Look What I Found!

Ch. 2

"Please don't be a child. Please don't be a child. Please don't be a child!" He chanted while running to the car.

Opening the passenger's door, he gently placed the boy-a child! A teenage boy!-into the seat who let out a pitiful whimper.

Richie didn't know what to do, but he ran back to the driver's side and put his car in drive. Gently turning the car back in the direction he was heading, he set off.

Scrambling for his phone, he saw it had nearly 50% before throwing it off the charger and turning it on, instantly typing in coordinates for the nearest hospital, which was a good 20 miles away.

The kid already looked like he was in a fight with a bear and lost. Now he was hit by a car. He really had the worst luck. And what was this kid even doing out here? His mind cut to the bag full of clothes. Shit, did he just pick up a runaway?

The kid groaned in pain beside him, and Richie subconsciously reached out to rub his hand through the kid's hair. The kid's eyes fluttered open, his head tilting into Richie's hand before turning away with a hiss. When Richie looked at his hand, it was covered in blood. Oh, he was going to be sick.

He didn't even notice the kid falling back unconscious; he just stepped on the gas harder.

~~~~~~~

About 2 hours later, Richie was waiting in the waiting room for some kid he didn't even know, staring down at a fill-in sheet. What was he even supposed to do? Say? He couldn't tell them he had hit him with his car. He couldn't tell them that this kid was a possible runaway. Well, he could-

Someone cleared their throat above him, and he was quick to look up, happy for anything to distract him from those papers.

The doctor who took the kid was standing over him with a frown. "Mr. Tozier, you're son is awake, and he's asking for you."

Richie stood up, "he is not my s-wait; he's asking for me?"

"Of course he is, and Mr. Tozier.." The doctor's tone dropped, leading Richie towards the boy's room. "It's been a while since people have seen you. To know you have a son... Well, it may explain why you went AWOL."

"Now, wait a minute-"

"It might take a... Generous donation to keep our mouths shut."

Oh, how he hated cheap, small towns.

He sighed, "yea, ok. How much?"

They stopped outside a slightly ajar door. Peaking through the door, he saw the kid sitting up in his bed, hospital gown on, speaking to a nurse. They made eye contact through the door, and Richie was shocked by the kid's appearance. He looked exactly like he did when he was that age. If he didn't know that the clown was dead, he would have thought it was It playing tricks on him.

He noticed the doctor speaking and quickly motioned for the kid to say or do something. "Well, the amount is going to be quite-" He made the motion again, more urgent, while the kid stared in confusion. Richie gestured to the doctor and made a money motion, and he could see the light bulb go off in the kid's head.

"But we might have to discuss the proper amount af-"

"Dad!?"

Richie took that as his cue to burst into the room. "Kid! How are you feeling? You had me really worried." Damn, was he a good actor.

"Mr. Tozier-"

He turned towards the doctor, cutting him off, "he's ok to go home, right? When will we be able to leave?" By the end, he was facing the nurse, who answered him.