April 2012
It was a week later when Brennan woke up on Monday morning with a feeling of excitement. She had an appointment in the afternoon with Dr Banks and, if all went well, he would be removing the cast from her leg. Booth would be accompanying her to the appointment, but he would need to drive there to meet her.
Despite her objections, an ambulance had been scheduled to transfer her to and from the doctor's office. The woman from the rehab center's office who arranged transport, explained to her that the normal wheelchair van couldn't be used in her case because the van couldn't accommodate a patient who needed one or both legs elevated. She assured her that ambulances were often used for transporting patients in non-emergency situations such as hers.
So they planned for Booth to bring her lunch as usual, and then follow the ambulance so he could be with her for the appointment.
After lunch, he helped her into a dress he brought for the trip. With the cast on one leg and the long bulky brace on the other, there was no way that slacks, or even shorts, would fit her. Because of the bedpan situation, she hadn't worn anything other than a hospital gown in 6 weeks. Booth had gone into her underwear drawer and found the largest pair of panties she had. He very slowly and carefully moved them up her legs and over the cast and the brace.
Once she was dressed, she felt like herself for the first time since the afternoon in the market. She felt a little nervous, but it was mixed with excitement. Booth had occasionally wheeled her outside in her wheelchair on warm spring days, but this was going to be a real trip away from the rehab center - even if only for an hour or so.
When the ambulance pulled into the clinic's parking lot, they brought her out of the back of the vehicle on the gurney and raised the back so she was sitting up. She saw Booth walking across the parking lot toward her with a big smile on his face, and he grabbed her hand to give it a squeeze.
Once inside, the attendants wheeled her into the x-ray room and assisted the technicians moving her onto the table and then back to the gurney when they finished. They then wheeled her into an exam room and went to the waiting area to find Booth to send him back to be with her.
Dr Banks was very pleased to see her looking so well and said that the x-rays showed everything healing as it should. "Are you ready to get this cast off?" They both breathed a sigh of relief, and Brennan had a big smile on her face as he used a small tool to cut the cast in half. He checked the incision on the outside of her ankle and removed the stitches.
Then he removed part of the brace on her other leg, examined the incision, and began the painstaking procedure of removing all 60 of the staples. They both knew the staple count because Parker insisted on counting them every time he visited her. He was fascinated that skin could be stapled together - and that they were identical, although larger, to the ones he used to fasten papers together.
Dr Banks said that the PTs would be unlocking her brace to 90 degrees the following week. "Now, you might not be able to get to 90 degrees right away. The PTs will help you flex the knee, and if you can't get it right away, they'll have exercises to help push you a little bit further each day."
Booth chimed in. "Do we have to wait until she can get to 90 degrees before she can go home?" The doctor nodded. "Yes. If you're going to be lifting her off of the wheelchair and onto the toilet, she needs to be able to drop her leg all the way down. That's the trigger that will allow her to go home."
Brennan looked over to Booth and they both smiled broadly. She looked back over to the doc. "Once I've moved back home, at what stage of my recovery can we resume sexual intercourse?" Booth let out a snort and started coughing uncontrollably. Brennan looked at him and rolled her eyes as she looked back to the doctor.
The doctor chuckled. "I think the 90 degrees is the goal. Once you're at that point, you can take the brace off when you're in bed. That will facilitate things greatly. I think you'll just have to play it by ear to begin with to find comfortable positions. I would suggest starting with missionary and slowly work up to more athletic pursuits. And nothing vigorous to begin with. He should be careful not to put any of his weight on your legs until you feel that they're strong enough to accommodate him. Just make sure the brace is back on any time you leave the bed."
She looked back over to Booth. He had gotten his coughing fit under control, but his face and neck were beet red. She smiled back at the doctor. "Booth is very embarrassed talking about sex. Well, with anyone except me, that is."
The doctor smiled and patted her on the shoulder as he left the room to get the walking boot for her bad ankle. After the door closed, Booth whispered to her. "Did you have to ask him that?" She smiled at him and ran her hand down the side of his face. "Booth, I want you so badly that I don't want to wait any longer than is necessary. I'm glad I asked because now we know that we can try as soon as I get home."
They smiled broadly at each other. "Only another week or so before I go home Booth! I can't believe we're almost there." He gave her a big hug and kissed her temple. "I can't wait to get you home Bones. I've missed you so much. Our home has never felt so empty."
When she was back settled in her room, he helped her change back into the hospital gown. Her leg with the bad ankle now had the big black walking boot in place of the cast, but she had the ability to remove it when she was in bed. Booth went over and removed the boot. "The skin on your leg looks really dry. Do you have a bottle of lotion in your nightstand?"
She opened the drawer and fished out the lotion. Booth took it from her and proceeded to lavish the lotion all over her lower leg and foot. He used the lotion to give her a gentle massage on the leg. She leaned her head back against the pillow. "Oh Booth. That feels so good." When he was done, he unbuckled the brace on the other leg. "I'll be gentle, but I think you could use the same treatment on this leg."
When he was finished with both legs, she had her head back with her eyes closed, feeling very pampered. He smiled at her as he buckled the brace back on her leg. "I can't wait to get you home so I can really spoil you." He went over to sit on the side of her bed, took her in his arms, and kissed her soundly. The rest of the week, he gave her the same lotion massage on both legs each day and, by the end of the week, her legs looked and felt great.
She had her usual visitors that week - Angela, Cam, and some of her interns. Her dad and Russ had visited a few times, but decided now to wait until she was home before making the trip up. Booth had Parker that weekend, so he spent several hours visiting on Saturday and Sunday. Everyone was thrilled to see the cast and the staples gone, and couldn't wait to be able to visit her at home.
Parker asked if he could feel her scars, and Booth insisted that he had to go into the bathroom and scrub his hands with soap so she didn't get an infection. Parker was familiar with the routine because he had loved touching the staples as he counted them. Booth went with him into the bathroom and supervised the hand washing. Brennan always chuckled when Parker walked out of the bathroom, because Booth had taught him to hold his hands up in the air like surgeons did on medical television shows. As her two men left her on Sunday afternoon, Parker was excited that the next time he saw her would be at home, and he couldn't wait to begin his role as her helper.
While they expected that she would be moving home sometime during the next week, it was all dependent on her getting the knee bend to 90 degrees. Booth decided to start his personal leave on that Monday so he would be able to have everything ready for her.
Monday morning, he arrived bright and early with a cup of coffee from her favorite coffee shop and fresh croissants from their favorite bakery. This was to be a day of celebration. Opening her brace to 90 degrees was the biggest step so far in their recovery. Booth never called it, or even thought of it, as "her" recovery. It was "their" recovery. While she was the one who had to go through the pain and the physical restrictions, he was going through his own personal hell because he couldn't take those burdens from her. So he did the only thing he could - he spent as much time as possible with her and did everything he could to make her feel comfortable and loved.
He was excited to be with her in the therapy room as they adjusted her brace and slowly let her lower her leg to see how much bend she could achieve on her own. Janice and Sarah, the main PTs working with her, were pleased with her efforts. Janice gently massaged the tendons on either side of her knee. "You are very close to 90 degrees already. Maybe just another 10 degrees to go, and we'll work slowly to stretch it out." Sarah agreed. "We'll give you some exercises to do throughout the day. Now, make sure you don't try to force it, let it just stretch out gradually. Hopefully we can get you there in a few days."
Everyone was buoyed by her progress and Booth prepared to wheel her back to her room. He stopped by the aviary so she could see the birds she had come to love. "I'm going to miss these little guys when we go home Booth." He leaned down and kissed her temple. "Would you like me to get some birds for us to raise at home?" She thought about it for a few seconds. "Thank you, but I think we will have enough to concentrate on for the time being." She looked up at him with a smile and he nodded in agreement.
May 2012
They worked together on the gentle stretching exercises over the next two days, and when they got into the therapy room on Wednesday morning, Janice pulled out her clear plastic tool that measured the flex. "100 degrees! You did it Temperance!" Booth knelt down next to the wheelchair and pulled her into his arms. Everyone had tears in their eyes, knowing what this meant for the couple. A few of the other therapists in the room came over to offer their congratulations.
Brennan looked up at Janice through the unshed tears swimming in her eyes. "Can I go home today?" Everyone decided that it would be best to wait until the following day. The discharge paperwork needed to be completed, they needed to get a wheelchair and a walker delivered, and Booth had to arrange for a hospital bed to be delivered to the house.
Janice decided that they needed to work out the logistics of getting her into and out of the car because she still couldn't put weight on one leg. So, after lunch, Booth wheeled her outside and the three of them headed to Booth's SUV. They spent about 10 minutes working out the best way for him to get her out of the wheelchair and into the passenger seat, and then moving her from the seat back into the wheelchair. When Janice was satisfied that they had it down pat, they all headed back inside.
On the way back to the building, Janice reminded them that, despite the walking boot, Temperance had to try to avoid putting any real weight on the healing ankle. "The doctor's orders are that we have to avoid having that ankle take over 50% of your weight – at least for a few more weeks. So, until you have permission to put any weight on the right leg, trying to stand is not really an option."
Back in the room, a lot of phone calls were made to have all of the equipment in place for the next day, and Booth left to go home to await the delivery of the bed. He had the bed set up in the first floor guest room and set up the room so he could sleep in the queen sized bed next to her hospital bed. They had talked to the PTs about the sleeping arrangements and were told that she could sleep in the regular bed if it was comfortable enough, although the hospital bed would offer better support for the bad leg.
The hospital bed would also be a good place for her to spend part of the day to get more elevation for both legs to keep down the swelling. So the plan was to spend part of the day in the bed, part in the wheelchair, and part in the recliner in their living room. At night, she could sleep in the regular bed if she could tolerate it, but move into the hospital bed for part of the night if necessary.
Once the bed was delivered and set up, Booth went out to the store and bought all of her favorite snack foods, drinks, and food to stock the fridge so he could begin cooking for her. He also stopped by the florist and bought several bouquets of flowers and set them in vases around the house to welcome her back. Before going to bed that night, he looked around the house - satisfied that he had done everything he could to help her feel normal again. As he fell asleep, all he could think about was that it was going to be his last night sleeping alone.
Thursday morning, he had to convince himself not to go to the rehab center too early. He couldn't wait to get the day going and get her home. So, he waited until 7:00 and left the house with the dress he had chosen for her to wear home. He also had underwear and a pair of her favorite sandals. He stopped at the coffee shop and got coffee for both of them, and in an impulsive move, stopped at the florist one more time.
The staff were all smiles watching him walk down the corridor to her room carrying the tote bag, the cardboard tray with two coffees, a pretty dress draped over his arm, and a beautiful bouquet of daffodils. There was a spring in his step and a wide grin on his face.
As he entered the room, she was in bed finishing off her breakfast. She turned to him with a big smile. "Oh Booth! Coffee! I won't miss what masquerades for coffee in this place. Overall, the food was better than I expected. But the coffee…" She scrunched up her nose.
He leaned over and gave her a kiss as he handed her the cup. "Oh! I love that dress! You made a wise choice Booth." He grinned. "I know you love it. I stood in the closet and looked at every one trying to get it right." It was a white dress covered with colorful botanical prints. Booth knew that she loved anything botanical, and they had lots of items around the house with a similar theme.
With a flourish, he set the bouquet of daffodils wrapped in clear cellophane onto her lap. "Oh Booth! These are gorgeous! But I'm only going to be here for a few more hours. Maybe I should hand them out to the aides before we leave?"
He shook his head. "When you are back on your feet, we'll come here for a visit and bring a florist shop full of flowers for all of them." He grinned at her. "I wanted you to have these in your lap as you leave through the doors. And as I drive you home. Indulge me, please?" She smiled and pulled him to her for a long kiss. "I love your romantic side. I love you."
Just as she was enjoying the last of her coffee, Janice and Sarah walked in. "Are you ready for your last PT session here?" She was SO ready.
Booth wheeled her down to the therapy room and watched as Janice and Sarah took her through her daily exercises. When she was finished, the two therapists pulled up chairs and the four of them discussed her next steps. They told her that Kristi, an occupational therapist, would be dropping by the house that afternoon. She would go around the house with them and make sure that Temperance would be able to navigate safely. Her in-home PT would be provided by Michael, a very experienced therapist. He would start on Friday and come to the home three times per week.
After getting back to her room, Booth helped her to dress. They both had a good chuckle over the pair of sandals he brought, since she had to wear the clunky boot on her left leg. So the left one remained in the tote bag. One of the admins brought in the discharge paperwork, and she was officially released. She picked up Jasper from the nightstand and placed him in the zippered pocket of the tote bag to keep him safe. Booth made two trips to take her belongings out to the SUV and then returned and asked if she was ready. Her brilliant smile was all he needed to see.
As he wheeled her down the corridor, the nurses and aides all stopped to wish her well. They were so happy to see her looking so beautiful in the lovely dress covered in multicolored flowers. The bouquet of daffodils in her lap just added to the joyful scene. And, of course, her handsome partner guiding the wheelchair toward freedom was just beaming. The women all knew they would miss his constant presence, as well as his unwavering optimism.
They made sure to stop by the aviary so they could both say goodbye to the birds, and when they reached the exit, Janice was there to hold open the door and accompany them to the SUV. Brennan felt so much joy as they neared the vehicle. It had been a long road so far, and she knew there would be more struggles in her immediate future. But just knowing that in a few minutes she would be back in the home she loved so much was overwhelming.
Booth smoothly lifted her from the chair and set her gently in the passenger seat. Janice laughed. "I should have known you had it all in hand Seeley. I think you two will do just fine. Just work with Kristi and Michael, and I think you will be on your feet very soon." They both thanked her for everything, and Brennan had tears in her eyes as she said goodbye.
Booth stowed the wheelchair in the back of the vehicle and they waved goodbye to Janice as he backed out of the space and headed out of the parking lot. The whole way home, he couldn't stop turning to look at her. It had been so long since they had been in the SUV together. And she looked so beautiful - she was just glowing. She was so happy to see all of the familiar places as he drove them down streets they had navigated countless times over the years. Every time she looked over at him, he was looking at her.
"Booth! Eyes on the road! The last thing we need is an accident!" He chuckled. He had been holding her hand over the console since they pulled away from the rehab facility, and he lifted it up to place a kiss on it. "Not a chance. You're as safe as if I had wrapped you in bubble wrap. In fact, that's not a bad idea. Wonder where I can buy some industrial sized bubble wrap?"
She was laughing as he turned on to their street, and a few seconds later he was pulling up in front of their beautiful home. She turned to look out the passenger window and he leaned over, wrapping his arms around her from behind. His face was right next to hers when he whispered in her ear. "Welcome home baby."
She turned toward him and her mouth opened slightly, but then quickly closed. He was expecting their typical exchange over that particular term of endearment, and it tickled him that she decided to let him get away with it – just this one time.