Broken

Chapter 10 [EDITED]

    It’s been two weeks, and I still haven’t left my house.

A few days ago, my prosthetic leg was put on, but I haven’t placed any pressure on it yet. I’m too scared. I stick to my wheelchair whenever I go anywhere.

    I have one goal this week: to visit Alex, Danny, and Emily. Their sentence is already halfway over. Only two more weeks until they come home. Two more weeks of being alone.

    I’ve mastered getting in and out of my wheelchair from my bed. I sit up, place my left leg on the ground, stand up, then I spin around slowly and sit down on the chair. I leave my room. As I pass the family pictures on the wall, I pause and I place my hand on Alex’s picture. I need to see him. “Mom? Can I go visit them this week?” I ask, when I find her in the kitchen. “I’m able to get around just fine. My leg doesn’t hurt too much right now. Please?”

    “Lucy. I know you want to visit your friends, but I don’t think you’re ready.” Mom looks down at me.

    “Mom. Name one thing I need to do to get down there. I’ll do anything. I just have to get out,” I beg. I’ve read three books in the past two weeks, watched lots of movies -- including the one that Danny watched while I slept.

    “I’ll see if I can take you tomorrow after lunch.”

    “Thank you so much! You won’t regret it. I promise.” I return myself to my room and I climb back into my bed. Another book lies on my bedside table. I grab it and open to page one. I begin reading.

    After lunch the next day, I roll myself out to the car, and I hop in. My mother comes and puts the chair in the back of the car. “Are you ready? Did you take your pills?”

    “Yes.” I hate my pills. I have to take 4 pills once a day, at lunch. Together, they keep my leg from hurting. I guess I should be thankful to have pills. We pull out of the garage and out into the road. The jail is only a five minute drive from my house. We get there and I anxiously wait for Mom to give me my wheelchair, and when she does and I quickly get down. My mom pushes me up the ramp and into the building.

    “We’re here to see Alex White, Emily Christian, and Danny…” Mom presses her lips together, hoping it’ll help her remember his last name.

    “Miller.” I answer.

    “Thank you,” she says to me. “Miller,” she repeats to the receptionist.

    “Follow me,” Rebecca, according to her name tag, says. She stands up and leads us down a small hallway. We walk a few more hallways and we stop in front of a small door. “Here we are,” she says as she opens the door. I see Danny, Emily, and Alex sitting down on the floor, playing some kind of card game. They are all wearing the same orange suit.

    “You are such a cheater!” Emily yells at Alex.

    “Me? I am not! I am just playing the game, like you!” Alex yells back.

    “Guys, guys, calm down. Besides, if anyone is a cheater, it’s you Emily,” Danny says. “You were the one who insisted on dealing the whole time. You probably gave yourself all the good cards.”

    “Nu-uh! Alex is! He always wins.” I see Emily fold her arms.

    “And you always come second. What’s the point even playing anymore when we know who is going to win?” Danny throws his cards down.

    “So you can have fun with your friends,” I say.

    Alex looks up and he smiles. I smile back. Danny and Emily turn around. They both smile at me. Danny stands up first, followed by Alex, then by Emily. I move into the room. “Hey,” Danny says to me.

    “Hey,” I echo. “How are you?”

    “I’m pretty good actually. My foot has healed well.” Danny slides his hands into his over-sized pockets. “How are you doing?”

    “I’m getting better. I haven’t stood yet, I haven’t even tried.”

    “Well don’t rush yourself. If you go too fast, it’ll be even longer before you can stand again. I’m sure you don’t want that.” Danny smiles.

    “No, I definitely don’t. Do you always have to start the fight, Emily?” My eyes shift over to her.

    “You know I do,” Emily says. “No one else can pull it off.”

    I laugh. “If I didn’t know you better, I’d say you were crazy. Good thing that I know better.” I laugh. My mind tries to think of something good to ask or tell Alex, but I can’t think of anything. So I just say, “How are you doing, Alex?” I look up at him.

    “I’m going crazy. They bring us the same food every single day. We play the same games every day. I have to deal with Danny 24/7,” Alex teases.

    “Hey! At least I don’t snore!” Danny says. I laugh, mostly because it’s true.

    Alex rolls his eyes. “Anyway, how’s everyone at home?”

“Dad hasn’t said much about anything yet. Annie and Jackson are doing fine though. They’ve been drowning their sorrows in candy.” I smile.

    “Alex, can I talk to you, alone?” Mom asks. I turn around and see her standing in the doorway. She looks like she’s out of place here, with her bright yellow shirt shining against the grey walls. “Just for a second.” Alex walks over to her. They step out of the room.

    Danny pulls me towards the wall. I small scream escapes me at the sudden movement. He laughs as he sits down on one of the beds. “Have you made any new friends, Lucy?” Danny asks me.

    I shake my head. “No. I’ve been cooped up the whole time. This is my first time out of the house. My mom hasn’t let me leave. She keeps telling me I’m not well enough to go anywhere.” I look at Danny.

    “Well, that’s too bad. If I didn’t know you, and I knew you were all alone, I would be crawling to your house, just to say hello.” Danny grabs my hand.

    “Stop that. You keep making it seem like I’m some amazing person when I’m not. I’m just a normal 16 year old girl who lost her leg.” I look down.

    “That is exactly why you are so amazing, Lucy. You’re facing incredibly hard challenges and you keep smiling. You keep pressing on. Any other person would probably crumble under half the stress you have to deal with.” He rubs his thumb across the back of my hand.

    I smile. Danny always knows how to cheer me up. My head falls on his shoulder. He lets go of my hand and he puts his arm around me. “Why do you still put up with me? Your life would be so much simpler if you hadn’t been so curious about me. You wouldn’t be here now.” I close my eyes.

    “I’m glad I was so curious. I made a new best friend.” He rubs my shoulder. “Don’t feel bad for anything, Lucy. None of this is your fault. You need to know that.” I nod.

    “Time for you to leave, now,” Rebecca says.

My head lifts up and I look at Danny again. “I guess I’ll see you next week then. I think this week will be longer than the two weeks before.”

    Danny nods. “It definitely will be.” He squeezes my shoulder and he takes his arm back. He smiles. Danny stands and pushes me towards the door. “See you later, Lucy.” He hands me off to my mom and he backs off. I look over my shoulder as I turn the corner and I Danny walking away. His hands are in his pockets again and his posture is slouched. Everything about him says that he is sad. I can't help but smile.