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“I know.” Buck didn’t know why it felt so hard to talk about it. He’d made fun of the bowling league at first, not because he wasn’t good at it. He was good enough and he was competitive, which gave him an edge on bowling nights, but since the accident, the sounds of the bowling alley?
The scents. The atmosphere.
It only reminded him of what he’d lost.
Pallas reached out a hand toward his shoulder, but he dropped it back down to his side before he made contact.
Buck gave himself credit for not tensing up, but he knew that Pallas and a few of the others had made an effort not to touch him.
His physical therapist had been the first one to mention it.
Before that, Buck hadn’t noticed it.
“Look,” Pallas gave him a smile. Not a big one, but a smile, nonetheless. “Why don’t you give it a try. I can have someone drive you over.”
He balked at the idea. “Then I’ll be stuck there the whole night.”
He saw Pallas’ expression and knew that he’d cut him off. A hard, knee jerk reaction.
“We can have someone bring you over not from the team. Give it a try.”
Buck knew that he should.
His father had told him much the same when the cast came off his arm in high school. He had to get back on the field before he’d know that he was ready to do it again.
Like putting his foot in the water of the pond back home before jumping in.
“And if I want to leave?”
Pallas didn’t shrug.
He didn’t try to brush off his concern.
He nodded. “Then you can go. I just think it might be a good thing.”
You won’t know until you try it, he heard the memories in his head.
“Yeah. Okay.”
“Yeah?” Pallas’ voice and his expression lifted.
The changes made Buck feel like shit.
Just a promise to show up at the bowling alley made his friend happy.
It was like Pallas had asked him to take a bullet.
Well, that was always possible in his job, but really… he felt like he was being unreasonable.
“I’ll go.”
Pallas tipped his head toward the parking lot. “Let’s get you to the guard shack.”
Buck moved behind him, gradually catching up as they reached Pallas’ vehicle. It took less effort than usual to get into the passenger seat.
The muscles in his leg didn’t pull. The movement didn’t send pain shooting through his leg. There was a little ache in his calf, but not much.
It felt… good.
