In This Life (Sequel to 'In Another Life')

13 Colby's POV

True to her word, she didn't move. When I was finished, I opened the passenger side door, and looked at her expectantly. "Let me know if you feel like you need help, okay?" In customs here. She bit her lip and nodded. I could already see the pain in her eyes. I watched her push herself up from her chair, holding onto the armrests. It took everything in me not to just pick her up and put her in the car. I couldn't stand seeing her in pain like this and I wanted to do anything that I could to help teach it. She stood still for a moment, once she got fully erect, breathing heavily through her nose. I was holding my breath, ready to jump forwards at the slightest sign that she might fall. I had her close enough to the car that she could grab onto the door to use it for balance as she shuffled forwards. I moved behind here, once she got right next to the car, and ready to try and sit down. She turned around, facing me, and I heard her breath catch at how close I was to her. "Sorry," I replied gruffly. "I just wanted to be able to catch you if you fell." I backed up one step, giving her space. She is at the waist, holding onto the sides of the car, and sort of falling back into the car. She had closed her eyes, her face scrunching up as she breathed out a breath. I stepped closer again and knelt down in front of her. "Are you okay?" I asked. She opened her tear filled eyes, bit her lip, and nodded. "I am. Give me just a minute and I'll get all the way in the car." "No rush. We've got all day," I answered. After a few minutes, she started trying to move her legs into the car. In easy here try for a minute, but I could tell that she had wasted all her energy already. I gently took her legs in my hands, and looked at her questioningly. She sort of smiled, then nodded, giving me permission to help her. I went slow, moving her legs, as she tried to shift her waist, until she was fully inside of the car. I closed her door and walked around, getting into the driver's side of my Corolla. "Still okay?" I asked, starting the car, and putting it in drive. She had her eyes closed again, but she nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Please stop asking me." "Just making sure T," I answered softly, before pulling out onto the road. "I've already told you that I'm fine. Several times. If you keep asking me, then you're not going to be fine," she said through gritted teeth. I couldn't help but smile. She was pissy, sure, but who wouldn't be when they're in that much pain. To me, it was a good sign. It was a sign that Terra was going to be okay, because she was strong. I flipped the radio on and set it to my playlist, never taking my eyes off of the road. Honestly, I was a little nervous having her in the car. I felt guilty over what had happened to T, but I hadn't been the one driving. Justin had been. The guilt he felt was probably incomparable to my own. The ride back was silent, even when I reached over and took her hand in mine. She kept her eyes closed, and didn't say anything, but I saw her lips curve up just a little when I dared to glance at her. I pulled into Denise and the other girls driveway, admiring their home. The house was pretty big, not like TrapHouse big, but still a good size. Once I parked, Terra opened her eyes. Denise, Kenzie, Sarah, and Brennen came out to meet us. Before I was even able to get completely out of my car, Denise had T's door open, helping her to stand. I joined Brennen in pulling her things from the backseat. T didn't argue with the girls as much as she did me, but maybe she was just hurting and knew it would be useless. I watched as she put one arm around Denise's neck and one around Kenzie's. Sarah went in front of them, opening the door. "You okay brother?" Brennen asked. I turned my gaze from watching the girls over to him. "Yeah, I'm okay. Worried about her, and I hate seeing her in pain," I replied, swinging the big plastic hospital bag over my shoulder, as I grabbed her cane and a few other things that the hospital had sent home to make it a little easier for her to be independent. We followed the girls inside the big home, with Brennen shutting the door behind us. He seemed pretty comfortable here, but I knew that he was over here a lot with Sarah. They were always together now. Honestly, I kind of missed my friend but I understood. If he felt even a little of what I felt for Terra, for Sarah, then he was a goner. The girls had went through the massive entryway, to a room that was off to the right at the end of the hallway. I could already hear raised voices, and laughter coming from the room. I felt like Terra really needed some time with her friends. I kind of got the feeling that she hadn't seen too much of them before the accident. Denise had told me that, while she really liked Justin and cared for him, she didn't like that T seemed to become so invested in him that she rarely hung out with them anymore. As I entered the room, I looked around impressed. "I can't believe you got it almost exactly the way I use to have it," T said, grinning at Neece. Neece held her hands out, palms up and shrugged. "I'm amazing, I know." T rolled her eyes at her friend but I could see her eyes turning glassy. "You really are. You all are. I love you guys so much," she replied. "Aw none of that," Sarah said, patting Terra's leg as she sat down on the queen size bed next to her. "You know we'll always look out for you. So starting tomorrow we're taking shifts. Usually two of us at a time, but sometimes it'll only be one of us.