Chapter 1
Z ander stepped out of the wheelchair with the assistance of Nelly and Dani.
Zander wasn’t sure those two tiny women could keep him from falling.
As soon as his one good foot landed on the floor, he sneezed.
Nelly looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
He held up a hand. “I’m fine. I’m fine,” he muttered, looking around at his new room.
“Are you sure?” Nelly asked.
“Absolutely. I’ll be fine.” He just wanted to get settled in and to have nobody else look at him with that same look—as if to say, Hey, bud, you’re sick.
You shouldn’t be here . That was the last thing he wanted right now for himself.
He hated the fact that he’d been big and brawny and had turned into this sickly person he’d never been before.
Seems as if he caught everything that came by, with zero resistance to anything.
He got the message, loud and clear. His immune system was shot, and he was working toward building it all back up again.
He was desperate to not have anything affect his ability to stay here.
With assistance, he slowly made his way into his bed. He stifled his pain as much as he could. He wanted everybody to leave so he could lie down and moan.
Dani smiled at him. “We’ll give you some time to adjust to your surroundings. So, unless you need something from me or Nelly right now, we’ll come back a little later.”
Zander nodded, not saying anything. He watched Nelly follow Dani out of the room. Nelly had long auburn hair tied back in a braid. It swung when she walked.
As the two women headed for the door, a knock came, right before the door opened and an enthusiastic male came bounding in. The two women smiled at him and then waved goodbye to Zander, shutting the door behind them.
It took a moment for Zander to register who it was. Staring at his visitor in shock, he muttered, “Good Lord, Xavier?”
Xavier gave him a beaming smile and walked over and hugged him. “You finally made it,” he exclaimed. “I wanted to be here for your arrival, but it just seemed as if everything was pushed back and pushed back.”
“I know,” Zander muttered, followed by a wry smirk. “All I did was get sick and more sick and even sicker. I didn’t think I would ever get here.”
“But you’re here now.” When Zander tried to get up out of bed, Xavier just shook his head. “Sit right there.”
“And what good will sitting do?” Zander asked.
“Because you’re not ready to dance,” Xavier replied. “Start where you can start.”
Zander studied Xavier intently. “I can’t believe you now,” he said in awe. “You’re positively glowing. You look… strong, vibrant, healthy, while I feel like an aging invalid.” Zander was seriously envious and yet… hopeful. Could he end up as strong as his buddy?
“I am all that and more,” Xavier replied. “I have a complete new lease on life. I’m back. My body vibrates with energy. I’m strong,” he shared, “and it’s all because of Hathaway House. So this is where you need to be too.”
“Well, I tried,” he teased, with an eye roll at his friend. “You got my spot.”
Xavier smiled. “Everything happens in its own time and place.”
Zander groaned. “Where are you getting that gibberish from?”
“Hey, this place is full of that stuff.” He smiled. “You have no idea what a culture shock you’re in for.”
Zander frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“Your comment about being an invalid? No one’s in very good shape when we first arrive, but, by the time we’re ready to leave”—he stepped back and motioned at himself—“look at me.”
“I am,” Zander declared, trying to keep the jealousy out of his tone. “I’m not exactly sure what happened to you, or what you’ve been taking, but I want some.”
His friend burst out laughing. “Then listen to the staff here at Hathaway,” he replied. “Listen to them and follow what they tell you to do.”
His tone held such an emphatic declaration that Zander frowned. “Sounds like a story is behind that.”
“Not really,” he noted. “The journey is about trust. Although we have been on multiple journeys that we had seemingly figured out, this one’s different.” Xavier looked down at his watch and winced. “I’m so glad I managed to see you when you arrived, but I do have to run.”
“Of course you do. I’m so sorry that you aren’t still staying here.”
“That’s okay ’cause I’ll be back and forth.
I’m so happy that I was your first visitor, and I promise I’ll be back soon.
Not tomorrow though, because you need to just rest and recuperate from the trip here.
I’ll come by this weekend,” he shared. “You’ve got my cell number.
You know I’m here locally, so it’s all good. ”
And, with that, Zander watched as Xavier dashed off. Zander immediately felt a sense of loneliness and even abandonment. Yet that might have more to with Xavier’s successful progress than his leaving the room. Zander couldn’t believe the energy in Xavier’s body or in his spirit.
Then another knock came on his door, and Dani stepped in to ask, “Do you need a pain pill? Don’t be shy about speaking up.”
Zander shook his head.
She pointed to the Call button on the remote for his bed.
“If you change your mind, just press that button. If you have any questions, just ask me or anyone else who is around.” She paused, giving him a chance to speak, but Zander remained quiet.
“My father and I built this place, specifically to help him. You’ll see him around this place. ”
“Ah.” Zander nodded. “I do remember reading something about that on the website.”
She smiled and nodded. “And rehab’s a journey, a journey with ups and downs, but, through it all, it’s forward progress,” she shared, “so keep that in mind.”
He shifted in his bed and winced.
“I see you’re already in pain, and you’ve got a sweat going on, and we don’t want you to overdo it.” She sent a quick text.
He winced because obviously they had already seen what he was hoping they wouldn’t see, which was his weak system and his frail body. “I’m really hoping that you guys can do something to regain some of my health,” he murmured.
“We can,” Dani declared. “Nelly, as your nutritionist, specializes in getting everybody’s systems back up to optimum health.
She and Dennis monitor a lot of the green vitamin drinks you’ll soon see, as you’ll have at least one a day, if not multiple times a day.
Shane is head of our PT rehab program. He’s part of your team, and we’ll have a rehab plan set up for you soon.
Regardless, as time goes on, we’ll tweak that plan to make you as good and as strong as you can be. ”
He frowned. “So the green drinks have vitamins in them?”
Dani nodded. “To a certain extent, yep. Today’s will have some pain medication as well. If need be, we’ll do some vitamin shots too, depending on what your Hathaway doctors say, after they sort out your medicals.”
“You have doctors here?”
“Yes, several are in-house on rotating shifts. Plus, we have specialists in town, depending on what’s needed.”
“This place is way bigger than I thought,” Zander admitted.
“It is quite big. It doesn’t hurt that we’ve just done a rather large addition.” She chuckled. “Yet, with all additions come growth and some adjustments to be made.”
He wasn’t sure if some hidden message was in that, but, hey, he was just glad that he was here. “I’m happy to have a private room. Most places don’t have that.”
“That was part of why we did our expansion. We don’t want people isolated, but we know how important it is at the end of the day to have your own space.”
He could appreciate that. He didn’t know exactly how tough the rehab days would be, but he knew that Xavier had definitely had a few days that were nothing he wanted to talk about.
… Still, that would be Zander’s journey ahead.
He was just hoping that he could face it without wanting to puke and then pass out. He looked around the room.
Dani handed him an e-tablet and several paper documents.
“You need to read over and sign these. And the tablet,” she explained, “has your schedule, your team and how to contact them, and quite a bit of information about how the system works here,” she explained cheerfully.
“I know Xavier’s probably told you a lot about it, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t have some holes in that first-hand experience that he shared with you. ”
“I guess it’s possible. I know he’s certainly a huge fan of the work you guys do here.”
“Good.” Dani nodded. “That’s what we like to hear. Your success is our success.”
And it sounded trite, but he knew that she meant it. He looked around and noted, “I did have some personal belongings.”
“Yep, the paramedics brought them in. I’ll have them brought down for you.
It is four o’clock, and dinner begins in the next hour,” she shared.
“If you want a hand to get down there, I will come get you. Otherwise I’ll leave it up to Nelly, who’ll be here in a few minutes with your first dose of supplements. ”
He frowned at her and asked, “Like swallowing supplements?”
“Liquids, so the green drinks I mentioned,” she clarified. “They’re generally easier and faster to absorb.”
He nodded slowly. “Maybe, but it might impact my ability to eat too.”
“That’s what the first few days will be all about,” she noted.
“We have to know what will work for you and what won’t.
” She motioned at the stack of paperwork in his lap.
“Now, on that tablet,” she added, “are all our names and contacts of everybody in your team. Each team member will pop in over the next couple days to say hi and to introduce themselves and to get to know you a little bit. So I’ll leave you for now because I hear Nelly coming back. ”
And, with that, Nelly popped in, a bright smile on her face.
Dani stepped out and waved. “If you have any questions, just get a hold of us.” And she was gone.
*
Nelly watched Zander study her, as she approached with the big green drink in her hand.
He stared at it and frowned. “That’s an awful lot.”
“It is,” she agreed. “The question is, whether food sits or doesn’t sit. We have your file, but that doesn’t mean it’s been updated.”
“Food sits as long as it’s not too hard to digest,” he stated. “Generally I have a raving appetite, but I’m not exactly gaining weight.”
“Right, and we’ll work on that. You’ve got six months here, so it will take however long it takes to get you back on your feet.”
“And have you had anybody who couldn’t recover, who came in sickly and didn’t do well?”
She shook her head. “So far, since I’ve been here, everybody has done well,” she said. “The difference is the time frame that it takes to show the improvements that you want to see.”
He stared at her. “And I guess that’s one of the challenges, isn’t it?” he murmured. “Your time frame versus mine.”
“Absolutely.” Nelly studied the young man on the bed in front of her.
He looked a lot younger, mostly because of the pallor in his skin, and to some extent, the more wasted-away look to his body.
Still he would do just fine here. “We have specialists here. We will analyze everything until you’re sick of us. ”
He muttered, “And that’s fine, as long as I show signs of improvement.… I don’t care what you do, just please help me get my life back.”
She nodded. “So let’s get some of this down, starting with just half of this, and we’ll see how you manage.”
He tasted it tentatively and then frowned again. “It tastes good.” He looked down at it. “What’s in it?”
Such suspicion filled his tone, she had to laugh. “Vitamins, minerals,” and she named off a whole pile of other supplements. “Plus, Dani asked that a mild pain medication be included this time too.”
He looked at her. “And you don’t think this drink will come right back up?”
“I hope not,” she replied, pulling up his file on her own e-tablet. “I don’t have anything down about you vomiting.”
“No, not generally. My stomach wasn’t badly damaged in the accident. I eat whatever I want, it seems. Yet I still get sick and can’t gain weight.”
“That’s because your immune system’s shot,” she murmured. “And that’s okay too.”
“It is?” He stared at her.
“Let me rephrase that. Your immunity is okay for the moment, but we will get it built up too.”
“You really think so?” he asked hopefully.
She smiled at him. “I know so. Give us some time, and we’ll get there.” She motioned at his glass. “Tip up a bit more.”
He looked down at the glass and took a big slug. By now it was half gone. “It tastes decent. I could get used to this.”
She smiled. “Good, because it certainly has a lot of nutrients in there that your body needs. As far as meals, you need to focus heavily on vegetable-rich meals, plus carbs for strength and protein to build muscle.”
“So, a balance of all three,” he noted, with a smirk.