Alexia
Her “recovery space” as she called it, occupied the top floor of the hospital. The rehab center was semi-private, with lounges and activities organized in communal rooms. She had internet service, all the comforts of home, extensive menu items, and even the option of having a stylist for hair and makeup. All of this had to be costing her parents a fortune, but Mom wouldn’t discuss those matters with her.
“Leave the finances to us. Concentrate on getting better,” was all she would say.
The casts had come off her arms and leg, but her kneecap had been broken in several places. The smallest pieces had been removed and the rest stabilized and held together with metal wires. She had pain, muscle weakness, and limited range of motion in one arm and leg, but the physio was encouraging and seemed sure she’d been fine given time.
If only everything got better as the months went by. This minute, she was sorry she had forced a meeting with her best friend and the guy she was sure would have her back in any situation.
“This place is more like a day spa than a recovery center.” Danny cleared her throat and went silent as she gazed through the window at the skyline. She had barely met Alexia’s gaze since arriving ten minutes ago.
“Too bad a beauty treatment isn’t the reason I’m here,” Alexia said, keeping an even tone while her spirit sank. The lounge was spacious, with comfortable seats meant to make both residents and visitors forget why they were there. But with the low-grade aches radiating through her muscles after today’s physiotherapy session, Alexia was all too aware of her situation. She’d chosen this nook and particular table because she’d grown comfortable sitting here and pecking away on the laptop while writing her blog posts. Also, it was set a bit apart from where most of the patients liked to gather, closer to the middle of the lounge. Only a few other visitors were around at this time of the day, so it was quiet.
Her gaze went to Chad, who stood with his back to them and faced the plate glass, as if avoiding her would make the visit any easier. An awkwardness had settled in the air the moment they walked into the room, and their conversation dried up before it even started.
“So, how are things at school and what’s going on in the world of golf?” she asked, tempted to pull her arm off the tabletop. She’d always been skinny, but her wasted muscles mocked her, especially when compared to Danny’s smooth chocolate skin, thick curves, and shiny twists.
“Uh…well, we have a tournament coming up so we’re training hard.” She scratched the lobe of her ear and fixed her eyes on the wall-mounted television behind Alexia. “School is school.”
Alexia shifted her leg, then asked what she’d been dying to know. “What are people saying about what happened to me?”
After glancing at Chad, Danny shrugged. “They’ve moved on, especially since there’s been no news in a while.”
“Really?” Alexia didn’t know what she expected, but felt as if she’d been on a group outing and had been left behind without a road map to get back home—which was her reality. What she hadn’t expected was for these two to drop her as if she’d been part of a terrible scandal. But wait—for all she knew, that was the case. It was one thing to get information online and quite another to hear the rumors people were spreading.
“Well, you were off the grid for some time.” Danny stared at the table as if the words sat on her conscience. She hadn’t returned after the one time she came to the hospital. Neither had Chad. Nor had they spoken to her before today.
A sudden rush of tears surprised Alexia. Danny had been one of her closest friends since forever. They had shared everything—dreams, fears, secrets. But now her life had gone sideways, and Danny and Chad were acting as if she had bubonic plague or something. Mom had told her you never knew the true measure of the people you called friends until you were sick or needed help.
She was right.
Alexia blinked away her tears and glanced at Chad, who still hadn’t moved.
“That’s not exactly true. People know about my situation.” Alexia said, staring Danny in the eyes. “Especially since I started the blog.”
“Oh, that.” She shrugged with one shoulder and sat back. The Fitness Freak logo on the front of her T-shirt mocked Alexia, who dropped her gaze to the frosted glass where Danny’s fingers were locked tight. “I doubt a lot of folks know about that. Busy with school, life, and all that.”
Her tone carried an edge that Alexia hadn’t heard before, and she didn’t know exactly what to make of it. To her ears, Danny’s comment sounded as if she was discounting the blog and the fact that Alexia was telling her story.
At first, she’d been afraid to share her experience, for fear of what people would think. As the weeks passed, she grew more confident as the number of encouraging comments grew. The trolls had also come by, calling her names and claiming her need for attention was sick. Mom had kept her boosted, reminding her that life was filled with the good, bad, ugly, and that haters would always need an outlet for their hate.
Unconsciously, she raised her hand, then lowered it halfway to the closed wound where the doctors had made the burr hole in her head.
Danny followed the movement of her arm, then smiled. “The good thing is, you’re getting better.”
“Hmm.” Another glance at Chad sent a shaft of pain to Alexia’s heart. Was he going to ignore her for the entire visit? Her eyes watered again, and despite the discomfort, Alexia sat up and breathed in deeply. No matter what, she wouldn’t cry in front of them. She also didn’t plan to act desperate and ask when they’d come back to see her. She was better than that. Another thing Mom had said when she was tempted to give up or if she’d done anything to disappoint her.
Alexia didn’t regret that she hadn’t had private time with Danny. She might have made the mistake of telling her everything. Danny and Chad were close, and Alexia would have been devastated to have her business discussed by the two of them. She hadn’t even told Mom what she now knew for certain about that night.
The door opened, and her mother walked into the room. Within five seconds her smile faded. “Chad. Danny.”
Her gaze zig-zagged from one to the other, then settled on Alexia.
“Thank you both for coming.” The welcome drained from her voice, as she continued, “I need some time with Alexia.”
Danny shot to her feet so fast the action was almost comical. But no one was laughing. Her brother dragged himself across the room and hovered next to Alexia. When he spotted the place where the hose had been located and the hair was shorter, he winced before kissing her cheek. With both hands deep in his pockets, Chad spoke low in his throat. “We’ll see you.”
Her eyes went blurry, and Alexia turned her head as if looking at the mural on the opposite wall. If I hadn’t asked them to come, they would have stayed away. She was sure they had no plans to return. And maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
They left the room as if they couldn’t escape fast enough.
Mom sat in the opposite seat and laid a hand on hers. “At times like these, you know who—”
One of Alexia’s nurses stepped into the lounge. “Mrs. Leighton, Alexia has another visitor.”
“Who is it?” Mom asked frowning.
The brunette squinted as if searching her memory, then said, “Deja Johnson.”
“Send her in,” Alexia said, without interfacing with Mom. She didn’t want to hear what she had to say right now. Bad enough she had to deal with that kind of reaction from Chad, but that was expected after his first visit. At least he wasn’t crying this time. Ignoring her was so much worse, though. He’d acted as if he couldn’t bear to look at her. As if she wasn’t worthy because she was broken.
What happened wasn’t my fault.
She wanted to scream at him, but what good would that do? It would only make her seem unhinged.
The nurse disappeared and came back escorting Deja, who approached as if she wasn’t sure Alexia would want to see her. When she sat, Mom gave her the evil eye as though daring her to say the wrong thing.
Deja pulled in a sharp breath, then asked, “How are you feeling?”
Alexia picked up a pen and smiled, although she wasn’t feeling it. “I’ve had better days, but I’m glad to be alive.”
Returning her smile, Deja said, “I’m glad you’re still here, too.”
Angling her head toward Deja, Alexia asked, “How did you know where I was?”
Deja coughed and squirmed in the chair. “I’ve been following your Social-Invyte account. I saw the link to your blog.”
She was getting some weird vibes from Deja, but wasn’t sure why. Looking straight at her, Alexia said, “It didn’t say where I was.”
“I know. I asked your mom.” Deja’s gaze shifted while she played with one her curls. “I met Danny and Chad at the elevator. Danny only said hello and that she was in a hurry.”
They have a right to be. “Yes, they came to visit.”
Deja leaned toward Alexia as if waiting for her to say more, but she was in no mood to talk about what happened or the funk she’d fallen into in the last half-hour.
Mom rose from her seat and her eyes flashed. She threw a warning glance at Deja as she marched to the door. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”