LIB

Chapter 6

          When I woke up the next morning, I knew right away that it was going to be a bad day. Spasms in my back roused me from my sleep and I let out a grunt of pain as I tried to roll over with no success. “Tonto, go get Jared,” I managed to gasp out.         

            Tonto immediately went to the door and tugged on the rope attached to the handle, opening it and then disappearing. Less than two minutes later, Jared came hurrying into my room, rubbing his eyes and wearing only a pair of plaid pajama pants. “Hales? What’s wrong?”

            “My back… it’s really bad,” I said.

            Jared immediately came to the bed and sat beside me. He ran his hands lightly down my back and I heard him curse softly. “Your muscles are seized up. I’m going to try and massage them to get them to relax, but it’s going to hurt.”

            “It already hurts,” I mumbled.

            Jared blew out a breath and climbed onto the bed fully. He pushed my shirt up and pressed his hands down on my back. I shoved my face into the pillow to keep myself from cursing as the pain intensified.

            After twenty minutes, Jared finally stopped massaging my back. He got off the bed as I turned my head so I could see him again. He reached out a hand and moved a piece of hair off of my cheek. “Wait another ten minutes before trying to get up. Give your muscles a chance to relax a bit more. Do you want me to get your wheelchair out for you?”

            I shook my head. “No, I don’t want to use that damn thing unless absolutely necessary.”

            He sighed. “Alright, send Tonto to get me when you’re ready to try getting out of bed. I’ll help you.”

            “Thanks Jared.”

            A couple of hours later, the pain in my back had lessened enough that I was able to walk around a bit. Jared hovered near me for most of the morning, and I tried not to let it annoy me. I knew he was just concerned, but he was starting to get on my nerves.

            When my phone went off, letting me know I had a text, I slid it out of my pocket. I read the text and cursed softly. “I forgot that I’m supposed to go to Blake’s to work on that project.”

            “You’re not in any shape to go anywhere,” Jared said.

            My temper flared, but I struggled to keep it under control. “Jared, I’m not letting this control my life,” I said warningly.

            He ignored my tone. “Hailey, you couldn’t even get out of bed this morning. You can’t go to some boy’s house, especially because he doesn’t know that you have a problem.”

            “Jared, I love you like a brother, but if you try and order me around, I will kick your ass. Blake isn’t ‘some boy’; he’s my partner in a project. I am going to go over there and work on our project, because I refuse to let this stupid disability rule my life. Now, you can either drive me there so that I don’t have to try and do it on my own, or you can just leave me the hell alone.”

            Jared glared at me for a few moments, before sighing in defeat. “Screw it. Fine, I’ll drive you. But you call me if you need anything, okay?”

            I blew out a breath and nodded. “I’m sorry for getting snappy. But you know what I’m like on bad days.”

            A smile spread across his face. “Yeah, you turn into a bitch,” he said cheerfully.