Chapter 6: Going Home
A few days later, I am finally allowed to go home. My dad doesn’t say anything on the way home, and Otis sleeps for most of the ride.
At home, I am showered with gifts and hugs and through it all Otis sits right beside me. After most of my family leaves, it’s down to just my grandparents. They have a lot of questions, and I can see that my dad is getting increasingly irritated.
Finally, he stands up.
“I’m picking Matthew up from soccer,” he says, walking out.
My grandma shakes her head.
“You know Melissa, it’s going to take a while for him to accept this, but for now you just have to focus on recovering. Know that I’m more than happy to drive you around if you need anything.” She says.
“OK thanks,” I say, realizing that I can’t count on Dad for much right now, understandably.
The door opens a few minutes later. Matthew runs into the room but Dad stays in the kitchen.
“Melissa you’re home!” he exclaims.
Otis stands over me. I lean forward to give my brother a hug.
“Grandma, I’m going to go for a walk with Matthew and Otis. We have lots to catch up on,” I say.
Matthew is beaming with a smile from ear to ear. Grandma smiles and nods in approval. I follow my brother outside. He likes the new ramp. We head down the driveway and onto the sidewalk.
“So Matty, what have I missed?” I ask.
“My team won the championship!” he exclaims.
“Wow that’s great! I’m really sorry I couldn’t be there,” I say.
“It’s OK, you were getting better. I like the colour of your chair by the way, and I wasn’t expecting a dog! Dad hasn’t said a word for weeks,” he says.
“Thanks. I didn’t really have a choice,” I say, looking at the black frame. “I’m probably going to cover it with stickers or something. Anyway, what has Dad said? I know this whole situation is kind of hard for you to understand, but it will all make sense with time,” I say.
Matthew is 13, but sometimes I forget that. I still just see him as my baby brother. I’m hoping this experience will bring us closer.
“Can I ask you something?” he asks.
I stop my chair. I look up.
“The day that you know…that thing happened…what was going through your head? You must have been terrified. I know I was and I didn’t see the whole thing…” he says.
“It was pretty scary. When I fell in the middle of the road I just thought to myself that driver better be paying attention. But I was in pain from tripping and I couldn’t do anything about it.”
We come to the first street corner, and I freeze.
“What’s wrong Melissa?” Matthew asks.
“I’m OK.” I reply.
“I know when something’s up,” he points out.
“Yeah. Just crossing the street. Something so simple. Changed my life forever.” I say. “Can we just go home?” I plea.
He nods.
Otis turns around and we start back towards the house. As I get closer to the house, I see a familiar face on the other sidewalk. Samara is home.
I eagerly inch towards the curb and call Samara’s name. She stops. I cross between driveways.
“Samara I didn’t know you were coming home this early!” I exclaim.
“Neither did I to be quite honest,” Samara admits, rolling towards me.
“Matthew, this is Samara, Samara, this is my brother Matthew.” I say, wide eyed.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, confused to see her in my neighbourhood.
“When we were at Crown my parents moved in. My brothers are unpacking right now. Anyway can I come over? I want to meet your family!”
I proudly lead Samara and Matthew home. Samara meets my grandparents but my dad stays upstairs so neither of us can talk to him.
“So this is Samara Jacobs, we were in the same room at the rehab. Her family is moving across the street as we speak. She has a brother named Matthew too.” I say.
My grandparents smile. I can tell it’s still hard for them to deal with the fact that their only granddaughter is in a wheelchair.
“How many people are in your family?” Grandpa asks, politely making conversation.
“I have 4 brothers and a sister, Matthew, is the youngest, he’s 6. Then Taden is 9, and I have 11-year-old twin brothers Devon and Lyndon. My sister Tamryn is 15.” Samara says.
I’m surprised I didn’t learn this before. I guess we just stopped because we both had a brother named Matthew.
10 minutes later, Samara goes back across the street to see how she can help unpack. My dad goes upstairs.
Over the next couple of weeks, Matthew and I become closer than ever. I spend a lot of time with Samara’s family because they are more accepting of me. One day, Samara says she’s meeting some friends from the rehab and suggests I should tag along. I get the OK from my grandparents. We board public transit after a brief discussion with the driver.
At the other end, it takes us a while to get the chairs around the tight corners. The dogs are great through the whole thing. We thank the driver for helping us off safely and roll towards the corner. We wait for the light to turn green and the walk sign to turn on. Otis helps me to cross safely and Samara follows closely behind with Daisy.
We stop at the small café at the corner, Quick Bite. This is where we are meeting a few people from the rehab. As soon as we enter, I see that some of the tables have been rearranged. I scan the crowd for people I recognise, but don’t see anyone. I follow Samara to the far corner of the café. Taylor is sitting facing the wall.
I am shocked to see him and I’m pretty sure I know how this is going to turn out. We get situated anyway. We order drinks.
“So, last time I saw you girls you were just about to head home. How have you been?” He asks.
We talk for a long time. Taylor apologizes to Samara for hurting her, but she won’t have any of it. I change the subject to our situation.
“What has been the easiest part for you guys coming out of rehab?” I ask, sipping my caramel macchiato.
“I think the biggest thing is like just the freedom. I hated being cooped up and told what to do. I hate it in there. I told them when my program ended that I wouldn’t be going back as a mentor. The way they treat people is horrific.’” Taylor explains.
I am shocked at what I am hearing. Despite our differences, Taylor and I worked really well together. I saw the way he interacted with the other patients. I thought he was really enjoying himself. It’s surprising because I actually quite enjoyed being at the rehab. I liked the environment.
We finish our drinks and head home, leaving Taylor alone in the café.
As we turn the corner back towards our houses, Samara stops.
“You know, Melissa, your dad will come around. It’s nothing you’ve done or said. This is a huge event and he’s just one of those people that take a little longer to cope with some situations.” She explains.
“Yeah, I hope you’re right.” I say.
We reach our houses. I watch Samara and Daisy disappear into their house. I go inside. My dad is still upstairs. My grandma is in the kitchen.
When I go see what she is doing, I remember that today is Matthew’s birthday.
“Grandma I completely forgot about his birthday!” I whisper, unsure if Matthew is around.
“That’s OK, Grandpa took him out for a few hours. I’ll get the cake in the oven and then I’ll take you out so you can find something for him. With everything else that has been going on it’s no surprise that this has slipped your mind. Matthew will understand.” I watch as Grandma pours the batter into 3 cake tins and slides them into the oven. She goes upstairs to tell Dad where we are going, not that he really seems to be overly interested.
I show Grandma how to use the power ramp and show her what all of the buttons do. I then roll inside. I press a button that retracts the ramp. Grandma slides the van door closed. We don’t talk much in the car. When I see that we are going to the mall where I started my rehab, I cringe.
Grandma pulls into a parking spot near the front door and gets out. I watch as she looks nervously at the controller in her hand. I press the automatic window.
“It’s the blue button to open the door and the green square to put the ramp down.” Grandma presses the buttons.
The door opens and the ramp goes down. I am able to unclip my chair from its safety ties and I back out of the van. Grandma presses the button to retract the ramp and then the door closes. We head inside.
I zoom past Forest even though I know the woman isn't there. I just don't want to relive the memory. We stop a few stores down at the card place. I manage to knock down a few cards, but the cashier is happy to put them back up. Grandma passes me some of the higher cards while I browse the lower level.
I find one that is perfect. There’s a soccer ball and net on the front, and then when you open the card it says “sorry I missed it! Hope your day is just as special as that moment! Happy birthday little brother,”
I don’t look at any more cards. I take the card and envelope to the front cash. Grandma presents a $5 bill and the cashier gives her change. Grandma puts the card in the backpack on my chair.
We then go to Matthew’s favourite store in the mall, SlapShot. This is where he gets all of his sports equipment. I am just going to get him a gift card from here. He likes picking his own equipment, and it is kind of expensive so I would hate for him not to like something I picked out.
I buy a $30 gift card. We then return home.
I sign the card and slip the gift card into the envelope. I wheel myself into the kitchen. Just then, Dad bursts through the door with Matthew. I don’t know where they went. I watch as Dad tosses a wrapped box into Matthew’s arms before he has the chance to get his coat off.
“Happy birthday kid,” he says, staring at me awkwardly.
We gather in the living room. I can feel Dad’s eyes piercing my skin. But I don’t want to say anything. I don’t want to ruin Matthew’s special day. Matthew opens my card first.
“Thanks, Melissa, I love you,” he says, smiling.
I see Dad watching but he’s not really engaged in the conversation. When Matthew opens Dad’s present, Dad doesn’t even watch. I’ve had enough.
“Dad you need to at least engage in this conversation! It’s your son’s birthday and all you can think about is how I’m so broken and you can’t do anything about it. It’s like I’m an alien,” I say.
“Well you know what Melissa? Maybe I’m scared. Maybe I just don’t know how to react. I’ll tell you one thing though. When I found out you were going to be in a wheelchair for the rest of your life, it broke my heart.” He explains.
Hearing him admit this almost brings me to tears. He walks out of the room.
It takes a few days for both of us to get over the situation on Matthew’s birthday, but by the time school comes around, we’re all on speaking terms. I go into the school a few days early just so Otis gets used to the environment and so we can work out any problems I may have with seating or bathrooms. My grandparents tag along with Dad, Matthew, Otis and I because they’ve never actually seen our school. It’s a pretty big school because it is K-12, so my classes are all over the place.
We pull up to the front of the school. Matthew and our grandparents get out while Dad struggles with an uncooperative controller. He finally gets the door open and the ramp out. I clip Otis’ longer leash to my chair and follow my family inside. We are greeted by the principal, Mrs. Dallen, and all four of my teachers that I will have classes with for first semester. Mrs. Dallen has reviewed my timetable and knows which classes I am going to be in.
“So your first period will be math with Mr. Stenson,” she explains.
She turns to my family.
“If you guys want to meet us up on the second floor, I’ll go up with Melissa in the elevator to show her how to use it,” Mrs. Dallen explains.
I watch as my dad, grandparents and brother file into the stairwell. Otis and I follow Mrs. Dallen to the end of the hall to the elevator.
“So you need a key which will be given to you on the first day of school. You put it in like this, turn it to the ‘on’ position, and then press the button. Don’t forget to lock it again. We have students trying to use it on a daily basis, but we have security cameras and we have used them in the past to prove that students are misusing it. Anyway, if you ever see people using it, let someone know. There are only a couple of people that have access right now, but we tend to get a lot of people with sports related injuries through the year. You’ll be able to tell if they should be using the elevator. Anyway, just wheel in here,” she says as the door opens.
I press the 2 button. The door closes.
“It’s OK, Otis, you’ve been in an elevator before,” I say as he starts to cry.
“It will take practice for both of you. He’ll get used to it,” the principal encourages.
We spend the day at school trying to figure out exactly where and how I am going to get around.
A few hours later, we head out. I see a group of girls from school standing in a huddle. One looks over towards my family.
“Hey crip, see ya Monday!” the blonde says. At first I don’t recognize her, but then it hits me. It’s Taylor’s twin sister, Serena.
I hang back so my family can go to the car. I wheel up onto the sidewalk and across the grass towards the girls.
“What was that?” I challenge.
“I said ‘HEY CRIP SEE YA MONDAY!” she exclaims.
The group break into laughter. My dad notices what is going on and comes over. One of the other girls picks up a rock and aims at Otis.
“Don’t you dare!” My dad says sternly.
I watch my dad’s face turn pale with no emotion. With no warning, he lunges forward and socks Serena square in the face. She falls to the ground like a wet noodle. Dad steps back. Serena’s friend pulls out her cellphone.
“Yes hi, I need an ambulance and police to Crown City Collegiate Institute,” she says, hanging up.
Minutes later, sirens blare over the hill and into the school parking lot. Staff watch from inside the building.
“This loser’s dad just punched the lights out of my friend here,” Serena’s friend says.
Serena lies helplessly and lifeless on the gravel. The paramedics transfer her to the ambulance. I am so dazed that I don’t see the cops arrest my dad. My grandpa comes up behind me.
“I’ll see you at the station,” he says. I wait for almost an hour with one of the cops until someone finally arrives with a wheelchair accessible transport van.
At the station, I am put in an interrogation room with my dad because the cops think I’m too disabled to answer anything for myself.
“So, Mr. Gilbert, tell me what happened,” the female cop demands.
“We were checking out the school because it starts next week. Just figuring out how my daughter would get around. When we came out, there was a group of girls standing in the corner near the door. The girl, Serena, yelled over to her and said ‘hey crip see ya Monday,’ and so I got protective. I didn’t mean to hurt her. It just happened,” Dad explains.
“OK, and what’s your daughter’s story?” the cop asks.
“Just ask her…she’s sitting right here,” he says, confused.
My dad and the cop spend the next 15 minutes debating whether or not I can speak. I finally get tired.
“Just give it a rest will you?” I exclaim.
The cop looks very surprised.
“I’m very sorry Ms. Gilbert.” She says.
“Yeah well enough with the ‘you can’t do this you can’t do that’ crap. Take me into a room and I’ll tell you everything, alright?” I say angrily. I could have said something a whole lot worse, but it wouldn’t have helped the situation in the slightest. I never swear. But when I’m angry, I just let it all out. I can’t control it. Just like Dad’s anger issues.
I follow a new cop into a different interview room. I explain exactly what happened.
2 months later, I get shocking news. Serena didn’t survive. They said she suffered an aneurism from the impact when she fell. Dad is arrested for murder. Because my grandparents are deemed “unfit” to care for my needs, and we have no other family close enough to the rehab, Matthew and I are sent into foster care.