Ravenwolf's Rose

Naked & Exposed

"Why didn't you ask anyone for help? You're still injured..."

We were still standing close to one another. Although he removed his hand from my back and put down the bowl he hadn't stepped away. I gulped while looking up at him.

"I... don't want to be a burden to anyone in this house anymore. I feel a lot better..." he looked at me unconvinced by my statement.

"Alright, if you say so..." he grabbed the bowl and then put it back in place again. Midway, I tried intercepting, but I winced a little having not realized I did indeed push myself too far. He sighed, looking at me concerned.

"See? You're not alright..." he brought down the bowl again and we stared at one another. 

"If you really didn't want to burden anyone you would get better as soon as possible..." I couldn't believe this was coming out of his mouth. Wanting to be right, as usual... but somehow I couldn't bear to argue with him again.

"I understand," I spoke frankly and he put his arms on his hips. Seconds later he turned around to leave. I sighed while walking back to the cutting board I brought out and start making my fruit bowl. After I finished I got to the steps again. This time... this would be difficult. Coming down was a lot different from going up the steps. No matter the amount of time, I had told myself earlier, I would try doing this on my own...

So, step by step, I walked up the long staircase. I had to stop a few times, letting out a few painful sighs and then continued. When I couldn't take the soreness in my upper back area I sat down again. It was like I had run a marathon. 

All I could think about was getting into bed again and laying on my side. But I also couldn't stop thinking about Kai's comment... although I didn't want to agree with that man... he wasn't necessarily wrong. I should have asked someone for help...

***

The next few days passed. 

I was a little overwhelmed by everyone's kindness. Apart from Rae, I hadn't felt that from anyone in a long time. Not since my mom... so it was hard adjusting to.

It sometimes felt like I didn't deserve the attention or the amount of attention to my needs. But then I thought about how awful that was, considering what I had been through or what I had been going through.

Just allowing my body to rest and be thankful for the people who support me is one thing I had grown to take appreciation for during this period of time.

When James brought me a handful of books one of the days I knew I had made a kind of impact I initially set out to...

Despite wanting to be able to do the things I normally did when I wasn't in this condition, I slowly became stronger as the days passed. When my body allowed it, I was able to do some sketches while sitting up in my bed. Some days I would be able to walk around this level of the house, not feeling the weight of pain as I did days earlier.

When it felt like I could finally have a shower without assistance, I waltzed over happily to my bathroom. I was excited that after a week of not being as mobile as I used to be I could rely on myself. I still felt some stiffness in my neck and a little tenderness in my back, but above all it was an improvement...

When I went to turn on the taps, however, there was an unusual creaking noise coming from the pipes. When I tried turning them back and forth no water was came out. I sighed, thinking about how desperate I was to have a shower on my own for the first time in a while. 

I thought about what kind of backup plan I had in this case... and then it dawned on me... there was a communal bathroom on this level. I exhaled to myself... I had been a little too spoiled by living in this huge mansion... of course not every normal home had a finished bathroom in the bedroom...

I grabbed a hold of my towel, body wash, and a spare change of clothes and walked down the hall towards the bathroom.

When I got there, I couldn't help but admire the gorgeous open concept... for a bathroom, it was impressive. There was rose gold, off-white, and beautiful shades of blue all over the bathroom. The faucet on the large bathtub, off to the side, had lions on each side... I couldn't believe how stereotypical the symbolism was here...

I smiled to myself... looking over at the full-size walk-in shower and slowly began disrobing. When I got into the shower, I turned on the heat immediately. I couldn't believe how wonderful the water felt against my shoulders... a sudden peace erupted all over my body. I was becoming immersed in the moment...

Before I knew it, my hands were starting to prune. I didn't know how long I had been in the shower for... but I knew it was time for me to head out...

I turned the shower head off and stepped out.

I reached for my towel and wrapped it around my body. I forgot to grab my body wash so I leaned into the shower again and grabbed it. My back  was turned from the front entrance.

Just as I stepped back, Kai was standing there, midway from bringing his hands to his face. He was shirtless and had a towel in his right hand. I screamed as soon as I saw him. 

My voice echoed into space. I tried covering myself more, but it made it worse because my towel fell out of place. He looked out briefly and then covered his eyes again.