The wind gushed quickly through Richie Lynn’s hair as he stood on the Buddy Bar and gripped onto Billy Hilton’s bony shoulders. Billy’s bike zigzagged onto the pavement and then back out onto the road at the next driveway, making Richie almost lose his stomach at the sharp diagonal turns. Although not feeling completely safe, Richie smiled as their speed increased on Billy’s Road Runner bike, and every now and then Billy would scream, “Full steam ahead!” before launching his silver chrome Diamondback Viper bike off the kerb and onto the road with a bump. Richie gripped tighter onto Billy, knowing that if he didn’t have a secure hold, he would have tumbled off after the first few corners. They were on their way to Starcade Station, and Richie Lynn couldn’t be happier.
They didn’t stay long at the library as Richie was extremely keen to check out the arcade, yet before leaving, Richie felt forced to sign up for a library card from Mrs. Kosgrove, who wouldn’t take no for an answer. His now bright blue and yellow card lay snug next to his school ID and his loose change in his Velcro Vault wallet.
“Choo choo,” Richie bellowed from the back of the bike, imitating a steam train, and Billy was ecstatic that he could share this moment with someone who was genuinely excited to be with him.
“I’ll take us past the Pit on the way,” Billy Hilton spoke loudly so Richie could hear him.
“Sure, Billy. What’s the pit?” Richie questioned, hoping that their diversion wouldn’t take them off track for too long.
“It’s where I can really let Road Runner loose,” Billy replied, ringing the bike’s bell in reply.
“Sounds good,” Richie Lynn stated as the bike zoomed back onto the pavement where Mr. Finster was walking his award-winning cloud white Bichon Frise dog. Richie braced for impact, thinking they didn’t have time to move out of the way, but somehow Billy manoeuvred the large bike just in time, launching his black rubber wheels momentarily onto Mr. Cooper’s pristine lawn.
“You watch out!” Mr. Finster screamed, shielding his dog and not worrying about his own safety.
“Sorry!” Billy Hilton screamed as they sped past him and back onto the pavement, leaving Mr. Finster behind them.
“Close call,” Richie screamed in excitement, encouraging Billy to continue pivoting left and right as if they were on an amusement ride. Billy Hilton continued to pedal hard his feet slapping the pedals, making it to the top of O’Brian’s Road with just enough momentum before putting his feet to the ground and stopping the bike altogether. Richie also let his feet down from the Buddy Bar.
“That’s the Pit,” Billy smiled at the steep hill leading down, almost feeling vertical. “I do this all the time.” Billy lied, trying to gain cool points from Richie.
“Is it safe to do with me on the back?” Richie felt worried, knowing that if he falls off, the concrete pavement would likely break some of his bones.
“As long as you trust me and don’t unbalance the bike,” Billy Hilton replied, hiding his own nerves under his cockiness.
“Of course I trust you,” Richie Lynn picked his feet up and placed them back onto the Buddy Bar, gripping Billy Hilton’s shoulders tighter than ever.
“Good,” Billy said, hoping that Richie would chicken out so he wouldn’t have to attempt it. Just in that moment, a car door shut from behind them, and Deputy Fynn Drapper stepped out in his light brown uniform.
“Excuse me, boys,” Fynn Drapper said as he walked from his police car over to where the kids were stationary on the hill. “Are you about to go down the pit, Billy?” His deep southern twang airing a sense of authority.
“Ah, you bet, sir,” Richie Lynn replied.
“Well, hold that thought for just one second, boys,” Fynn Drapper stated as he quickly ran back to his vehicle that was still running on the side of the road. After leaning in for just a moment, he came back out and jogged over to where the boys were readying themselves. Fynn Drapper held a Cherry Cola Slurpee from the Highway Haven service station. “Now I’m ready for this.” He grinned, slurping his drink. “Good news is, I can block the road off ready for the ambulance, and trust me, kiddo, you come off on this incline, you’re gonna need an ambulance.”
“Excuse me, officer!” Mr. Finster came jogging up the pavement from behind, holding the dog in his arms. “These boys are menaces, they almost ran over Miranique here.” He held the dog up slightly, showing it to Fynn Drapper.
“Come on, Carl,” Fynn started. “These boys are outside on a Saturday morning having a bit of fun.”
“Their fun almost severely injured my prize dog,” he stated firmly.
Fynn Drapper slid on his black aviator sunglasses, shielding his eyes from the sun. “Did the boys also make your prize dog take a shit in Julie Remm’s front yard earlier today?” Fynn Drapper raised his eyebrows at Carl Finster, who stood there dumbfounded. “You know, this town has enough shitty problems currently, without Fairy Floss here causing more.”
“I, ah…” Carl Finster mumbled.
“It’s okay, Carl, just treat the pavement and other people’s lawns like you would your dog’s arse and I won’t fine you today.” Billy and Richie smiled as Fynn Drapper slurped some of the cherry cola up the large straw.
“Yes, officer,” Carl Finster quietly said as Miranique growled at Fynn from her owner’s arms.
“You and me both, Powder Puff.” Fynn Drapper turned his back on Carl, who sheepishly walked off in the other direction back towards the pavement. “Now, boys, on with the show.”
“You seriously gonna watch us do it?” Billy Hilton asked. “Don’t you want to try and stop us or something?”
“Stop you?” Fynn Drapper looked shocked. “This Pit used to be the scariest thing to me when I was your age.” He thought about his past. “I remember wanting to do it, but I would freeze here at the top.” Fynn pointed to the ground, showing this is where he used to sit on his own bike. “I saw Gary McKenzie come off midway down and graze his arm like it was cheese in a grater.”
“Did you end up doing it?” Billy asked.
“Boy, I’m still standing here today because I chose not to do it. I’ve seen plenty of accidents happen on this hill and figured, well, if they choose to do something silly, then you pay a silly price, you hear?”
“So no one has done the pit before?” Richie asked.
“Well, I didn’t say that exactly, I think Dan Pelso did manage to do it, but Pelso had a few screws loose, so it’s hard to tell if he was being honest about it or not.”
Richie put his feet back to the ground, suddenly not feeling safe.
“Maybe we should try it another time?” Richie began. “You know, ‘cause I’m still super keen to see the arcade and all.”
“Wise choice, young man.” Fynn Drapper pointed to Richie. “There’s no harm in being scared. Young Billy, fear isn’t the enemy, it’s the teacher.”
Billy Hilton paused and then turned his bike around slightly. “Well, we’ll do it next time, I think.”
“Well, it looks like I talked myself out of a show.” Fynn Drapper smiled at the boys. “But call me if you’re ever gonna try it in the future, I want front-row seats.” Fynn turned and started to walk towards the police car on the side of the road. He paused and turned around quickly. “Remember to be home before dark, okay?”
“Will do, Mr. Drapper,” Billy replied.
“It’s Fynn,” Fynn Drapper replied, getting into his vehicle. “Mr Drapper’s my father.”
As the car pulled away, Richie Lynn smiled at Billy.
“He seems okay,” Richie said, referring to Deputy Fynn Drapper.
“Yeah,” Billy answered. “He’s actually pretty chill for a cop.”
The boys paused momentarily until Richie moved the conversation back towards the arcade with excitement.
“Mind if we head to the arcade now?” Richie questioned, eagerness in his voice.
“Of course we can,” Billy replied, turning his bike around and happy that Richie wasn’t focusing on him chickening out of going down ‘The Pit.’ “We can head there right now.” He gestured for Richie to get back onto the bike.
Richie jumped back onto the Buddy Bar, and the boys took off back down O’Brian’s Road before cutting through the creek at Harrow’s Crossing. After five minutes of riding, Billy Hilton pulled the bike out onto what seemed like a main street, and Richie Lynn noticed it was much busier than the other parts of town he had been to before. In fact, he had seen more kids around his age walking on the footpath than he had the entire time he had been in Lewton.
“Wow, it feels like we’re in another town or something,” Richie stated, surprised, as his head darted around, taking in the town’s surroundings.
“Yeah, this is Thornton Road,” Billy replied. “It’s like the main street of Lewton.”
Both boys looked around as Billy glided his bike past a giant colourful playground on their left.
“That’s the Jubilee playground. It’s where most mums take their kids because they’re locked in with no escape,” Billy noted, noticing the wooden fence surrounding the playground with only one gate to enter or exit.
“It’s like a kid prison,” Richie smiled, noticing the café to its right where tables were positioned perfectly for parents to get a coffee and watch their children play.
“Pretty fun prison if you ask me,” Billy smiled, remembering his own childhood experiences on the playground.
Billy’s bike jolted forward as it skidded to a stop.
“Here we are, Starcade Station,” he stated excitedly.
Richie jumped off from the back of the bike, his feet landing onto the grey pavement with a thud. Both boys stood out the front of a small building coloured bright blue with a red rocket ship as its logo. It reminded Richie of the logo from a movie he saw called Starward Odyssey back in Arlington. The windows of the building were tinted dark, and it was hard to see inside. However, as the doors were pushed open by people entering and exiting, it was easy to see rows upon rows of colourful arcade machines stacked closely side by side. Loud electronic noises came rushing out the doors, a barrage of tunes all mashed together, combined with the laughter and frustration of kids' emotions.
Billy seemed slightly distracted out the front of the building as he kept looking down the alleyway directly adjacent to the building.
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“Is everything okay?” Richie asked, noticing Billy’s attention on the alleyway.
“It’s nothing,” Billy answered quickly, noticing the alleyway was empty up to the chain fence that climbed up the exterior of the surrounding buildings. Midway down, Billy could see the two large green dumpsters seemed overly abundant with rubbish. “Let me park my bike, and we can go in,” Billy said as he wheeled his bike to the front of the building, where several bike racks were already set up. He picked up his bike and slid the front tyre into the steel bars, making sure not to scratch any of the paint from Road Runner. After triple-checking the stability, he turned to Richie, who was waiting patiently behind him. “Okay, we can go in now.”
Billy pushed the doors open, and Richie Lynn wandered in behind his friend. There was no front counter, no staff greeting them as they entered. Instead, near the front doors stood several change machines so patrons could exchange their notes for coins to use the arcade machines. The dark interior was a cool change from the strong Lewton heat, and above the coin machines, there was a huge sign that read High Scores. Richie looked down the names of the games, taking them all in, trying to see if he recognised any of them.
“They have Void Crushers!” Richie exclaimed with excitement. Void Crushers was Richie’s favourite arcade machine of all time, and he had spent a lot of his weekends playing it when he was younger. Void Crushers was a classic upright-designed arcade machine that focused on quick reflexes. The tagline alone made Richie smile with joy: “Obliterate the void, or be consumed by it!”
In Void Crushers, players pilot an intergalactic warship on a desperate mission to destroy the Void Core, a sprawling alien entity threatening to engulf the galaxy. Armed with an array of devastating weapons, players must navigate treacherous space sectors filled with enemy swarms, deadly traps, and shifting gravitational hazards. Richie loved the dual control sticks and rapid-fire buttons. He had spent countless hours trying to master this game, and although he wouldn’t say it, Richie loved showing off his skills to onlookers. He was excited to play it and show Billy how good he was.
Richie checked the high scores and could see his modest score was nothing in comparison. 18,658 was the high score written on the chalkboard, achieved by someone with the initials E.L.M. In all his time playing, Richie’s score was always just over the 10,000 mark.
A tall, thin teenager jumped in front of Richie and signalled for him and others around him.
“Everyone!” he yelled. “Brian McDougall is going for the high score in Synth Strike!” He gestured to all who could hear him and waved his hands to follow him.
Billy Hilton smiled at Richie, and without saying anything, both boys eagerly followed the scrawny teenager. They weaved their way through the crowd of onlookers, their feet sticky on the old neon blue carpet that had too many soda drinks spilt on it, and were finally led to a machine in the far corner of the room where a crowd was already gathered.
“If we’re lucky, we might even see a kill screen,” the teenager yelled to no one in particular.
A kill screen was a point in a video game where the game becomes unplayable due to a programming error. Instead of ending the game naturally, the game continued past its intended limit, often leading to impossible scenarios or glitches that made further progress impossible. Richie had only ever heard of kill screens in magazines and thought he would never get to see one in person.
“You can do it, Brian!” a geeky boy with parted hair yelled amongst the crowd.
Brian McDougall was a tall, thin teenager with short brown spiky hair. His freckled face was glued to the screen of Synth Strike, and his black T-shirt was tucked into his overly high cream cargo pants. The cheering intensified as the group became larger when suddenly Billy turned to Richie.
“Ah, Richie, we may need to get out of here.” Billy seemed flustered and distracted, his eyes wide with panic.
“Billy, are you okay?” Richie could tell something was off about his friend as his whole attitude had changed in a mere instant.
“Just trust me,” Billy Hilton’s hand grabbed onto Richie’s wrist as he pulled him to one side, making it easier for the boys to talk amongst the roaring of the crowd. “I’ll explain as soon as we leave.” Billy’s panic was growing, and Richie could see that his friend seemed completely flustered.
“Sure, Billy,” Richie began. “We can come back another time.” Richie, although disappointed that he wouldn’t get to see Brian McDougall’s high-score game, was more concerned for his friend’s sudden change in demeanour. “You sure you’re good?” Richie Lynn stared at Billy’s pale face. “It looks like you’ve seen a ghost or something.”
“Not a ghost,” Billy began, as another boy pushed his way through the crowd and stood inches away from Billy.
“I told you not to come in here, you little shit stain.” Ryan Castlebrook’s deep, commanding voice boomed as little specks of spit landed on Billy’s face.
“You did, Ryan,” Billy nervously replied. “I was only showing the place to my—”
“To your little boyfriend here?” Ryan stated, looking across at Richie. “You couple of faggots or something?” Ryan looked down to where Billy was holding Richie’s wrist. “You know what we do to faggots in Lewton, Billy?”
“I’m not gay,” Billy Hilton replied, dropping his grasp on Richie’s wrist.
“Hey, leave him alone,” Richie replied. “He hasn’t done anything to you.”
Ryan’s face locked onto Richie’s as he stepped closer. “Oh, you his protector, are you?” Ryan Castlebrook towered over Richie Lynn. “Well, from now on, you’re not welcome here either.”
“Sure,” Billy replied and started to make his way through the crowd back to the entrance. “We’re leaving now anyway.”
Richie Lynn paused as Ryan stood in his way.
“Wait!” Ryan yelled at Billy. “You haven’t received your punishment yet.”
Richie attempted to walk past Ryan, but as he veered to shuffle past him, Ryan stepped into his direct path, blocking his way.
“Let him past!” Billy Hilton begged his aggressor.
“We haven’t been properly introduced yet, have we?” Ryan smiled at Richie.
“Just let me go,” Richie Lynn ignored Ryan’s comment and attempted to walk past him again, this time on the opposite side, but once again, Ryan Castlebrook stepped in front of him, blocking his exit.
“Today’s not the day to test me,” Ryan stated through gritted teeth. “I’ll fuckin’ end you.” Ryan smiled at Richie briefly before turning around to face Billy, who had shuffled through the excited crowd that was becoming more restless as Brian McDougall’s high-score game neared its end.
“What do you want?” Billy Hilton’s defeated voice was soft amidst the cheers in the crowd.
“I want you to pay.” Ryan’s face shifted, his expression darkening as he realised Billy seemed more concerned with Richie’s safety than his own. He turned back and looked at Richie again, his face this time more menacing as it was twisted with excitement, imagining the next sequence of events playing out in his mind. “Are you ready?”
“Ready for what?” Richie questioned.
Before he had time to comprehend or ready himself, Ryan took a step back to gain more momentum, and in one quick movement, stepped forward, shifting his weight as he wound his right arm back and, with all his force, thumped Richie in his lower belly, instantly taking the wind out of him, causing Richie to double over in pain, unprepared for the unexpected blow.
“Nooo!” Billy Hilton screamed as he rushed back over through the crowd to aid his friend, but as he came close, Ryan turned back around, facing up with Billy.
“What you gonna do about it?” Ryan Castlebrook’s face seemed happy at the pain he had just caused. Without thinking, Billy looked around quickly for anything that would aid him in helping his friend and mindlessly grabbed an empty arcade stool to his left. He swung it from the seat end, letting the steel legs fly around and clocked Ryan across the left side of his face.
The crowd suddenly parted as they realised the scuffle that was going on around them. Even Brian McDougall abandoned his high score game as he turned around to see Ryan’s face bloodied from the blow Billy had given him. Richie, still struggling to regain his breath, had his belly aching with pain he had never experienced before.
“You’re fucking dead!” Ryan Castlebrook screamed at Billy as he spat out the blood that gushed from inside his mouth. Billy backed away, surprised at what he had just done instinctively, and quickly turned to race out of the building. The crowd scattered for the exit, also not wanting to accidentally be in Ryan Castlebrook's way as rage filled his face. A bright blue vein poked through the skin on his forehead like a lightning bolt as his anger intensified. Richie Lynn, still doubled over, couldn’t move and gasped for air as he crawled to one side, his breathing like someone fighting an asthma attack. Richie’s face was bright red as he struggled to fill his lungs with enough oxygen, and he felt the world blur around him as darkness started to take over his field of view.
Billy Hilton pushed the doors open as he raced towards his bike for a faster getaway. Just as he was mounting Roadrunner, he felt a force shove him from behind, toppling him onto the cement. He turned to see that Ryan Castlebrook had caught up to him, and now nothing stood between them. Billy’s frightened face anticipated the pain that was about to come.
“I’m gonna enjoy this!” Ryan screamed.
Billy crawled like a toddler, backing away from Ryan, but with nowhere else to go, he found that he had crawled himself into the alleyway—a dead end. He quickly stood up, hands above his head like an army soldier surrendering.
“I’m sorry,” Billy begged. “I didn’t mean to hit you across the face.” His voice was frail and silent.
“Nah, I think you meant to,” Ryan said confidently. “But I’m glad, ’cause you see,” Ryan began, “I tend to bottle up my emotions, and well, if you play with fire, you’re gonna get burned.”
Ryan pulled out his silver zipper lighter from his back pocket and flicked it open, producing a flame that seemed long and threatening.
“Ah shit,” Billy whispered to himself as he scrambled to his feet, cornered in the alley. As Ryan walked towards him, Billy launched himself, thinking he might be able to slip past him, but Ryan was too quick and, for that matter, too strong. In a quick movement, Ryan used his right foot to trip Billy up and then pinned him using his own body weight.
“Please, Ryan,” Billy pleaded. “Don’t do this.” Tears swelled in Billy Hilton’s eyes as Ryan shifted his body weight onto Billy’s left shoulder and pinned his arm to the bitumen road with his right hand. He could feel the hot concrete of the road beneath him and Billy’s weight on top of him as he forcefully tried to free his arm, but Ryan’s force was too strong for him, and he couldn’t remove it from the pressure.
“I beg you, don’t do this,” Billy began to cry as the tears rolled down his cheek. Ryan held the lighter in his left hand and waved it in Billy Hilton’s face.
“Fucking loser begging me not to hurt you,” Ryan spat another blood-filled mouthful directly into Billy’s face. “You’re probably right, you’re not fucking worth it.”
“I’m not worth it!” Billy Hilton wailed as loud as he could, hoping an overhearing adult would come to his aid, but as he shifted his face slightly, looking around for help, he could see the exit of the alleyway had more onlookers than the gathering at Brian McDougall’s high score. “Help me!” Billy screamed. “Please.” Billy Hilton was now sobbing uncontrollably. He thought about it and realised, with this many people, he was sure Ryan wouldn’t do anything too violent.
“They’re not gonna help you,” Ryan laughed. “You pathetic sack of shit!” He brought the lit zipper lighter close to Billy’s face, and Billy could feel the heat of the flame as it neared his eyes. “You’re like a little fucking ant.” Ryan’s laughter intensified, and it was in that brief moment Billy knew there was no reasoning with him. Billy’s thoughts flashed to his mother and how she would act when she heard what had happened to him, how somehow she would make this his fault for putting himself in danger’s way. Billy stopped screaming for help, finally accepting his fate.
“Just get it over with,” Billy hysterically screamed.
“As you wish,” Ryan Castlebrook said with a grin and held the flame of the lighter over Billy’s forearm. Intense pain was felt on Billy’s arm, and he could not contain his screams of agony.
“Arrgghhhh!” Billy yelled, squirming from left to right as the pain in his arm grew the longer the flame stayed in the same spot. He could smell the burning smell of his arm hair, so chokingly pungent that he couldn’t help but look toward the chaos. Billy could see his skin bubble from the sheer constant heat, like bacon in the pan on a Saturday morning. As the shockwaves of immense pain radiated from the isolated spot where the flame stood, he felt another sensation through his body that resembled a severe pins and needles sensation. His screams grew louder as Billy Hilton looked away from this nightmare and stared straight up into the bright blue sky, wishing for anything to end this moment. Then he heard three words from a familiar voice.
“Leave him alone!” Richie Lynn screamed from behind Ryan, and before anyone had the chance to move, Richie swung the same stool that struck Ryan moments earlier inside of Starcade Station, the steel legs clocking Ryan on the right side of his face. Ryan flung forward, taking off the pressure on Billy, letting him loose, and Billy took the opportunity to quickly roll away and stumble to his feet, gripping his burnt arm with his good one. Ryan Castlebrook lay motionless on the ground for a few seconds before he slowly started getting to his feet.
“We gotta go!” Richie yelled at Billy, scared.
“I’ll kill you both!” Ryan demanded with fewer teeth in his jaw. The onlookers scattered from the alleyway, not wanting to be in the line of fire when Ryan Castlebrook was raging.
“Quick, take Roadrunner,” Billy pleaded to his friend. “I won’t be able to steer, so you’ll have to ride.” Without responding, Billy ran and picked up the bike that lay on the cement pavement.
“Jump on,” Richie ordered as Billy struggled to get a grip around him from the buddy bar on the back of the bike due to the pain in his arm. “You good?” Richie asked as he quickly glanced around and saw Ryan run out of the alleyway in their direction.
“Get us out of here!” Billy screamed, knowing they only had seconds to spare. Richie pushed his feet forward, giving the bike a forward momentum, letting his sneakers rest on the pedals briefly before he started pumping them in a circular motion. Ryan reached his long arm out as the Roadrunner began picking up speed down the road. Ryan grasped Billy’s shirt and aimed to pull him from the back of the bike, but his grip wasn’t strong enough, and as he pulled, the fabric became loose amongst his fingers, losing his grip. The gap between Ryan and the boys on the bike grew as Roadrunner took off down Thornton Road.
“We did it,” Richie exhaled, his chest still sore.
“Not yet,” Billy said, looking behind them, watching Ryan Castlebrook take someone else’s bike from the rack in front of the arcade. “He’s gonna chase us.”
“Shit,” Richie pedalled as fast as he could, not really knowing where he should be going, but knowing that if he slowed down even slightly, Ryan would catch up to them.
“The Pit,” Billy yelled. “Take us to the Pit.”