Finally Home

73. Tyler

After Samantha woke up, we were gentle with her. We have, she has, so much to overcome still. You don't erase years of abuse and trauma in three years.

The doctors did a few tests to see if there was any damage to her tissues on her fingers or ears. The doctors determined she wasn't out quite long enough to have done any permanent damage and that while her fingers might feel weird for a while, but that she didn't seem to have any nerve or tissue damage.

"You're a very lucky young lady," the doctor said to her.

Sam shrugged. She didn't feel so lucky. She'd been complaining that her right leg was sore. They'd done X-rays and some muscle testing and said everything was fine, but that she needed to take it easy on that leg since she'd had so much damage done to it in the accident. They recommended she go back to two crutches and continue Physio to help with her stamina on that leg. She complained that it felt like two steps back.

"Well, it might be, but that's okay," I said. "Because nothing in life is exactly linear."

"What does that mean?" A frustrated Samantha asked as we tried walking up the hallway in the hospital. She'd been moved out of the ICU onto the medical floor.

"It means that nothing goes from point a to point b in a single straight line. Look at us. We didn't find you, foster you, adopt you without a bunch of hurdles and ups and downs. But we still got to that point. And Mom and I don't regret a minute of what has made us a family."

"Not one?" Sam looked at me with skepticism.

"Okay, that's not true. We certainly regret sending you to school that day. But that wasn't part of what made us a family. We were already a family by that time. But it was another hurdle."

Sam leaned on the wall for a second, rubbing her leg.

"It's always something, though," she said. "Stanley, or Mark, or a car accident, or a seizure, or my blood sugar out of whack."

"Yup. Life keeps sending us on new adventures, that's for sure," I said.

"How can you always be so positive?" Sam frowned at me.

"I'm not. It takes a lot of work for me to see the bright side sometimes.  But when it comes to you, I only see good. I only see potential. Even when things aren't going great, I'm reminded by your strength and tenacity all the time."

Tears formed in Sam's eyes.

"Why do you even want me?"

I pulled her into a tight hug.

"Samantha Joseph," I said, my voice cracking with my own tears.  "From the minute you landed in our backyard, there has been something between us. Mom and I love you as if you were our natural born child. We can't imagine our life without you in it. We want you because we love you. We were lucky that we got to choose you.  We got to make you a part of our family. Your grandparents, your aunts and uncles, everyone loves you so much. We want you because we love you!"

I reiterated that last point and emphasized it.

Samantha cried a little into my shoulder. I just held her and rubbed her back. She was my kid, and I would do anything I could to protect her.

"Can we go back to my room now? My leg is tired," she said when she was done crying. She wiped her eyes and I nodded at her, taking her arm and helping her back to bed.

She fell asleep pretty soon after getting back into bed, and I smiled as I watched her sleep. I knew we had a lot of work to do still, because of the years of abuse she dealt with in her younger life. But more often than not, things went relatively smoothly.

I woke her up when Jenna and Rosie came to visit. Samantha's eyes lit up when her sister climbed onto her bed.

"Hi SaSa!" Rosie said, crawling up the bed to Sam.

"RosieRo," she smiled.

"You is no cold no more?" Rosie asked, cuddling into Sam.

Sam looked quizzically at Rosie.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Before you was cold. Now you not cold," Rosie offered by way of explanation. 

Sam looked at me. I shrugged.

After a couple of days, Sam was released and we were finally able to bring her home.

She was so relieved to finally be going home. Again.

She finally opened her Christmas presents and loved it all. She was so grateful and thankful. Rosie asked where her presents were and we had to explain that she got her presents on Christmas and that Sam hadn't been home.

"I want a present," she said.

"Wait!" Sam said, getting up and running upstairs.

Jenna and I looked at each other.

Sam came back downstairs with a few bags.

"I almost forgot I bought you guys stuff in California," she said, handing us all bags.

"Sam, you didn't have to get us anything," I said.

We opened the bags. For Jenna, she'd gotten a necklace with three small girl charms. Her birthday and Rosie's birthdays were on one each and the third was blank.

"These are adorable. But why three?" I asked.

"Because the Nugget hasn't been born yet, Dad," Sam rolled her eyes.

For me, she'd brought me home some shirts from a store in LA that I like.

"These are great. Thanks, Sam!" I smiled.

Rosie was pulling at the wrapping job Sam had done with the bag.

"Want help, RosieRo?" She asked. Rosie crawled into Sam's lap and Sam helped her open her gift. She'd brought her a Disney jacket and t-shirt, and a stuffed Mickey and Minnie. She'd also gotten her a few little things from around town.

Truth be told, she spoiled her sister.

Then she handed Jenna one more package. It wasn't very big. Jenna opened it, looking curiously at Sam.

It was a sleeper and onesie set for the new baby that she'd bought at an LA store that was pretty exclusive to California.

Sam then pulled out two more packages and handed one to me and one to Rosie.

Rosie ripped hers open and it was a t-shirt that said "I'm in the middle!"

I opened the one Sam had handed me and it said "I'm the baby."

She took off her sweatshirt and she was wearing a shirt that said "I'm the oldest".

"These are so cute," I said. Jenna was laughing.

"They really are, Sam," she said.

Sam helped us clean up all the wrapping paper and took her gifts upstairs.

She came back down and sat on the couch beside me. I put my arm around her as she snuggled into me.

"So glad you're home, kiddo," I said.