Red Balloons | Pennywise [Complete]

Ghost Beach

A/N: Please listen to the song above while you read.
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Alice Kennedy's POV:

I finally made it back to California, so I naturally had to go out grocery shopping. As I walked through the isles I couldn't help but feel as if someone was watching me, but I didn't really pay attention to it. Hell, I've gotten use to that feeling ever since I went back to Derry. My visit was....interesting to say the least, but at least it wasn't boring. I got to reconnect with my friends and family; I think after all that happened it has actually brought us closer in a way. After I bought everything I needed I checked out and took everything to my car. I was enjoying the warmer temperatures here, especially since it started snowing in Maine last night. 'Tomorrow I gotta go back to work.' I said inside of my head and groaned. Especially since my biological clock was still on eastern time. I made sure to stop at my post office to check all of the mail I had gotten since I've been gone. Once I made it back to my apartment I carried my groceries inside and put everything away before I looked at the many envelopes I got in the mail. A few of them were bills, and the rest were silly credit card stuff. Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and when I looked through the peep hole a huge smile spread across my face. It was my friend Raven from work. I opened the door and she attacked me with a hug. "You're back! I've missed you so so much!! I would have texted or called you, but I didn't wanna interrupt your vacation." She said as she walked in and I shut the door behind her. "It's fine." I replied with a smile. In all honesty, I don't think I would have had the time or motivation to talk to her during my messed up vacation. I could tell she had gotten a haircut since the last time I saw her, and it really suited her. Her blond hair was super long, but now it's shoulder length and curly. I also loved her outfit; she was wearing a light sun dress with white flats. "You look good today. Not that you don't look good every day." I said, which made her smile. "Thanks." She said with a beaming smile. Literally, her white teeth almost blinded me. "So, how has work been since I've been away?" I asked curiously as I got her and I a bottle of water. "Good, but boring. Without you I've been having to go to lunch all by myself." She said as I sat down on the couch beside of her and handed her a water. "Well, come tomorrow it won't be boring anymore." I said with a slight smile. We caught up on the stuff that happened in our lives while we were away from each other. I left out everything about Pennywise and all of the death. I figured all of that should stay in Derry. If I told her what happened she'd probably think I lost my mind anyway. After we finished catching up she left to go and do a few errands. I decided to listen to some music and just relax before I had to cook up something for lunch. As I sat on the couch I couldn't help but feel the urge to look outside, so I did just that. I pulled my curtains open to let some of the golden sunlight filter into my apartment, and what I saw shocked me. A red balloon was floating across the street beside of the light post. 'It's all in your head Alice. He isn't here. He's in Derry.' I said inside of my head as I closed my eyes and calmed my beating heart. When I opened my eyes the balloon was gone, and I kinda felt disappointed. I hate to admit it, but I miss that clown. Well...the man behind the clown; I could do without the blood thirsty demon. I let out a long sigh as I walked back into my living room and sat down as I ran a hand down my face and my other through my hair. Suddenly my phone buzzed, so I took it out of my pocket to see who it was.

Oliver: Hey, how was your trip?

Me: Boring. Lol, but I'm glad I'm back in warm weather. XD

Oliver: Lucky! How are you today btw?

Me: Tired, but I'm good. How are you?

Oliver: I'm good, especially since the disappearances have completely stopped here. Do you think HE died from his injuries? Sorry about bringing him up, I just gotta talk to someone about it.

Me: No, I don't think he died. I saw him as Bill the night I was packing, but he was across the street. I didn't get to talk to him.

Oliver: Maybe he isn't Pennywise anymore, maybe he's just Bill.

Me: I hope so. He deserves to live a somewhat normal life.

Oliver: I hope so too.

Me: So, how is everyone?

Oliver: They're good. Everyone misses you though; we can't wait until you get to come back!!

Me: I miss you guys too. Hell, maybe I could send you guys tickets so you can come out here for vacation.

Oliver: That would be awesome!!

Oliver and I texted for a while, but he had to go because he had work. I ended up making myself a turkey sandwich for lunch, mostly because I didn't feel like cooking anything. Around two o'clock I decided to text my other friend Xavier, who I met at my previous job. I use to work at a beach music store, and he'd come in there very often due to the fact that he's a surfer. We bonded over having the same music taste and skateboarding. I asked him if he wanted to go out boarding and then just hangout for a while, and he agreed. After a few minutes he showed up to apartment. He had his emo styled, bleach blond hair underneath a black colored beanie. He was wearing a pair of ripped blue jeans, gray converse and an army green colored t-shirt. "Hey, it's good to have you back in California." He said with a pearly white smile as he gave me a hug. "It's good to be back." I replied with a smile as I hugged him back. "Are you ready to go?" He asked me curiously with happiness in his dark blue eyes. "Yeah, just let me grab my backpack and board." I replied before I grabbed my stuff and headed out. I made sure to lock up my apartment before I left and we headed off towards the beach. We took his car, and when we were at the beach we took our boards out and skated around for a bit. It felt nice having the warm sun on my skin and the warm air flowing through my hair. "Let's take a walk on the boardwalk." Xavier said. We carried our skateboards as we walked down the boardwalk and we glanced at a few shops that were around. It felt nice to just relax and have some fun in the sun. He and I stopped at a beach restaurant and got some fish tacos for dinner, which was nice. "So, how was your vacation?" He asked me curiously. "It was good. I really enjoyed seeing my home town again, not to mention getting to spend time with my friends and family." I replied. "That's good. It's nice to go back to your roots every once in a while. This Christmas I'm going back to Colorado to visit my family." He said before he took a sip of his drink. "I'm thinking about bringing my family here for Christmas. I know it'll be way different than Christmas in Maine, but I think they all deserve some nice mild weather for once." I said, and he agreed that it was a nice idea. We ate in comfortable silence, but when I looked outside at the setting sun I spotted another red balloon. 'Let it go Alice. You're letting ghosts haunt the beach you love.' I said inside of my head as I turned my attention back to my food. When I looked back out the balloon disappeared like before, but I couldn't stop thinking about Pennywise...or Bill..whatever he is now. "Are you okay?" I heard Xavier say, taking me out of my thoughts. "Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking." I replied with a slight laugh. He just smiled and we finished our meal. We walked around the beach for a little while longer before we skated back to the car in the orange sunset. Xavier dropped me off at my apartment, and when I got inside I took a quick shower before I changed into my pajamas. I set out everything for work tomorrow morning and set my alarm for five o'clock in the morning. The whole time I was getting stuff ready I wondered if Bill was okay, and if he was here in California. A part of me seemed to say yes, and the other part of me said that I was having a bad case of jetlag. 'You'll feel better tomorrow. You're just tired from the long plane ride.' I said inside of my head as I laid down and fell asleep.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! Remember to vote, comment, share, etc...or you'll float too. :) <3