Page 85 of Broken Bonds

I had been prescribed lots of rest, which meant a lot of my day was spent in a dark room, eyes closed, my mind on Ace and what he was doing, which I hoped wasn’t much. He hadn’t called, hadn’t texted—just sent a simple bouquet of pink roses that arrived at the hospital the day before I came home with a small note attached.

May you have a speedy recovery. – Asshole

I cried for the first time since Ace left. Luckily, Amber was the only one in the room, and she held my hand tightly, whispering that I deserved more. Even if I did, why did I wanthim?

Exactly six weeks after surgery, I was introduced to a woman I hated more than Ace and Aidan combined. Mrs. Hudson was a physical therapist who I spent an hour of my time with every day after lunch.

I loathed her.

I hated her perfect, blonde ponytail. I hated her toned body, but most importantly, I hated the smile she shot me every time I burst into tears because pain had seized my legs, crippling me.

Not only did she work me hard during our short, but seemingly long sessions, I had homework to top it all off.She kept my mind busy, and for that, I was thankful because thinking about Ace was not an option. But otherwise, she was a horrible human being in my mind, even if I knew she was just helping me.

SIX MONTHS POST-OP

At ninety percent function in both my legs, I had a small limp but no longer need to rely on crutches to get around. Time passed by achingly slow. Thanksgiving came and went, followed by Christmas, and still, no Ace. Ryan hadn’t seen him in class and had heard from the professor they shared that Ace was taking his classes online due to personal reasons.

Hurt at finding out the news from a professor and not his friend, Ryan hadn’t spoken about him in months, acting as though he never even existed. But honestly, I kind of blamed Ryan too for Ace’s disappearance. What had Ryan expected after treating Ace like shit? That wasn’t best friend behavior. Hell, that wasn’t even friend behavior.

I limped into the kitchen, my thoughts on the past few months. Ryan almost ran into me after bounding down the stairs, late for football practice. He mumbled, “Sorry,” and helped me onto a barstool in the kitchen, giving me a boost onto the chair before swinging around the island to give Mom a kiss on the cheek on his way out. “See you later, Mom!” he hollered from the front door, car keys swinging from his fingers.

“Drive carefully!” she shouted, shaking her head as the front door swung shut behind him. “How was your day, honey?” Mom didn’t look up from the giant pan of mince, the garlic aroma filling the air and making my stomach rumble.

Mom had been working with Dad recently since I could move around without help finally. My days were spent watching endless TV and finally reading all the books on my bookshelf while juggling schoolwork and my physical therapy appointments.

“Better than yesterday. Amber and Ryan have been sneaking around again as if I don’t already know they have the hots for each other. They also think I don’t know they have Valentine’s plans, too.” I rested my head on my hands, my elbows pressed firmly onto the cold, marble countertop.

“Are you okay with your best friend dating Ryan?” she asked, looking up at me from dicing tomatoes.

I frowned at her. “She’s a nice girl, Mom. The best friend I’ve ever had. Emily hasn’t texted me in months. She didn’t even ask if I was okay after surgery, which Amber posted about all over Instagram. Everyone knew and checked in, yet she never did.” I shrugged. “I won’t keep them apart. I just don’t want Ryan to ruin the friendship I have with her.”

Mom smiled gently at me. “She doesn’t seem like the type of girl to abandon you because of a boy. Quite the opposite, actually.”

I heard the garage door opening, and a moment later, the jingle of Dad’s keys interrupted us. “How’s my favorite princess?” The name sent a pang of hurt through my chest. Dad kissed my head, putting down his keys and papers on the counter near my elbows.

“Good. How was work? What did I miss?” He laughed and shook his head, walking toward my mother and pinching her butt before wrapping his arms around her and placing a sweet kiss on her neck.

“I’ve told you not to touch my butt, Mr. Wilson!” she scolded, laughter in her eyes.

“I missed my wife. What can I say?” The two forgot I was there, launching into a heated debate about something that happened at work during the day. Staring dreamily at my favorite couple, I was reminded again about my failed relationships.

I wanted to know how Ace was, where he went, why he left me after promising to be there when I woke up. The pang of heartbreak stole my breath for a moment before I pushed thoughts of Ace out of my mind.

“How was PT today?” Dad turned away from Mom to look at me from across the counter.

I picked at my nails. “Better than yesterday, I guess. She said only a few more appointments until I should have full function back.” I glanced up at him. “Can I come back to work now?”

He shook his head with a grim smile. “Not yet, little one. You need to fully heal before putting strain on your legs. Whatever you want, your mother and I will buy for you until you can start working again.”

I sighed. “I just want to get out of the house.” They briefly shared a look of understanding before looking at me with sad eyes.

“Not yet, baby girl. Not yet.” That pang came back with the simple term of endearment.

Heused to call me that. No matter how hard I tried,hewas not far from my mind. I only hoped he couldn’t stop thinking about me, too. That maybe he was suffering as much as I was.

chapter thirty

RYAN

---