Arkangel: Reddie

Space

Therapy. It wasn't too bad, Eddie didn't mind. He just hated that his mother still hovered over him as he talked about feelings.

"I don't like being cut off from the world. Separated." Eddie said, putting a pencil in between his teeth.

"So it's hard for you to make friends with Arkangel?" His therapist, Mrs. Stellan asked with a clipboard in hand.

"Yes. They all know me as the kid with that thing in his head. It's - It's rough." Eddie took the pencil out of his mouth after he noticed the glare he was being given from his mother.

"What about you, Mrs. Kaspbrak, how do you feel about Arkangel?" Mrs. Stellan tapped her pencil lightly on the clipboard, waiting for an answer.

"I love it. It's an easy way to see what he's doing. Make sure he's safe." She smiled and patted her son's knee. He winced at her touch.

"Here's what I think is best." The therapist spoke to Mrs. Kaspbrak one on one for fifteen minutes of the meeting. Eddie sat on a chair, swinging his legs, outside the door. "Turn off Arkangel for a while. Give him some much deserved space."

"But I-I-I I can't do that. He's never gone out alone or - or been somewhere without knowing I was there to keep him safe." She played with a ring on her finger as she stuttered her words out.

"Sonia," Mrs. Stellan put a hand on the mother's knee. "He needs this. I'm not saying forever but there has to be a turning point where he can learn to grow. You'll be surprised on how much he can do by himself." She leaned back in her chair and smiled at the woman in front of her.

"Fine. Fine." Mrs. Kaspbrak finally replied, quickly leaving the room.

-

"This is the first time you'll be out without Arkangel. I won't be able to know what's going on directly." Eddie smiled at his mother who was lecturing him before his first independent day at school.

"I'll be fine momma!" He jumped out of the bar stool and grabbed his backpack. "If anything goes wrong I know your phone number!" He waved his cellphone in the air and ran down the street towards his school.

Eddie wore khaki shorts with a lime green shirt tucked into them. Topped off with a belt, stripped socks, bleached white converse, and a watch. His watch was a vital part of his everyday look. It told him when it was time to load up on some helpful medicine he kept in the front pocket of his book bag. Perfectly on time, his watched beeped to let him know it was time to take a pill. Like every day, Eddie paused where he was, placed his bag on the floor, grabbed his pill case, and took his necessary pill.

However, normally it was quiet when he did this routine. But today it was loud. He heard the birds yell from the tree tops and cars zooming through the streets that left behind clouds of smoke thick enough to clog Eddie's lungs.

As he pulled out a red and blue pill, he heard something rustle in the bushes next to him. This peaked his interest, stopping him from putting the pill in his mouth. Instead, he peered into the bushes. He was about to turn away when a black and white cat jumped out. It hissed and clawed at the frightened boy. Eddie was so startled, he backed as far away as he could. When his hand scrapped against the road, he pulled himself up, grabbed his items, and ran down the sidewalk.

"So you're telling me that shit is turned off?" Richie Tozier sat next to Eddie on the bench he normally had a group of people surrounding him at. "I got some things to show you." Richie pulled out his phone, giving him a devilish grin.

"So this is porn." Richie stood behind Eddie who was still sat at the bench, holding Richie's phone. "See, this is how babies are made except they use this thing called a condom. It's basically a net that stops unwanted fuckers!" Richie hit the side of Eddie's arm, not maliciously, but playfully.

"Now this is what blood looks like. Remember when we had this talk?" Richie beamed down at his screen that was now filled with people fighting. Not a war, just street fights.

Eddie watched every video Richie presented him with. He was intrigued. He had never seen any of this stuff, he really was missing out. Porn and gore? Great things.

-

"How was school Eddie bear?" Mrs. Kaspbrak stood at the front door as her son walked up their driveway.

"Fantastic." Eddie smiled and gave his mother a warm hug. "Thanks for trusting me." He felt her heart beat and remembered one of the videos Richie had shown him, a girl ripped another girl's heart out.

"I'm glad it all worked out." She felt comfort. She realized she didn't need to know all the time. She could trust her Eddie bear. It would all work out.