He Likes Boys//It (2017)

t h i r t y

Chapter Thirty:

Beverly's eyes widened in shock, and at first, she looked around the table, not wanting to believe that the news she'd heard was true. She wanted to believe that it was all some sort of joke being played on her by Richie and the gang.

But when she saw the sombre looks on their faces, she knew Bill was telling her the truth. She knew that the rumours being spread around the school and to various groups if friends were all true.

She didn't want to believe it. Why did this have to be the one time that rumours turned out to be true? More than half the time, they were nothing but pure lies. More than half the time rumours had no basis or proof.

She felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. She didn't want to deal with this. Not now, not ever. Hom was supposed to be hers. And after everything she had already confessed to him? How could he? How could he do this to her? How could he love someone who wasn't her?

Bill gently rubbed her back as she cried. He felt bad for having been the one to break the news to her, but she deserved to know.

"It's not his fault." Bill said gently.

Beverly nodded. "I know." She tried wiping the tears from her eyes, but as soon as she did, new one just appeared in the place of the old ones. She feared she would soon cry herself a small river. A few kids from Henry Bowers table pointed at her and laughed. But she supposed it was alright. If Hom was here, it would be him they would laughing at.

"Who does he like?" Beverly asked. She had to know which boy had replaced her. Surely it was someone she knew, probably someone in their little losers club.

Although she knew that he would never like her back, she still couldn't help but like him. More than like him. Beverly loved Hom. And despite the fact that she was now trying as hard as she possibly could to smother her feels, her heart still wanted to be with Hom, and no one but him. She sighed. Her story was becoming more and more tragic every single day.

Bill sighed. Again, he wished he didn't have to he the one to tell Beverly's the truth, but no one else at their table spoke up.

"He and Stan are together." Bill said. She deserved to know every bit of the truth. She deserved to know everything. The full and complete truth. "And It is getting hungrier." It wasn't relevant at the moment, but Bill thought she should be aware of that small fact as well. "It tried to kill Stan yesterday."

Beverly's eyes widened at the news. "Is he okay?" She asked gently, keeping her voice down so that no one would hear her.

Bill nodded. "He's fine."

"I'm so sorry I wasn't there." Beverly said. She felt guilty that she wasn't there. She should have been. She was the one who had both the slingshot and the bullets. She should have been there to protect them. She should have been there help Stan, even if she was currently angry about him and Hom being together.

Stan had never quite striked Beverly as the type who dated other boys, but then again, she hadn't been expecting what happened to Hom either.

She dropped her head down on the table.

Why did everything awful seem to happen to her? All the bad luck in the world seemed to gravitate towards her, as though she for some reason deserved it. She knew she didn't.

Tears were starting well up in her eyes again, and people were starting to stare at her. Just went she thought the water works were over, they seemed to start up again, and so did the sadness spoiling her heart. She didn't know how she would be able to stand through the rest of the day like this.

With the fact known that Hom didn't like her. Would never like her. After everything they had been through together, only to have it all terminated a short time later.

Beverly started noticing more people turning around to stare at her. She couldn't take it. She couldn't take this. The walls were crumbling down around her and she didn't have a safe place to hide.

She ran to the girls bathroom, quickly ignoring everyone in the halls, and not bothering to look up as she entered. She ran and locked herself in one of the stalls.  She heard people rustling just outside the bathroom, but she tried to stifle her sobs with her hand, and thankfully no one heard her.

She knew that the rest of that day would be hard, as would be going home, and even harder than that would be having to go meet the losers after school. She didn't want to do it. She didn't want to do any of it. All she wanted was the life she'd been waiting for. A life away from this accursed town and everything it stood for. She couldn't stand any of it. She couldn't stand being here. Being this.

Being used the way she was by nearly every man in her life.

Bill seemed to be the only good person right now. Beverly knew he was someone she could still trust.

She wanted to believe that she could face the day, but more than that she wanted to prove to the people who were constantly hurting her that she could.

If only she could manage to contain her tears.