Frostbite

Chapter 14

…

"That's it Caitlin you're doing great"

"C'mon keep going babe"

I let out a groan of exhaustion as I take another small step, holding onto the bars beside me as if my life was depending on it. Sweat is trickling down my temple and my arms and legs ache from exhaustion but I'm determined to push myself. I've been in physical therapy for a week and only managed a few steps so far.

"C'mon Cait just one more step, you can do this" Barry says from where he and Wells are watching, ready to help if need be.

I groan and shakily raise my bad leg, slowly moving it forward until it rests flat on the floor. I let out a cry of victory as I reach the end of the platform, a tired yet ecstatic smile on my face. Barry comes forward, a water bottle in his hands and I collapse into his arms, letting him help me back into my wheelchair.

"You did so great" he says giving me a quick kiss.

I smile tiredly, taking the water bottle from him and taking a huge swig "Thanks, god I'm tired"

"You did very well Caitlin, I think you can move permanently to the crutches in the next few days" Wells says with a small smile.

"What? And have this one stop pushing me around everywhere?" I joke, pointing at Barry "What about the cast? When can that come off?" I ask eagerly

"Well… today actually. I'm going to put your leg in a brace for a bit while you recover but you'll be able to take it off for baths"

I'm almost tempted to jump out of this chair and hug him as I hear those words. After all these week, after all the itching and the having to wrap my leg in clingwrap whenever I had a bath I would finally be able to see my own leg again.

I give him a beaming smile and excitedly grab Barry's hand as he helps me up on the table. 20 minutes later he saw off the crusty cast and I see my leg for the first time in months. There are scars, ugly red marks above my knee cap and shin where they had to drill in to try and set the bone but I don't care.

Barry notices me staring at the scars and squeezes my hand "They'll fade Cait"

"Oh no, they don't bother me, it's just that… I didn't think I'd ever see it again, my leg. I know that sounds weird but I thought I was going to die that day and now I'm sitting here, fine. I think it's just catching up to me that's all" I confess, my voice slightly trembling

"You're okay, you're here with me. It's going to take time to move on but I'm going to be here every step of the way alright?" he says and I nod, squeezing his hand gratefully.

Once Wells has shown me how to use the brace and I've taken a few test walks with it we head home, after 2 months in a cast my leg kinda smells and I'm desperate for bath.

…..

Later that day I'm sitting on the bed, carefully rubbing lotion onto my clean skin. Barry walks in and groans as he takes in the fact that I'm wearing short shorts and one of his t shirts.

"Seriously? That is so not fair" he grumbles as he walks past to his dresser to get some pyjama pants.

"What? It's supposed to be good for healing scars?" I say, wiping my hands with a towel

"Not that. That!" he says, gesturing to my attire.

"I always wear your shirts, if you want it I can take it off" I suggest and he groans again

"Please don't say things like that, not when we can't do anything" he whines as he gets changed.

"Uh Barry?"

"What?"

"You do realise that I got my cast off, right? You were there" I ask with a bemused grin

"Yes, and?"

"Well the cast was the reason we couldn't… you know. So now that it's gone…" I trail off, leaving him to figure it out.

His face lights up like a lightbulb and I know he's figured it out "Oh, oh… Are you sure?"

"Well I can't do much and it'll be a while before we can do anything crazy but as long as we're careful" I say with a smirk, sitting on the edge of the bed and pulling him closer until he's standing in front of me.

I reach up and cup his face, bringing him down for a passionate kiss, I feel his hands gently grabbing my waist, just under the hem of his shirt. Without a second thought I remove my hands from his face and grab the edge of his shirt pulling it over my head. He gently pushes me onto the bed, my back hitting the bed as he presses kisses to my jaw.

He pauses as his thumb grazes over the waistband of my shorts "Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you"

I nod, passing him a pillow to prop my leg up on "I'll be fine, make love to me Barry"

He doesn't need much more convincing after that, pulling down my pyjamas as his mouth latches onto one of my breasts. I groan and thread my fingers through his hair, tugging gently. I don't need much encouragement, weeks of pent up tension making me already wet when one of his fingers slides inside me but still he pumps in and out until I writhing on the bed and practically ready to flip us over.

It isn't slow, careful lovemaking, two people slowly taking their time and getting reacquainted with each other. No, it's fast, passionate sex between two people who thought they had lost each other. We're as careful as we can be with my leg but soon I find myself clinging onto to him for dear life, crying out as we both reach our climax.

He gently pulls out and falls on the bed next to me, both of us basking in the afterglow of our love making. After a few minutes, he rolls onto his side and wraps an arm around my middle, pulling me close and allowing me space to rest my head on his chest as he nuzzles my neck.

"I love you Cait" he mumbles into my neck and I pull him closer, whispering my love back. We fall asleep together on that bed, the last rays of light streaming in through our window and onto us.