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April’s eyes when Amanda explained where she was.
    “What do you mean, you just ‘fell asleep’?” April was propped on two pillows wearing her pink “Live to Ride” t-shirt and cut off sweat pants. Her legs were so skinny that her knees looked almost bulbous connecting her bony thighs and calves, and she wore patchwork slippers that had been donated to the hospital by the ladies’ auxiliary.
    “I don’t know what else to say. I had dinner, we watched a movie, and I fell asleep on the couch. His mom had already gone to bed, so I assume Jake finished watching the movie and went to bed later. When I woke up it was after 10:00 a.m. I ate a quick breakfast and came right here.” Amanda was sitting in the glider rocker in the corner of the room. Even though it didn’t have a chair pad, it was still very comfortable.
    “Those are the clothes you were wearing yesterday.”
    “I just told you I came right here, Mom.”
    April leaned back and closed her eyes. She couldn’t seem to find the words for what bothered her so much about Amanda spending the night at Jake’s house, but Amanda knew exactly what the problem was. April wasn’t upset because her daughter had spent the night at a guy’s house, or that she was wearing the same clothes and the nurses might suspect something. She didn’t like that Amanda had somewhere else to go.
    April finally just shook her head and changed the subject. “I’d like to go out today. Maybe stop at Wal-Mart and get some good socks.”
    She wanted to tell her mother that she didn’t need socks, but there was no point. Going to Wal-Mart would be a long, involved activity that would require bathing, dressing, borrowing a wheelchair, getting in and out of the car … It would easily take the rest of the day. Amanda took a deep breath and braced for her mother’s response.
    “I need to go home for a while, Mom. Why don’t you have a nurse help you get dressed, and I’ll pick you up around 2:00.”
    April stared at Amanda. “Have another date?”
    “I want to change clothes, Mom. I want a shower. I need to do a few things before I can spend the afternoon at Wal-Mart.” Amanda was just trying to be honest, but she knew this would not go over well.
    “You know what, Amanda? Just forget it. Forget it. I don’t need socks. It’s a waste for me to get anything new anyway.” April turned away from Amanda and lay back down. “I’m tired anyway. Go take your shower, and I’ll see you at dinner if you’re not too busy.”
    Amanda heard a familiar scream of frustration in the back of her mind. “I told you I would take you, Mom. Let’s just go.”
    “You can’t go now, Amanda. You need your shower and your clean clothes. Forget it.” Her mother talked into her blanket. There was no winning this argument, and Amanda sensed that a trip out would be too much for her mom today anyway. She really was withering away before her eyes. Amanda saw that even sitting up in bed wore her out. She decided to let it go.
    “I’ll see you in a couple hours, Mom,” Amanda said. She leaned forward and put her cheek next to her mom’s. April put her hand up and rubbed Amanda’s head.
    By the time Amanda returned later that afternoon, her mother had forgotten the Wal-Mart argument. They had dinner together and watched Entertainment Tonight . April was asleep by 7:00 p.m.
    Amanda left the hospital and drove around town. She needed to get a job, both to pass time and save some money for school. Even though her financial aid package included big government grants that paid for nearly everything, she would need money for her book bag, things for her dorm room, college apropriate clothes, and the like. She stopped at Dairy Queen to pick up an application and found Jake and his mom in line for blizzards. She couldn’t really call it a coincidence since Jake had mentioned that they often went out for ice cream at night.
    Without much resistance, they talked her into getting a blizzard and returning