Everyone around me is telling me to stop worrying. "For Goodness sake, Gemma, there's nothing to worry about," Mom says. "Why are you worrying about such absurd things, sweetie?" Dad says. "Gemma, you don't have to worry so much," Mrs. Fetchner, our homeroom teacher, says. "Geez, Gem! Stop your stupid worries!" Even Meg, my best friend, can't stand it.
But I can't help worrying about stuff. Like when I left my lunch box at home on field trip day. I'd worried and worried about it, because a) I had nothing to eat and b) it contained of my special treats Mom had packed just for me.
The situation went fine, as Meg gave me half her PBJ sandwich and her candy bar. However, I just could not stop worrying and ended up whining about it on the bus all the way home. Meg, who was sitting right next to me, blocked her ears and called me a big baby although she apologized about that afterwards.
I searched for my lunch box as soon as I arrived home, and despite my worries, nothing had happened to it. It was placed on the kitchen table, looking good as new.
"See, Gemma? That was nothing to worry about. Your lunch box was fine," Mom said when I told her what happened. I bit onto the delicious nutella sandwich that was in the lunch. "Yeah, that's a real relief, but.. something bad might have happened to it."
Mom heaved a big sigh. "Gemma, you're such a worry-wart. I have no idea where all your baseless anxieties come from."
The next day, I met Meg at Central Park. "Here, Gem!" Meg waved her hands, sitting on a bench with a small loaf of hard bread. "Hey, Meg!" I ran to her direction and sat next to my best friend. "Is that bread for the ducks?"
"Yep." Meg grinned. "To feed them."
We walked to a pond nearby and tore the bread into pieces. Then, we threw them into the pond and watched the ducks gobble the tiny pieces up. I noticed one little duck being pushed and hustled against other big ducks.
"Meg, that poor duckling's trying hard but he's not getting to eat anything. Oh, what should we do?" I worried.
"C'mon, Gem. It's nothing worth worrying about. Stop whining, would you? He's not gonna be killed or anything," Meg replied.
The thought of the small duckling not getting to eat the bread still filling my head, Meg and I headed to an ice cream stand since it was really hot. I ordered a lemon sherbet popsicle and Meg bought a strawberry cream cone. We licked our treats when I accidentally dropped my popsicle on Meg's white t-shirt.
It left a bright yellow stain, and I stepped back, bewildered.
"Sorry, Meg!" I cried, trying to wipe the stain off with the sleeve of my shirt. "I-I didn't mean to.."
"It's okay. The stain disappears when I wash it, you know? Don't worry about it," Meg answered. But I was still feeling so sorry and worried. "No, no! Should I, like, wash it for you? Or, like.." My words faded away in frustration.
"Gem, I said it was okay. What a worrier you are!" Meg said, sounding irritated.
"Did I annoy you? I'm so sorry," I apologized again, worried if I'd lose my best friend by one silly blunder.
"No, no, no. It's tiring to be with you sometimes, really- you worry too much about meaningless things. I told you, it's all right." With that, Meg walked away, heading to her house and leaving me there.
I swallowed hard. Meg could be kind of mean sometimes although she was mostly nice, but that time she seemed to be really mad at me. I couldn't understand. Was it because she was sick of my stupid worrying?
I decided to go home when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around, and a woman I've never seen before was standing there. She had a walking stick in her right hand, and was wearing a black hood. "Hello, child. By any chance, do you know where Crescent Road is?" she asked me. Her voice was rather hoarse, like an old woman's.
"Um, yes. Can I help you?" I said.
"Oh, would you! Thank you so much. You're such a kind child," the woman cried out.
I walked her to Crescent Road. She thanked me again for helping her find her way, and I told her it was nothing. I was about to head home when the woman tapped me again.
"I want to repay your kindness," she said. "I'll grant you just one wish."
Huh? Was this woman mad? How in the world was she going to grant my wish? That wasn't possible at all.
Or.. was it?
She threw back her hood and exposed her face. She had tufts of glossy black hair and very, very red lips. Her skin was pale, like someone who had all their blood drained from their face. Thirty or three hundred, I had no idea how old she was.
"Tell me your wish," she said, twirling her shiny black hair. That was when I noticed I was no longer in Crescent Road, nor anywhere I recognized. The place I was in seemed like a forest, since there were several lofty trees around me. Strange, dim lights flickered in front of my sight.
I stepped back. How was this all real? It must be a dream, I thought. I pinched myself on the cheek, and it hurt. So it definitely wasn't a dream. But there was no other logical explanation. How could I have teleported to this strange forest from my neighborhood? I gulped. That woman must have been a witch.
"Tell me your wish," she repeated.
I chewed on my left pigtail nervously. According to Mom, I did that when I was thinking about something serious or important. There's nothing to lose, I thought. And who knows? If she's, like, really a witch, she might be able to make my wish come true.
"I hate my stupid personality," I blurted out. "I really want to stop worrying. Can you help me with that?"
The woman's lips curled into an oddly twisted smile. "Of course. Here." She spun her finger in the air several times, and a small bottle landed on her hands. She handed it to me.
"Drink it," she said.
I carefully studied the bottle. The Worry-Wart Potion, it said on its label. Strange, bubbling green liquid was inside the transparent bottle. It didn't exactly seem savory.
But I decided to trust the woman and drank it down in one big gulp.
"Good. Now you won't be such a worry-wart anymore," she told me. Then, with a blinding beam of light, she was gone, and I was standing in the middle of Crescent Road.
What a weird experience! I thought. I just hope that the liquid wasn't poisonous or anything. I don't want to be sick! Argh, the pain of a stomachache.. I slapped my forehead. I was worrying like an idiot again!
Right then, a small wart suddenly appeared on the tip of my nose. It was bright green, like the potion I had drank.
"What the..?"
I shrugged, thinking it was just a normal wart. I trudged home and was surprised to see Mom waiting for me at the door, steam practically fuming out of her ears and nostrils.
"Gemma Elizabeth Haxley! Your teacher called, telling me that you got a F on the science quiz you took last Friday. You didn't study much, did you? I'm taking your phone away, and no TV or video games for a week, young lady," she snapped, taking my phone away from me and glaring at me.
Oh, no! I need my phone. How can I contact people without it? I started to worry. As I was thinking that, the wart on my nose wiggled, and it duplicated itself! Now I had two weird greenish warts on my nose.
That's when it hit me. The Worry-Wart Potion! Yes! That's it! That's what made all those warts. It probably works like, when I worry about something, a wart appears on my skin. That's probably how it got its name- the Worry-Wart Potion. Ha-ha. Very funny. But how am I going to get rid of these warts? All the kids at school will make fun of me.
Another wart appeared, this time on my forehead. Just great.
The day after, I went to school. Like I've expected, everyone started teasing me. I've even got a new nickname: Miss Warty Farty. It was so humiliating, but it wasn't the worst part. Meg ignored me all day! She didn't even make fun of me like the other kids. I worried if our whole friendship had ended, and the fourth wart appeared.
I really had to get rid of those ugly warts. As soon as school ended, I rushed to Central Park to find the witch that had given me the Worry-Wart Potion. I also looked all around Crescent Road, but she was nowhere to be seen.
I gave up after hours and hours of searching. Sighing, I walked home when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I gasped. It was the witch!
"Looking for me?" she asked in her hoarse tone.
"Oh, please get rid of these sickly warts, I beg you!" I pleaded on my knees.
"Now, now. I suppose you've realized the problem of pointless worries, haven't you?" the witch questioned, twirling her hair like she did on the first day we met.
"Yes, of course! Now, tell me how I can make the warts disappear!"
"All right, all right." The witch laughed softly, and touched each wart with the tip of her finger. Then, a miracle happened. All the warts were gone! I was so glad that I wanted to dance.
"Thank you, oh thank you!" I shouted. Then, I ran home to call Meg.
"Hello?" my best friend answered the phone after a few rings.
"Oh, Meg! I'm so sorry that I worried too much. I've got a lesson about meaningless worries and I won't be a worry-wart anymore. Would you be my best friend again?" I asked her nervously.
"Gem, I'm always your best friend," Meg replied softly. "I think I was way too harsh on you that day. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, really."
"Okay, then, I guess we should forgive each other. I forgive you, Meg. Do you forgive me?"
"Of course, Gem. Friends again?"
"Friends again."
After that, everything was well. And there was no single thing to worry about.