Ch. 32 - The Real Challenge Begins

Chapter 32:

The Real Challenge Begins

         Arriving back at UK, Erick and Crystal caught up with Melinda and Andrea at the perfect time - walking between classes. They were on their way to Melinda and Crystal’s second-to-last class of the day, World Geography.

         It was one of those “generic” classes students had to take regardless of their major. But these two loved that class. Not only was the teacher good enough at it to keep them from getting bored, he also obviously loved the subject himself, and his enthusiasm was rubbing off on them. Not to mention the fact that Crystal had noticed early on that there had been a “world” of changes in the countries of this world since the map she remembered as a youngster, and she was very curious to learn more about what changes had taken place.

         ”Hi, Melinda, hi, Andrea!” Crystal called out from about 20 feet behind her friend as Erick helped her walk toward the class. Both ladies stopped and turned around, and Crystal and Erick both just smiled as they watched Melinda and Andrea’s jaws drop open. Crystal knew very well what was coming next, and she loved it.

         ”You’re WALKING!” Melinda openly shouted. As she and Andrea waited for Crystal and Erick to catch up, Crystal could tell her friend was watching every move she made with her leg.

         ”This is WONDERFUL!” Andrea exclaimed as they got close enough to continue the walk together. How does it feel, Crystal?”

         ”Your word is the best one for this, Andrea,” Crystal said smiling. It’s WONDERFUL! It’s going to be tough going for at least a year, but I’ll make it. I’m enjoying being back on my feet again far too much to stop now!” They all smiled. Crystal then saw a small series of steps coming in the sidewalk. “Uh-oh, honey. Steps ahead. My first time,” she said nervously as she stopped at the top of the short 3-step obstacle.

         "Not a problem, honey,” Erick said calmly. Moving ahead of her but without letting go, he stepped down the first step, his hands still lightly on her shoulders. “How about this, baby? For now, do the steps one at a time, leading with your left foot. That foot can tell you when you’ve finished the step down, then you bring your right leg down to join it on the same step. Just for starters. What do you think?”

         ”Sounds good to me, honey,” she said nervously. I’ll have to bend my right knee though, as I step down, so be ready to catch me, OK?” They both knew it was her nervousness showing.

         ”Ready when you are, sweetheart,” he said warmly. As Melinda and Andrea watched intently, Crystal began slowly stepping down with her left leg first as Erick watched every motion. Suddenly she fell forward toward him, letting out a short squeal as she fell right into Erick’s waiting arms. “I’ve got you, honey,” he said as he held her close to help her quickly realize she was no longer falling.

         ”God that scared me, Erick!” she said. “Thanks for catching me baby! What… what happened? Could you tell?”

         ”Yep, honey, I was watching every move. You need to bend your right knee a little faster as you step down. You lost your balance because your right knee was still too straight, and it sort of pushed you forward because of that. Try bending it faster on the next one.”

         ”Got it, honey. And thanks for catching me!” she said again, still a bit flustered but openly relieved.

         ”Honey, I think I’m going to like practicing steps with you for a year,” he said, a naughty grin on his face. “It gives me another in a wonderfully long line of reasons to grab you and hold you lovingly in my arms,” he said tenderly as he kissed her.

         ”Oh, YOU!” she teased back. “Leave it to you to think of THAT!” Melinda and Andrea chuckled as Crystal poked him with a finger. Then, more quietly, she added, “I’m sure glad you’re there for me Erick. I wouldn’t want to try any of this without you by my side. Even with only what I’ve learned and tried so far, I know for certain that I’d want you with me for that year of practice even if Dr. Bernhardt and Candice hadn’t requested it. Thanks for being there for me, darling!” she said as the loving tears of joy and relief began flowing from her eyes.

          Shortly, she had composed herself and was ready to finish her first try at descending that staircase. “Honey, what about leading with my right leg, then bringing my left one down to that step?” she asked.

         Smiling at her continued enthusiasm for walking, Erick said, “Sure, honey. But remember - doing it that way you’ll have to watch intently and notice pressure on your right stump as the sign that you’ve got your foot on the step. And remember what Candice said about being careful bending your knee and feeling for the added stability that tells you your foot is FLAT on the step. Got it?”

         ”God, this is going to be a challenge for her, isn’t it?” Melinda said, noticing the little details Erick was reciting when all of them had just taken the act of walking for granted all their lives..

         ”Yes, Melinda,” Crystal said, smiling warmly with understanding. “Now you see why I didn’t question Dr. Bernhardt’s instruction that I have Erick right along with me for at least a year. And it can be longer than a year if I want it to be. Dr. Bernhardt said I should keep Erick with me until I am as certain as I can be that I can maneuver on any kind of terrain. Things like these steps and other uneven terrain are one of the biggest reasons for that suggestion, and for the fact that I have no trouble with it. In fact I agree with it. Changing the direction I walk is another one. I still can’t turn on my own. I think you’ve known how serious I am about succeeding at this, and listening to my doctor, especially when he knows the relationship between Erick and I as well as he does, is a key part of that. An injury now could be a major setback, and I’m not about to let that happen, especially since the knowledge that I have no feeling in the leg itself has been part of this from the beginning,” she said, still smiling. “Honey, let’s do it. I don’t want to be late for class.”

         ”Geez, Crystal,” Melinda said. “I can easily see what you mean. And you know something? Your determination shows in every word you just said, and I admire you for that. Anyone that thinks you’re using Erick as a crutch is someone who doesn’t know you or doesn’t understand how important this is to you,” she finished as Crystal started to take that step down with her right leg.

         ”Thanks for the vote of confidence, Melinda. I appreciate that right now,” Crystal said as her left leg came down to the same step.

         ’That goes for me, too, Crystal.”

         ”Thanks, Andrea,” Crystal responded as she came down the last of those three steps.

         ”You’re very welcome,” Andrea responded warmly as she began pushing Melinda’s chair while Erick resumed his post at Crystal’s side as she walked.

         A couple minutes later, almost to her next class, they came across a buckle in the sidewalk. “Geez, Erick. Bumps in the sidewalk never used to bother me a bit. Now they feel like those hurdles people jump over in the Olympics,” she said, coming to a stop right in front of the buckled concrete. “Because I know that now I could fall down stepping over it if I don’t do this right.”

         ”Let’s do this the way we did when Candice was first teaching you about noticing when your right foot was flat on the floor giving you more stable support, honey. Since you led with that foot going down those stairs, it should work just as well starting with that one here. You seem to prefer that I think.”

         ”You’re right, Erick, I do. I think it’s because that means I still have my good leg to help stabilize myself if I shift a little too far or something.”

         ”Honey, whatever works for you right now is fine by me. Like Candice said, you’ll get more graceful with time in your motions. The object right now is just to get you walking, but doing it safely.”

         ”Right, sweetheart,” she said, smiling at him. “Thanks for the reminder. You’re going to have your hands out to catch me but only if I need it, like we’ve been doing, right?”.

         Erick noticed just a slight hint of nervousness in her voice. He made sure his sounded firm. “Right, honey. Just like we’ve been doing from your first session with Candice. Go for it. I’m right here.”

         ”Thanks, baby. Because this time I have to lift that foot a certain distance to get over the bump in the sidewalk, not just step forward and down with it like at the steps. Here goes.” Erick watched closely as Crystal lifted her right leg up, balancing on her left. She teetered just a little because she wasn’t quite used to the total weight of her new right leg yet, but she didn’t fall. Leaning forward, she brought her right foot down on the other side of the buckled pavement. Just as she was about to push off with her left foot to take the next step, she wavered on her right leg this time. Realizing her right foot wasn’t flat on the ground, she tried to put her weight back on her left leg and correct the right one, but she couldn’t do both of those things fast enough. Erick caught her, and carefully, slowly leaned her back onto her left leg.

         ”Try it again, honey,” he said warmly.

         ”I’m going to try this one the other way, I think,” Crystal said as she brought her right leg back next to her left one. “That way I will know my left foot is flat, and I should be able to balance on that long enough to bring the right one over the ‘bump in the road’, she said, laughing a moment.

         ”Like I said, baby, whatever works for you for now, go for it. I’ll be right here where I want to be.”

         ”Thanks, honey,” she said as she lifted her left leg, balancing on her right one. In a moment, she’d taken that step and gotten her right leg over the bump as well. “That works!” she gleefully announced. “OK. For now, down steps I lead with my right leg, but for these situations I lead with my left.” Crystal started confidently walking again as she finished that explanation and reminder to herself.

         ”And I’ll be right here to help you remember, honey.”

         ”Thanks, Erick. I never know when my short term memory problem will kick in, but you already know that.”

         ”Yeup, I do, and it doesn’t change a thing. I love you even more for your determination in this thing,” he said warmly as they reached the building for her next class. Andrea held the door for them, then followed them in as she pushed Melinda’s wheelchair.

         As they entered the classroom a couple minutes later, those already in the room immediately spotted Crystal and went to their feet, erupting in a round of applause at the same time. Crystal had noticed that most of those same students had been in at least one of her other classes before. “Thank you,” she said a bit loudly, blushing as she spoke.

         ”You deserve it, Crystal!” came a voice from the back of the room.

         ”Most of you have been in at least one of my other classes,” she said, grinning. “So you know how very much it means to me to be on my feet again. I should have seen this coming, for that reason, and I thank you all for your support,” she said, a little emotionally, as Professor (Ann) Farber entered.

         ”I sure wish I’d get that kind of reception when I walk into a classroom,” Professor Farber laughed. “Crystal, I see now that everything we’ve heard about you is true. You’re fighting spirit shows well, even at this moment. Otherwise you wouldn’t be standing here. You’d still be in that wheelchair. And I admire you for that kind of determination. Congratulations on getting back on your feet - literally,” she finished, still smiling.

         ”Thank you, Professor Farber,” Crystal blushed through her laughter at the Professor’s wording. “I appreciate knowing you feel that way.”

         ”You’re welcome, Crystal. Peg is right - you deserve it. Now, if you’ll all take your seats, we’ll get started with the next chapter.”

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         As Crystal, Erick, Melinda and Andrea approached the building entrance after class, Erick saw a minor hassle on the horizon. Literally. “Honey, I think it’s about to rain. We’ll need to put the sleeves on your limbs before we go through that door. We don’t want to take chances with the moisture giving you electrical problems.”

         ”Boy, do you have THAT right, Erick! That’s all I’d need right now,” she laughed.

         ”Sleeves?” Andrea asked.

         Turning her head to Andrea as Andrea brought Melinda’s chair to a stop, Crystal continued. “Yes, Andrea. Sleeves. They’re waterproof and designed to keep most of the moisture away from the electrical contacts that work my arm and leg. Watch Erick and you’ll see what we mean.”

         By then, Erick had gotten the plastic bag from the back of Melinda’s chair and pulled out one of the elastic sleeves. “Straighten out your elbow, darling, so I can slip this over your arm more easily.” Once it was over her wrist, Erick quickly slid it up her am to the spot where the stump and arm met, then stretched it a little and slipped it over the end of the arm, and the end of her stump so that the joint between the two was completely covered. “Does that feel OK, honey?”

         ”Yeup, it feels fine, Erick, but I just noticed something,” she said, smiling at him.

         ”What’s that?” The smile on her face made him keep smiling with her and he didn’t even know why. Yet.

         ”Look around, Erick. There’s no place for me to sit for you to put the other sleeve on my leg,” she laughed.

         Erick looked around and noticed she was right. No bench by the door, and all the nearby classroom doors were closed, indicating they were occupied. He thought a moment and realized they could all have some fun with this little snafu. “Melinda, would you mind if Crystal sat on your lap for moment?” he laughed. That brought a good laugh from all three of the ladies.

         ”Not at all, Erick!” she laughed. “Ready when you are!” Erick picked Crystal up and sat her sideways across Melinda’s lap.

         ”I’ve got a good grip on the chair, Erick,” Andrea laughed. “Go for it.”

         ”Thanks, Andrea,” he said as he slipped the sleeve over Crystal’s foot and ankle. “Here goes, honey,” he laughed. Sliding it up Crystal’s leg, he stretched it out and slipped it over the joint with her stump. “OK, Beautiful, you’re all but waterproof so we’re ready to tackle the rain,” he grinned as he stood up.

         "Does this remind you of anything, honey?" Crystal asked, a wide smile on her face.

         "Like what?" Erick asked. He'd noticed her facial expression, and as always she had him wondering.

         "Like when you took the garter off my other leg at the reception," she laughed.

         "Only moving it the other direction, and on the other leg," added Melinda as she laughed with them.

         "You two are right," Erick laughed. "That's exactly what this feels and looks like. Well, are we ready, ladies?”

         ”As ready as we’ll ever be I suppose, Melinda said as she took an umbrella from Andrea’s outstretched hand. Erick helped Crystal stand again, and they began heading for the door.

         As they stepped outside, Melinda opened her umbrella, and Erick slipped another umbrella out of the back of Melinda’s chair. He opened it, then held it out to Crystal. “Here you go, honey. Hold this in your right hand so you have your left arm for normal use in balancing yourself in case you need it.” He held the umbrella till Crystal had a chance to be sure she had closed those new fingers tightly enough to hold it.

         ”Got it, baby!” she squealed, looking at Erick so the motor would stop. “And it feels good to hold something normal in that hand again!”

         ”Honey, words don’t come close to describing how good it feels to see you this happy, and to hear it in your voice,” he said as he opened up an umbrella for himself. “Now I know exactly what your dad felt like when he said, the day after you first got here, that he could hear the happiness in your voice for himself and knew this was truly right for you. You’ve expressed happiness a lot lately, but not often like I just heard in that sentence.”

         ’Thanks, honey. You’re right. I do feel that good about it, and it’s great to know it’s that obvious. I feel a lot of relief right now. I’ve used both of my new limbs in typical ways already, and it feels marvelous. And don’t worry. I won’t let that happiness make me over confident. I know that would be asking for trouble, that I have a long way to go. That’s why you heard me say from the start that I not only need you here for at least that year of practice, but I WANT you here by my side for at least that long, maybe more, till I’m truly comfortable with them and they seem as natural as possible to me.”

         ”Good, sweetheart. I’m proud of you for fully realizing both the fun and the risks here, and having the patience for it. One more thing, baby. If the wind picks up and starts to pull that umbrella enough to make you even the slightest bit nervous about keeping your balance, just stop, stand still, point the umbrella into the wind, let it close and I'll help you till it dies down. OK?"

         "OK, honey."

         "Great. Let’s get you ladies to class.”



         About midway through that final class of the day, Erick noticed Crystal appeared to be having trouble staying alert. Quietly whispering in her ear, he asked, “Honey, are you getting tired?”

         Crystal looked over at him, a warm smile on her face beneath two very heavy eyelids. “I’m not getting tired, honey. I’m already there,” she whispered back, still smiling.

         ”We’ll take care of that,” he said, returning her smile.



         When class was over, Erick caught Melinda and Andrea before they left the classroom. “Come over here a minute, ladies,” he called. As he lifted the plastic bag from the back of Melinda’s chair, he said, “Crystal’s too tired to finish the day walking.” Then, looking at Crystal as he slipped the waterproof sleeve from her arm, he said, “So I get to carry her for a while just like the good old days.”

         Crystal smiled again. “Thanks, honey. I’ve missed that today.”

         Melinda and Andrea watched, intrigued, as Erick removed the arm and leg and put the caps on Crystal’s stumps, again adding the waterproof sleeves.

         ”Boy, that sure is an interesting transformation, isn’t it?” Andrea asked as Erick wrapped the plastic bag tightly around the open ends of the limbs to keep those contacts dry and put them carefully in the bag on the back of Melinda’s chair.

         ”I’ll second that,” added Melinda. “I confess I’ve been wondering what that part of this would be like, and that I’ve been fascinated watching that change take place. Um… it didn’t take nearly as long as I thought it would, either.”

         ”Nope,” said Crystal. “I love that. We don’t end up spending hours doing that every week.”

         ”Should we head home, ladies?” Erick said as he picked up Crystal and held her tightly against him.

         ”Yes, please, Erick, and don’t be surprised if I’m asleep before we even get to the truck. I’ve always loved the way it feels when you hold me this close, and that’s only going to relax me even more,” she said with a lazy, warm smile.

         ”Go for it, honey,” he laughed. As they approached the building entrance, he checked the weather. “It’s only spitting a little, Andrea. You and Melinda can go ahead and use the umbrellas if you want, but I don’t think Crystal and I will need one, thankfully.”

         Crystal was right. She was fast asleep by the time Erick sat her tenderly in the truck and fastened her seat belt, not even moving a muscle as he let go of her, got Melinda settled in the rear seat, and closed the door as Andrea closed her back door on the other side. A few minutes later, Erick dropped Andrea off at her car in the parking lot, warmly thanked her for her continued help with their situation, and headed for Melinda’s.



         As they drove, it was obvious that Crystal was all but exhausted. She didn’t make a sound or move a muscle the whole trip to Melinda’s home. “I think she found out for herself exactly what Dr. Bernhardt meant when he told her that this would be much harder on her body than she thought it would,” Erick said, smiling as he lifted Melinda out of the truck and into her chair. "I think the adrenalin rush she felt at finally walking after so long finally ran out," he said warmly as he looked at her.

         ”You can say that again,” Melinda said as Erick slipped Crystal’s limbs and their other supplies from the wheelchair bag and placed them in the truck, then wheeled Melinda into the house.

         After greeting her mother, Erick returned to the truck to find Crystal still sound asleep as he expected. Gently kissing her forehead, he said softly, “Honey, I wouldn’t trade this, or anything else we’ve shared for any other life. I treasure what we share. And you’ll hear that yourself when the time is just right.” Climbing in the truck, he headed home.

         Once there, he looked across the street as he opened Crystal’s passenger door to lift her into his arms. Bob wasn’t on his porch. “Good,” Erick thought quietly. “I wouldn’t want him shouting right now and teasing us about doing right now exactly what we did that night she came here. I love that idea, but not at this moment; it would wake her up,” he said to himself as he carried her in the house.

         A few minutes later, Erick had gently laid Crystal in the bed, still dressed, and covered her with the blanket to keep her warm. Setting the alarm for the usual time the next morning, he joined her in bed, making certain not to awaken her. Smiling with a thought about her reaction tomorrow to being so tired and sleeping so soundly, he realized how tired he himself really was as he dozed off in the middle of his nightly prayer.

Chapter 33 - New Challenges  (18+) Crystal's adventure in walking continues #1104609 by Incurable Romantic