I laughed as Ben drunkenly swayed in place. He looked at the award in his hand and the pieces that were laying on the floor. I was fairly sober but at this point anyone was more sober than Ben. He looked up at me and shook his head as his laugh joined mine.

"I'll fix it later." He picked up the pieces and tossed them onto his desk. He turned back to me and leaned on me when he reached me. "Come here beautiful." I giggled as he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I'm proud of you Ben." I whispered as I ran my fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and hummed.

"Remember when I used to be fat?" He asked suddenly. I raised an eyebrow. "No. Not just fat but a regular butterball. Bet your fern I was." He looked over my head just as suddenly, scaring me slightly. Something wasn't right but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. "You remember we used to say that as kids? You bet your fern. But I was F-A-T." I shook my head at Ben.

"Why this nostalgia trip?" I asked as I pulled him closer. Ben shook his head.

"I'm not quite sure. It just popped in there." He pulled me into a kiss, effectively stopping all conversation on the matter. The phone ringing pulled us out of our repreve. "I hear bells." Ben joked. "I'll be right back." I laughed and sat down on the bed, taking off my shoes. I could hear snippets of Ben's conversation on the phone. Smiling to myself, I got up and leaned in the doorway of the room. Ben looked over at me and my smile fell. Fear was written all over his face. "We'll come." He hung up the phone and made his way back over to me. "IT's back." I would have fallen if it wasn't for Ben's quick reflexes. He sat me back on the bed before going and getting us drinks.

"Are you ok?" I asked. Ben focused on pouring the drinks.

"I don't think I am sweetheart." He took a drink before bringing me mine. "Not tonight. Not at all." I took a sip of my drink before running my finger around the rim several times. "What about you?" Fear had dissipated some and concern was slowly taking its place. I let out a dry laugh.

"Knowing that damn clown is back in Derry?" I shook my head. "I'm with you Haystack. Not tonight. Not at all." Ben wrapped his free arm around my shoulder and gently pulled me into his embrace. Once we had calmed down a little bit, Ben and I went for a drive to his latest construction site and we went up to the roof. Ben had brought the bottle with him and I watched him carefully as he swayed close to the edge. I was about to reach out and grab the back of his pants when he wrapped his arm around a piece of machinery to keep himself upright. I joined him and wrapped my arms around his waist. We looked out at the city and got stuck in our own flood of memories. Memories I didn't want to remember and memories I wasn't even sure I had forgotten to begin with. A smile made its way onto my face as the day I met Ben came flooding back with force.

"You going to stand there all day?" I asked the boy that was standing in the middle of the sidewalk. He jumped with a start and turned around. "School's out you know." He nodded and moved to the side to stand next to me. Two girls pushed between us and I made a face at their backs. The boy laughed and looked me in the eyes for the first time. "Well." I stalled before looking over to see my dad standing next to our car. He looked bored. "So long Ben Hanscom. I'm (Y/N) (Y/L/N)." I smiled at him and waved as I jogged over to my dad. I got in the car and watched Ben wave back before turning back the way he was going originally.

"Who was that?" My dad asked as he looked at me in the rearview mirror.

"Ben Hanscom. He just started school here today." I answered before starting the reading that was assigned for class. We had been driving for a while before I looked up at the noise my dad had made.

"Look at that Henry Bowers. Cutting up some poor kid again." My dad slowed down enough to take a look at what was happening next to the bridge. "Someone's going to call the cops on him one of these days."

"STOP!" I cried and fumbled with the door handle. I was out of the car before my dad had completely stopped the car. "HENRY BOWERS YOU LITTLE SHIT! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" I ran at Bowers, causing him to turn towards me.

"Look what we have here! Little Miss./Mr. (Y/N). Come for yours?" Bowers laughed. I stopped just short of Bowers, nostrils flared and hands balled into fists.

"You leave Ben alone Bowers." I growled. "I beat you once. I'll do it again." Bowers quickly looked at his cronies before flicking open his knife. "That doesn't scare me."

"But this scares the crap out of him." Bowers lifted Ben's shirt and went to carve his name in Ben's stomach. I locked eyes with Ben and he nodded at me. I moved behind Bowers and Ben lifted up to kick Bowers back into me. I locked my arms around Bowers' arms and threw him back. His knife went flying to the ground as Ben went over the fence. I grabbed the knife and ran to the fence to watch Ben.

"BEN!" I cried as I climbed over the fence and started down after him.

"(Y/N)!" I could hear my dad from behind me. I turned to him and gestured for him to go after Bowers or get someone to help. He nodded as I went down after Ben. I found him and helped him up.

"Did you get the knife?" Ben asked out of breath. I nodded and showed him. We took off through the Barrens before hiding from Bowers. "Thank you."

"No problem. You're lucky we took this route home today." Ben nodded and I looked out hesitantly for Bowers and his gang. I watched as Eddie and Bill got the short end of the stick from Bowers before gesturing for Ben to follow me over to the other boys. "Come on. I'm going to introduce you to a couple of my friends." I slipped my hand into Ben's and led him over to where Eddie and Bill were standing.

"Let's go to Derry." Ben said finally as he turned back towards me. I nodded and followed him back down to his car. Everything moved in a blur. Before I knew it, I was sitting in a taxi driving parallel with the Barrens. Ben and I looked at each other before recognizing the bridge where Bowers had cornered him. "Pull over here will ya?" Ben asked the driver. We pulled up to the curb and we got out. "Wait for us." I followed Ben down into the Barrens. "Doesn't look like it changed in 27 years." He squatted down by the river.

"I was half expecting Eddie and Bill to be down here if I'm being honest." I said as I squatted next to him. Ben looked at me and nodded.

"Or Henry Bowers." He put a hand on my arm to help keep me steady. Some kids running down a hill caught our attention and we watched, memories of when Ben and I had run from Bowers running back into my mind. I ventured a look at Ben and watched as he rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand. I put my hand on his knee and squeezed gently. He looked back up and took my hand. I continued watching the kids while Ben stood up and walked off. I glanced over at him and knew that this was his personal moment of being back in Derry. The one that Pennywise would ruin. Mine had come when we had gone over the state lines.

'Leaving Derry' stood in stark contrast to the green trees. I squeezed Ben's hand and laughed as we sped out of the town.

"Goodbye Derry! Hope I never have to smell you again!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. Ben laughed and pulled me closer.

"I thought it was Richie with the one-liners." He joked. I shook my head as the laughter kept coming.

"He's not the only one." I leaned over and kissed Ben's cheek. "Besides, we're finally outta this dump." Ben nodded and looked over at me with the biggest smile I had ever seen on his face. He floored the car and the wind whipped through my hair. I looked back to make sure that the top of the car was properly latched and stood up in the car. Ben held onto the back of my pants as I screamed with joy. "FUCK YOU DERRY! I AIN'T EVER COMING BACK TO THIS ASSHAT TOWN!" I plopped back down in my seat as Ben tore out of town.

When I had come out of the memory, I had seen Pennywise sitting on the 'Welcome to Derry' sign. He had waved and I had ignored him. I was always good at that. Everyone else was seriously affected by him but for whatever reason I wasn't. I looked up in surprise as Ben came back. He had a haunted look on his face and we both snapped to attention as the kids ran past. I put a hand on Ben's arm and squeezed.

"I'm going to head back to the car." I said. Ben nodded before taking my hand and kissing the knuckles. "Too many memories too fast too soon." I joked as I started back up the slope. I opened the car door and got in.

"Reliving your childhood down there?" The driver asked as we waited for Ben. I looked out the window towards the Barrens.

"Something like that." I muttered as I watched Ben round the taxi to get back in. He got back in and I quickly took his hand. The driver started back down the road. I leaned my head on Ben's shoulder. "You look shaken. Everything alright?" He shook his head and leaned his head on top of mine.

"I'll tell you later." He said. I nodded before Ben sat up and moved forward. "Are you seeing that?" I followed his gaze and let out a small gasp. Pennywise stood there with a balloon waving at us as we passed him. Ben and I turned to watch him as the taxi passed him. Turning back around, I nearly screamed before Ben's hand came down on my thigh to silence me. A yellow balloon was in the car with us and as it slowly turned, we saw it said 'Turn Back Now'.

"Ben." I let out shakily. He nodded as he rolled down the window and gently ushered the balloon outside where it bounced down the road.

"I know (Y/N). I know." He rolled the window back up and gathered me into his arms. He pressed a kiss to my head and I gripped his shirt. "I won't let him get you. You can bet your fern." Another kiss was pressed to my head, making me smile. "I promise."

"I promise too Ben." I said before kissing his cheek and settling back against his chest.