“Excellent, Miss Chelsea,” Dr. Michelle said, easing Chelsea’s leg back onto the table. “The swelling has gone down, and I can safely say that all you did was strain it the wrong direction. Are you going to do that again?”
“No. Absolutely not,” Chelsea replied.
“Good. Go ahead and start to swim again, but gently. Don’t kick too hard, all right? Let your arms do most of the work.”
Chelsea grinned. “I can do that.” This time, she’d be swimming because she wanted to, not because she was expected to. She was looking forward to what that felt like.
Now if she could just get her parents to understand about Joey.
Maybe she’d been naïve to think that they’d change overnight, that one heart-to-heart conversation would undo years of prejudice and thinking a certain way. Maybe she’d hoped for too much, and she was putting unfair expectations on them just as they’d been doing to her. She was certainly willing to think about that.
What she found impossible to think about, however, was living with their continued shortsightedness where social status was concerned. If they couldn’t reevaluate their stance on this, she’d get a place of her own instead of coming home during school breaks. She needed the freedom to keep exploring how she truly felt about the world around her, and if they refused to change, it would only cause a greater rift to stay under the same roof and fight about it constantly. She wouldn’t cut them off completely—she could never do that. But she could establish some healthy boundaries, see them for meals and special occasions, and they could all grow at a pace that was right for them.
That felt good—that felt right.
She walked back to the cabin and found the piece of paper Joey had left for her. She dialed the first number, waited for the girl on the other end to answer, and said, “Hi, Catherine? This is Chelsea McAllister. Joey said you might be able to lifeguard for me while he’s away. Do you have some time this afternoon?”
***
Stepping into the water again was like being kissed by an old friend. Even though she’d only been out of the pool for two days, Chelsea had missed it. Her very skin missed it. She allowed herself to drift forward, just bouncing lightly on the toes of her good leg, moving her arms back and forth to stay upright. This was being in the water just for fun. She had the overwhelming urge to splash someone, but there was no one close enough to splash. That was disappointing.
After a few minutes of simply enjoying herself, she pushed off into a gentle stroke, moving from side to side, allowing her muscles to reacquaint themselves with the movement. She’d never made the correlation before, but it was similar to dance, the way that one side of the body moved and then the other reacted to create balance and harmony. There was beauty to it, artistry, not just the need to go faster or more efficiently. Not just the need to win the medal or take home the trophy. She was dancing in water, at one with the water, feeling every strength and every weakness of her body, feeling it all click into place with the strengths and weaknesses in her character.
She laughed, lifting her face to the sun. She would be all right. She knew that now on the deepest level of knowing. She would heal, as would her mind, as would her flawed perceptions and her aching heart and her relationship with her parents. She simply needed to believe, and to try, and to strive for the very best within herself. And of course to celebrate each day for the gift it was instead of trying to force it to give her things that maybe she shouldn’t even have.
***
“Rain!”
The cry went up along the line of firefighters. Joey pushed back his helmet and looked up into the sky, eager to feel a drop on his scorched face, on his lips. He didn’t feel anything, and he dropped his head, getting back to work. He shouldn’t have gotten his hopes up like that—rain right now was too much to ask for.
But then it started to come down in earnest.
It started in the west and came down in sheets, drenching the workers where they stood and making them laugh with relief. It hit the flames and sizzled. It mixed with ash and made a paste. It rained and it rained and it rained, and all Joey could do was stand in the middle of it and give thanks. They had done everything they could do. They had put all their energy, all their souls, every speck of themselves into it, and they were powerless. Now the rain had come, and it not only washed the earth, but it washed them and cooled their burns and rinsed the sweat and soot from their faces. It was over. It was all finally over, and the men and women who had been battling for weeks could go home at last.
***
“If you’re not actually training, we don’t see a need to stay here,” Chelsea’s mother said as she threw her many pairs of sandals in her suitcase. “We came here so you’d have access to a pool and therapy while we vacationed, and frankly, we’ve decided that we’ve vacationed ourselves right out. We’re going home, and you can check in with your doctor there.”
“I’m not ready to leave yet,” Chelsea replied, trying to stay calm. “I’d like to see Joey first.”
“Well, your father already bought the plane tickets, and we’re not sticking around.” Her mother paused and looked at her. “Someday, when you have a daughter of your own, you’ll understand why we’re doing this. It’s for your own good.”
“I’m sorry, Mom, but I don’t think it is for my own good. I think I need to make some of these decisions for myself, and this is one of them.” She turned and walked out of her parents’ room, bracing herself on the wall for a moment once she reached the hallway. Standing up for herself was getting easier, but it still took a toll on her. She just hoped that she’d always be wise enough to know when to argue and when to give in—her parents did have good ideas sometimes, like coming to River’s End Ranch in the first place.
***
Joey’s knee bounced up and down as the bus drew nearer to the ranch. He’d taken the time to shower and get a hot meal, but he and the other volunteers were all of the same opinion—they wanted to get back home as soon as possible, so they hadn’t stuck around Walla Walla any longer than that. He’d never seen Dani so tired—she’d worked hard in the first aid tent. Every one of them looked like leftovers from a Halloween party—many were covered with bandages, some had black marks that looked like Frankenstein stitches, and all of them had dark circles under their eyes.
When the bus came to a stop, everyone aboard let out a whoop, and they all but scrambled over each other in their hurry to get out. Joey held back and let everyone else off first, then he exited, looking around with a sigh of satisfaction. It was so good to be home, and the ranch really was his home.
Then he looked over to the right and saw the McAllisters getting into their rental car, Chelsea sliding a suitcase into the backseat.
No. No, no, no.
He ran across the parking lot as fast as his aching body would let him. “Wait! Please!”
Chelsea looked up, surprise on her face. “Joey! You’re back!”
“Yes, I am, and you can’t leave, Chelsea. You have to know . . . I have to tell you . . . I love you.” He took her face between his hands and stroked her cheeks with his thumbs. “I know we have a lot to work through, a lot of baggage, so much to talk about. But it’s worth it. We’re worth it. We’re worth every second we put into figuring this out. Please don’t leave. Please give us a chance.”
She smiled and quirked one eyebrow. “I’m not leaving.”
“You’re not?”
“No. My parents are, though. They’re heading back home, and I’m going to stay here for the full three weeks we booked. Seems that I have some unfinished business here.”
“Do I get to know what that unfinished business might be?” His heart was beating so fast, he wondered if he’d even be able to hear her answer around the pounding in his ears.
“Well, let’s see. I seem to remember that someone had a ring for me in their pocket.”
“This ring? In this pocket?” He dug it out and held it up, and she looked at him with astonishment.
“You took it to the fire with you?”
“It was easier than taking you with me.”
She grinned. “So, are you going to put it on me, or are we just going to stand here and chitchat about it all day?”
He slid it on her finger, and then he bent down and kissed her like he’d been wanting to kiss her from the first second she’d arrived on the ranch. He only let her go when her father cleared his throat and peered out through the driver’s side window.
“We’re not entirely pleased about this,” Mr. McAllister said. “We’ll need to have some long conversations about this.”
“And we can, and we will. First, though, I believe I need to kiss your daughter again, sir.” And Joey did just that, loving the way she kissed him back. He was one lucky lifeguard.