Page 15 of Home Changes
“We’ll schedule a follow-up. My nurse will give you an information packet with helpful resources. And if you need help navigating any of it, just let us know.” She rested her hand over the folder. “You’re not alone in this, Seth.”
He stood slowly, his body stiff with the weight of reality settling into his bones. “Thank you, ma’am. For everything.” He opened the exam room door and stepped into the hallway.
There, just outside, Chester sat with his legs crossed, staring out the window like nothing had changed.
But for Seth … everything had.
Outside, Seth walked beside his father, their steps slow as they made their way to the truck. Chester shuffled more than he walked, muttering about the fluorescent lights inside the clinic giving him a headache.
“You did good today, Dad,” Seth said quietly.
Chester grunted. “Felt like a damn lab rat.”
Seth tried to laugh, but it didn’t quite land.
He unlocked the truck and waited as his father climbed in. The old man’s joints creaked louder than the hinges on the door. Seth had come home to help,notto take over. But now? Now, he understood. The man who’d once seemed carved from granite was crumbling, seemingly softening into sand. And all the resentment, the lost time, the unsaid words, the silence that had stretched between them like a canyon, it all felt meaningless.
None of it mattered anymore.
Not now.
They drove home in silence. Not the angry kind. Not the cold, resentful kind either. This was the quiet of understanding. The tired kind. The kind that filled the truck cab like a fog. It was heavy with the weight of everything unspoken between them. And for Seth, at least, there was a fear that there might not be time to say it, or if he did … would his dad remember?
When they pulled into the drive, Chester opened the door and climbed out.
Seth watched him head toward the porch and called after him. “Watch the step, Dad.”
“I built this damn step,” Chester muttered as he took it slowly, gripping the railing harder than he needed to.
Seth didn’t argue. He just stood nearby, quiet, watching the stiffness in his father’s movements.
Inside, Gomer greeted him at the door, tailsweeping the floor like a broom. Seth opened the door and let the dog outside to relieve himself, the screen door creaking shut behind him.
The house smelled like old furniture, dust, and yesterday’s coffee. He’d cleaned up the stacks of stuff, well … mostly. The clutter was gone from the living room, boxes cleared and stacked in the storage shed out back. He’d moved the recliner closer to the window so Chester could sit and watch the pasture in the afternoons.
The fridge was stocked with simple meals, most of them bought at the diner after Ken’s recommendation. Seth sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked around.
He didn’t know what he was doing. Not really. But he’d done his best and would keep doing just that.
Chester shuffled out of the hallway and paused, taking in the space like he was a guest in someone else’s home. His eyes roamed the room, a faint frown pulling at his weathered face.
“Something’s missing,” he muttered.
“No, Pops. I just cleared some space,” Seth replied gently. “Thought I’d make things easier.”
Chester snorted. “Looks like a retirement home.”
He made his way to the recliner and sank into itwith a long, bone-deep sigh. Within minutes, his eyes slipped shut. Seth hadn’t even had time to offer him dinner.
He stood there for a moment, unmoving, watching the man who’d once walked fence lines in January without flinching. The man who’d used to yell loud enough to rattle the windows. Now, he was slumped in his chair, dozing before the sun set.
The lines on Chester’s face were deep, his jaw soft, slack with exhaustion. Seth stepped quietly into the kitchen and rubbed a hand over his face, bracing himself against the counter.
If this was hard for him …
My God.
How hard was it for his father?
