Love At Physical Therapy

It's Over Just Like That

"So, how does it feel to be officially done with therapy Jeongyeon?" Mina asked.

"It feels great. No offense Mina, but I'll be glad if I never have to come back here again."

"Never again huh? Not even for your girlfriend?"

"That's completely different! Of course I'll come here for Nayeon," Jeongyeon said. "I mean I'll be glad if I never have to come here for physical therapy again."

"I know what you meant. I'm just messing with you," Mina laughed.

"I'm definitely not going to miss being harassed by you," Jeongyeon pouted.

"I prefer to call it tough love," Mina said.

"Let's just agree to disagree on that."

They were both sitting in one of the private rooms meant for patients who required more strenuous therapy. Jeongyeon had rarely been in one before, but she'd seen Nayeon go into these rooms often.

"Ok, just sign this form here for insurance purposes and you'll be good to go," Mina said.

She passed over her tablet and Jeongyeon took it.

"Mina, can I ask you something about Nayeon? Like about her treatment?"

"That depends on what you're asking. You know I can't give you any personal information."

"I know." Jeongyeon handed back the tablet. "I'm just wondering, is there a chance for her to get better? Or is this something she'll have to deal with for the rest of her life?"

"Why do you want to know?" Mina bristled at the question. Jeongyeon had no idea she was on thin ice right now.

"It's just, she was upset last week after therapy because she didn't hit her goal. I tried to make her feel better, but there's only so much I can do," Jeongyeon said. "I don't want to give her false hope if this is as good as it gets. Does that make sense?"

Mina nodded in understanding, slowly relaxing.

"It does make sense. I can understand where you're coming from." Mina paused to think. "Like I said, I can't tell you anything private. However, generally speaking, people with Nayeon's condition do have a chance of getting better. There are cases where people have even made a full recovery and you'd never know they'd been hurt."

"Generally speaking then," Jeongyeon said, "Nayeon has a chance of walking again on her own?"

"Yes, she does."

"That's great then!"

"But..."

Jeongyeon felt her heart sink. She just wanted to make Nayeon feel better.

"There's a good possibility she'll need to use assistance when walking. The reality is there's no way of knowing. Every case is different. We just do what we can with each patient and hope for the best," Mina said. "I'm sorry. I know you were hoping for something different."

"I mean, I knew that was always a possibility," Jeongyeon said.

"Jeongyeon, if you're serious about her, you need to accept that she may be like this for the rest of her life. And if it's something you can't handle, don't lead her on. I'm not saying this as her physical therapist, I'm saying this as her friend, please don't hurt her."

Jeongyeon made sure to look Mina straight in the eye when she said her next words.

"I will never do that to her. I know we just started dating and have only known each other for two months, but she's someone I can see myself spending the rest of my life with. So I'm not going to run just because she might have to use a wheelchair or crutches. I'll carry her on my back if I have to. That's how much she means to me."