Finally Home

47. Samantha

Uncle Brendon made me call Mom and Dad when I came downstairs, after we had breakfast.   Since we were going to the basketball game, they thought a day at home, relaxing and acclimatizing was on the cards.

Uncle Brendon suggested swimming so I changed into my suit and unhooked my pump. We splashed around in the pool for a while,while Aunt Sarah sat at the edge with her feet in the water. She was taking pictures as well.

"String Bean," Uncle Brendon said.  "Want to do a stream with me for a bit?"

"Uh, sure," I said, remembering the streams he did when we last visited.

"Cool!"  He got out of the pool and pulled on his t-shirt. I got out and wrapped myself in a towel before throwing on my t-shirt.

We went into his studio and he set up his computer, pulling over his stool from behind his drums.

"Hello my vros!!!" He said as his stream went live. "Merry almost Christmas to those who celebrate."

There were comments coming fast and furious. Some of them said they were happy to see Uncle B looking so happy since losing Jess.

"I am happy," he smiled. "We have company this Christmas and we're spoiling her rotten."

He indicated I should come into the frame so I slid over and waved.

"Some of you might remember Tyler and Jenna came out to visit a couple of years ago with their daughter, Sam. Well, here she is!  She's visiting Sarah and I for a week and spending Christmas with us. We're thrilled and we have so much fun stuff planned."

Comments came asking what we were doing. And saying hi to me.

"Well, tonight, we're taking Sam to the Lakers/Raptors game, and we're going to Disney this week, too. Plus we have a bunch of other ideas," he said. I raised my eyebrow at him.

People asked if it was me and Dad who were in an accident in October. I said it was and they asked how we were.

"Dad only had a concussion and a couple of broken ribs. I was in a coma for a while. I had a broken femur, my right side was crushed and my lung collapsed. Plus I had a head injury. It's taken a lot of therapy but I'm getting there."

"Honestly, this kid is amazing. She is indestructible."

"Let's not tempt fate," I smiled.

We stayed on for a little while and then Aunt Sarah said we had to go for lunch because we had places to be and my blood sugar was going low. 

Uncle B signed off and we went inside.

"Sam, put your pump back on," Aunt Sarah said. "And I'm not sure what you're supposed to do insulin wise when you're going low."

"What's for lunch?" I asked.

"Grilled cheese and tomato soup?" She asked.

"Sounds good," I smiled. I checked my numbers, calculated the carbs and took into account I was starting to trend low. Once I'd bolused, Aunt Sarah got lunch ready and we sat at the table to eat.

"After lunch, you two need to shower, then we should get going to the arena," Aunt Sarah said.

I nodded and finished up my sandwich. I ate the rest of my soup and cleared my dishes, rinsing them and putting them in the dishwasher.

I thanked Aunt Sarah for lunch and then went upstairs to shower and change. I put on comfy jeans and my Lakers t-shirt. I grabbed a hoodie and my backpack with extra insulin and stuff.

I went downstairs where Aunt Sarah was feeding the dogs.

"Ready?" She asked as Bogart came up to me and hopped up for scrubs.

"Yep," I smiled.

"Excited?" She asked.

"Oh yeah. It'll be nice to see the Raptors again, too."

"Oh," Aunt Sarah said. "That's right. That's who the Cavs played when you and your dad..."

"Got creamed by a Mack truck?" I finished.

"Uh, okay. Yeah."

"Yeah. Funny coincidence."

"Are you going to be okay?" She asked.

"So long as none of them are driving a truck, I should be fine," I smiled.

"You're a cheeky brat," she laughed, hugging me. "It's no wonder you and B get along so well."

I grinned at her.

Uncle B was finally ready to go, so we headed out. We got to the stadium and Uncle B showed out tickets and passes and we were led right down to the court.

In a repeat of the Cavs game, I got a Lakers jersey and Kyle Lowry remembered me from the Cavs game.

"Weren't you in a coma the last time I saw you?" Kyle said to me.

"Well," I said. "I don't know. I was in a coma."

He laughed.

"You look pretty good for a kid who was so badly hurt. Still have a crutch though, huh?"

"It's more for stability when my leg gets tired. If already broken my ankle when we got hit by the truck. The accident broke my femur and the coma made it hard to do much PT," I grinned. "But I can walk without it."

"Then I guess we're putting you through your paces today, huh?"

"Bring it on," I said, cheekily.

Like in Cleveland, I got to play some with both teams. It was nice to run just a little. I was being careful but my leg felt really good.

By the time the teams had to get ready for the game and we had to go for dinner, my leg was just starting to tire out.

"Did you have fun?" Aunt Sarah asked, as I stowed my jerseys away in my backpack and grabbed my crutch.

"I did," I grinned. "It felt good to run a bit. Tired out my leg, but it's okay. It doesn't feel too bad."

"You looked great out there. Happy. Really, really happy," Uncle B said, giving me a hug.

I hugged him back.

"It felt really good," I smiled. "It felt like maybe I will be back next season."

"I have no doubt. You're working so hard at physio, so your dad says. And you're too stubborn to let a little injury keep you down."

We walked to a restaurant close by the stadium and had dinner.

After dinner we went back to the stadium and watched the game from court side seats. We wound up on the screen and we all waved when we saw we were up there for all to see.

The game was amazing. The Lakers lost to the Raptors but it was a really good game. We drove home and talked the whole way.

It was such an amazing day and when we got home, Uncle B and Aunt Sarah decided we should quickly walk the dogs, so we did. When we got back, they suggested I should probably go to bed, as it was getting pretty late. It was almost one in the morning.

I popped Dad off a quick text that he'd probably see in the morning, because he knew we had the game tonight.

Once done, I changed into my PJs and crawled gratefully into bed.