Go Baby Grow

Chapter 34 – How Revealing

Thursday, June 4th

"Ria, do you remember how this works?" Callie inquired as she prepared to slide Ria into the MRI machine.

"Stay really still," Ria replied.

"Exactly. Remember that the machine bangs and knocks, those noises are normal. You can talk to us and we can talk to you, too," Callie reminded the brave girl.

Owen stood in the booth behind Dr. Miche. Amelia, pregnant and overwrought, stayed in Owen's office and stretched out on the couch. Given her options of watching or staying with Amelia, Anna chose to watch the MRI. She was feeling protective of her sister and wanted to be at her side.

Dr. Miche accommodated Anna's presence with delight. He explained each step and the results of the MRI. "Here come the images now, Anna," Dr. Miche pointed out as details of Ria's leg appeared on the screen.

With a tsk, Dr. Miche shook his head and looked at Owen, who was already studying the obvious. A number of Ria's muscles were strained to one degree or another. Dr. Miche pointed at the screen and told Anna, "This is a long, thin muscle that begins at the foot and turns a little before connecting to the knee."

"It looks kind of twisted," Anna observed.

"It is. That's part of why she is hurting," Dr. Miche explained. "In some of her muscles, Ria can feel almost everything. In this muscle, she normally feels very little. Right now, it is swollen and twisted – it's strained. She can feel the pain because the muscle is bothering other muscles nearby that she is able to feel. Other muscles – like the ones here… and here – have small tears in them. Can you see those? There's one right here."

"Is the one that's going up and down on this spot another tear?" Anna inquired.

"Yes. The tears can go sideways or up and down," Dr. Miche confirmed. "And here, Ria's muscle is shorter than it should be. That's because she's been depending on this muscle over here when she walks. The other muscles changed from the overuse of this one."

"What are the dark spots?" Anna wondered aloud.

"Those are places where the muscles are bleeding. That sounds scary, but it's what happens when we have a bruise. Usually those spots fix themselves and fade away," Dr. Miche detailed.

Turning to Owen, Dr. Miche continued, "Victoria's developed a maladaptive compensation pattern that is exacerbating a subluxation and leading to further lateral ankle instability. In addition, the peroneus brevis tendon is ruptured." Changing to another scan, Dr. Miche continued, "Peroneal retinaculum, lateral ankle ligaments, and peroneal tendons indicate both horizontal and longitudinal tears. We can deepen the fibular groove and debride in order to address much of this. The success rate is over 90%."

"What would that look like?" Owen inquired.

"Usually four to six weeks in a short, non-weight bearing cast followed by a boot with PT interventions beginning the day of surgery. In Victoria's case, given challenges with sensation, I'd lean more toward eight weeks in a cast. Eventually, she can slowly resume normal activity with bracing and taping. Again, customarily the bracing and taping is limited to six months. In Ria's case, we'd want to continue that as a regular practice. We try to stick with NSAIDs for pain, but often find that intermittent use of narcotics is helpful. Without surgery, she will experience increasing pain and swelling as well as further ankle instability," Dr. Miche detailed.

Owen rested his hand on his chin and thought aloud, "This is significant. She had a PT appointment about ten days ago and nothing was amiss. How'd she go from 0 to 60 so rapidly?"

Dr. Miche detailed, "Most likely, she took a quick tumble – maybe on the playground or while playing outside – and didn't feel any pain. Without pain, she continued to do damage to the surrounding tissues by attempting to walk, run, and play normally. Until the swelling began, she felt nothing. Once her healthy muscles were crowded by the swelling and bleeding, she compensated in an attempt to avoid pain thus causing further damage. A ten day window for this in a Spina Bifida patient is unremarkable. In the long term, especially as Ria grows and her body attempts to utilize growing muscles without sensation, we will need to keep a close eye on these areas to avoid further domino-effect injuries."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

Thursday afternoon at the park involved another grueling workout for Ryder and Julie. Both of them were proud of what they had already accomplished, and were feeling less anxious about the physical demands that Plebe Summer would bring.

Nate had the future plebes run a lap around the park at their individual paces. Ryder finished first and sat on a nearby bench while he and Nate waited for Julie to make her way to the end. Glancing up from his water bottle as she arrived, Ryder noticed Nate pat Julie on the rear when she ran in. His blood simmered, even if Nate's action was typical for a coach.

"JJ!" Nate exclaimed using Julie's special name that Ryder did not believe just anyone should utilize. "You shaved ten seconds off your time. Ten seconds. Great work!" Nate embraced her in a bear hug. Ryder noticed that Julie not only embraced back, but seemed to be in no hurry to let go.

Nate and Julie approached the bench and Nate clapped his hands together. "You two are progressing really well," Nate praised. "At this point, I'm not going to push you much further. Let's solidify your abilities at this level instead. The summer will still be a challenge, but you'll both rise to it. Pat's on the back for both of you." As Nate concluded his pep talk, he skipping actually patting Ryder's back. However, he patted Julie's back and left his hand on her back for a few seconds afterward.

"Anything else for today?" Ryder pressed, trying not to lose his temper at Nate's handsy activities.

"Let's call it good for the day," Nate smiled. "How are we going to fit in workouts between now and Sunday night?" Nate inquired, knowing the prom and graduation were around the corner.

"Let's skip tomorrow," Julie suggested.

"I'll think about it," Nate responded vaguely. "Let's skip Sunday for sure, though. I'm on duty all day and won't be able to steal away from the base."

"Saturday and Monday, then," Ryder stated flatly.

"Sounds great," Nate smiled. "Again, Hunt, great work."

"Thanks. Thanks for the coaching and for your time, Sir," Ryder responded. "JJ, do you need a ride home?"

"No. Nate met me at the mechanic's and brought me over," Julie revealed.

"Yeah…" Nate interjected. "I can swing by your house on my way back to the base." He reached into his pocket and noticed he had a voicemail. Excusing himself and walking to another bench, he checked the call and then returned it.

Meanwhile, Ryder collected stray towels and gear as he shared his thoughts with Julie. "I noticed Ensign Handsy slapped your ass. I'll bet that put a little pep into your step."

"What's that supposed to imply?" Julie groaned before chugging her water.

"He likes touching you, JJ. Hugs, butt slaps, side hugs… he's a busy guy," Ryder commented passive aggressively.

"Ryder, what's your problem?" Julie quizzed.

"Are you guys hooking up in one form or another? You don't seem to mind his attention," Ryder spouted.

"For Pete's Sake, Ryder. He's coaching us. He hasn't done anything by basketball coach hasn't done," Julie pointed out.

"Really? Your basketball coach calls you 'JJ,' and leaves his hand resting on your shoulder? He gives you rides home in his decked out Wrangler?" Ryder pressed.

"You're being ridiculous," Julie rolled her eyes.

"Am I?" Ryder folded his arms and bore his eyes into Julie seriously.

"You'll meet me at my place tomorrow, right?" Julie abruptly changed the subject.

"You know it," Ryder smirked, realizing he wasn't going to get anywhere with his concerns about Ensign Handsy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

When Ryder arrived home, he came through the front door and was surprised to encounter silence. He stood in the entry, trying to remember if Amelia had said anything about not being home that afternoon. In the distance, he heard Spongebob Square Pants.

Relishing the opportunity to bust one of his siblings, Ryder ran to the TV room and stood in front of the television. "What the hell are you doing, Squirt? And where's Mom?"

"Mom took Ria to the doctor," Lucas explained as he leaned and attempted to garner a better view of the TV. "And Livie's babysitting me and said I could watch TV so scram.

"Scram?" Ryder challenged as he lowered his chin to his chest. "Really?"

"I'm watching TV," Lucas whined.

Ryder grabbed the remote, which was usually stowed in Owen's office during the week, and turned off the show. "Actually, no you aren't. No TV during the week, you know the deal."

Lucas stood on the couch to gain height and folded his arms, "You are not the boss of me right now, Ryder. Livie is."

"Then where is she? She doesn't seem to be keeping an eye on you, does she?" Ryder challenged.

"I dunno. Hanging out with her girlfriend probably," Lucas shrugged.

Ryder smiled deviously inside. Not only had he busted Lucas, but, if he was lucky, he'd bust Olivia. "You have two choices, Squirt. Go play outside and stay away from the water or go to your room and read a book."

"You're mean," Lucas grumbled as he stomped out the door and onto the patio.

Making his way upstairs, Ryder pondered his options for catching Olivia. He could knock on the door and act stunned, he could throw her door open and proudly announce his presence, or he could pull a maneuver that included anger. Sweaty and dirty from his workout, he decided he couldn't do anything until he took a shower. He walked to the far end of the house and headed to the bathroom.

When he came out of the bathroom ten minutes later with a towel around his waist, he heard the distinct sound of giggling girls down the hall. He hurriedly dressed and towel dried his hair. Then, with a sly smile, he moseyed toward Olivia's bedroom.

To her credit, Olivia was obeying the standard rule: her door was wide open. Although the letter of the law was upheld, the spirit of the law had been completely disregarded. She and Gwen were rolling around on the top of Livie's bed with their bikini tops off. Their hands and lips were wandering from place to place. Only seeing the scene for a split second, Ryder assessed the kissing and caressing as clumsy and juvenile. He was momentarily tempted to tease his sister. Just the same, he was surprised to feel shock at seeing his little sister sexually engaged.

He knocked on the open door and cleared his throat, announcing, "Came upstairs to let you know I'm home. Sorry I interrupted you two."

"Ryder!" Olivia gasped as she grabbed a knitted blanket Evelyn had made for her. She threw it over the half-naked bodies and called out, "Shut the door!"

"This one? This door? Umm… sure, Livs," Ryder taunted as he followed her desperate plea. Before fully closing the door, he added well-chosen and intentional words, "Nice to see you, Gwen."

Chuckling to himself, Ryder headed downstairs and filled up a water bottle. He wandered outside to check on Lucas and spotted him chatting with someone at the Tremblay Hunt – Shepherd Hunt property line.

When Ryder neared his brother, Becca and Molly, he made eye contact with Becca first. "Hi there. I don't believe we've met. I'm Ryder, Nolan's brother."

"His other brother. I'm his brother, too," Lucas pointed out.

Ryder sneered, "Right. I'm the other brother, Luke. Whatever."

Extending his hand, Ryder grasped Becca's hand as she introduced herself. "I'm Becca. I've been helping Mrs. Tremblay Hunt with the girls this week."

"Does she make you call her that?!" Ryder scoffed.

Becca smiled softly and corrected him, "I'm an employee. It seems appropriate."

"Phhhttt," Ryder reacted, unimpressed by the lady of the house and her new formal titles. He looked behind Becca and spotted Molly. She was sitting on a blanket playing with giant Duplo blocks.

"Hey, Cutie Pie. Are you ignoring me?" Ryder called to his niece.

"Ucka Ry!" Molly exclaimed as she stood and toddled over. She wrapped her arms around Ryder's legs and offered her predictable non-verbal request to be held.

Accommodating the request, Ryder scooped Molly into his arms and then held her high above his head making airplane noises. Lucas explained to Becca, "He's gonna be a Navy pilot so he has to do that."

Giggling, Becca responded, "Oh, I see. What was your name again, sweetie?"

With a crumpled up face, Lucas reacted, "Not sweetie! Yuk. My name is Lucas. Lucas Owen Hunt. You can call me Luke if you want." As Lucas and Becca chatted, Ryder threw Molly about an inch or two into the air and caught her. Molly roared with joy as she begged for more.

"What do you want me to call you? Which name do you like best?" Becca inquired.

"Handsome," Lucas teased with a laugh. "That's what our mom calls our dad."

"It's wonderful to meet you, Handsome," Becca smiled.

Ryder reached down and messed up Lucas' curls, suggesting, "Actually, he loves being called 'Squirt.'"

"I do not!" Lucas protested.

Looking at Becca, Ryder inquired, "Any idea when my brother will be home tonight?"

"He was hoping to make it home by 5:15, and said he'd be no later than 6," Becca shared.

Ryder glanced at his watch. It was 5pm. "Cool. I'll hang out here and wait a few." He sat down on the blanket Becca had spread out and set Molly down. They stacked blocks and knocked them over with full delight.

Lucas asked if he could play at the edge of the water since Ryder was right there. Adjusting to stay on the blanket but face the water, Ryder agreed. Becca sat down on the blanket and joined Ryder and Molly's game.

"How's the week going?" Ryder asked.

Unsure if he was simply asking or if he was asking in an attempt to find out information for Nolan, Becca was reserved. The truth was that she thoroughly enjoyed the kids, the house, and Nolan's kindness. She wasn't sure what to make of Lissa and was concerned that Lissa hated her. She answered, "I've had a wonderful week. I'd love to continue. Your nieces are adorable."

"They take after their Uncle," Ryder joked as he knocked down a stack of blocks and watched Molly giggle. "Is my brother being a pain in the ass? He can get uptight."

"Oh no, he's been kind and friendly," Becca corrected.

"What about Lissa?" Ryder inquired.

Pausing, Becca took a moment to answer, "She and I are still getting to know one another."

"She's been that bitchy, huh?" Ryder taunted.

"I wouldn't say that at all," Becca retorted with a smile. "She really has her hands full. I can see why they wanted to hire some help."

In a low and playful voice, Nolan warned, "Keep your hands off the nanny, Ryder."

"Hey, Dude," Ryder laughed. "Ask her – I've been a conversant, respectful gentleman."

"In other words, you've snowed her," Nolan responded flatly before zooming toward Molly and picking her up. "How's my girl?"

"Dada," Molly smiled. She leaned in for a full mouth kiss and Nolan reciprocated with closed lips. Ryder shuddered, as always, then shook his head in an attempt to erase the image of the slobber.

"So you've met Becca," Nolan observed. "I warned her about you."

"You're full of sh…" Ryder responded.

"Ah! She repeats everything, loser," Nolan interrupted.

"Ooozer," Molly echoed.

"Great work, Einstein. Nice job," Ryder teased.

"Becca, would you mind letting my wife know I'm home and out here?" Nolan requested. "Unless she has anything specific that she wants completed, you're free to head out."

"Sure, Sir. Mr. Hunt, nice to have met you," Becca offered.

"What's with the Mr. and Mrs. crap?" Ryder pushed once Becca was out of earshot.

Nolan shrugged, "It's what the lady of the house prefers. Don't ask me why. Right now, I'm happy if I succeed in not pissing her off."

"That bad, huh?" Ryder questioned.

"Didn't Mom or Dad say anything?" Nolan wondered with surprise. Ryder shook his head and Nolan shared, "She's battling post-partum depression. It's tough."