The Price of Forgetting

Chapter 11

Over the next few weeks, I made a lot of progress. It was still painful to do things, but much less. I could walk on my own and take care of myself and do different tasks around the house without worrying about losing my balance or hurting anything too much.

Unfortunately, no one but Doctor Collins seemed to realize that. Any time I tried to do something, someone jumped in and did it for me. Any time I tried to walk more than a short distance, someone had to help me. And they were constantly reminding me of things I already knew. I tried not to get upset since I know they were just trying to help, but it was really starting to get irritating. I felt like they thought of me as a porcelain doll who would never remember a thing.

Doctor Collins didn't like it, I knew, but he also never said anything. He kept pushing me to speak up when something bothered me. I honestly meant to, but whenever something came up, it seemed silly to complain since it was usually such a small thing. I didn't want to make everyone feel bad for no reason, so I resolved to just not let things bother me. But it was much easier to feel that way in the moments when no one was babying me.

"I'll get it, Sweetie." Mama appeared beside me and took the glass from my hand that I'd just gotten down from the cupboard. She quickly moved to the pitcher to pour me some water.

"It's alright, Mama." I said. "I can do it."

"I know you can," she said. "But this pitcher can be so heavy and with your wrist still not healed....Oh." She looked into the pitcher she'd just lifted. Apparently it was empty.

I'm not sure why I tried, but I picked up the bucket from beside the sink to go fill it outside. Before I could take more than two steps, Danny had come over and pulled the bucket from my hand.

"I'll get it."

I didn't bother telling him I could do it myself since he was already out the door. Huffing in annoyance, I noticed Doctor Collins watching me with raised eyebrows. It just irritated me more.

"Can I help with dinner?" I asked Mama as she was gathering things on the counter.

"Thank you, Honey, but I've got it covered. Why don't you sit and rest."

Practically all I'd done since I woke up that day was to sit and rest. Suppressing my irritation, I decided that maybe I did need to speak up.

"I'm not helpless, Mama," I tried. "I can do something."

She stopped and gave me a sympathetic smile. "I know you're not helpless. It's just that this is a lot of chopping and other things that will be very difficult with your wrist still so sore."

Frowning, I nodded. She probably had a point there. I was alright with lifting as long as I didn't over do it, but movement like chopping would really hurt.

Instead, I went to get my notebook. I couldn't write very well since it was my right wrist that was sprained, but I liked reading over the stories I'd written from before. It was interesting not remembering the them, but having that sense of familiarity as I was reading them.

Danny brought me the glass of water as I was getting comfortable with my book beside Matthew on the sofa. He gave me a knowing smile and I felt a little better. He knew how much it bothered me that everyone babied me. He did it too, but he was trying to stop, which is why he remained on the sofa while I went to the kitchen for water.

We sat together companionably with Doctor Collins in a nearby chair and after a little while, Aunt Keira came through the front door. My smile of greeting was wiped away when Mama tried to be helpful again.

"Ella, you remember your Aunt Keira, don't you?" she asked, walking the short distance from the kitchen to the sitting room.

Finding it harder to contain my aggravation, I nodded. "Yes, Mama."