POLAROIDS ✧ RICHIE TOZIER

XIX. YOU'RE NOT MY FRIENDS

RICHIE TOOK WINNIE'S HAND and helped her quickly out of the tunnel. Her feet had barely splashed into the water below before she took off screaming. Her blonde locks whipped past her face as she ran down the sewer tunnels. The air around her stank of feces and death and Winnie felt like she could hardly breathe. The enclosing walls around were causing her to feel borderline claustrophobic, but she refused to stop running.

"Stan!" She was screeching, "Stanley! Where are you?" The others behind Winnie echoed her cries, but they were barely able to keep up with her. At the head of the pack, Richie was pleading with Winnie to slow down but it was no avail.

"He didn't- he didn't even want to come! We made him. I made him." Winnie said breathlessly, "He's probably so scared-"

"Winnie, come back!" Richie begged, jogging to try and catch up with her, "Calm down, we're gonna find him."

His words did nothing to calm Winnie. She didn't think it was possible, yet she was more afraid for Stan now than she had been for her best friend. Beverly was fearless but Stan... Winnie didn't think he could make it without the others.

As if to prove her point, a blood curdling scream echoed through the tunnel. The sound only encouraged Winnie to go faster. She ran ahead of the others and as their flashlights grew further away, her path grew dark. She clicked the shutter button on camera to illuminate her way, following the direction the voice had came from. Each click of the camera only granted her a few second of light, but it was better than nothing. Behind Winnie, the rest of the Losers followed her path of forgotten Polaroids like breadcrumbs.

Up ahead, Winnie rounded a corner to find a flashlight flickering, nearly enveloped in the ankle deep water. It did little to light up her surroundings and instead cast Winnie's own eerie shadow against the wall. Worse even, she heard a sound that could only be described as, something feeding. For the first time since entering the sewers, Winnie paused. Frightened. Her was finger resting lightly on the shutter button, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to see what was hiding in the dark.  She considered even picking up the dying flashlight, but she didn't dare move.

The sound of the approaching footsteps of her friends is all that gave Winnie the courage to finally click the camera. A bright light erupted from it, exposing the horrors that had lied within the darkness. Winnie only caught a glimpse of it, but what she saw caused her to recoil. A woman with enormous rows of fangs had clamped her mouth over Stan's head, beneath her, Stan was convulsing.

Winnie stumbled back, nearly slipping in the grimy sewer water just as the other losers rounded the corner. As their flashlights fully exposed the monster, they all let out a scream.

"What the fuck is that thing?" Richie yelled. He pulled Winnie close to him in an attempt to protect her, but she wouldn't stand there for long.

As the others stared at in shock, Winnie's courage came back to her. She stepped forward, pulling herself away from Richie and picked up Stan's tossed aside flashlight just before flinging it at the creature. The flashlight struck IT upside the head before tumbling to the ground where the light then flickered one last time then gave out.

"Get away from him!" Winnie screamed. The creature pulled back from Stan, revealing the mess of blood now across his face. Stan grew still, and IT slithered back, hissing.

The group watched as the creature retreated into another sewer tunnel. Just as they thought it might be safe however, Pennywise the clown stuck his head out and smiled at them. The children screamed and crowded closer together as the clown disappeared once more. With the coast finally clear, the losers ran forward to their injured friend.

Stan had finally opened his eyes, and as the group enveloped him, he shot upright in a sitting position and began to shriek. He scooted away from them all, crying and screaming as he did so.

"No! You left me! You took me in Neibolt! You're not my friends!"

Despite his protests, his friends held on to him comfortingly and assured him it wasn't true.

"We're so sorry Stanley," Winnie said tearfully. She'd never seen Stan so hysterical. She was rubbing his back gently trying to comfort him as he continued to cry.

"We'd never let anything happen to you." Eddie promised, sounding as though he was also on the verge of tears. They all felt horrible knowing they'd let Stan get hurt.

Mike, Ben, Eddie and Winnie had sandwiched Stan into a group hug now, and Stan's cries began to quiet, the presence of his friends comforting him. Winnie had just began to think that perhaps they'd have a moment of peace, but things couldn't be so easy. Wordlessly, Bill took off away from the group. Eddie, being the first to notice, called out to him.

"Bill! Bill!"

They all rose to their feet, with Ben and Mike helping Stan back up. Together the took off through the dark sewers once again, trying to catch up with Bill. They found themselves in another tunnel, where the water rose to nearly their knees.

          Eddie stumbled ahead of the group, calling out to Bill. He'd taken only a few steps before falling face first into the murky depths, losing his flashlight in the process. The dark haired boy felt around blindly for his flashlight.

          "Get outta there dude, it's grey water." Richie warned as he watched his friend.

          "I can't find my fucking flashlight!" Eddie yelled

          Winnie had just bent over to help Eddie in his search when a disembodied head rose to the surface of the water. The children shrieked and Winnie yanked Eddie up by the collar of his shirt just as another skull appeared. Never even pausing the catch their breath, the group rushed out of the tunnel, still screaming.

          Their pace didn't slow until they found themselves in giant cave, a heap of discarded belongings piling high to the ceiling. And most troubling of all, above the children's reach, Beverly Marsh was floating.

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