Open When...(Paul Walker Fanfiction)

Letter #8: Open When...You Can't Sleep

While we are waiting, multiple family members trickle in to see Paul. There isn't a dry eye that walks through the doors. Cheryl is one of the people that breaks my heart. She is so overcome with emotion that Caleb helps her walk inside. That really got all of us going. Vin is the first to come in out of the Fast family. You could tell that he is so happy to see that his brother Pablo is okay. Tyrese and Luda are the next ones to come in. Of course, they lighten everyone's mood up a little bit. Michelle and Jordana come in holding each other, probably not sure what to expect. By now, there are at least fifteen people here in the room. Normally, there is only supposed to be two at a time, but I don't think the nurses have to heart to turn anyone away.

Once Michelle and Jordana have both hugged and gotten to talk to Paul, Callie calls me. "Hey! We are here! Meadow is walking in the door right now. Tell Cody to get the camera ready!"

"Alright, see you in a few minutes," I tell her, then end the phone call. I make sure everybody quietens down so I can tell them about the situation. They all have smiles on their faces because we all know that this will be quite a reunion. Cody gets his camera ready and we wait for Meadow.

Meadow opens the door a little bit with a confused look on her face. "Why is everybody here?" She looks around the room at everyone before her eyes settle on Paul. Her mouth drops and she freezes. The tears pool in her eyes. "Daddy?"

"Come here, baby girl," Paul says, opening his arms for her.

She doesn't waste any time running into them. "Daddy, I've missed you so much!" Tears are rolling down her face, but Paul is there to wipe them all away. They stay like that for a couple of minutes, while most the people inside file out to give them some privacy. Cody continues to film.

Paul rocks her back and forth. "I'm here, sweetie. I'm here."

Right at that moment, another little girl runs in, yelling for her daddy.

--

I come back to reality when someone knocks on the door. One of Paul's nurses comes in smiling. "Alright, Mr. Walker, would you like to do some walking?" She has some sort of belt in her hand and I'm immediately apprehensive for him to get up. "This is called a gait belt. I'm supposed to put it around his waist and hold on to it so he won't fall."

"I've been getting stronger," Paul states proudly. He really has. We walked around his room for a couple of minutes yesterday before he started to get tired. I'm so proud of him. I can't wait to have him back home.

The nurse smiles at him. "I'm sure you have. Let's get you up, shall we?" She proceeds to help him get out of bed, but not before putting the gait belt on him. Once he is up, she asks him if he is dizzy or if he needs to sit back down. He shakes his head and they slowly make their way around the room.

Throughout the next couple of minutes, I hold Paul's hand tightly as we walk in circles around the room. For most people, that would get tiring quickly, but I can't get enough of Paul's smiling face. He is so happy to be up and about. I take a short video of him walking and send it in a group message to everyone I can think of. Everyone is so happy about the progress that he's been making, and I'm so excited to see him excel even more.

We lock eyes several times, and there is nothing but love when we do. For the rest of our lives, I know that there will be nothing but love. Never again will I look at him any other way, knowing that each time could very well be the last. I'll never make that same mistake. There's a quote that I've read somewhere that says, 'A thousand moments that I had just taken for granted - mostly because I had assumed that there would be a thousand more.' You never know when your loved ones can be taken away; that's why you have to hold them and love them every chance you get, because you don't know when that last time will be.