by: Marty Chrisman

Luke sat up in his bed waiting for Bo, Jesse and Daisy to arrive. He had just come from a therapy session and he was tired and frustrated. It had been almost ten days since he’d finally came out of the coma and had been moved out of the ICU and into a semi private room. The day after he’d been moved he had started both physical therapy and speech therapy. And he had been working harder then he had ever worked in his life. But he was starting to show some improvement. He could at least sit up by himself now and could take a few faltering steps with the help of a walker. His balance was still off center but it was improving. So was his fine motor skills. He could at least write notes now to communicate, even if the penmenship wasn’t that great.

The speech therapy was much harder and more frustrating. The therapist told him that he hadn’t forgotten how to talk, he just need to remember how to use his voice. At first all he could do was make grunts and other sounds but he had finally progressed to the point where he was capable of some halting speech. But his voice sounded hoarse and raspy from not being used in so long and the very effort of talking tired him out because he had to concentrate so hard on what he was trying to say. He still confused words sometimes or couldn’t think of the words he wanted to use. But the doctor was optimistic about his eventually recovering his speech entirely.

He had been told about the accident by Bo and Cooter but he still had no conscious memory of it and probably never would. Considering how badly he had been injured, that was probably just as well. There were other blank spots in his memory but when he forgot something he should remember Bo was always there to help him out.

He smiled when the door opened and his family came into the room. After all they had been through because of his accident, they were just happy to see him sitting up in bed again. Luke knew that he actually had died twice and been brought back to life by the doctors. The doctor kept telling him how lucky he was to be even be alive but then he already knew that. It was nothing short of a miracle that he had survived the accident.

He and Bo had discovered that they had both had the same eerie dream when Luke had died the first time. The dream that they both had died and had witnessed their family and friends mourning their deaths and had even seen themselves lying in their coffins in the living room at the farmhouse. Neither of them talked about it but they knew it had to have had something to do with the strange physic connection that existed between them. And Luke knew that it was the strength of that connection that had kept him alive even when he should have died, that and the love of the rest of his family who refused to let him go.

“Hi, Luke” Daisy said warmly, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. The strange detachment he had first felt from Daisy and Jesse when he woke up from the coma was gone and he once more felt their love and their support.

“ How’d it go today?” Jesse asked

Luke shrugged his shoulders to let his Uncle know that everything went okay, nothing unusal. Looking at his family and concentrating as hard as he could, he said softly “Home?”

“Not yet.” Jesse told him, patting his hand gently. Luke had been asking since he’d regained partial use of his voice to go home. “The doctor says at least another week, maybe more. You need to get a little stronger.” He could see the pang of disappointment in Luke’s eyes and the frustration. There were still some skills he needed to work on before he could home and away from the controlled environment of the hospital. And even then, he was still going to need a lot of patience, understanding and care. It would take a long time before he would be the way he used to be and even then, there may be some limitations. The doctor still wasn’t sure about that.

Daisy sat a plate on the bedside table in front of him. She had brought him some of her delicious fried chicken because she knew how much he hated the hospital food. (Plus it was easier for him to eat fried chicken. Using a spoon and fork to feed himself was a skill he was still working on. Half of the food still ended up on the floor, the bed, or on him. It had also ended up on the wall a couple of times when he got too frustrated)

Jesse was just grateful that Luke was still alive but it still hurt to see him like this. He had also been so strong and so independent, the most responsible and self reliant of the three cousins.

Daisy had to hide her tears sometimes when she visited Luke so he wouldn’t see them. She remembered how full of life he had been and how many things he had done that he had loved that he couldn’t do right now and may or may not be able to do again. She wanted the old Luke back but she knew that might never happen.

Bo still felt guilty about the accident that had almost killed himself and his cousin, although he knew it was just that. An accident. A terrible unfortunate accident.  He sensed better than anyone else Luke’s frustration at not being able to do the things he had always taken for granted before. The psychic bond between them was stronger than ever and they still communicated in silence half of the time, using just their eyes. Bo swore to himself that he would spend the rest of his life if that was what it took helping Luke to relearn the things that had been taken from him because of the accident and all of the complications.

Daisy and Bo shared news of Hazzard, the Boar’s Nest and their friends. While Jesse told Luke about the farm and how the crops were doing. Luke smiled contributing as best he could to the conversation with written notes and sometimes a slurred word or two. When visiting hours were over and they had to leave Luke watched them go with a pang of regret. He wanted so badly to go with them, back to the farm and back to the life he had known before the accident. Back to the only place he felt safe and secure.

Later that night, he lay there in bed staring into the darkness and feeling the sting of unshed tears in his eyes. God, will I ever be the same again? I know you had to have a reason for letting this happen to me, I just wish you’d let me know what the hell it was. You let me live instead of letting me die when that would have been so much easier. When I wanted to die because it hurt too much to go on living. I know I’m not suppose to question you and that you never give us more than we can handle but don’t you think I got a little more than my share of problems this time?

            I just want to go home. Back to the farm. Back to Hazzard. Back to whatever’s left of my old life. I know I can get better there quicker than I can here. I feel so alone here unless Bo, Jesse and Daisy are with me. I’ve put them all through so much since the accident. I need to be at home with them not stuck here. They’re all I have and all I’ve ever wanted in a family. Please god, just let me go home soon.

Finally, Luke felt himself drifting off to sleep. Tomorrow would be more of the same, more therapy, more pain and more frustration. But hopefully, it would also be one more day closer to going home.