Brave

Chapter 26: Shopping Buddy

When I go back to therapy on Thursday, I find that I've actually missed it, and I'm excited to see Fern. "Hey, Sarah, how's it going today? I hope you're feeling better," she quips as she walks into the therapy gym.

"Oh, yes, thank you," I respond to Fern's question, feeling slightly guilty about fibbing to her. "I must have had a little bug or something. It wiped me out for a few days, but now I'm good as new. Well, almost!" I laugh, pointing to my prosthetic leg.

"You are doing better than most when it comes to recovering from an accident like yours!" Fern gushes. "Well, what should we work on today?"

"First, can I ask your opinion about something?" I ask.

"Of course," Fern answers.

"Well, Ethan and I have our first official date this Saturday." Fern's face lights up when she hears that. "I'm not really ready to show off my new look, you know," I say, gesturing to my fake leg again.

"I knew it! I knew he'd win you over! I'm so happy for you!" Fern begins. "Let me think...hmm, what about wearing a pair of dressy slacks?"

"I wore a nice pair last weekend when I went out with him-"

"You said your first date is this weekend," Fern interrupts.

"Well, that was unofficial," I shrug. "We went out with his family."

She looks thoroughly confused, so I tell her about the art contest and that Ethan won first prize. I figured I'd save the anecdote about meeting his sister for some other time. I pulled up a picture of the painting on my phone to show her.

"Whoa, that is so awesome!" She says in a low, slow tone of voice. "He painted that for you?"

My heart fluttered in acknowledgment as I nodded. "So anyway, I don't want to wear the same outfit again."

She agrees to give it some thought and we get started with some balance and strengthening exercises. The session goes by fast as we chat happily about my budding relationship with Ethan.

When we finish, Fern asks, "I was thinking, would you want to go shopping with me? I can help you pick out something to wear this weekend."

I'm taken aback, but pleasantly so, by Fern's invitation. I never thought she'd view me as a friend, but I like the idea. We've hit it off well, so I think it would be fun. "Sure, that would be great. What time do you get off of work?"

"My last appointment is at 3:00, so I should be done at 4:00."

"Okay, I'll have my mom drop me back off here. Can we take your car? I'm not exactly in a position to drive just yet," I chuckle.

"You will, probably when you get your permanent leg. You have such a great attitude," Fern assures me. "Yeah, we can take my car. I'll see you at 4:00."

As my mom and I head out, I ask if she can take me back into town at 4:00. "I can find out if Fern can drop me off at Ethan's afterward, and maybe he can drive me home."

"I have to go back to school this afternoon, but I was planning to go in around 2:00," she informs me. "Is that okay?"

"Um, yeah," I tell her. "I'm sure I can just hang out at the clinic until Fern gets done."

"For two hours? Are you sure?" My mom looks a little worried.

"I'll text Ethan, but I'm sure it won't be a problem," I tell her.

When I arrive at the clinic, the receptionist, Lia, the receptionist, looks surprised. "Oh, hi again, Sarah. Did you forget something?"

"Oh, no, I'm just here to wait for Fern. And to say hi to Ethan," I say, blushing slightly. As if on cue, Ethan walks through the door and kisses my cheek. Lia nods in understanding, with a grin on her face.