chapter 2

Chapter 5: Wheeling

"Excuse me?" 

I gaped, turning to mom for some help but she was looking at me expectantly and I realized that she probably knew already. 

"I'm going to take care of you," he repeated, looking more determined with every passing second.

"Wait a minute," I shook my head, "Uh no? It's not your fault." A stranger saying he'd take care of me when it's not even his fault? No way. 

"Honey," mom interrupted, "If it hadn't been for his bag, none of this would have happened."

I categorically refused, "No, mom, he's innocent and I'm not going to chain an innocent person to m.," 

"I'm not innocent!" Dylan suddenly exploded. Shocked and confused, everyone shut up. His breathing had quickened, cheeks flushed and he looked everywhere except at me. What did he just say? 

He cleared his throat, "I mean, I can't be innocent, I indirectly caused this." Oh. We all seemed to relax but he was clearly acting weird. There was no reason to get worked up over such an issue. I tried to reason with him thinking that he was probably tired. After all, everyone was dead tired and needed some sleep. 

"Let me help you," he sighed and I knew that he was really sincere, "Please, it's the least I can do." 

Not having the courage to protest, I simply fell back and closed my eyes, "You do what you want, Dylan, I'm not going to force you." End of discussion.

"Thank you, Hope," and he smiled a beautiful, genuine smile. I nearly slapped myself for thinking he was handsome despite my weak and dizzy state. Grabbing his coat, he strode to the door, "I'll be coming tomorrow."

 Once he was gone, mom said, "Hope, he's a young man working as a part-time tutor and he wants to help with the hospital bills."

"What?" If I could screech, I would gladly, "You're making a part-timer pay the hospital bills when I have saved up money?" I knew that mom's job as a seamstress wouldn't cover even half of the bills but I had taken up many part-time jobs during high school and the total should make up for it. I didn't like the idea of making someone whom I didn't even know pay the bills let alone take care of me. 

"What your mom means is that the guy insisted to pay a quarter of the sum and he's got huge persuasive skills," Tina explained. I slowly nodded, teachers were pretty authoritative and he had exploited that several times already. I had no intention of using a blameless tutor to make ends meet. 

"Whatever, I'm going to try to discourage him tomorrow. I also have persuasion skills," I winked and started laughing but ended in fits of dry, painful coughs. God, what medicines did they give me. Completely alarmed, they tried to make me drink some water but I choked out most of it. 

"You should rest some more," mom ran her hand soothingly over my head and I relaxed. 

Yeah, I should.

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When I next awoke, it was late at night and the lights were off. It took me awhile to adjust my sight and see two still figures. It seemed like frail mom was lying on the couch and Tina was sleeping in the chair, head tipping forward and her locks covering her face. She was born with very straight hair but always curled it because she hated how it made her face look 'flat.' Yeah, I didn't understand what that meant but anyone could see that she was beautiful either way.

Staring at the two huge casts over my legs, I was reminded that the damage could be irreversible. What would my everyday life be like? A painful image of me in a wheelchair for the rest of my life lowered my spirits. There was no way I was getting out of this hospital with both feet. Could you imagine losing one member of your body for good? 

So many people had accidents but I wondered how they got back up. I needed to be strong- not just for myself but also for my mom who was thinning day by day because of her worries. She was that kind of woman. 

Movement to my left pulled me out of my thoughts and I saw Tina stretching then checking her phone. 

"Tina?"  

"Hope? Why are you awake at 3 a.m," She asked, surprised. 

"I don't know," I muttered. 

"Hey girl, we're all here for you, don't lose hope, Hope," she started giggling at her own joke and I found myself grinning. Nice one, Tina. It was amazing how laughter could warm you up real quick. 

"Thanks T...so, how was that party?" I asked, suddenly remembering the last conversation we had on the phone. 

She shook her head, chuckling, "I didn't go."

"Why?" She had been dreaming of a moment with Jason for years. 

"Your mom called me saying that you had a serious accident so there was no way I was going to party when she was breaking down."

I sighed, "I'm sorry T, I'm really sorry." I felt downright awful. I, of all people, knew that the party was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for her and meant a lot. 

"Hey, things happen but there's no way I'm giving up!" She threw her fist into the air wildly and I couldn't help laughing. 

"Yeah, me neither," I nodded now determined. If the damage really was too great, the doctors wouldn't have given me any hope so I needed to believe that everything was going to be alright. 

We both fell silent, lost in our own thoughts at 3 a.m but it was a peaceful moment. 

When we both seemed to fall back asleep, I muttered, "Thank you, Tina," and I think I heard a 'you're welcome' somewhere. 

The next day, Tina had gone to her part-time job and I convinced mom to go back home to rest. After a lot of arguing, the doctor finally agreed to let me brush my teeth. I was dying to get the taste of metal out of my mouth - it was absolutely disgusting. Two nurses heaved me into a wheelchair and pushed me to the toilet cabin. It felt really good to be on the move again even if technically, I wasn't really moving. They closed the door and I was alone in the toilet, staring in horror at the huge mirror. 

I looked horrible. 

Dry strands of black hair stuck out of my flat ponytail, dark circles hung under my eyes and my lips were all cracked. 

After a good brush, face wash and finger combing, I felt fresh and rejuvenated. Toothpaste could do wonders. 

I tried to wheel out of the toilet and a nurse named Pamela smiled at me warmly. I glanced around at the busy corridors filled with nurses and patients of all ages as Pamela wheeled me back into the room. 

"I'll call someone to lift you back up," she smiled but I shook my head, 

"No thanks, I'll stay in this chair for a while." She looked at me quizzically then nodded and walked out. 

The doctor did say that the effects of the medicines would wear off in a few more days so thankfully, I couldn't feel much pain. For a whole hour, I tried to master the art of moving in a wheelchair and after wheeling back and forth several times in my room, my wrists were starting to hurt. Back when I still had my legs, I'd never feel tired after a few moves. The whole incident had made my body weak and I hated it. 

I tried to heave myself on the low hospital bed but it was impossible. My arms trembled with the effort and I crashed back into the wheelchair painfully. Panting and frustrated, I stared at the unreachable bed angrily. 

Knock. Knock. 

I glanced at the open door and there stood Dylan looking sheepish. I groaned internally, he must have seen the whole thing. I noticed that, today, he looked actually...different- in a nice way. He was wearing a tightly-fitted sky blue dress shirt, black jeans and his short bangs were pushed to the side. I still couldn't wrap around my head the fact that he was a tutor.

How did the girls in his class even concentrate?

"D-Dylan," I huffed, probably looking like a tomato after all that physical effort. 

"Hey," he smiled, "I brought someone with me," and he stepped aside. 

Aiden.