Burdens [Furry BxB]

Chapter 127 - Forward

Roger had spent most of the morning on that Saturday signing papers and generally finishing up with the hospital. He was able to walk normally again and for the most part could act as if it had never happened, though the physical traces showed that it definitely did happen.

The site of the incision had begun to heal over, but once they removed the stitches and staples, the skin opened back up and bled a little, but it was superficial for the most part. Still, with the way his fur was now shaped, it looked odd, almost out of a horror movie. Luckily, the cast covered it, but unluckily, he looked a little more ridiculous.

He was finally back in his own clothes, much to his relief. It was a pain to get his shirt over his cast, but he managed. He was able to keep his phone, wallet, and charger in his pockets.

Everything was done as far as the hospital was concerned, so all that was left was to wait for his ride home. He did not actually have a ride, though, it was more of an escort, but he did not tell the hospital that, or they would not let him go.

He had no idea how much the hospital stay or procedures cost, but he knew it would be a strain on his parents, and he did not want to stay any longer than he needed to. Extra days simply meant a larger bill.

Roger wondered how long it would take for him to get back into the swing of things, but in reality, he had not been gone for that long, anyway.

In his possession was the bag full of medicine, the cards that had, until recently, been by his bed, and the balloons that were beginning to deflate. The flowers he decided to leave so that the hospital could take care of them, or throw them away, whichever they would decide upon.

It was around noon when he saw the familiar sight of his wolf friend. He had taken the bus there, and they would take the bus back. With a prompt, Roger made his way over to the bus, which was not due to leave for another couple minutes.

He bought his ticket, which was not as much as he thought it would be. They secured a spot on the otherwise empty bus so that they could sit next to each other, in case it decided to get a little busier. Hunter had helped him with his bags and balloons, pretty much-taking everything so that the fox would not have to.

"Thanks for picking me up," Roger said.

"You know it's no problem," Hunter responded with a wave of his tail and a smile that the fox had missed every single time he departed.

He rested his head on the wolf's shoulder, but he could not actually feel it because of the cast. Either way, it helped him relax, and he had been wanting to enjoy their time together without the smell of the hospital surrounding them. While it had been alright at the start, the hospital grew very old very quickly for Roger.

The bus started heading back toward the city, where they would walk the rest of the way, assuming the fox did not collapse when he started moving around again.

Hunter had taken the path several times already, so he knew his way around. It was a fair distance, but it was not impossible to do, and he even had mentioned that if need be he would carry the fox all the way back. Roger insisted that that would not be necessary.

It was not as if he did not enjoy the prospect of it, but he felt he would be far too embarrassed to continue to be carried.

And then, something in the back of his mind wanted to prove to himself that he was not useless anymore, that he could move about independently if he so desired. This was as much a test as it was a journey home.

The road to the hospital was fairly barren, with only one stop about midway between the hospital and the city. Roger asked Hunter, "So you met my parents, right? The first night."

The wolf nodded. "They're nice. They were very thankful that we helped."

"We?" Roger asked. He then remembered his lion friend and felt a little guilty that he had forgotten. "Oh, right. Greg. They still think he's a doctor?"

The wolf nodded again in response. "He's nice, too."

Roger watched the scenery pass by from the interior of the bus. "Yeah, he is. Everyone we've been meeting has been nice, it seems. We're lucky."

He felt the wolf nip at one of his ears affectionately, and he folded them, blushing. He continued to watch as all the trees and fences flew by. It was downhill from the hospital, so the bus did not have to try as hard to move forward. It was quiet, considering.

Roger just breathed life in and exhaled anxiety. His ordeal was seemingly finished. The only thing he had to do now was to recover normally and come in for a check-up scheduled for the next month. He just wanted life to return to normal, and that was what was happening for the most part.

He was grateful that he did not remember the surgery or the trip in the ambulance. The thoughts of it made him feel a bit guilty, and a tiny bit queasy. He shook it off, however. That was an event in his life, and nothing more. When they offered if he wanted to keep the tumour, he declined. Better to leave that stuff behind. That, and it was pretty disgusting, he thought.

He figured he would just enjoy the journey with Hunter. It was all he really could ask for.

-

The bus eventually came to its destination and they took their leave. Roger had not been in the area before, so he followed Hunter, who had been there several times already.

They passed by several restaurants and clothing shops, a few jewellery shops, and a game shop. It was the typical big city feel that Roger was not used to. He liked his place in the suburbs.

He could see it far down the line, where the buildings disappeared and the houses manifested. It looked like it was a far walk, but he was sure he could manage it, especially if Hunter insisted on carrying everything. It was not much, to begin with, but it did help.

There were other pedestrians, and they all gave him odd looks. Some were sympathetic, some were amused, but most of them were confused. It was fine, he thought. He just kept walking forward.

He could feel the inactivity taking its toll on him, but he did not show any signs that he was fatigued. The path was laid out before him, and while it was difficult, it was his to take.

And so they walked home, silently enjoying their time together once again. Roger knew it would not last long, as Hunter had to go to practice, but it gave him time to figure out his life. He would have to go back to school that next week and explain over and over to everyone what had happened, but he would deal with that when the time came.

For now, he just focused on moving forward.