Multifandom Imagines

Ben Cook ~ The ONE Time I'm Grateful For An Injury (Part 1)

"What happened, Gramma? Tell us how you met Grampa!" my youngest grandchild asked me, climbing onto the couch next to my recliner. Her older brother of 3 years sat down next to her in a more dignified way. I chuckled, ruffling their hair. Their parents were on a business trip, so they brought their children for me to watch over.

"I remember it like it was yesterday...." I began.

~~~

I glided out onto the ice, smiling and waving at the audience. I stopped in the middle of the rink and took a deep breath, waiting for the music to start.

As soon as it did, I started my routine. I glided around the rink, feeling the cold air rush past my face. I loved my routine; it was probably my best and most difficult one. I just finished doing a Lutz and was about to do a Triple Axle. I slid around the rink, building up momentum.

Then, I took off from the ice, twisting in the air. I always failed my jumps, even in practice. It was a miracle I was able to get to the Finals without a hitch. Just as I completed the Lutz, I landed awkwardly. I felt a jolt of white hot pain shoot up from my ankle and through my leg. I fell onto the ice with a cry of pain, and laid there, trying to ignore the pain. But it was too much. I felt tears fall out of my eyes as my closest--and very red-headed--friend, Thalia, rushed out onto the ice and stopped by my side.

"Are you okay? (Y/N), speak to me!" she cried.

"I'm okay. I--" I began, but she interrupted me.

"DON'T YOU DARE DIE ON ME!" she screeched.

"Really, I--"

"I had the perfect life for you. You could have--"

"THALIA!" I yelled, interrupting her and wincing at the effort. "I'm fine. I probably just have a broken ankle. And I probably won't be able to ice skate anymore. And all my dreams are being thrown away. And--" I said. With every passing statement, more tears sprang up in my eyes. I tried blinking them away, but then I broke down, sobbing, as Thalia helped me sit up.

"All my dreams." I sobbed. "Gone. I won't be able to skate anymore."

"Shhhh, honey." Thalia soothed. "Not all your dreams. You will be able to continue your writing."

I remained silent. Thalia sighed. "All right. We're gonna need to get you to the emergency room ASAP. You've got about a half year to a year's worth of recovery ahead of you."

~~~

At the hospital, I remained calm while Thalia freaked out. I would have laughed if I weren't injured so badly, but alas, I could still softly smile, though it caused me to wince in pain afterwards.

I didn't understand what I had done wrong. I had followed what I had done in my practices and rehearsals, so how had I fallen and gotten hurt? Well, I thought I did it right. I didn't really know what I did.

My train of thought was stopped when the hospital room door opened and the doctor walked in. Thalia immediately sat up from her slouched position on the chair by my bedside. He was smiling, but I could tell he had more bad news than good news to tell me. I knew that I wouldn't be able to skate anymore. My leg would be permanently damaged with the injury I suffered. I wouldn't be able to use my leg anymore. I'd have to use a crutch (or crutches) for the rest of my life or use a wheelchair. Probably a crutch, so I wouldn't be sitting all day.

Hey, wasn't one of Thalia's favorite characters a cripple and had to use a crutch? What was his name? Crutch? Crutches? Crutchie! That's what it was! Maybe I could take a page out of his book and not let the world and my bum leg get me down.

"(Y/N) (Y/L/N)?" the doctor greeted me. "How are you feeling?"

"Like hell." I said dryly in response with a small smile.

The doctor chuckled. "I thought as much." He smiled at me again. "Well, (Y/N), I am Dr. Rouse. I have some good news, and I have some bad news. Which would you like to hear first?"

I groaned. "Why does every single doctor say that?" I looked back at Dr. Rouse. "No offense, Dr."

"None taken." he replied. "Would you like to hear the bad news first, then?"

I nodded. "I've got nothing else to lose anyway."

"All right. Unfortunately, you won't be able to continue your skating career--but you already knew that. You also won't be able to do any heavy exercise for about 6 months. The last 6 months, though--you can go back to light exercise then, and gradually build up your leg strength again." I nodded. "However, you'll need to use crutches to get around. I mean, athletes like you wouldn't want to sit around every day. But you'll have to wear them for about a year."

"All right. Fair enough." I said. "What about the good news?"

"The good news is that you will be able to get rid of your crutches in a year." he continued, smiling. I laughed. "You can also get rid of them sooner if you build up your leg strength sooner."

"That's it?"

"That's it." Dr. Rouse turned to the door. "If you have any questions, just call us. We'll be there to help you. You can go home in about a day. Get some rest. You'll need it for your recovery."

He walked out, shutting the door quietly behind him. I turned to Thalia, who was softly smiling. She had tears in her eyes though, and her eyes held so much pain and regret and sadness.

"Hey, hey. Don't cry." I soothed her. I motioned for her to come closer. She came over to my bedside and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Everything's going to be fine." I took her hand in mine and just held it.

Thalia laughed, sniffling. "Says the hurt girl that needs healing."

I laughed with her. "Hey, physical pain is something I can bear. But emotional pain.....It doesn't always heal in a few days or a few weeks. It doesn't heal sometimes."

Thalia remained silent. When she didn't say anymore, I smiled tiredly at her.

"Go home, Thalia. You need to rest too." I told her.

Thalia seemed like she was going to argue, but then thought twice and reluctantly left. I closed my eyes and laid my head back on my pillows and drifted into a deep sleep.

~~~

I looked at the clock. It was almost 11 at night, and my daughter would chew me out for not putting her kids to bed sooner. Well, they were already nodding off to sleep. I picked up the younger child and brought her to the other couch on the other side of the coffee table, then went back over to her brother and rotated him so that he was lying comfortably. I kissed each of my grandchildren on their foreheads and wished them good night.

All right, two thoughts: Ok, ok, I know Ben isn't in this part of the one-shot, and I know that this is long. 

This was originally a part of a story that I didn't have enough of a plot line for, so I decided to turn it into a one-shot with multiple parts, idea courtesy of ElizabethTopaz. I'd like to thank her for helping me with the story. Without her brilliant idea(s), I probably would've kept this story unpublished forever. Thank you!