At that, she laughed. “I’m to blame,” she confessed to Shane.
He nodded as he joined them. “I saw you guys here earlier. A few minutes late is fine, as everybody needs to reconnect, and everybody needs to find that relationship that makes them givetheir all. But there’s also a time to stop, and it’s right now. He can’t lose out on PT for a whole day.”
“Got it.” She stood up.
He looked at her and smiled gently. “You’re looking better.”
“Thanks. I’m due for a session in a couple days,” she noted, “but I came to bring Stan some paperwork and thought I’d stop in and say hi to my brother.” She reached down, patted him on the shoulder. “You just keep doing what you are doing. The improvement is very noticeable.” And, with that, she turned and left.
Ryatt stared at her back as she walked away. “Do you think she meant that?”
“Well, I don’t know.” Shane faced Ryatt and asked, “Is your sister a liar?”
He looked at him. “There are lies, and then there are lies people say in order to make you feel better, but they don’t really believe their own words.”
“Oh, interesting. Is that how you see your sister?”
“No, of course not. She’s one of the most ethical and moral people around.”
“So then answer your own question. Do you think she meant it?”
He winced. “That’s dirty pool.”
Shane laughed. “No, it’s making you understand that you put up all these barriers to reinforce your own lack of self-worth,” he said. “Your sister loves you, but she also sees an improvement. I do too.”
“What? You love me?” Ryatt asked in a teasing voice.
At that, Shane burst out laughing. “I do love that sense of humor of yours,” he said, still chuckling. “It doesn’t come out very often, but, man, when it does, it’s good.”
“Glad to hear it.” Ryatt shook his head. “Honestly, it feels like even laughing is… odd. Something I don’t remember how to do.”
“Maybe you don’t, but we’ll work on it,” Shane said. “You need more of that.”
“Maybe, but it’s not that easy to do.”
“Sure it is. It’s all about letting go and finding the joy in the day.”
Finding the joy in the day. Shane’s words haunted Ryatt long afterward because it was also very similar to what Lana had said. Did everybody here have this secret language of how to make your day better and how to find friends and be a better friend? He didn’t know. But it was something that he pondered a lot before he fell asleep.
Chapter 5
Lana noted anodd change in Ryatt’s behavior over the next few days. Yet Lana could find no explanation. Finally, out of curiosity, she asked him, “So, I couldn’t help but notice. These last couple days, you’ve been a little different.”
He stared at her. “Have I?”
She nodded. “Yes, you have.”
“Well, maybe it was because of my sister’s visit.”
She tilted her head, frowning at him. “Right. This is the sister I’ve yet to meet.”
“And I don’t know how you could have missed her.” He laughed. “She is pretty special. While she is not here all that often, however, when she is—well, I don’t know how to say it—it’s like maybe a breath of fresh air walks in the door with her.”
She stared at him for a long moment. “That is a lovely thing to say. I hope you say things like that to her face. It would make her day too.”
He laughed. “She’s already saying that I look and sound different, and she’s trying to figure out why.”
“Of course you are different, and it’s… it’s good. I’m really thrilled for you.”