Chapter 14

Alba didn't know what to say.

"You get that look on your face," Wesley said intuitively, "when you hear something that you're trying not to react to."

She stared at him over her coffee cup.

"And now you've got that look that says, How do you respond without giving away what's going on?" he added. "And it always comes up—or at least let me say this. I've noticed it coming up a couple times whenever we talk about me leaving."

"Of course I'm not happy you're leaving, but, like Dennis just mentioned, it's the way of the place."

"I'm not going far."

"When you say that, I'm delighted to hear it. I'm still not exactly sure what far is yet."

"And I'm not sure either. I sent off some inquiries yesterday," he murmured. "And I'm still a way away from figuring out just what to do. And the idea is a little bit on the far-fetched side, so I'm not sure."

"You want to give me any hints?"

He looked at her and smiled. "Well, kinda. It's because of you that I started this. So I probably should give you some hints but, I'm just… I'll just warn you that nothing's for sure, okay?"

"Got it. So what are all these big plans?"

He shrugged. "I contacted the local community college."

"Oh? What will you take?"

"I explained my situation and was wondering if there was any chance of teaching shop."

She stared at him for a long moment. "Wow!" she exclaimed. "When you make a change, you make a change."

"I only did this yesterday," he reminded her, "after meeting Annabelle."

"Ah, because of how relaxed she is about her arm."

"It just reminded me that I was a fool and an idiot and that I was hiding and that, if she wasn't hiding, there was no reason I should be hiding," he shared. "As I mentioned yesterday, seeing her was quite the eye-opener."

"I like it. Have you had a response?"

"No, and honestly, I'm not even sure that any response would be one that I would like—because obviously I'm not as able-bodied as I once was."

"And did you tell them that?"

"Not only told them but I sent them a photo of the injuries and told them that I was perfectly capable of doing a lot of things that I needed to do and that some of the machines I needed to adapt to, but I wondered if they had a program for people like me to learn skills and hobbies or if they did any training, any hands-on technical-type training, for handicapped people."

"Oh, that's a fascinating idea," she exclaimed, staring at him. "I really like it. When you hear back from them, let me know."

"Oh, I will," he promised. "And now, go get food," he ordered. "We don't have much time before our day starts. And you know what that can be like."

She burst out laughing and got up. "Aye-aye, captain. See you back here in a few minutes."

*

Amazing just howmuch freer Wesley felt, after having met that little girl, Annabelle. Stupid, yes, like an idiot, an adult who had missed a major learning curve somewhere along the line and had to be shown by a small angel. He almost wished he could see the little girl again and thank her. But she probably wouldn't even understand because to her it was natural, it was normal. He's the one who had made a big deal out of nothing. And that had just complicated his issue.

He could still feel himself adjusting, depending on his thought processes. He would be sitting in the dining room and looking around and suddenly realize that he wasn't feeling the same sense of judgment anymore. And he didn't know if that was coming from the people around him or if that was self-induced, but, because of that lack of judgment, he had so much more freedom. It was stupid. It was ridiculous, and it was a number of other feelings that he was more than happy to let go of.

When he heard from the local community college, he stared at the email reply. He hadn't even expected to get a response. As he read the message, he was even more stunned. They wanted to talk with him, see what his capabilities were, and see what he had in mind. He immediately responded, replying how that would be perfect and what time frame were they looking at for a meeting. As it was, they went back and forth with several emails, confirming the time and the date, and then he realized that he didn't have any way to get into town.

And then he got an email from Kat. He froze, not sure he wanted to read it, but he did. Send me your medicals, she said, and I'll be in touch.

He sat here, staring at the emails, with a frown on his face, only to have a knock on the door, and Shane poked his head around and asked, "Ah, so were you planning on working out today?"

Wesley stared at him in shock, stared down at the time on his computer. "Oh, man, I am sorry." He got up from the bed and headed in Shane's direction.

"I hope you have a good reason," Shane stated in the testiest tone that Wesley had heard yet from Shane.

"Maybe, at least for me. I don't know about for you." As they walked down to the therapy room, Wesley explained.

Shane stared at him. "Seriously?"

Wesley nodded. "I don't know what I was thinking," he admitted, wincing. "I'm hardly to that point yet."

"No, but that likely isn't something they'll want to start on Monday anyway," Shane pointed out. "So, if this is something that's doable, we need to figure out a way to ensure that you're capable of doing the job."

"That's what I don't know," Wesley admitted. "And I don't really have any machinery to practice on."

"No," Shane replied slowly, "but we have a workshop here because things always need to be repaired around here."

Wesley stared at him. "You have a workshop?"

"Sure. It's down in the basement," he noted. "Not a ton of equipment is there either, but obviously drills and circular saws and handsaws." He added, "I don't even know what all else is down there. However, I can call one of the maintenance men and see what we can set up."

Wesley stared at Shane. "That would be an incredible opportunity, if for no other reason than to test what I can do and what I want to do."

"And considering you've already reached out to the college, maybe we should do that now."

Wesley winced at that. "Yeah, that would be a good idea."

Shane nodded. "Today we'll work on strengthening that arm. In the meantime I will see what I can work out with the workshop. Even if we can get an hour or so to test and to see what you need to do, that would be a start."

And, with that, the morning progressed at the same speed that it had started. And by the time lunch came around, Wesley was now onto another problem in his head. He needed to talk to Dani to see if he could get a ride into town to visit the college. He knew that people went in for shopping trips and day trips and various things to keep them socially active and aware, but this was a completely different thing. He would probably have to pay for a round-trip visit, probably have the driver waiting for Wesley in the interim. But it would be worth it, if it resulted in something positive.

"Heck," he muttered to himself. "It is positive already."

The bottom line was somebody had expressed interest, without dismissing him as having nothing to offer. He was still preoccupied with that thought, when Alba sat down beside him at lunch.

"Hey," she greeted him. "What's with the expression on your face?"

He looked at her, blinked to bring his mind back to it, and said, with a wry look, "You won't believe what happened."

She stared at him for a moment. "Well, from the tone of your voice, you're quite nonplussed about it, so tell me."

He explained about the multiple emails, missing out on Shane's workout time frame, and Shane's offer to contact maintenance to see what there was for tools here so that they could test how Wesley could handle various implements. She put down her fork, interlocked her fingers together, and dropped her chin on them, as she stared at him. "When you get moving, you get moving."

He laughed. "I wasn't expecting anybody to get moving with me though," he noted in a wry tone.

"Yeah, you're back to that, Hey, I can't do this."

"No," he corrected. "I'm back to, Oh my God, can I do this?"

"I'll take that as a huge step forward," she declared, "and that's absolutely fabulous."

He nodded. "Yeah, I have to talk to Dani next though."

"And why is that?" she asked.

"Because I don't know how I would begin to get to town for this."

She shrugged. "Depending on how you feel about it, I could take you."

He stared at her. "Seriously?"

"Sure, why not?" she asked. "I do go to town, not all that often, but it's not a hardship for me to do."

"But it would be during work hours," he noted cautiously.

"And I have lots of breaks in my hours where I do reports," she reminded him. "I can certainly take you in, and something like this would definitely be part of my job, or at least isn't a hard stretch to consider as part of my job," she explained. "Getting you out there to meet somebody who has a potential career path for you?" she exclaimed. "That would be huge." She added, "Not to mention a significant boost to your self-confidence."

"Yeah, but would… How will I feel in front of multiple able-bodied people?"

"And how would you feel in front of others who are not able-bodied people?" she asked, tilting her head to study his face. "Because you have to wonder that maybe there's an awareness that something like this is needed for the community at large, for those who don't have the same physical abilities as others—maybe the elderly, maybe the youth."

"Well, that would be even better," he replied, staring at her. "But I doubt the college is running something like that, and, in that case, even if they are, it would probably only be a night class or two."

"It's not a bad way for you to start though," she noted. "What an in that would give you."

He had to nod. "It's still"—he stopped and winced—"scary."

"Of course it is," she agreed. "It would be scary no matter what you were doing. But, in this case, you'll be utilizing your ability to your advantage."

"Is that… what's the term?" he asked. "Like maybe abusing my ability?"

She stared at him, shook her head slowly, and asked, "Still some more judgments you have to get rid of, huh?"

He nodded. "Yeah, apparently, but I'm working on it."

"You are, indeed, and you're doing a great job," she murmured.

He laughed. "You're a great cheerleader."

"I'm more than that," she declared, with a smile. "And did they give you some time frame when they wanted to talk to you?"

He nodded. "They suggested this Monday," he replied nervously.

She let out her breath in a slow exhale. "Wow, that's amazing. Monday morning?"

He nodded.

"Well, you're in luck," she said. "Monday mornings are generally slow for me, and I can shuffle a few things around to make it happen. And that's only if you're okay for me to go with you."

"I would rather you went with me," he replied, "because, if I completely muck it up and make a fool out of myself, I would just as soon not have too many eyes and ears around to hear about it."

"Just mine," she said, with a smile.

"But you won't judge me for it," he stated. "You'll give me one of those big pep talks on the way home and tell me to try again."

At that, she burst out laughing. "You're so right there, and glad to hear that you know who I am."