Angel Unawares

Trey Moves In

"I have to decide which of my writings are good enough to include in my compilation," Amber told Danny. "I know I want to include my poem about you, but other than that, I just don't have a clue! I was hoping that maybe you could help me go through them and pick out the best ones."

"Sure, I'd be glad to," Danny replied. "Everything you've written looks good to me. You're so deep and introspective. This one about the rainbow looks really nice."

"I wrote that one rainy afternoon."

"I like this one about the circus too," Danny continued.

"That happened when I was five," Amber told him. "My Dad was still alive then. He let me ride on his shoulder."

"I can tell you remember it really well," Danny remarked. "Especially the part about the clown."

Amber laughed. "He was so funny."

"And this essay on courage is just incredible."

"Thank you."

"I'd say these are your best, but that's only my opinion." Danny stacked his favorites and handed them to Amber, who quickly leafed through them, then yawned.

"Come here." Danny lay back on the bed with his head propped up on his elbow. Amber lay beside him, and he put his arms around her and held her close. She rested her head on his shoulder and listened to his strong, steady heartbeat.

"This is my Mom and my sister Shelby," Trey told Jade.

"Nice to meet you." Trey's mother shook Jade's hand. "I'm Debra Whittaker."

"I'm Jade Cartwright."

"Jade's been such a great friend," Trey told Debra. "I met her back in October when she and some friends came by to cheer us up, and she's been coming around regularly since then."

"That's wonderful," Debra replied. "You don't know how hard it was for me when they told me Trey had been hurt," she continued to Jade. "I thought I was going to die. I just couldn't stand the idea of my baby lying there without his legs, but when I got here and saw how happy and upbeat he is, I felt so much better."

"All the credit for that goes to Jade," said Trey. "She gave me back my will to live again."

All Trey's possessions, including his wheelchair and crutches, were loaded into Debra's van, and she drove the short distance to Trey's new apartment. It was across the street from the community college Jade attended and the mall and was made of red brick. Vines bearing pink flowers covered one side, and in back was a swimming pool surrounded by palm trees. The living room had sliding glass doors. The walls were painted white, the kitchen floor was white tile, and the living room floor was brown wood. Jade thought that it looked very cheerful.

The four of them spent a busy morning moving all Trey's belongings into the apartment, and at about noon Debra went out for pizza while Trey, Shelby, and Jade rested and talked. "It looks like you're getting along really well on your new legs," Shelby said to Trey.

"It took a lot of effort and determination," Trey replied. "Jade can vouch for me on that score."

"It's true," said Jade. "So do you still live with your folks, Shelby?"

Shelby nodded. "Where's your Dad?" asked Jade.

"At home." Shelby sighed. "He said he had important business to tend to today."

"That's just an excuse," Trey said grimly. "The truth is that he can't bear to see me the way I am now. To him I was always the big, strong boy, the hero, the one who would make him proud. He just can't accept that fact that I lost my legs. That's why he won't come visit me. As long as he doesn't see me, he can keep pretending that everything's still the same."

"That's terrible!" Jade exclaimed.

"Yeah. It really hurts because I love him and miss him very much."

Debra returned with the pizza and they dug in. After lunch they returned to the task at hand, and by late in the evening, everything had finally been moved from the van to the apartment and stacked in piles in each room. "We can do the sorting another time," said Debra. "That's about enough for one day."

"Well, thanks for helping me move," Trey replied.

"No problem at all," said Debra. "Glad to do it." She and Shelby hugged Trey good-bye and left, and Trey and Jade were alone together for the first time. Jade recalled the first time she'd been alone with Danny and her heart began to beat faster in anticipation. She quickly glanced at Trey to see that he seemed a bit uneasy as well, his one eye darting around to finally rest on her.

"I really appreciate you coming along to help," he told her. "I know you didn't have to."

"That's OK." Suddenly she felt quite shy.

"Hey, when I get this place fixed up, I can have you over for dinner and to watch movies." Trey looked dreamy. "And when I start driving again, we can go for rides and I can take you out to nice places."

"When you start driving again?" Jade was astonished.

"I'm going to have hand controls installed in my car," Trey explained.

"Cool! I didn't even know they could do that."

"Say, Jade." He licked his lips nervously. "Can I kiss you?"

"I think I'd like that."

So he did.