Chapter 11

8/7/2054

School was in three days, so Alec and Deb went on a family outing with him. Ben needed school supplies and new clothes. Ben also had an appointment with Dr. Quinn for his monthly checkup. They sat in the waiting room and waited to be seen.

"Have you decided where you and your friend will meet?" Alec asked.

"We'll meet at the lockers," Ben said. "We have the same class schedule," he said. A door opened, and a blonde woman dressed in a nurse's uniform came out.

"Ben Johnson," she said, calling his name. They stood up and walked over to the young woman.

They entered a small, white-walled room and sat down. "I need to check your weight and blood pressure," the nurse said. Ben got up and stepped on the scale. He stood still while the nurse wrote down the information. Ben then moved to a chair and sat down. The nurse checked his blood pressure while Alec sat and watched. "Follow me, please," she said. They followed the nurse to an exam room and sat down. She glanced at the chart then said, "Dr. Quinn will be in to see you soon," before leaving the room.

Ben got antsy and walked around the room. He came to a halt long enough to rub his arms.

"I wish it wasn't so cold in here," he grumbled.

"Here," Alec instructed, "put this on." He gave Ben his own coat. It was big, but Ben put it on anyway. Dr. Quinn walked inside two minutes later after the door opened.

"Hello," said the doctor. "How are you?" he inquired.

"I'm fine," Ben replied. "I'm just excited about school," he said.

"Are you ready for your first day?" inquired the doctor.

"After we finish here, we're going to do some school shopping," Ben explained.

Dr. Quinn ran his standard tests to check Ben's health. "How's your medication?" "Do you need refills?" he asked.

"I am low on both of them," Ben said.

"I'll write them up once I'm done here," Dr. Quinn said. "I'll write a note for your teachers so they know that you have health issues and will need to see a nurse if you're sick," he said.

"Thank you, doctor," Alec said, shaking his hand. The doctor left and returned with a few pieces of paper ten minutes later.

Alec and Ben were back on the road ten minutes later. When they reached the store, the prescriptions were dropped off.

"It'll be twenty minutes," the pharmacist said.

"Thank you," Alec said. "Okay, let's get what you need," he said, turning to face Ben, who stood beside the cart. "Let's go down the list and start with finding a backpack," Alec suggested.

"Okay," Ben said, pushing the cart.

Ben came across a blue backpack that was lightweight and waterproof. "How about this one?" he asked, showing it to Alec. Alec took a closer look at its description and then looked at Ben.

"That is a good choice and reasonably priced," he said. Ben smiled and tossed the bag into the cart. They followed the list and picked out everything that was needed. "Let's find you two or three outfits for school," Alec said. They were glancing over their options when a hoodie and sweatpants set caught his eye.

"How about these in gray and khaki?" Ben asked, holding up the outfit. "It even has a jacket and shoes," he said.

"Sounds good," Alec said. Ben burst out laughing when he saw the t-shirt and pants set.

"That is how us teenagers feel on school days," Ben said, showing him what it said. The words on the shirt said, "Why do mornings start so early,"

Even Alec got a giggle out of it. They put the clothes in the cart and headed to the pharmacy.

"I'm checking on some prescriptions for Ben Johnson," Alec said.

"I'll go check," the pharmacist said, turning around and heading into the back. As they waited, Ben spotted a familiar face in the distance.

"My friend is here," he said. "Can I go see him?" he asked.

"Sure, go ahead," Alec said, nodding his head.

Before Alec could say, "Be good," Ben was off and headed to the food mart.

"Hi, Kadin," Ben said cheerfully as he approached the table.

"Hello, Ben," Kadin said, smiling. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Getting school stuff and my medicine filled," Ben said. "What are you up to?" he asked.

"The same as you, minus the medications," Kadin said with a grin. "Sit down with us," he said. Ben smiled and sat in a seat across from Kadin. "Do you remember my parents?" Kadin asked.

"Hello," Ben said.

"Hi, it's good seeing you looking better," they said.

They were catching up when Alec walked up to them. "Oh, hi," he said. "Nice to meet you again," he said.

"Same here," Keith said. Kadin noticed the clothes in Ben's cart.

"You picked some cool duds," he said. Kadin burst out laughing when he saw the t-shirt. "That saying is so hilarious," Kadin said. Ben couldn't help but blush at the statement about his choice in clothes.

"I thought so too," Ben said, grinning big.

"We better go, or Deb will send a search party," Alec said.

"I'll see you at school," Ben said, scooting away from the table.

Thirty minutes later, Alec and Ben entered the house. Deb emerged from the kitchen to greet them. "Did you buy everything in the store?" she inquired.

"No, dear," Alec replied, kissing her on the cheek.

"I'll take these to my room," Ben said as he carried his groceries.

"How did it go?" Deb inquired as they walked into the living room.

"It went well," Alec reported. "He had a good time," he said. "He even ran into his friend at the store," he continued.

"Oh, he was there as well?" Deb inquired.

"He and his parents were also shopping for school," he explained.

Ben entered his bedroom, closed the door, and sat the bags on the bed. He laid out his outfits on the bed, stepped back, and admired them. He pulled off the sales tags and hung up his outfits. He set his shoes on the floor underneath them. He organized his school supplies neatly in the last two drawers of his dresser.

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