Breaking the Grid

Out

It felt like an eternity waiting to get all the paperwork finalized. Leah had shown up two hours earlier, eager to take me home. The process was dragging on, and I could feel the weight of the past few weeks slowly starting to settle on me. I just wanted to get out of here, away from the sterile walls of the hospital and the endless questions.

Leah was keeping me company, filling the silence with her usual energy. "You should've seen the game yesterday, Blair! We absolutely destroyed them. I mean, I'm not saying I'm the best, but, well..." She trailed off with a smirk, clearly enjoying her victory.

I smiled, probably for the first time in what felt like forever. "Always the brick wall. Probably showed them no mercy, huh?"

Leah grinned wider. "You know me too well. It was a good game, though. We're on a roll this season."

I nodded, letting her words wash over me. Her excitement was contagious, and for a brief moment, I allowed myself to get lost in it.

Finally, the nurse came in with my discharge papers, and Leah helped me up. The second I shifted, pain shot through my body. My leg, my ribs, even muscles I didn't know existed screamed in protest. I winced, gripping the crutches tighter. Each movement was a reminder of what had happened and how broken I felt.

"You okay?" Leah asked, concern etched in her face.

"Yeah... just... everything hurts," I admitted quietly, hating how vulnerable I sounded.

Leah didn't say anything, just nodded and stood by as I struggled to balance on the crutches. My right foot hung there, useless and fragile, like it didn't belong to me anymore. Walking was less like walking and more like trying not to fall over. I could feel Leah's eyes on me as I limped slowly out of the room, trying to hold it together.

"Ready to get out of here?" Leah asked softly, her voice steady.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I muttered, trying to ignore the pain flaring in my ribs with every shallow breath I took.

We moved slowly down the hallway. Each time I put weight on the crutches, my arms shook, and my whole body felt like it was on fire. I was barely keeping it together when, halfway down the hall, my crutch caught on the edge of the floor. I lost my balance completely, and for a split second, I thought I was going to hit the ground hard.

"Whoa! I got you!" Leah was there in an instant, grabbing my arm and steadying me.

I gritted my teeth, a wave of embarrassment and frustration washing over me. I hated this—hated needing help, hated not even being able to walk by myself. "Thanks," I mumbled, feeling like absolute shit.

"It's okay, you're doing fine," Leah said gently, but I could hear the concern in her voice.

Fine? I didn't feel fine. I felt like I was falling apart. My ribs throbbed, my leg ached, and my stomach clenched in pain with every step I forced myself to take. Every part of me hurt. I just wanted it to stop.

When we finally made it outside, a new kind of nightmare was waiting for me. The media. Cameras flashed the second we stepped into the parking lot, and I cursed under my breath. Of course, they'd be here. Leah must have noticed me tensing up because she stepped closer to me, her hand on my back, guiding me toward the car.

"Just keep your head down, Blair. We'll get through this," she said firmly.

I pulled my hood up and focused on not falling again, ignoring the shouting reporters as they threw questions at me.

"Blair, how's the recovery?"

"Are you coming back to F1?"

"Blair, how do you feel?"