Signs

Chapter 24

Camila had never been so relieved in all her life. She could feel her toes!

Lauren rushed to the hospital as soon as Sofi called her, telling Ally to cancel the rest of her appointments for the day as she hurried out. Practically running up to the front desk, Lauren got directions to Camila off the man behind the counter and set off searching for her.

As she walked into the ward, she saw Camila sat on the edge of a hospital bed, her legs dangling over the edge as Sofi sat in one of the chairs, talking to her. Camila looked up, almost as if she could sense Lauren's presence. Her face split into a smile, and Lauren mirrored her expression as she rushed over to the bed.

Lauren sobbed as she pulled Camila into a tight hug, kissing her on top of her head. She drew back, cupping Camila's face as she smiled through her tears.

"I can feel my toes," Camila smiled widely, her eyes filled with tears.

"You can feel you toes," Lauren replied, laughing in disbelief.

---

It turned out the severe bruising and compressed spine that Camila had sustained to her lower back during the accident had caused temporarily paralysis as it struggled to repair itself. There was a very high chance that she would have never regained sensation below the waist, but by some miracle, she was one of the lucky few.

It was like a huge weight had been lifted off their shoulders. This was everything Camila had wished for since the accident. Her optimism came back full force as she vowed that she would walk again, no matter how long it took.

They upped Camila's physical therapy sessions to three days a week, making real progress with Camila's muscle strength and the sensation in her legs. Every morning Lauren took her to the pool, easing the pressure on Camila's joints as Lauren held her afloat.

It was another month before Camila wiggled her toes for the first time.

It was early on a Sunday morning, and Lauren was helping her get dressed. As she grabbed Camila's foot to put her sock on for her, her finger touched the bottom of Camila's big toe. It just so happened that Camila was ticklish, and her big toe twitched in response to Lauren's touch.

"Oh my God!" Lauren gasped, smiling up at Camila from where she was crouched in front of her, "you just moved your toe!"

"What?! No way!" Camila exclaimed, pushing herself up onto her elbows from where she lay on the bed. She could make out her feet in Lauren's lap, one hand gripping her heel as the other held the forgotten sock.

"Can you do it again?" Lauren asked, staring at Camila's feet in amazement.

Frowning in concentration, Camila willed her toes to move. Ever so slightly, she managed to wiggle two of them on her right foot.

"You did it!" Lauren clapped in excitement, rising from her crouch to lean forward and give Camila a kiss.

"You'll have to show everyone tonight!" Lauren smiled, her face filled with joy. She was so happy she felt like she could burst, Camila was really getting better.

---

They were at Dinah's favorite pizza place that night, crowded around a table as they devoured three giant pizzas between the five of them.

"Hey, do you guys want to see something cool?" Camila asked, buzzing with excitement as she looked around at their faces. Lauren gave her a knowing smile, filled with her own happiness.

"What is it?" Maggie asked, taking a bite out of her slice of pizza.

"Can you help me a second?" Camila asked Lauren, gesturing at her feet.