cherry bomb ➵ Richie Tozier

fifteen

"Come here baby," I cooed softly, a small smile tugging on my lips.

He looked up at me with his big brown puppy dog eyes, melting my heart just a little.

"I'm not going to hurt you. I promise."

I stuck my hand out for the chocolate lab to sniff, scratching behind his ears. The dog lapped my hand, causing a small giggle to bubble out of my lips.

The dog had appeared in front of me as I was walking into my house. I couldn't just leave a pretty dog like him sitting there, so I went up to see if he was friendly. Surely enough, he was very friendly.

I sighed, standing up from my squatting position, "what am I going to do with you?"

The dog obviously hadn't taken a bath in ages, and didn't have any form of collar on him. I bet he was a stray. He quirked his head to the side, a small whine coming out of his sad lips.

With a sigh, i plopped down next to him again, "Okay. That's it. I'm taking you in. You're my dog now. You have no choice. I'm stealing you, and making you cuddle with me every day." I chucked as the happy creature wagged his tail.

I stood up once more, leading him towards the front door of my house. The brown dog gently padded along behind me. He looked to be probably nine months old, and probably came from a stray family of labs around the area.

My mother appeared around the corner, "hello, Jessi-" she yelped at the sight of the creature behind me. She turned around, taking a deep, steady breath. Turning back towards me slowly, she peaked at the dog again.

"Jessie," Mother began sternly, "what have I told you about bringing home lost dogs?" She subconsciously pulled on the ends of her shiny silver ringlets, a look of disgust on her lightly wrinkled face.

I scoffed. "Too bad. This dog happens to not be lost, and I'm keeping him." I locked eyes with my mother, our stubborn personalities clashing.

My mother was a naturally stubborn person. My father was as well. But when it all dwindled down, my father's say was always final. My mother learned to live with losing arguments so much, her sharp edges had been sanded down to smooth corners.

She sighed, breaking the eye contact. "Fine. But don't expect me to help you with it. He's your dog, which means he's your responsibility."

I nodded once, the tense atmosphere not loosening any. "Okay."

The front door slammed shut, my father walking in. He stared down the scene in front of him, not even bothering to eye the dog.

"Cassidy," my dad began stiffly, addressing my mother, "may I speak with you about-" His eyes flicked towards me, then quickly back up to my mother, his lips in a tight line. My mother's eyes boggled, them holding a secret discussion I was not invited to.

My father coughed, looking back down at me, making it obvious he was dismissing me from the room. I groaned and stormed up the stairs, my new dog trotting happily behind me.

I stopped at the top of the stairs to listen to my parents converse softly, only catching a couple words.

"James, if they figure out what you did-"

My father cut her off, "they won't find out, Cassidy. We're safe."

"All right, James, but what if they do? What then?"

"Well," my father gulped back, "then I'm going to be put in jail, and you and Jessie will have to leave."

My eyes boggled as I listened to their conversation, fear developing in the pit of my stomach. Of course my father was participating in some illegal business bullshit. I always suspected he was. There was no way a simple business man from Derry Maine could make so much money, but they knowledge that he could get arrested still set me back. I was an Asher, and if my father got arrested, I'd still be an Asher. There was no way to escape the terrible life I was born into.