Finding Us (Second Generation Book 1)

Chapter 24

LYLE

Last night was rough. I thought that maybe she’d be excited to finally leave and that we’d have one final dinner at the hospital and then I’d sleep sitting next to her and holding her hand and then this morning she’d be practically jumping out her bed so excited. None of that happened though. She sobbed uncontrollably through dinner and wasn’t drinking either. It was so bad that they threatened to put the IV back because they were worried that she was getting dehydrated. She didn’t “fall asleep” as much as passed out from exhaustion. 

I don’t know what happened and she won’t tell me, but the phone I saw her chuck across the room tells me what I need to know. I’m guessing she was brave enough to finally turn it on and I’m guessing she didn’t like something that she saw or heard. I can’t take away her hurt and her pain, but I sure as hell can soak as much of it in as I can.

“Sweetness? Do you want to go into the bathroom and put on these clothes? Or you could get changed right here, that’s cool.” I show her a big smile, hoping that it cheers her a up a bit, but instead she just shrugs and takes the clothes into the bathroom. I know that I’m playing the long game here. My grandpa sat down with me and gave me a talk that I didn’t realize he could give me. He told me that my grandma had once been in a similar situation and he was two choices.

He could brush it off as not his problem and go on with his life. Few people would problem blame him. His other choice was to step up and not leave her side. He knew if he picked that choice there was no going back. It was a long game, not a quick set. He said if I was planning on staying, I needed to stay and see it through.

I didn’t have a problem with that though. I meant what I said when I told her I loved her. I think I’ve actually loved her for most of the time that we’ve known each other. Sure, we have our differences. I’m never going to pray with her or go to church, but I’ll support her if that’s what she wants to do. She doesn’t seem like the kind of girl that would be into living in a one room bunkhouse with me, yet here she is, coming home to stay with me. Even before her assault, so was planning on moving in with me.

“Hey, Lyle?” her barley there voice comes from the bathroom and I drop what I’m doing and rush to her. When I open the door she’s standing with the t-sirt that I bought her and the yoga pants and panties that I bought her in her hand. She had stripped off the scrub pants, but was still wearing the hospital issued undergarments.

“Hey, baby, what do you need?’

“I am sorry to ask you this, but I tried to get my bottoms off and it hurts so badly to bend over and my knees are stiff. Could you, um, maybe call a nurse to help?”

“Do you mind if I help you? If you don’t want me to, that’s fine, I’ll leave right now…”

“No. I mean, yes. Wait. No, I don’t mind if you help me. Just, please be gentle.”

“I promise I will, Harlow. No matter what, I will always be gentle with you.”

I kneel down in front of her and pull down the plain ole’ white briefs and as I pull them down I can’t notice but to see that her legs look like one giant bruise. There are shapes that look like they came from blunt force, but then other ones look like hand prints. I grab the panties that I bought her and with a hand on each of my shoulders, she steadies herself while she puts one leg in and then the other.

I pull them up gently so as to not press any areas that are sensitive and I try to close my eyes when I glance between her legs and see the damage that was done between her legs. I feel her breathing begin to rush and I’m worried that I’m about to lose her, so I hurry myself to finish getting her dressed. Once she had the yoga pants on, I stood up and opened my arms so she could lean into me for a hug.