Disabled.

Nineteen

Nineteen

December

It had been almost two weeks since Nadia had last spoken to Selena. Initially, she had tried multiple times to get through to her but no matter how hard she had tried, all Selena did was push her away. 

And now she was tired—tired of trying to get through to someone who wouldn't open up to her.

In that time, Mason hadn't figured it out though. Selena had somehow become good at avoiding her without letting her cousin notice that their relationship had changed.

And as she sat in her chemistry class, watching as Selena and Chris presented, she could clearly tell that the project had been completed by one person. She clapped her hands with the rest of the class as they sat back down in their seats.

"Mason and Nadia, you're up."

She looked over at Mason once she noticed that he was holding out his fist towards her. She smiled slightly as she fist bumped him.

"Let's ace this," she heard him whisper, causing her to nod her head as her smile widened.

She wheeled herself beside him and sat in front of the class.

"We were assigned iron," Mason started the presentation.

Nadia took in a deep breath as she focused on the presentation, ignoring all of the stares that she was receiving as she sat in front of everyone.

- - -

Before long, the class was over as the last presentation ended. As Nadia got ready to leave the class, she saw Chris walking behind Selena in the corner of her eye with a smile. She quickly packed her things and started to follow them but she was stopped when she heard Mason speak behind her.

"Aren't we having lunch together?" he asked her. She turned herself around.

"We are. I just um... I need to go to the washroom first then I'll meet you at the cafeteria." 

He didn't look convinced but he smiled slightly before he nodded his head. She watched him as he left towards the cafeteria before continuing in the direction that she had been going in. She turned her head around many times, in an attempt to find Selena before Chris did something to her.

She froze a few moments later when she saw Chris wrapping her arm around Selena's shoulder as she smiled at her.

"That presentation was great, I bet we'll get perfect." Selena smiled slightly as she nodded.

"I guess you aren't so bad after all Selena—oh wait, I should call you Lena if we're going to be friends right?" 

Selena rigidly turned her head towards Chris as Nadia heard what she had said.

"We can be friends right?" Chris asked. Selena rigidly nodded her head once again as her smile widened slightly. 

"I'll see you in the cafe Lena," Chris said as she waved to her, taking a few steps away. Nadia quickly hid behind a wall before Chris could spot her. And when she heard her footsteps as she passed by, she turned her head away in an attempt to hide herself.

She looked at Chris's retreating figure as she thought about what she had said to Selena.

It wasn't that she was against Selena making friends. She just wasn't convinced that Chris had good intentions for befriending Selena. She just couldn't shake the feeling in her gut which told her that their so called friendship was only going to end badly.

- - -

It was after school as Nadia was packing her things into her backpack before she would be going outside to meet her mother who was going to pick her up. As she was putting in her water bottle, there was an announcement for all the seniors to go to the gym. 

Wondering what was going on, she closed her locker and locked it before following a crowd which was making its way towards the gym. Once she was there, she stayed in a corner and turned her head around a few times, still unsure of what was happening.

"Alright everyone, if I can have your attention please," she heard the principal's voice.

"So as all of you know," the principal began to say as it got quieter, "every year, all of the seniors go on a skiing trip."

Light chatter began to fill the gym as people began to speak again.

"So we're just making an announcement that the registration for that is now open. Forms are available at the main office for you to pick up and hand in on your own time. It's not mandatory but every year, we've gotten great feedback about it so it's a very successful trip. If you have any questions, feel free to ask the secretary at the office." 

The silence disappeared as soon as the principal finished speaking as eager voices filled the room. Nadia slowly wheeled herself out as she realized that it was an event that she wouldn't be able to participate in. 

How could someone in a wheelchair even think about skiing? she thought to herself as she pushed herself towards the exit of the school.

Once she was a few meters away, she felt a presence beside her as Mason began to walk with her. He opened the door and held it for her to exit.

"Thanks," she told him, her voice portraying her disappointment with the announcement.

"What's wrong?" Mason asked as he picked up on her tone. She looked up at him and forced a smile.

"Nothing."

"Nadia." She didn't say anything.

"Are you going to the ski trip?" he asked instead. She swallowed a lump which had formed in her throat and shook her head.

"Why not? It sounds like it'll be fun," he told her but she laughed bitterly.

"Even if it sounds fun, how am I supposed to ski when my legs don't even work?" Mason laughed at her answer which confused her.

"You don't know much, do you?" 

Once again, she didn't answer.

"Okay, as your tutor I'm going to give you some homework. When you get home, search up skiing for paraplegics and tell me what you find."

She wasn't able to say anything to him as the sound of a car honking caught both of their attention. They turned to find her mother as she pulled to the curb. Mason waved at her mother once she had parked.

"I'll see you tomorrow Nadia," he said as he began to walk away. She smiled slightly as she nodded.

"And I expect a full report about your findings by tomorrow morning!"

"What's he talking about?" her mother asked as she stood beside her, both watching Mason as he walked to the bus stop.

"Nothing," was all she told her mother before getting into the car. 

And as her mother drove, she couldn't keep herself from wondering if it was even possible for someone like her to go on that trip. She shook her head, shaking that thought away in the process before answering her mother who had asked her how her day had been.

* * *

A/N:

Hello dear reader, I've finally updated! I'm sorry that it's taking so long to update. I just have so much going on. But besides that, this story seems to go in a different direction every time that I sit down to continue it. I have a general direction for each chapter but by the end of writing it, I always find that it went in a completely different direction. But regardless, I hope you're all enjoying it! 

On another note, I've noticed that this story now has over 6K views! I couldn't believe it when I first noticed it. And it's all because of YOU. Thank you very very much for taking the time to read each chapter. I TRULY appreciate it. And even though I'm not writing this story to get views, it's very encouraging when something like this happens.

Once again, thank you! 

~candysweet101