[header] How to check out cuts, scratches and abrasions [title] After getting a cut, scratch, or abrasion, your skin may start bleeding. [step] This happens because the injury breaks or tears the tiny blood vessels that live right under the skin's surface. Your body wants to stop the bleeding, so the platelets in your blood come to the rescue. 
[title] At the site of a wound, in this case, a cut, the platelets stick together like glue. [step] This is called clotting, which works like a plug to keep blood and other fluids from leaking out.