I Wasn't Careful (Bill Denbrough X Reader)

t h r e e

May 25
1989
4:17 p.m.

"Ev-Everything?" Bill dropped his bike next to yours and walked over to you. "What do you m-mean?"

"Hurry it up, lovebirds!" Richie suddenly burst out from behind some bushes. "Stop sucking face and get over here!"

"Rich, I swear to God, I will smack you into the middle of next week if you don't shut the fuck up," you blurted out before you could stop it.

Bill chuckled and walked through the bush, you followed him and saw the others already waiting for you. Maybe it was better if you just acted like yourself, as long as you didn't spoil the movie, everything would stay on track, right?

The boys began to make their way to the sewer entrance, Stanley pointed to every plant and called it poison ivy before Richie had enough. You smiled at their banter as you all reached the entrance.

"Okay, well I'm starting to get itchy now," Eddie ranted as Bill and Richie walked into the sewer. "And I'm pretty sure this is not good for my--"

"Do you use the same bathroom as your mother?" Richie cut him off before he could start ranting again.

"Sometimes, yeah."

"Gross, dude," you said, stepping carefully on the rocks to get a little farther from Eddie. "Then you probably have crabs."

"That's so not funny," Eddie looked disgusted. "Don't take his side, {Y/N}, you'll probably lose braincells."

"Aren't you guys coming in?" Richie asked, looking back at the three of you that still hadn't walked in.

"Uh-uh," Eddie pointed at the water. "It's greywater."

"What the hell's greywater?"

"It's basically piss and shit. So I'm just telling you, you guys are splashing around in millions of gallons of Derry pee. So..." Eddie tried to explain before trailing off as Richie picked up a stick and sniffed it. "Are you-- Are you serious? What are you...?"

"Doesn't smell like caca to me, señor," Richie imitated a Spanish accent.

As they continued to bicker, you stepped into the entrance, avoiding the water as you stepped closer to Bill. He heard your footsteps and turned to you. You looked down to see the shoe he had just been staring at.

"Betty's..." you trailed, cursing yourself since Bill hadn't seen her initials yet. "She... She use to wear those all the time."

He bent down and picked it up, looking at the shoe to confirm it was hers. Bill turned to the others, cutting them off to show them the abandoned shoe, "Guys!"

"Shit," Stan cursed quietly under his breath. If it hadn't been deathly silent, you probably wouldn't have heard him. "Don't tell me that's--"

"No," Bill shook his head. "Georgie wore galoshes."

"Whose sneaker is it?"

Bill shone his flashlight over the shoe so he and Richie could examine it more closely, and they saw the words "B. Ripsom" on it. You made your way back out of the tunnel, the stink was almost overwhelming.

"It's Betty Ripsom's."

"Oh, shit. Oh, God. Oh, fuck!" Eddie panicked. "I don't like this."

"How do you think Betty feels? Running around these tunnels with only one frickin' shoe?" Richie lifted his foot off the ground with some amusement and chuckled, then looked at Bill, realizing this was nothing to joke about.

"What if she's still here?" Stan suggested quietly.

"Eddie, come on!" Richie waved him over as he and Bill went further into the tunnel.