Just Breathe

Chapter 70: Free

•Niall•

"Doing alright?" Annie gently squeezes my right hand

My knuckles involuntarily tighten around the cane in my left hand as my body trembles. My legs felt like jello, my throat burned, and my chest heaved as we walked hand in hand around the block.

We started a routine of this every morning and every evening. It was suppose to be a short, light walk around the coelvisac. Dr. Kelly told me I needed to be as active as possible post-OP and to try to regain muscles that had atrophied over my time bed ridden in the hospital. So, a brisk walk was suppose to be my starting point. Easy. However, it was anything but easy.

My body ached and my legs trembled after two minutes. It made my lungs and throat feel like I swallowed fire. But, I promised everyone I would do it, along with all the other nonsense and Annie was persistent on the matter.

"Yeah" I take in a sharp shaky breath "I-Im okay" I was just grateful that I was slowly regaining my ability to speak. I spent a good two weeks completely mute in the hospital that made my head feel like a prison. I couldnt write fast enough on my white board to keep up with conversations, my hands shook to much to use the bit of sign language I learned to communicate and speaking was more painfull than it was worth. As my body slowly recovered from the surgery and weeks of the trial drug injections I found it less and less painful to speak. Daniel says at this point I needed to just speak if it wasnt too painful to retrain those muscles. Somedays it was simply too painful though, that was how it was with my body as a whole these days though, I had good days and bad days. Days where I actually felt like I was progressing, healing then others that I felt like I was deteriorating all over again.

She smiles weakly and nods "I heard from Mindy today"

Good. Distracting conversation. "Hows she-e?"

"Good I think." She nods "I mean, we mostly talked about you" I frown at that. I hate that. All anyone could talk or think about was my near death and it was starting to grate my nerves "and the wedding" I notice the faint blush on her cheeks that rises at that

"That's my-y favorite topic" I smile looking over to her

She bites her lip "Do you, um" she shakes her head "nevermind.."

I stop walking. Something was wrong, she always bites the rights side of her bottom lip when somethings wrong "What?"

She sighs detaching her hand from mine and wrapping her arms around her waist "I've just been thinking.. do you think we still would have gotten married had you not been dying?"

My heart breaks. "D-did you not want to get married?" Suddenly my throat feels constricted for a whole new reason. Did I force her into a marriage she didnt want because i was dying?

"No, no of course I did" her shakes her head rapidly taking my boney hand into the hers "there's nothing I love more than being able to call you my husband. I just was worried you regretted getting married now that you're getting better.. t-thats stupid I know, I just" she sighs "I worry.."

"Annabella" I smirk when she rolls her eyes "our marriage is one of the few things in my-y life I have zero regrets about"

I can almost feel the anxiety drain out of her at that "Me too" she smiles collapsing into my arms

"Oh, you're back!" I hear liams voice ring throughout my house as soon as we walk in after our walk. Oh good apparently they all just let themselves?

"Morning" daniel smiles at us as annie helps me settle on my usual spot on the couch

"Good morning" annie places my blanket over my lap and adjusts the bennie covering my bald head a sympathetic smile on her lips at my pained groans