A New Beginning

Chapter 5

       Eddie sat in his wheelchair in his quiet home. It was unusual for it to be this quiet, but Myra was at work, so he was relieved. Before the reunion, he usually missed Myra, but now, something had changed in him.
       He didn't know what it was, but he felt a strain. There were more fights, more separation between them, but Myra was trying to hard. Somehow, Eddie wasn't. It was tiring and he was already suffering enough.
        He wheeled off to his walker to work on his legs. He was determined to get better fast. He lifted himself up off the wheelchair and braced himself to his walker. Usually, someone is supposed to be by his side, but he wanted to do it alone. He wanted to know he could do it.
       Then there was a knock on his door. "Shit-!" He cursed and fell back on his wheelchair with a grunt.
       "Hold on!" He called and shimmied to fix how he was sitting before wheeling to the door.
       He opened it to see a familiar red head. "Hey," Bev smiled to Eddie.
       The smile had some concern hidden behind it, but Eddie was happy to see her. "Hi," he started, "Uh, I didn't know you were coming over."
        "Yeah, I didn't give you a heads up. Sorry about that. I just wanted to check up on you."
       "You're too sweet, Bev," He wheeled back to let her in.
       She glanced around the place, "Cozy little home you have here."
       "Yeah," Eddie added, "it's nice."
       "Mhm," Bev noticed his tone but chose to avoid it.
       She sat on the couch and noticed the walker, "I thought you were wheelchair bound."
       "I am, why?" He asked as he wheeled from the kitchen back to the living room with a platter of water.
       "You-Oh Eddie, you didn't need to grab some water." She got up to help him, but he called her off on it.
        "No, no. Don't. I've got it." He handed her the water from the plater on his lap before backing up to set the water glass on the coffee table.
        Her brows were knit in concern, but Eddie sipped his water, ignoring her expression. "You have a walker. Why?" She asked, finishing what she started before.
        "Oh," he looked to the walker he wanted to use just a few minutes ago, "I'm trying to work on my legs outside of physical therapy."
        "Oh." She let out before smiling, "is that why you cursed before you opened the door?"
         "You heard?"
         "Yep."
         "Fuck"
        Beverly laughed as Eddie's face flushed. "Yeah, I was going to try and walk around." He stated, looking down as he still felt embarrassed.
       Silence grew but Beverly closed it, "do you want help?"
       Eddie looked to her, finally taking in her expression. It was a comforting smile. A smile filled with warmth as her eyes shined in determination as they always have since they were kids. "Sure," Eddie smiled back and wheeled to the walker.
      She got up and followed him. "Can you get up?" She asked, just incase.
     "Yeah, I got it. I just need to make sure my legs don't go out from under me." Eddie stated as he shimmied to grab the walker.
     "Eddie, do you already need Life Alert?" Bev teased.
     "Shut up," He said before pulling himself up and stood with the walker.
     "There's the Eddie Kaspbrak I know." She smirked happily at him and it made Eddie smile.
     She had one hand behind him, hovering his lower back just for good measure. "How do you feel?" She asked since the man had yet to move.
     "I'm good, I'm good." He took a deep breath, "just thinking."
      It was a lot. He knew he could stand with support. He was aware of that, but he was afraid he'd fall. Sure, he was determined, but that didn't mean he was anxious about the whole thing. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before standing up straight, letting out the breath. "Okay. I'm ready." He nodded and gave Bev a smile once again.
     Bev saw the weakness behind it, but smiled back with a nod in response, "Then walk on, Eddie."
     He looked to his feet and made a step with his right foot. His smile increased with the step he made. He moved the walker a bit before looking to his left foot. This one was more stubborn. There was still a lack of sensation, but he hoped he could move it.
       The physical therapist had been pushing that leg harder, or at least Eddie was. When he finished his sessions, he would come home and try and double what they did for his left foot. He just wanted to walk. He wanted to run. He didn't care if it would over work it. He wanted improvement.
       The left foot barely lifted off the carpet. It dragged over to the right foot and past it. Eddie adjusted the walker once again, but he lacked balance enough to keep him stable. Bev quickly made sure to support him with a firm hand on his shoulder and another on his hip. He stopped and swallowed hard, but Bev commented warmly "You're doing good. Remember to shift your weight so your body will support it before putting it back on the walker."
        "Right. Yeah. Got it," Eddie nodded and repeated his steps.
        It was slow, but it was happening. He was walking. He knew he was being supported by the walker and Bev, but he didn't care. He was walking. "You're doing it, Eddie." Beverly said with a big smile on her face.
       But Eddie couldn't hear her. He was focused on his feet. His pace. His legs. He was walking. His arms started to shake as his emotions grew. Beverly quickly pulled the wheelchair over, just incase. "Do you need to sit down?" She asked, worried about his arms shaking.
      "No, no." He paused and nodded before checking the wheelchair was there before sitting down.
       "I was just-I was doing it," Eddie muttered out, wiping his growing tears away.
       "Oh honey," Bev lowered to kneel beside Eddie, "You were. You were walking."
       Tears fell from Eddie's eyes as Bev had a hand over one of his that covered his face. She knew this meant a lot to him. She would've also hated being bed ridden and stuck in a wheelchair. Yet, she couldn't imagine the happiness whirring inside of the man. She slowly leaned in to hugged him, resting her head against his. Eddie was finally taking his first steps back.