AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I think that’s a good idea—having someone else to help us work through… everything.”
“I figured someone impartial would be good to have. So much has happened and neither of us is perfect.” He says those last words a little pointedly, and it makes me bristle.
“I know,” I whisper. I bite the inside of my cheek as I think,I never said I was perfect.But I’m not going to say that because I don’t want to fight with him. It’s easy in the wake of what’s happened to act like everything is okay, but I know it’s not. I still have some very prickly feelings when it comes to Braden—all the more reason therapy is a good idea. I want to work through them and I’m happy he finally seems to want that, too.
I clear my throat and say, “Thanks for wanting to work on it.”
“Well, apparently, when you crash your truck into a tree, you get to have therapy in the hospital.”
My eyebrows shoot up. “Really?”
He nods, then takes a bite of his sandwich. “I’m not stupid. I know I have some underlying issues. And talking with my family has only made that more apparent.”
“Talking with your family?”
“Brent and I had a lovely chat earlier.”
I nearly choke on my bite of food. “He’s still here?”
“Oh, apparently, he’s moving home.”
“What? He’s seen Harper all of twice, barely talks to you guys and now—”
He rolls his eyes. “Believe me, I know. But I—talking to him made me realize I’m no better than him. I left too.”
“For a month, not seven years, Brade.”
He shakes his head. “Either way. Like I said, plenty of issues. I know it won’t be right away since I can’t even get out of this fucking bed, but—”
I reach over and give his hand a squeeze. “You’ll get there.”
“Hopefully a little quicker starting tomorrow.”
“What’s tomorrow?”
He smiles at me. A genuine Braden smile that sends a chill up my spine.I’ve missed that.
“Tomorrow morning I’m headed to the rehab floor so I can learn how to do basic human things, like get in and out of bed and support myself with a walker or crutches. I’ll probably need them for five or six weeks until I can start more intensive physical therapy. Anyway, it’ll probably be at least a month until we can do anything with therapy.”
“That’s okay. It gives me time to get something set up with Dr. Jim,” I say, referencing a local therapist who specializes in child and family counseling, especially adolescents. I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to get his hands on us.
He nods and we eat in silence for a little while. Well, mostly. Of course, Harper does her velociraptor shriek when she wants more food. I give her a handful of my sweet potato fries and some of the chicken from my sandwich, which she happily devours.
“She really is a little dinosaur,” Braden says.
“Seriously. I hope she never gets picky. She loves food with reckless abandon right now.” Another fry and I ask, “So, how often will you actually have therapy once you move?”
“A couple times each day. Once in the morning and once in the afternoon.”
“Well, if it’s late enough, I can come up after school and hang out with you. Motivate you or give you some shit. Whatever works.”
He chuckles. “Only if it’s not too much trouble.”
“Nah. I want to. I—it’s my way of helping you through this. Like you help me.”
He scoffs. “Ihelp you?”
“Yeah. You do. Like when you dragged me out in the rain and made me dance all my stress and worries away.” Our eyes meet for a second and I know we’re both remembering what happenedafterthat dance in the rain. It’s strange, no matter how happy I am with Vince, sometimes it feels like I’m still unraveling myself from Braden. “You’ve always been good at that. Vince might be my safe place, but you have always been better than anyone else at cheering me up. You know how to make me laugh and pull me out of my head. Before you woke up…” I let out a rough sigh, remembering the words that went through my mind when he was still unconscious.
