Scared; A Richie Tozier Story

02

It's finally summer, and we don't have to go to school anymore.

Not that I had to go in the first place, but you can sense the excitement in this small town. It's a gorgeous day, and I'm in the backyard fooling around with my skipping rope. I swing the colorful rope round and round, jumping with perfect timing as the rope hits the ground.

I really wish I had my old friends to play with. My best friend Violet and I used to go to the nearby park and jump rope all the time back in New York. I'm kinda homesick. Just as I'm thinking about seeing if any kids nearby are outside, I hear a loud shriek from inside the house.

"Mark? oh, Mark!" I hear my mom scream.

My father replies in a calm voice that lets me know mom is overreacting, "Honestly Jill, Its just a small cut, I'm fine".

I hurry inside the house, only slightly worried about my father given mom overreacts all the time.

"Daddy?" I question as I enter our home, "What happened?"

Dad looks at me and his eyes soften, and he immediately tries to hide his hand which has a large gash on the palm.

"I cut my hand with the kitchen knife while I was slicing the carrots for dinner, it's not bad," he says, heading down the hall to the bathroom. My mom and I hurry after him. 

Daddy is knelt down on the floor and digging through the cabinet underneath our sink. He grumbles a bit and then sits back on his knees.

"Dammit Jill where's the first aid supplies?" he says, looking at my mom.

"I'm not sure," she says quietly, and then turns to me.

 "Anna honey, be a dear and run to the pharmacy to buy some first aid supplies," mom says with a fake smile plastered on her face, "we should have an account there, take your time and explore the town while you're out darling".

I roll my eyes and look at daddy. He shrugs and sighs.

"I'd never send you out like an assistant normally, but I fear I might bleed to death," he says jokingly, and he laughs. I giggle and decide that this won't be too bad. 

"But you're mother's right, Anna dear take your time while you're out," Daddy says, smiling at me.

I nod and turn out the door. I hop on my bike and head into the main part of town where the pharmacy is located. This town is actually quite cute. Small town aesthetic with quaint little shops and boutiques.

I leave my bike in the small bike rack outside and head inside. A blast from the air conditioner hits me and I smell a scent that is unique to pharmacies. I head to the medical supplies area, and I'm surprised to see the boys I met at school a few days ago gathering bandages, gauze, and other things.

"Hey," I say quietly, and they all turn to me with shocked looks on their faces. I giggle and look through the shelves for a first aid kit. Why buy separate supplies when I can get it all in a box for less money?

I haul a small kit off the shelf and decide I'll buy this one. I turn to pass the boys when I see Beverly appear at the end of the aisle. She hurriedly shoves a box of tampons behind her back and the boys don't notice. 

They all turn to Beverly and Eddie drops some of the stuff they were carrying. I giggle and look back to Beverly.

"Hey, Bev," I say, smiling at the girl.

She smiles back, "Hey Annalisa". I laugh.

"Just Anna, please" she laughs with me and we turn back to the boys.