Wheels

Chapter 26: Dress Shopping

          I wake up in the morning and sigh when I notice that Rory is gone. "Her dad made her go to school today. She said she'll try to come over later" Ben says and I jump slightly.

          "Dude! Why are you sitting over there? I can't see behind me" I say and sit up, looking at Ben. "Sorry, sis. I was working on an assignment" He says and puts his laptop in his book bag, coming over to me.

          "Do I get to go home yet?" I ask Ben, sighing softly. "Yeah. I just have to sign something and then we can go" He says and hands me a clean t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

          "Thanks" I say and Ben nods, going to sign the discharge papers. I change into the t-shirt and jeans, putting on my combat boots. He comes back and puts me in my chair, unlocking my breaks.

          "Ready to go?" Ben asks, grabbing his book bag. "Yup" I say and grab my stuffed shark, rolling to the door. "Who gave you that?" He asks as we head toward the elevator.

          "Norah" I say and smile. "Can I ask you something? In all seriousness?" Ben asks, pushing the down arrow for the elevator. "Um... Sure" I say and bite my lip, getting in the elevator.

          "What's going on between you, Rory, and Norah? Do you like either of them?" Ben asks, looking at me. "I like both of them, for completely different reasons, and I am insanely confused" I say and sigh softly, looking back at him.

          "Well, let things progress naturally. If something happens between two of you, then it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't" Ben says and pushes me to the parking garage.

          "When did you get so wise?" I ask Ben and giggle softly. "I've been wise my whole life, I just prefer acting like an idiot" He says and laughs, setting me in the truck.

           I giggle and shake my head, putting on my seat belt. Ben gets in after putting my wheelchair in the back. "We have to pick up your prescription before we go home" He says and drives us to the pharmacy.

          I lean back in my seat and grab my phone, looking through my notifications. I see that I have a text from Rory. "My dad is killing me! Instead of getting to enjoy homecoming, he's making me help chaperone :'(" Rory said.

          "I'm sorry :-( though that doesn't sound very enjoyable to me" I respond and giggle softly. "You should still come! You can keep me company!" Rory says. "I'll think about it lol" I respond, shaking my head.

          "Thank you! I'll text you later. I don't want to get in trouble for having my phone out" Rory says. I smile and turn off my phone, putting it back in my pocket.

          "I'll be right back" Ben says and parks the truck, going into the pharmacy. I turn on the radio and I hear "And you can tell everybody this is your song. It may be quite simple but now that it's done... I hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind; that I put it down in words... How wonderful life is while you're in the world...".

          I smile to myself, grabbing my phone. "Are you skipping gym again?" I ask Norah. "Yeah, why?" Norah asks. "Can you meet me at Goodwill in like fifteen minutes?" I respond.

          "Okay lol" Norah responds. Ben gets back in the truck, putting on his seat belt. "Ready to go home?" He asks. "Can you actually drop me off at Goodwill?" I ask, looking at him.

          "I'm not gonna ask why, because that's a weird request, but yes" Ben says and laughs, driving me to Goodwill. "Do I need to pick you up when you're done?" He asks, putting me in my chair.

          "Yes please. This should only take an hour or two" I say and smile. "Alright. Just text me when you're done" Ben says and gets back in the truck. I go inside and see Norah looking at stuffed animals.

          "Having fun?" I ask her and giggle softly. "Yes I am" Norah says and smiles. I smile back and shake my head. "Is there a reason that we're at Goodwill though?" She asks, looking at me.

          "Yeah. I wanted to find a dress in case I decide to go to homecoming" I say, not very enthusiastically. "Okay. To the other side of the store then" Norah says and spins me around, pushing me to the other side of the store.

          "What color do you want your dress to be?" Norah asks when we get over there. "Either red or black, and preferably knee length" I say and smile.

***39 minutes later***

          "What about this one?" Norah asks. I let go of the dress I'm looking at and turn to face her. "That is perfect!" I say and smile, looking at the black, knee length dress.

          "It's a medium, so it should be perfect" Norah says and smiles. "Now I just need shoes. I don't want to wear my combat boots with that" I say and we go over to the shoes.

          I try on a pair of navy blue flats, but then I see a pair of dark red combat boots. "What size are those?" I ask, pointing to the boots. "Size 5" Norah says, handing them to me.

          "Perfect" I say and smile. We go and pay for the dress and boots, going outside after. "I'll call Ben to pick us up. Do you want to go back to school, or come over?" I ask, looking at Norah.

          "I should go back to school" Norah says, looking back at me. I nod and call Ben, telling him that we're ready to go. We get in the truck when he comes and take Norah back to school. We go home after that.