did you leave?" I asked, blocking out the first question. Of course, I had many questions for him, some probably impossible to answer.

Penny shook his head, looking at the floor. "I wanted to keep you safe."

I narrowed my eyes, moving closer to the tall boy.

He looked disappointed in himself.

"Keep me safe? Penny, you were the only one that kept me safe!" I told him.

Penny tilted his head. "I was dangerous for you."

"You left me alone," I said.

"I would have hurt someone," he answered.

"You were my only friend," my tears blurred my vision. "And you were," I cut myself off, my face softening. "Different."

Penny moved, to where I was looking down at him. "Different how, Ariana?"

I stood frozen, those memories coming back to me of what he had looked like. His pale face, his yellow eyes, his sharp teeth, every inch of him was so detailed now.

"What, Ariana? Tell me how I'm different," he demanded, his front teeth grinding together.

I continued to look into his eyes.

"You," my mouth was moving, but nothing came out.

Penny stood up straight, his height defining his features.

"You want to know why I left you, Ariana?" he murmured. Penny backed away, his hands clinging to the wall behind him.

I stayed silent.

"You're waiting to run and scream, aren't you!" Penny yelled, his voice getting lower. And then, his eyes turned from his emeralds to red. That was the only word I could describe them as; dark and red. All of his anger was boiling inside of him and went straight to his head.

His body got tense. His breathing became heavy and his shape had gotten even larger. Was he going to hurt me?

"Get away," he ordered me, his voice in a hushed tone.

I followed his orders, hiding behind the sofa. He was different. Penny was now the person- the thing- I remembered from when I was a child. He was the monster that was known to be my best friend.

Penny was jerking motions by the second, his shadow getting bigger and larger; that was until he really was a monster. His figure wasn't the human I had just met; it was the monster that I met when I was eleven. I hid behind the sofa in attempt he wouldn't even remember I was there. His teeth were sharper than they used to be. His eyes were glowing red. I couldn't help but think if he had forgotten about me. If he turned into this, maybe his memory just faded when he lost control.

"What am I, Ariana? How am I different?" Penny asked.

I shivered at his sudden change in voice. He was different from the way he was just seconds ago. His face was horrid; frightening. But his eyes were the same, the same beautiful eyes that I loved.

"You're not-" I stuttered, my mouth quivering. I never knew this side of his existed. I never knew he existed at all; I had always thought he was in my mind; something I'd use to pretend to be normal.

"I'm a monster," Penny paused, looking me in the eyes. "I'm the bad guy you should be afraid of," he leaned in, his voice softening.

I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe. I stood still, watching Penny and his every movement. Every sudden movement had caught me in a trance, keeping me quiet as I listened to him.

"I know what you are," I told him, my voice cracking.

"Aren't you scared of me?" he asked. "Aren't you afraid that I'll hurt you?"

I hesitated, looking at his face up and down. Worry and concern were written on it.

"No."

"I hurt people, Ariana," he told me.

I breathed in, holding my breath as my lips turned dry. "I know you won't hurt me. You never did, even when you had the chance to. I wouldn't be alive right now if you wanted me dead."

Penny frowned as his warm breath hit my cold face. He backed away slowly, his eyes slowly turning into the emeralds I knew them as. "How could I hurt you?"

I never thought he was real. I hadn't thought about him in nearly seven years. He never crossed my mind once; it was like my memory was erased and every thought I ever had about him had been cleared out of my mind. Why was he here, and why now, after seven years, is he showing up?

These types of things only happen in books and movies. Monsters aren't real, we were taught that at a young age. Having our parents check under our beds or in our closets so we could fall asleep peacefully in our comfy pajamas and warm blankets was a comforting thought at the time. My life was completely different. The monster tucked me into bed every night while my dad was out late and drunk, and my mom was no where to be found. The monster loved me unconditionally until I no longer needed him anymore.

Until he came back, seven years later, and I need him now more than I ever did.

➢➢➢

Oh shoot, she's literally falling in love with her monster bff. Lord help us now.

Quote of the Day: "Isn't that just kick-you-in-the-crotch-spit-on-your-neck-fantastic?" -Rachel Green