Chapter Text
Derry, Maine. A place where dreams are succumbed to the darkness. If you were someone who saw past what was only shown to you, the town would seem normal at first, perhaps even perfect. The perfect town, the perfect place to live, the perfect place to raise children in. Though, you had always thought the exact opposite.
You were born and raised in Derry up until your eighteenth birthday. You were one of the lucky few that were able to escape the town. After graduation, you quickly packed your bags and moved to the far side of the country, not wasting a second looking back. You had built a decent life for yourself. You scored a job, was in a happy, stable relationship, and had bought a small apartment that you were finally able to afford. It was rough at first, but you were proud of yourself for getting where you were in life. It was what you had always wanted.
That was, until the death of your father's brother.
Your uncle's death came as quite the shock to everyone. It was incredibly sudden and shocked everyone to their core. Especially your cousin, Lily Bainbridge. Lily was like the daughter you never had. You had been there at the hospital when she was born, and you babysat her as a toddler until she grew up to be a spectacular young girl. The smartest one you knew.
The two of you had always been inseparable. Even when you moved away, you kept in touch. You constantly sent her postcards every week, or at least, whenever you had free time to do so. Inside the postcard was always a photo of the new, unfamiliar life you were living. And she did the same. She kept you updated on her life, how school was going, and the new friends she was making. She was how you found out about the death of her father.
You and your father didn't have the ideal father and daughter relationship. He had never been particularly present in your life, and to be quite honest, you didn't mind it in the slightest. You had grown used to being on your own, and living life without him. You didn't care to know him. Sure, there were times when you would spot a father and daughter while walking to the store, where you felt the slightest sting in your heart, but it went away just as quickly as it came. You were what people considered to be "strong." In your mind, it was all you were used to, and you didn't feel the need to long for a feeling you had never been given the chance to experience.
Your mother, on the other hand, was undeniably your best friend growing up. You couldn't have asked for better. Despite the fact that she had her silent struggles, she always made sure to show up in every way she could. As a child, you didn't quite understand how hard it had to have been to be uphold both the role of a mother and a father, but as you grew up, you couldn't have been more thankful.
It had been a few years since you had lost your mother. She fell ill with cancer when you were nineteen, you're now twenty two. During that period, you struggled heavily. You remember her telling you over and over again how she would be okay, how she would get better, but in your heart, you knew that wasn't true and it was just merely her trying to make you feel hopeful. The cancer took her from you in the span of six months. You barely had time with her before she was gone, just like that. She had slipped right through your fingers before you could even fathom that she was gone. It was the worst time of your life.
You knew how painful it was to lose a parent, so as soon as Lily had told you about her father, you bought a plane ticket and hopped on a plane in a heartbeat. You didn't waste any time to head back to Derry albeit you hated the thought of going back to that cursed town. It held memories you weren't sure you were ready to face again.
⋆｡‧˚ʚ🎪ɞ˚‧｡⋆
After you had made your way through the airport and gone through all the necessary precautions, you walked outside and waved down a taxi cab. After a few minutes of standing, someone finally pulled up at the edge of the sidewalk and you hopped inside of the yellow car. It had been forever since you'd been in a taxi. Back at home, you had saved up enough money to buy a maroon red Chevy that was on the cheaper end. It had it's flaws, but it worked, got you to where you needed to be, and that was pretty much all you cared about.
The man in the drivers seat turned his head to look at you with a smile. "So, where you heading to miss?"
You flashed him a polite smile before giving him the address to your cousin's home. You were an introvert, to say the least. Awkward as well. Which was putting it lightly. You assumed the years of bullying had gotten you to this point. Your middle school and high school years, you experienced nonstop bullying. Kids were ruthless, and they didn't hold back.
"Are you just visiting?" The older man spoke again, looking at you through the rear view mirror.
As much as you hated small talk, he seemed kind. So you decided to give him a smile followed by a chuckle. Totally not awkward at all. "I guess you could say that. I used to live here but I've been brought back for personal reasons."
He nodded. You could tell he was about to ask another question.
"Why would you ever want to leave a place like Derry!?" He exclaimed, making it seem like this was the grandest town to live in. "Everyone who leaves always finds their way back." The man finishes off with a slight chuckle.
In a way, he wasn't wrong. Everyone who left, did eventually, come back. It was almost as if it was inevitable. As if some invisible force was pulling everyone back. And unfortunately, you had now fallen victim to this.
The car ride seemed long and drawn out. Despite the fact that Lily's house was only twenty minutes away, it felt like hours had passed by. You were the complete opposite of a chatty person, which meant you had to pull yourself out of your shell and conversate with this man, whose named you learned was Thomas. You were grateful for his kindness, but sorrow and mourning was all you could feel coursing through your veins.
⋆｡‧˚ʚ🎪ɞ˚‧｡⋆
Once you had gotten your luggage and made your way to the door, you were immediately greeted by a cheery Lily Bainbridge. Her brown hair fell in curls right below her neck, and she was wearing the most darling yellow top with a red skirt. You could see the excitement that glowed on her face, but you immediately took notice of the dark bags under her eyes, and how drained she looked. This worried you in ways you couldn't explain, but you didn't waste a second to reciprocate her excitement.
"Y/N!" She yelled out, bringing you into a tight hug. You wrapped your arms around her torso and pulled the girl close to you, closing the space between you. You'd missed her dearly. "I've missed you so much." Lily continued.
You pulled back and crouched down, cupping her cheeks and taking in how much shes grown since the last time you'd seen her. "I've missed you too!" You stood back up in shock. "God, and look how tall you've gotten!"
It had been around two years since you'd seen her, the last time you saw her was at your mother's funeral.
Lily chuckled and grabbed your hand, pulling you inside. "Come on in! Grab your bags!"
You quickly grabbed everything you had arrived with and walked inside. Lily helped you get settled in. You had only brought a ssuitcase and a couple of other things, not expecting to be staying but so long. It had been about two months since Lily's father had passed away. When depending on postcards to communicate, it can take a while for them to get sent in the mail, which was the reason you had found out about it so late. You hated the fact it had taken you so long to be there for her, but you were here now, and there was nothing more you could do.
You unpacked all of your things and placed them neatly inside of the guest bedroom drawers before heading back downstairs in hopes of finding Lily. You searched the entirety of the kitchen and living room and were yet to find her.
"Lily?" You called out in confusion.
You were unsure as to whether or not she had left, but that just didn't seem like her to leave without letting you know. You made your way back upstairs and checked her bedroom before walking towards the bathroom, where you were finally met with the brunette girl. She was standing in front of the mirror, visibly shaken up.
Your eyebrows furrowed in a mix of confusion and worry. "Lily?" You asked again, and she quickly met your gaze. You could tell you startled her, as she swiftly tried her best to fix the horrified look on her face.
"Oh I'm sorry - I didn't mean to scare you, I was just looking for you-" You stopped. "Are you.. okay?"
The young girl tried her best to give you a weak smile before telling you that she was okay. But you could tell she wasn't. You knew her.
You walked over to her slowly, but carefully. "You can tell me, you know? If somethings wrong, let me know. I'm here now."
"Y- You'll never believe me.." At her words, you immediately took another step forward and placed a hand on her shoulder, hoping to give her a little bit of comfort.
"Hey. You can tell me." Your voice was laced with concern. You didn't want to overstep, but you had to ask. "Is it about your dad?"
She shook her head, "No. My friend... Matty."
Matty? Who's Matty?
"H-He's gone missing and I thought I-" She immediately stopped herself from carrying on what she was about to say, and you noticed this, of course. The look on her face was nothing but pure fear. You were utterly concerned for her now. And you didn't want to press, but something inside of you needed to know what was going on. You had always felt motherly towards her, and that showed.
"I thought I heard him."
Confusion was spread all across your face, you weren't sure whether or not to say something, or to let her continue on.
You could see the tears begin to well in her eyes. There was a moment of silence before you heard her lash out, catching you off guard. "I know what I heard! People are calling me crazy and - and - I can't get sent back to Juniper Hill!"
You quickly placed two hands on her shoulders in an attempt to ground her. You had never seen her like this. The girl you remembered was like a ray of sunshine. She was bubbly and undoubtedly the sweetest girl you could ever meet. Seeing her like this was something you had never seen before. And Juniper Hill? What the hell was that? You didn't feel as if it was the right time to ask though.
"Hey, hey, I believe you. Okay?" You reassured her. "I just need you to calm down and explain everything to me, alright? Can you do that?"
Lily nodded. You helped her wipe her face off before the two of you headed down the staircase and into the kitchen, where she laid out all of the details to you. You were shocked, to say the least. You knew this town had a record for most dissapeances, but you had no idea it had gotten this bad in only a couple of months. She explained to you that she was friends with a young boy named Matty, and how she planned to meet with other kids who had known the boy. And of course, how she had been hearing and experiencing strange things.
You couldn't say you didn't believe her. But it wasn't an easy thing to fathom. You had chalked it all up to it being grief. She must have truly cared about Matty.
That night, you felt an unexplainable pit in your stomach. You weren't able to sleep at all. You had gotten up in the middle of the night to get a drink out of the fridge before going back to the guest room you were staying in.
The moon was shining brightly through your windows so you decided to close them. It was beautiful, but you had always had trouble sleeping if there was light anywhere in the room.
And there it was.
A red balloon floating in the air.
It had gone from floating above the sidewalk, to right outside of your window.
What. the. fuck.
⋆｡‧˚ʚ🎪ɞ˚‧｡⋆
And there you guys have it! Chapter one is officially done! I hope you guys enjoyed! Also, just to let you know this fic is not going to be exactly accurate to the timeline of Welcome To Derry. Similar definitely, but not exact!
Anyways, have an amazing night or day! 🎈