"Thanks, Dad."
* * *
My family went home to get some rest and returned later to bring me a few things to clean up with as best I could in bed. When Mom answered a call on her phone, Dad quietly leaned in to mutter that he'd had a mechanic look at my truck and the brake lines had been ripped loose, but they couldn't tell if it happened before or as a result of the wreck.
Dr. Faulkner also stopped by later that afternoon to show me my X-rays and talk about the recovery plan. When I saw the X-rays, I realized why everyone had been so freaked out. I hadn't just broken a bone or two. When my truck's driver's side door had crunched in on me, it had practically shattered my left wrist and my left leg below the knee. I'd also gotten several deep cuts from broken glass, one gash across my forehead, and two or three more on my left shoulder and forearm where apparently I'd tried to hold on to the steering wheel while being tossed around like a sock inside a dryer.
Even with my family and the local descendants helping with long-distance spell work, it was going to be at least a week before they could reknit my bones enough to allow me to leave the hospital, and a month in casts and on crutches. That was the last time I ever used magic while driving. Just in case it was the reason my brake lines blew out.
By Monday afternoon, I was sure it was going to be the longest week of my life. I'd never realized how much I needed two hands until I temporarily lost the use of one of them. I couldn't play video games. Shaving, even with the help of a nurse to hold a mirror for me, was a joke and left me with nicks all over the left side of my face where I couldn't seem to angle the razor correctly. There was nothing worth watching on TV. And I'd already seen all the movies they had in the nurse station's library.
And my last plan to find a solution for Savannah and me had failed. Big-time.
So when a familiar girl poked her head in the doorway, I was pretty happy about it. Even if the girl was a blonde instead of a certain redhead, at least Bethany was someone to talk to who could distract me from the frustration brewing inside my skull like a spring twister.
She returned my smile as she came into the room. "Hey, champ. How are you feeling?"
"Better now that you're here. You wouldn't believe how boring this place is."
Sinking down into the chair, she opened her Charmers bag. "I brought you your homework for the week. I hope you don't mind? Your mom asked me if I could pick it up for her from the front office."
"She called you?" Mom sure was turning on the matchmaker skills lately. Either she really liked Bethany, or she was pretty worried about me.
"Um, no. I called her to see how you were doing and asked if it would be okay to stop by." She took out a stack of books, each one with several loose pages stuck inside. I tugged one paper free, glanced at the notes, and groaned.
"Oh man, this is going to suck."
"Having trouble in history class?" she teased after glancing at Mr. Smythe's notes.
I thought of Savannah, how her long legs looked tucked up under the desk beside mine in that class. "Always."
"If you need a little help this week, I could work with you on it."
I debated for about two seconds, just long enough to remember how ticked off Emily was at me right now. No doubt she was going to be too ticked off to offer much help with homework this week.
"Sure, that'd be great. Thanks."
She grinned, her cheeks turning pink. "It's no problem. The Charmers don't have practice this week or the next so we'll have more time to study for finals. So I can come right after school. And in the meantime...want to start with today's lineup?"
I sighed. "Yeah, why not? It's not like I've got anything else planned."
Laughing, she pulled a textbook from the stack and we got to work.
* * *
Bethany turned out to be a much better tutor than my sister. For one thing, she had way more patience when the deeper context of the English lit reading assignment was lost on me. She also didn't whack the back of my head if a certain redhead came to mind and I spaced out every so often.
When somebody came in with a tray of food at six o'clock, followed by my mother, I think we were all surprised, me most of all. Where had the time gone?
I pretended to eat the craptastic food until Mom left to find a spoon to eat her own takeout with.
As soon as she was gone, I hissed, "Quick, save me! Eat this before she gets back."
Bethany frowned at my tray of food. "Um, why?"
"Because it tastes like dog sh-er, crap-and I don't want to have to listen to everyone's nagging if I don't eat it."
She burst out laughing. "Oh, but it's okay to torture me with the bad food? I don't think so."
"Aw, come on, Bethany! Don't you have any sympathy?" Putting on my best puppy-dog face, I pointedly draped my free hand on my arm cast.
She ignored my plea while gathering up her things. "Sorry, champ, but I'd better head home before my mom gets worried. She knew I was stopping by here, but it's later than she probably expected."
Mom had left the door propped open. I could hear the determined, steady clacking of her heels returning down the hall.
"Bethany, please!" I held out the bowl of creamed corn. "At least toss it in the trash for me or something."
Biting the corner of her lip for a few seconds, she finally grabbed the bowl and dumped it in the trash under the sink. She was just putting the bowl back on the tray for me when Mom reentered the room.
"There you go, all salted and peppered as requested," she said with a bright smile.
"Oh, men can be such babies when they're sick or injured, can't they?" Mom agreed with a smile.
"Well, I'd better go now. See you tomorrow?" Bethany said to me.
I nodded, shoving the gelatinous gravy around on top of my turkey while Mom moved to prop up the pillows behind my back.
"Thank you for coming, dear," Mom murmured to Bethany before returning to her pointless attempts to make me more comfortable.
At the door, behind Mom's back Bethany mouthed, "McDonald's?" while using a pointer finger to draw imaginary golden arches in the air. I nodded frantically.
Mom made me lean forward so she could stuff an extra pillow behind me. I craned my head around her and mouthed, "Big Mac!"
Bethany shot two thumbs up then ducked out.