Sheena Leads; Sheila Needs

Sheila gripped the handles of her crutches. Beneath her arms, the padded supports rubbed up against her skin, and her muscles ached from the strain. She stared down at the stump where once her healthy leg had resided. No more running or walking. She was doomed to live life without her right leg until it healed well enough for a prosthetic.

At night, the phantom pains kept causing her to relive the accident. The wheel. The screech of the out-of-control vehicle in front of her, the smoke, and then the pain. Never-ending pain. She bit back the tears and struggled forward down the hospital hall, passing by nurses and visitors. They all stared, wondering how it had happened. It was only natural. She had once been in their shoes.

On returning to her room, she collapsed into the chair and stared at the vinyl floor. The air smelled of rubbing alcohol and bleach. The stump where her leg once lived smelled like dried blood and flesh. She sighed. Was there any point to going on? She had no independence and was completely reliant on others for everything. All she did was need. Tears drifted down her cheek, and she whimpered, hiding her head in her hands as she fought back a sob. The door opened, and she quickly wiped them away. Whoever it was would not see her this way.

Sheena appeared at the door, multiple bags in hand. “Sis!” she screamed, dropping them and running towards her. Sheila found herself engulfed in her sister's arms. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

The tears came free, and she sobbed. Her sister cried alongside her, and for a time, they were close like they had once been as children. Two twin redheaded little girls, playing by the sea in Maine. Sheila smiled at the memory, wishing they could be those children again, but they had grown apart. She had moved to Los Angeles for work, leaving her sister behind her to look after their parents. Ten years had passed, and now they could barely be recognized as twins.

Pulling back, Sheila met her sister's eyes and with a smile said, “I’m so glad you came.”

Sheena returned the smile, taking her hand and squeezing it. The connection they had once shared returned. It was why she had always struggled with relationships. No one could compete with the connection she had once felt to her sister.

“We have to get you out of here,” Sheena said, glancing towards the door. “I’ve cleared it with the doctors, and you’re coming home with me.”

“But that’s the other side of the country,” Sheila gasped. “You didn’t tell them how far away you lived, did you?”

“You bet,” Sheena said with a laugh, returning her gaze with a wink. “We’re gonna blow this joint and go on a road trip!”

“I don't understand. We can't do this. I…I can’t,” Sheila began to argue, but Sheena was already gone. She stared at her leg, thinking how terrible the road trip was going to be without it. What if she got an infection or something else went wrong? She should be at home resting.

Sheena returned with a wheelchair and, despite Sheila’s protests, organized several nurses to pack up her belongings along with the bags Sheena had left on the floor. Sheila found herself forced into a wheelchair and rolled down the hall. Her sister was kidnapping her, and there was nothing she could do. Even the nurses thought it was hilarious and told her she was overreacting when she tried to tell them. It was like their childhood all over again. Sheena always led the way with her schemes, and Sheila had always followed along behind her, wondering how she had gotten caught in the mess.

“What about clothes?” Sheila asked while she was being loaded into her sister's jeep.

“They’re in the trunk. I picked the lock at your apartment,” Sheena said. “You do realize there is no way you could possibly hope to climb those stairs?”

“I’m well aware,” Sheila muttered, watching as the nurses took away her only escape. The wheelchair disappeared into the double doors of the hospital, and she was alone with her sister. She swallowed, staring at the crutches – now her only means of moving around. Moving in and out of the car into hotels terrified her. What if she didn’t have the energy? What if they were on the second floor? What if?”

“Oh, stop being such a worrywart. You always did make that face when you were overthinking everything. Let’s go have some fun. You’ll feel much better once we are on the road and we can see if we can pick up some cute guys at the truck stops on the way.”

Sheila wasn’t so sure. The car pulled out of the patient pickup line and began moving forward. “Aren’t truckers all overweight or old?” she asked.

“Not in my experience. Some of the younger ones are pretty cute,” Sheena said, turning the wheel and passing beside more buildings. The Los Angeles skyline decorated the background making her redheaded sister look like fem fatale in a Bond movie. At one point, she could have been, if she weren't caring for their parents.

“We’re not going to steal anything, are we?” asked Sheila.

“God no. I don’t think you would be up for a heist, but if we did your hair up like mine and put on some makeup, we could pull the old switcheroo like we used to. We could even see if we could pull it off on a date.”

"Won't they wonder about the missing leg?"

"It will be even more fun when they realize it's gone. You could even scream that they stole your leg. It will be so much fun."

By the time they left the city behind them, Sheila had planned a bank heist with her sister and was now staring at the cactuses drifting by in the desert. Together, they compared them to the men they had been with, and the air was filled with the sound of laughter.

The warm air blew through her hair, and she remembered what it was like to be free. And to be home with her sister.