Fix My Feet When They're Stumblin'

Chapter 37

    " - should've seen her, she was soooo soft and so pretty, dad!"

    Gunnar bounced up and down in excitement, grinning at Brandon. "And Molly really liked Ammon, too, she just crawled right in his lap like she knew him, right, Ammon?"

    Ammon nodded vigorously, beaming at his father. "Yeah, dad, it was so fun! Thanks for asking that lady to bring Molly to see us, dad! We had so much fun cuddling with her!"

    "That's - that's g-good, guys, I'm glad... I'm glad you had f-fun."

    Mandy stepped forward, and before she could even open her mouth, the children all took their cue to say goodbye. One by one, they hugged Brandon and reluctantly made their way to the door, Ammon and Henry looking back longingly. "Sorry, kids, it's almost time for your dad's therapy."

    Gunnar grinned at Brandon once more, lingering around the doorway. "Oh, cool!! Mom says you're doing a good job with your therapy, dad! I hope it's fun!"

    "Oh, I hope it's fun, too," a man's unfamiliar voice said, and Gunnar jumped in surprise with a little gasp and turned to see a tall, thin man smiling at him, his long black hair in a ponytail down his back. In the hallway behind them, Ammon and Henry sniggered together at Gunnar's fright. "Hello, son, I'm Ernie, your dad's occupational therapist."

    Blinking quickly, still trying to recover, Gunnar nonetheless held out his hand to the man, standing tall. "Hi, Ernie! I'm Gunnar," he said brightly, jerking his head at his brothers, who hurried over to introduce themselves as well.

    "You've got to help our dad get better, okay, Ernie?" Gunnar said with a smile, herding his siblings away from the door and out of the man's way.

    "That's the plan," Ernie winked, and he waved to the kids and headed inside.

    -    -    -    -    -

    Several hours later, after two therapy sessions and a long nap, Mandy knocked on Brandon's door and peeked inside. "Hi, Mr. Flowers! Mr. Vannucci would like to know if you're up for a chat with him?"

    Brandon nodded, but raised his hand to catch her attention as she turned to leave. "Um, M-Mandy - what's the...the thing on the table over there?" he asked, waving at the small side table against the wall.

    Mandy walked briskly to the table, picking up the book and smiling at the tiny surgical thread bowties as she carried it to him. "It's a little book your children made for you, do you remember?"

    Brandon shook his head absently, touching the cover of the book gently. "Thanks, Mandy."

    "Of course, Mr. Flowers - my pleasure! I'm just going to fetch Mr. Vannucci for you, I'll be back in a minute."

    Several minutes passed before Mandy and Ronnie strolled down the hall together, and Mandy knocked on Brandon's door once again, opening it for Ronnie.

    "Sorry, Brandon, I just wanted to see - " Ronnie stopped cold, blinking in astonishment. Tears were streaming down Brandon's face, the right side once again covered in fresh nicks from shaving as he sat looking down at something colorful in his lap. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked quietly, thumping toward his friend as quickly as his crutches would allow, Mandy slipping into the room behind him.

    "That's the book his kids made for him," Mandy whispered, eyeing Brandon with concern as she settled the chair at his bedside for Ronnie. "He saw it on the table just a few minutes ago and asked me to give it to him. Everything was okay when I left..."

    Ronnie eased himself down into the chair and leaned his crutches against the side of the bed. He hesitated, then reached out and touched his friend's arm lightly, whispering, "Brandon, hey...what's wrong, little brother?"