Golden Hour

Chapter 4

The next day comes and Roseanne goes through her whole morning routine - which is a long fucking routine but that's the price she pays for independence.

It starts with sitting up, which was the first real step she took towards being independent years ago. The first one that made her cry when she figured it out.

The process isn't pretty. Roll to a side, jam an elbow under her back for leverage, then roll onto the elbow so she can prop herself up on it and sit.

She's gotten much better at it, and her stomach muscles have developed well enough to make it look easy - but for a while Roseanne looked a lot like a turtle trying to get off it's shell in the morning.

Then comes transferring to her chair, which is easier than getting on the bed. The chair is lower than the bed so she just kind of falls into it. Her hands grabbing the armrests to keep her steady as she slips down into it. Then lifts her legs and places them on the footrests.

She goes to the bathroom, pretty fucking impressed by how well Lisa placed the handrails on the wall to help her with balance. Then she brushes her teeth and showers.

Showering has always been a workout. Getting in the shower is tough because none of them are ever the same.

This one is actually a bathtub with a shower attachment. So Roseanne has to lift her legs up and over the edge of the tub, then pull the rest of herself inside.

Another tricky part of the shower is that Roseanne has to be precise every single time. It's too high up, so if she drops anything then it'll be lost for the rest of that shower until she can find a way to get it once she's finished.

The shower rack is nice, a good height and fits all of her body/face washes and shampoo in it.

Turning the shower on is a bit tricky. She has to lean forward just far enough that she feels like a daredevil to turn the knob and then quickly grab the dangling showerhead before it starts spraying water everywhere.

It's an exciting part of her morning all told and the shower itself ends up taking about as much time as it took to get into the damn thing.

The process will get easier, it always does, but adjusting to a new place can be tricky.

Still, Roseanne's glad to be here. Glad to be able to turn on her music and sing along without worrying about anyone hearing her or telling her to stop.

Dressing takes time if only because Roseanne is suddenly debating more on what to wear than she usually does.

It has everything in the world to do with Lisa too. Lisa, who is deeply attractive, in that kind of way where you just keep fucking uncovering new things about her that add to the allure.

In all the obvious ways as well, she's gorgeous. The deep brown eyes, the kissable lips, those goddamn freckles that Roseanne caught herself mindlessly counting more than once. She's gorgeous, obviously.

Beyond that though, she's so kind and also feels like she could fight a grizzly bear and find a way to survive.

Roseanne can't pinpoint it, but there's something about her - a presence. She's clearly strong, she works on a fucking ranch all day, but she also seems a little sad.

A little lonely perhaps, Roseanne can see why - the ranch house is enormous and it's only her in it.

It's a silly thought for someone she just met, but Roseanne decides that she will do whatever she can to help Lisa feel less alone in the time they spend here together.

Roseanne only plans to be on the Ranch for a year, that's what she signed up for. Enough time to save some money before she moves on to somewhere else.

It's not that she doesn't want to be here, this place is fucking amazing and she knows the horses are there and she really really wants to see them - but Roseanne wants to see everything.