Things Unseen

Chapter Thirteen

"You're sure about this?" Alyssa stared down the contraption in front of her and raised her eyebrow.

William poked his head from behind the machine where he was fiddling with some dials and gave her an exasperated look. "No, I'm not sure. I've just been doing this longer than you've been alive, that's all." He winked and ducked behind it again.

Lorraine rolled her eyes. "Never mind him. He had to catch up on a show last night so he didn't get any sleep. Priorities and all." She chuckled. "Why? Is there something you're not sure about?"

"Well, yeah..." Alyssa grabbed the wheels of her chair and maneuvered around the machine. Every day she surprised herself by how well she was learning the chair. In many ways it was easier than learning to drive a car had been, but in some ways it was harder. She was certain she'd have to explain all the nicks on her room's door frame by the time she left, but right now that was the least of her worries. She examined the device. "This is just an exercise bike, isn't it?"

"Oh, no. It's a whole lot more than that." William's voice came from the other side. After a few seconds, he stood and put his hands on his hips. "This is the first big step in your therapy right here. It's called Transcutaneous Electrical Stimulation."

"Hold on," Alyssa wheeled her chair around so she could face William directly. "Electrical?"

William nodded. "Yes. You see these?" he led up a half-dozen cords. "They send electrical pulses to the nerves in your spine and legs. Over time the stimulation helps retrain the nerves and muscles to work on their own."

Alyssa was nodding slowly and eyed the machine. "Yeah, but... electricity? I guess you're the expert here."

William put his hands out with a humorous look in his eyes. "There ya go. Just let that be your only thought, and we'll have you walking in no time."

Alyssa rolled her eyes and smiled.

Lorraine pushed Alyssa's chair closer to the machine. "There's no need to worry about that right now anyway. It'll be a few weeks before we apply the electrical stimulation. Until then we have to build up your endurance. It's just you and the bike for now."

William walked around as Lorraine locked Alyssa's chair in place, and he lifted her out of her chair easily. He gently set her down on the machine and positioned her on the bike. Once he had secured everything, he reached over and pressed a few buttons, bringing the machine to life. It began to slowly pedal, and to anyone else it would have looked as if she was pedaling the bike herself. But instead, she watched her legs moving up and down, and felt nothing.

She bit back a sigh and instead looked up and took in the room around her. It was quiet, but a few others were having their rehab sessions as well. Directly across from her, she watched another team helping a young man who looked a few years younger than her. His blonde hair stuck to his forehead as his therapist helped him position himself on the edge of what looked like a bridge. Just a platform with two handrails along the side, it didn't look like anything special.

As he was braced from the sides, the man grasped the handrails and slowly tried to inch his stiff legs in a walking motion. It looked as if he was putting all his weight on his arms as he inched along, but he was determined. He made it halfway across before his strength gave out, and they helped him back to his wheelchair. As they did, Alyssa noticed one thing: he was smiling.

"He was here a few months ago." William said from behind her. Alyssa pursed her lips and turned her head to face him. "Does he have the same condition as me?"

William nodded. "Paraplegia. Obviously not exactly the same, but pretty close. He had a motorcycle accident about six months ago. His treatment was delayed, so it's actually pretty amazing that his body took to it so well."