Handicapped in Hawai'i

Thirteen

Two Days after getting his right shoulder replaced, Richie was finally back on the Big Island, the Gathering Place firmly in his rearview mirror for now. He'd been discharged from the hospital the Day previous, but he and his surgeon'd both agreed that it was best for him to stay in the Honolulu area for an extra Day. Should anything go wrong, he'd already be relatively closeta the man who'd replaced his shoulder for him, which he was far more comfortable with than Returning home too soon.

        After a quick post-op visit to double-check his shoulder, he was told that Returning to his home was entirely up to him now. The prosthetic implant that'd been used to replace his shoulder looked perfectly fine on the X-rays that'd been taken, and his incision was minimally pink around the edges. He was assured that that was perfectly normal this soon outta surgery, 'cuz the area was irritated and making that irritation known. Only if he noticed it oozing, hurting to an absolutely unbearable level, or turning a deeper, angrier red would there be reason to worry. In fact, if any of those things happened, he needed to head to Hilo Medical Center, 'cuz it meant that it was heavily infected and needed to be treated.

        Since he knew he'd be flying to one of the other Islands relatively soon after his surgery, Dr. Garber'd given him the longest-acting nerve blocker he could. Normally, an eighteen-hour nerve blocker'd be enough to get a patient through their surgery, as well as the first hours of their recovery. The seventy-two-hour nerve blocker meant that he'd another Day left, so take-off and landing wouldn't bother him.

        Much to the virtuoso's surprise, his surgeon'd been absolutely right when he'd told him that in pre-op the Morn of his surgery. He hadn't felt a thing, as far as pain went, once the plane he'd boarded alongside Leilani, Rob, and Billy started taxing toward the runway. The landing was a bit rougher, but the worst he'd felt from that due to the nerve blocker starting its gradual fade was a dull ache. Luckily, that'd faded away by the Time they got to baggage claim within Hilo International, and he no longer felt a thing as the older bassist picked him up since he couldn't walk and refused to ride in a wheelchair, but needed to get out to his car.

        "I gotta say, I'm still amazed by these rigs of yours," he chuckled, now settled in the passenger's seat of the newer Firebird.

        "They make the difference between dependence and Independence," Rob laughed, settled in the driver's seat.

        "Kinda makes me feel bad that I dunno how to use it," the older bassist admitted. "Ya wouldn't be having to drive us all back to the house since Richie obviously can't drive right now."

        "Well, maybe I'll getcha out and teach ya," he told him. "'Cuz it's really not that hard."

        "Driving a stick's worse than trying to use that," Leilani chuckled from where she sat next to her fiancé in the back seat.

        "I'll take your word for that," the virtuoso laughed. "Kinda wouldn't know since it's not like I can drive a stick."

        "You might not be able to, but I'm sure Billy can," she retorted, grabbing his good hand and giving it a squeeze.

        "That's pretty much the only thing I've ever driven," Billy said. "So, rig or no rig, driving an automatic'd screw with me at first."

        "Like I said, maybe I'll getcha out and more familiar with these rigs," the younger bassist told him as he fired up the newer Firebird. "Gotta get Richie back home and settled in before I commit to such a thing, after all."

        "And boy, am I ready to get there," Richie said. "Feels like I've been on tour again almost."

        "Got that pillow between you and the side wall good?" he queried, turning in the driver's seat to look back at him.