From Trailer to Ice

Chapter 23

                “Someone call 9-1-1!” I shouted desperate for someone to do as I told. “You are so beautiful.” Tyson said faintly. I smiled as a tear left my eye. He wiped it away with his thumb and closed his eyes. “Look at me, keep your eyes open and on me.” I pleaded. His eyes were looking into mine. He was becoming weaker by the second. I heard sirens and relief washed over me. “You’re going to be okay.” I reassured.

                About two weeks had passed since Tyson had been stitched up and got out of the hospital. He sat watching me as my physical therapy took trying to make me walk to another level. They strapped me into a harness so I was standing and splints were on either side of my leg keeping them from collapsing underneath me. The splints went all the way up my legs so I couldn’t bend my knee. The past sessions had given my legs some feeling back. I could hardly feel the splints that would be very noticeable to anyone else. But I was able to feel something.

                My phone began to ring and I asked Tyson if he could answer it. It was the Devil’s coach. He was wondering when I would get onto the ice with his team. Tyson handed me the phone and I didn’t want to explain what happened. “Give me a month, tops. I’ll be on the ice by then. A few things have come up and I had to go out of town for a while. I apologize greatly.” I lied. He thanked me for explaining and he said that he was excited to see me play. We hung up and Tyson took my phone back giving me a look.

                “He would’ve kicked me off the team if he knew.” I sighed. Tyson nodded and the physical therapist told me to try to move my leg. I couldn’t fully move it but it twitched slightly. “Good. Now the ground will start to move. It will move very slowly. I want you to try to take steps.” He explained. I nodded as the machine began to move. I was shaking as I held onto the harness and tried to take my first step.

                Tyson got up and stood in front of me. Distracting me what I was actually doing. “Pretend you’re trying to get to me.” He said. I nodded and took a small step. I began to smile as I took another step. They were very small, but I was making progress. Tyson watched my feet touch the ground each step. He looked up to me with a smile and tears in his eyes.

                The session was over and they didn’t remove the splints. They told me to keep them on and try to walk as much as possible. They gave me crutches so I would have support when trying to move. Tyson and I went to the car and he helped me in. “I am so proud of you.” He told me. I thanked him and he got into the car. We drove and got hot chocolate and coffee.

                We drove around, just the two of us, for about a half an hour. Tyson stopped at a beautiful frozen lake. We got out of the car and Tyson put his coat on me. Snowflakes drifted down from the sky covering our hair. The wind blew my hair to the side and I felt Tyson’s eyes watching me. I smiled at him and watched the lake. “Why did you bring me here?” I questioned. “I thought you’d want some fresh air.” He answered.

                I heard a car drive up and turned around to see Tyson’s girlfriend. She got out of the car slamming the door behind her. She walked up to Tyson and kissed him. I looked away and started to get away from them. “We broke up! How did you find me?” He inquired pushing her away. “I’ve seen you around. I might have followed you… Baby, you know you didn’t want to break up with me. You love me.” She replied. “That’s not creepy.” I mumbled sarcastically. “So it was her! She’s the reason you left me.” She barked.

                She pushed me to the ground and punched me. She was wearing a ring that cut the underneath of my eye open. I punched her back making her angrier than before. Tyson grabbed her and yanked her off of me. “We broke up. You need to understand that!” He shouted at her. He helped me up and I got my crutches. He went back to his girlfriend and told her to leave. He also said that he would get a restraining order against her if she didn’t leave him alone.

                “I promise you, we broke up a long time ago.” He told me. “I thought you liked her… Why did you two break up?” I questioned. He looked at me and walked up to me. He placed one hand on my cheek and wrapped his other arm around my waist. He placed his lips on mine kissing me. I dropped my crutches and gripped his shoulders.