Nick rubbed his right knee until the ache subsided. It didn’t hurt too much anymore, but periodically it would ache. No matter how much he tried to rub the p ain away though, the ugly scar remained.
“Nick?” He looked up as his mom entered his room. Half filled boxes and totes filled the room from packing.
“Yeah?” he responded.
“Are you sure you want to get your own place? You know your father and I don’t mind you staying here, and then there’s your sister – she looks up to you.”
“Liv is sixteen, she should be finding other people to look up to.”
“Olivia admires you.” his mother gently chided.
“I don’t know why.” he said.
“Well, all that aside, you don’t have to move out.” she insisted.
“I appreciate it mom, but I want my own place.” he said, getting up from his bed to work on some more packing.
“What about the dog?”
“Which one?” he asked with a bit of a laugh.
“You know very well I mean Chase.” she said.
“Of course Chase is coming with me, he’s my support dog.” he said.
“Good, I worry about you taking care of yourself.” she said, worrying at the pendant she wore.
“Don’t worry mom. I’ll be alright.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Nick had moved out six months before. He didn’t tell his family though that he’d been struggling – he didn’t want to worry them, after all. Chase was a big help, and he was in a therapy group with other vets, but sometimes it was just hard. Anxiety would hit him hard at times, and those were the moments when Chase would do his job and be supportive while he tried to play his guitar or some of his preferred games. Every now and again though, especially when the pain was bad, he’d turn to alcohol, and drink until he either felt numb or passed out. Not the healthiest of options, but until he could figure out what was going on with his knee, he didn’t think things were going to improve.
His Dad was good at keeping his Mom from checking on him constantly, and an agreement to have a family dinner at his parents’ place now and again helped with that. His sister, on the other hand, liked to visit frequently. She claimed their mother was overbearing now that he had moved out, and she needed space. Often, they’d work on homework – mostly with him assisting her, though sometimes they each did their own homework and were just quiet company. Occasionally they’d catch a movie, but she didn’t stay more than a couple of hours, not wanting to make their mom too crazy.
He’d always been a little protective of his sister, and tried to be supportive, so he had told her that if she needed a place to get away, to get in touch with him, and he could give her a safe haven for a bit, or just someone to talk to, and he promised to try and be objective.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Nine months after he’d moved out from his parents place, he and his doctor figured out that the reason for his pain was that the training accident he’d suffered while serving in the Army, and the reason for his medical discharge, was that all the fragments from the bullet that had shattered his knee hadn’t been removed. He not only needed surgery for that, but would need a knee replacement as well. He was fortunate enough to get the surgery not long after that, and it helped with the pain, which in turn got him to quit drinking, save for social occasions.
In that year, he spent his time at school studying to earn a certificate in music technology, and worked toward learning songwriting. He knew that a career out of those might not work out, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t try, he figured. The veteran’s benefits he got were okay – they kept him living a basic means, but after that first year away from home, he figured he could take a break from school, or maybe just a class or two here and there, and find some work.
Wanting to avoid customer service if he could, he tried applying to various places on the strip, attempting for security or dealer positions if possible. He scored a few interviews at the smaller casinos, though also managed to land one or two at the larger ones. If he managed to get the job, he had promised his sister that he’d pay her to check in on Chase while he was working, if they wouldn’t allow him to have his support animal on premise, which seemed likely.