“He’s trying to protect you, you realise that, right?”
Ally nodded, tucking her hair behind one ear. “I know that, but I need to do this. It’s the only way I’m gonna find out what really happened. I think Callum needs to talk to him, too – but with his fists tied behind his back.”
“I get it. You have more guts than I do, I’ll tell you that much. Are you sure you’re ready to hear whatever he has to tell you? What if knowing all the details makes it worse, not better?”
“It won’t,” she said, even though deep down she wondered the same thing. “Anything’s better than not knowing.”
“If this is really what you want then I’ll back you up, but promise me you’ll be careful? He broke your heart, he wasn’t there when you needed him most and in my book, that makes him a pretty lousy human being. Just prepare yourself, okay? What he has to say may not be what you want to hear.” Maggie picked at her cuticles for a few moments. “I’m going to tell you something now, something that I promised Callum I wouldn’t. But given everything you’ve just said, I think you need to know.”
By the time Callum arrived at the pool, Ally’s car was one of only a handful in the parking lot. He hauled his swimming bag out of the back seat and headed inside. Maggie had called to warn him earlier, filling him in about her conversation with Ally over coffee. He had been dreading this moment ever since, unsure about what he was walking into but pretty sure it wasn’t going to be pleasant. He took a deep breath as he approached the main doors of the old grey building that housed the community’s pool.
It had taken a while to get Ally interested in swimming as part of her exercise routine. Jogging had been her endorphin rush of choice before the accident, and he knew she missed it. Swimming was within her capabilities though, and he had pushed her into taking it up, joining her at the pool every Sunday night for moral support. He knew she was shy about swimming in public, but he had done his research. He had asked around, attended a few swim sessions on different days and times, and had a couple of casual chats with one of the admin women at the pool. He eventually pieced together that Sunday night from about 7pm was by far the quietest time. Ally was more relaxed without an audience. Once she was in the pool she seemed fine, but she was uncomfortable making the transitions.
Swimming was great for her mental health as well as her physical health and it complemented the weight training she did at home. The massage and range-of-motion exercises also helped with her back pain and kept her muscles from contracting. In the pool, without the constant pull of gravity, she was able to exercise much more freely, at her own pace. Callum was hoping that the endorphin rush following a good workout would help smooth things over tonight.
He changed into his trunks in the deserted changing rooms, the smell of chlorine clinging to the wooden benches and wet concrete floors. Stashing his clothes in a locker, he grabbed his towel and headed out to the pool. Ally waited for him in her wheelchair near the door, a towel draped over her legs. He forced a smile and threw his own towel haphazardly at the bench running along the wall behind her.
“Hey,” he said, smiling to break the ice.
“We need to talk.”
He had been hoping to delay this until after they swam, but the look on her face said she had other ideas. He mentally prepared himself for the onslaught he could feel coming.
“You were way out of line. You had no right to go storming over there, and what made it worse was that you didn’t even have the guts to tell me, I had to hear it from Maggie!”
Her voice echoed through the building, bouncing off the walls and causing a few stragglers to look over their way.
“Look, I – “
“You lied to me, you lied by omission! You told me you saw my car outside the house, you never said you went in after I left!”
She stared up at him with open resentment, choking back angry tears.
“I’m sorry,” he said immediately. “I should’ve told you, you’re right. Maggie told me you guys talked today, and I know what you want from him but I have to say that I think you’re over-simplifying this whole thing.”
“That’s not the point!”
“Okay, okay – let’s just dial this down a notch, alright? People are staring.”
She took a deep breath, glancing around self-consciously. A man dried himself off nearby and a couple of middle-aged women chatted quietly as they exited the pool, the sound echoing off the high beams above.
“Come on,” he said, making his way over to the bench lining the back wall.
Ally followed, albeit reluctantly.