AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Four days after coming home, I was proven right. My boy had attempted to use his crutches to go to the front porch while I was in the shower.
“The doctor said you weren’t ready to use those yet,” I scolded gently when I found him leaning against the side of the couch in the living room. “Why didn’t you take the wheelchair?”
He gave me a frustrated look. “I hate that thing. Sitting for that long is so boring. And I miss being outside. There’s no fresh air in here.”
“I understand that, baby, but you have to do what the doctor says. What do you say we roll you out onto the porch this morning, and you can spend some time out there while I work? I can come check on you periodically.”
I rolled the wheelchair over to him and motioned for him to sit. He eased down slowly, which told me he was hurting more than he let on.
“I guess that will work,” he grumbled after situating himself. “But I think I’ll still be bored. I don’t know how to be still.”
An idea hit me then. “How about today we take it easy and tonight I show you some knitting basics? It’s a great stress reliever, and it would keep you from being bored. I used to do it nightly on the porch before you came around.”
Mentioning it had me itching to pull my needles back out. It had been too long since I’d crafted anything. My time had been spent with my boy and getting him settled instead. I’d been focused on building a new life.
“I guess that could be fun. I’m not sure I’ll be any good at it.”
“Nonsense. You’ll do amazing. It’s that or you take up reading. Everything else is pretty much off limits.”
There were other things he could try, but limiting his options was best. My boy was indecisive to a fault. That’s where I could step in. Daddy knew what was best for him.
“Fine. I’ll try it. Can we go outside now? I really do miss it.” His expression was so pitiful, I couldn’t have said no to that face.
I wheeled him onto the porch, then went back inside to make us some food. Twenty minutes and a loaded down tray later, I went back outside to see him smiling big for the first time since coming home.
“That’s what I like seeing,” I told him as I eased the tray onto the end table I’d parked him beside. “You look so happy.”
He nodded. “I wasn’t lying about feeling cooped up. Even just a few minutes out here feels wonderful.”
“Well, that’s good since you’re going to be here all day. Let’s eat, then I’ve got to get to work.”
“It’s still early,” he whined.
I kissed his cheek as I handed him a bowl of cereal. “If I get started sooner, then I can finish early to get back for our knitting lesson.”
His pout transformed into a timid smile. “I guess it’s not all that bad then.”
Aside from a fewgrumbles throughout the day, my boy did much better by spending most of his day outside. Using his chair gave him some freedom to get around the bunkhouse without having to wait on me either, which I felt improved his mood greatly. Turned out being confined to a bed was not his favorite pastime.
While I did manage to finish early, I still had to shower before we could begin our work. I was finishing up when a text from Harlan came to tell me he’d made us to-go plates for dinner. Grabbing them took a few more minutes, then I was seated beside my boy with both of us holding a set of knitting needles.
I went over the basics with him, taking my time repeating the movements until he could follow along. As I suspected, he was a natural in some ways. The starting slipknot was child’s play for him, while the cast-on process took a bit longer.
We didn’t move onto a new step until I knew he felt comfortable with what we were doing. By the time darkness had fallen, he’d formed a couple of solid rows.
“What happens after this?”
I shrugged. “Depends on what you want. You could keep practicing or I could give you some basic patterns. Scarves and such can be simpler to start with. Even a blanket might be good for you since it’s a big project. It’s harder to mess those up compared to the smaller, more intricate things.”
“Yes, please. This feels good. I like knowing I’m doing something productive. Plus, it’s kind of cool sharing this with you.”
He bit his lip like he wanted to say something else but wouldn’t. I leaned over to grip his chin and turn him my way.
“What are you thinking right now?”
“Would you be ok with spending our nights like this for a while? I really like it being just us while we work on this. You can tell me all about your day too. It’s almost like our old letters coming back to life. I miss hearing your thoughts, Daddy.”
My sweet boy.
