𝐌𝐘 𝐁𝐎𝐘 | 𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀 !

iv. band aids

"Peyton's gone missing"

"w-what?" I said shakily, trying to wrap my head around the words coming out of my fathers mouth.

He repeated the statement slowly, eyes watering as he spoke. 

"Peyton has been missing for a few hours, she was in the yard playing and we haven't seen her since"

"h-how did you let this happen?" I questioned  angrily, wondering how my father could have allowed her out of his sight, nonetheless lose her completely.

"i-i'm so sorry honey, I fell asleep, and when I woke up she was gone—"

"n-no, this isn't happening, where are the search parties, and the police? Why are we just sitting here and letting her stay out there?" I yelled, beyond angry that my own father couldn't look after his own kid.

"I called, and the police station  said they were working on other things and couldn't help us right now," he replied firmly, trying to keep himself calm. 

"I-I can't believe you could let this happen, it's all your fault!" I screamed, fully aware of the fact that my father was sobbing, and so was I.

How could he have let her disappear like that? I couldn't help but wonder, even though I knew fully well he didn't do it on purpose.  Someone had to take the blame, and it wasn't going to be me. 

After all, I was just trying to finally be a kid.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･:*

I WOKE UP the next morning with a tear stained pillow and swollen eyes.  Rolling out of bed slowly, I walked towards the bathroom to brush my teeth and pull my hair out of my face. 

As I entered the bathroom, the first thing I noticed was my reflection in the long floor length mirror to the right of the door.  My eyes were swollen to the point of almost being shut, and my cheeks were splotchy and stained red, as if  I was slapped right across my face.  My hair, looking more like a birds nest than anything, was a mess, worse than anything I had ever seen before.  I looked miserable, and I felt it too. 

I pulled out my toothbrush, brushing my teeth one by one, carefully hitting every surface in my mouth.  I just wanted a distraction, and it didn't quite seem to work.  Then, I began the hard task of brushing my hair.  I had braided it the day before, and the braids had fallen and been knitted together through the tossing and turning in my sleep. 

I began to splash water on my face, trying to make myself look more alive than I was feeling at that current moment.  I reached for a towel, and noticed my sketchbook on the counter flipped open to the page I had drawn on just the day before.  My sister smiled up at me and my stomach began to lurch as I felt the queasiness set in.

This wasn't just another morning, it was the morning where I would begin my journey to find my sister.

I became distracted by a knock on the door, and my father calling me. 

"Violet, it's Stanley!" He yelled, as I realized I had promised to go to the quarry with Stan, Beverly, Eddie, Richie, and Ben.

"Shit" I muttered to myself, running to my room to throw on jeans and a t-shirt.

After what felt like the fastest clothes change in my life, I ran to the door where Stan waited. 

"Hey Vi" he chuckled, obviously oblivious to what had happened the night before. 

I decided to not tell anyone, as I just wanted to enjoy the day with my new friends, and going to the quarry allowed me to check for my sister as well. 

I smiled, replying quickly with a wave as I ran to grab my bike. 

We headed off, riding through the streets, as I raced Stan towards the quarry.  The wind blew by me as I quickly pedaled my way to the destination, and I began to feel free.  The feeling itself was pure bliss, and I felt guilty for being quite so happy at a time like this.  The moment was almost perfect, and it served as a band aid for the feelings I had been feeling for the past few hours.  It was completely temporary, and only covered things up right at the surface.  Now, all that was left was the band aid coming off.