Standard disclaimers applied. See Chapter 1 for further details.

Author's Note: It was fun writing the parts between Ray and Jason. I'm glad you guys enjoyed it too ;)

CHAPTER 5: A Little Help From my Kin

Just have a little patience
I'm still hurting from a love I lost,
I'm feeling your frustration,
That any minute all the pain will stop ...

So, the first encounter between Ray Barnett and Jason Street was one for the history books. There weren't physical blows but nobody expected a verbal rant either. Perhaps, it was too much to assume that a meeting between two relative strangers, would be filled with warm and fuzzy feelings.

After his rant, Ray had wheeled himself out, almost running over his uncle and aunt in his haste. He mumbled a hurried apology as his mother followed worriedly. "Ray, what happened?"

oOoOo

But, Ray didn't want to put much thought into it. Instead, his mind was focused on his fitting this afternoon. With all the delays between moving from Chicago to Baton Rouge and from there to here in Texas, he was getting temporary limbs. With them, he could learn to walk again.

'Cause the scars run so deep,
It's been hard
But I have to believe.

If he was being honest, he was nervous, even though he had been previously prepped by a whole clinical team back at Baton Rouge. He was given a rundown about phantom pain, self-care techniques, and rehabilitation. Still, he was thankful that the staff here in Texas were very professional and proficient at what they did.

The secret behind leg amputations was having a good gait and knowing how much leverage to use. It was a surreal feeling with the knowledge that you used to have full function of your legs, now there were artificial ones in their place. There was also a sense of fear - from falling or stump pain because he was uncertain how much weight would be needed to support his whole upper body. It was also frustrating as he tried to gain a new sense of equilibrium. He had to retrain his body how to rely on his pelvis to minimize the amount of his stress on his body.

Already, he felt exhausted and he hadn't even start walking with his new limbs. His physiotherapist had already warned him of the fact he was going to expend more energy as his muscles worked harder to keep his body in alignment.

With his mother watching from the other side of the physio room, he was ready for his first daunting steps.

My heart is numb, has no feeling,
So while I'm still healing,
just try, and have a little... Patience

Taking a deep breath, he attempted to drown out the voice of his physiotherapist, Kirsten. "Ok Ray, your center of gravity will be off a bit. That's normal, so there's no need to rush."

Ray felt that he was floating on a cloud. Bright colours swirled around him as he felt the adrenaline flowing. Vertigo sank in, along with the pain.

Kirsten's voice filtered in. "Falling is part of the process. I'm going to be teaching you how to fall properly to minimize the amount of injury to your body."

"That's right, Kirsten. You tell him. There's a proper way to fall and not end up paralyzed like me."

Ray looked up and realized that he was on the ground. He had stood up, but only to fall again. Still the truth of the matter was that, he could stretch out his 6'1 frame after spending weeks confined in a wheelchair.

Then, he turned the source of the last voice. Jason Street stared back down at him from his chair. Holding out his hand stiffly, Jason offered, "Lets call a truce, Doc."

"Truce, QB."

oOoOo

That's how they spent their days at the hospital. Ray and Jason would do their physiotherapy sessions together with their respective PT, Kirsten and Phil. Jason joked to his cousin, "How is that you end up with the gorgeous one and here I am with Phil?"

Phil indignantly replied, "What, I'm not gorgeous enough for you?"

"Besides, you have the gorgeous Lyla Garrity. You can't have them all, QB," Ray shot back.

The former County doctor was doing some leg exercises. His face was turned toward the mirror along the wall, so he could watch the way that his body was moving and prevent poor body mechanics. Jason had teased him, "Just a tad narcissistic, Doc."

Ray got his revenge when Jason was lifting weights to build his upper body strength, by saying, "Not much of a gun show there, QB."

The light mood kept their minds off the strenuous work that was taking place. It was a process; it was going to take time. All they needed was a little bit of patience and support from each other.

End of Chapter 5

AN: Lyrics from the song, Patience by Take That. I own nothing.