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Time moves slower in the hospital. One more week feels like one more month, and one more month feels like a death sentence.

So as the clocks slowed to a stop in the rooms around her, Milly's was starting to speed up. She was going home today. She had spent a long time in the hospital, recovering from the attack that left her with multiple injuries and scars. She missed her room, her friends, and her normal life.

"Now, you know that you'll have to keep resting for a few more weeks," Charlie reminds his daughter, supporting her as she stands up from the bed. "That means no adventuring around the forest with Seth."

"Yes, I know." She smiles, holding tightly to his arm. Even though she was on bed rest, it was better than being stuck in one cold hospital room. "But at least I'll be in my own house, right?"

"Right," Charlie said. He hugged her gently and kissed her forehead.

Milly felt a pang of concern for her older sister, Bella, who was still going through a hard time. She barely ate, slept, or talked to anyone. She had isolated herself from her family and friends and had not visited Milly once in the hospital.

"Dad, how's Bella doing?" Milly asked.

Charlie's face darkened. He sighed and shook his head.

"Not good, Milly. She's still locked up in her room, refusing to see anyone or do anything. She won't answer my calls or texts. She won't even come downstairs for dinner."

"That's awful," Milly said. "I miss her. I wish she would come to see me."

"I wish that too, Milly," Charlie said. "But she doesn't seem to care about anyone but herself. She's being selfish."

"Dad, that's not fair," Milly said. "Bella is not selfish. She's hurt. She needs our support and love, not our anger."

Charlie sighs. Milly's heart was far too pure for this world.

"Dad, please," Milly said. "She's still our family. She's still my sister. I love her, and I want her to be happy again."

Charlie looked at Milly with a mix of sadness and frustration.

"Milly, I love you more than anything in the world," he said. "But how Bella is acting isn't fair to anyone."

A knock snapped them out of their conversation. Sam comes from around the door. Milly's face immediately brightens.

"Sam! I'm going home today!" She smiles widely at him, starting to walk towards him. When she releases Charlie, she stumbles a little, which causes Sam to gently take her in his arms. He gently holds her elbows before she swings her arms around his middle, hugging him tightly. He grins to himself.

"Yeh, I heard. You excited?"

She nods quickly, looking back up at him.

Sam guides her to the bed, letting her lean on it as she picks up a few things from the small table beside her.

Charlie nods politely at Sam.

"Billy tell ya'?"

The alpha nods. He tells Charlie that he came to visit in case they needed any help packing Milly's things.

Milly nods furiously, handing him a backpack full of books. "This goes in the car, as does this and this," she says, pointing to various things around the room. "But I have some things to give to the doctors and nurses." She takes a big stack of colourful cards from an open drawer.

An outsider would have seen this action as demanding, but both Sam and Charlie knew that she didn't have a demanding bone in her body. She was ecstatic to be going home and wanted everything to be packed up as quickly as possible so that she could be in her own bed again. Sam grins to himself and slings the backpack over one shoulder. It would be comical for someone to walk in and see a tall and incredibly buff man with a blue backpack covered in smiling clouds.

"You want me to take anything else?" he asks.

Milly runs her finger down the open notebook on the bed to check her list.

"Nope, my puzzles, drawing things, and toothbrush are already in the car; it's just books and a few teddies left. Unless you want to help me find all of the offices of all of the people I've met in here?" she smiles.

.・。.・゜✭・. .・。.・゜✭・.

Walking as fast as she can, Milly stumbles into her home, holding tightly to an armful of teddies. A huge smile is adorning her bright face as she takes in her house.

Her dad walks in soon after, carrying a small duffle bag in one hand and a backpack in the other.

"Alright, Mils." He watches as excitement swarms her mind. "Take it easy on yourself now, yeh?"

She nods quickly, starting to make her way up the stairs. This excitement is short-lived, however, when a sharp pain pierces her lower back and she doubles over on the first step. Charlie immediately drops the bags and rushes to her side, letting her lean on him.

"Milly, I know you want to be independent, but at least let me help you up and down the stairs. just for a little while."

She nods slowly, looking at her dad with a slight tinge of sadness behind her bright eyes.

Most of Milly's injuries had thankfully healed, leaving nothing but large scars to remind them of the near-fatal attack. It was only her back that still needed time.

There was a major compression fracture in Milly's spine that had already been reset with surgery. There wasn't anything else that could speed up that process. It would be a few months before Milly was truly back to normal.

Then again, would she ever be normal? There was a whole new future in front of her that veered off track from any logical explanation.