How Can We Thank You

Hope you all enjoy my latest story and thanks to my friend Shannon for her expertise in making it grammatically correct.

Chapter One

The car seems to suddenly appear from nowhere. I am casually striding along the footpath of an everyday suburban residential street, heading toward my home, still two blocks away. I am trailing a few steps behind, but close to passing, two young boys, of primary school (pre-high school) age, who are dawdling and kicking stones. I am only thinking how they were traits of mine when I was their age around 50 years ago, when out of the corner of my eye, I catch sight of a car failing to negotiate the corner ahead. Instantly it is heading directly toward the two young boys and myself, showing no sign of even slowing.

I have mere milliseconds to react, and yet the whole scenario seems to develop in slow motion. At least, that's how I recall it. I can see the car closing on the young boys at a rapid rate. Although I am now sixty, somehow my reflexes respond, I determine that if this vehicle hits these boys, it's going to cause serious injuries. Who knows, could even be fatal. All of this passes through my brain in a flash, obviously two seconds at most.

I have been closing the gap between myself and the two boys as they ambled along, laughing and joking together. Instinctively, I launch myself toward the boys, my right hand grabbing the boy on the right's shoulder, dragging him toward the fence line of the house we are passing. The boy on the right falls to his left under the pressure of my right arm, falling against his buddy ... I am later to learn they are brothers, one 11 and the other 9.

I clearly recall, in that frightening moment when the boy on the right falls against his brother on his left and they both tumble to the ground against the fence, that I am now unavoidably in the path of the runaway car. I look through the windscreen as I brace my body for the inevitable impact and see an oldish woman -- she appears older than me -- her face reflecting a look of horror at the unfolding scene. Her hands are gripping the steering wheel, but she's not steering, she's hanging on for the wild ride.

Then, I feel searing pain as the car misses the two falling boys by mere inches and hits my body with full frontal force. I feel myself catapulted into the air. Still, I am seeing this unfold in slow motion. Where will I land? Oh god, please don't let me be impaled on this picket fence alongside me.

One often hears and sees footage of road trauma and how a car hitting a pedestrian will send that person up over the top of the car. But for me, I find I am propelled forward and my limp body is thrown over that picket fence, and I land on the lawn of a house. The car powers on as if the aged woman driver has no capacity to put a foot on the brake pedal.

I hear it hit something beyond, causing the car to eventually stop, the motor still revving. It has either hit another fence -- the side one that separates this house from next door -- or could even have hit a part of the house. My first relief is that my landing has been softer than if I'd gone over the car and landed on the hard road surface. But I am in pain ... both legs, at least one arm, and my head hurt. I think I'm in trouble.

I can hear people's voices; it seems the noise of the accident has brought onlookers from everywhere. A woman is bending over me, asking how I am. Vaguely, I assess she appears to be of my generation. I tell her that I hurt in a lot of different places. She insists that I don't move, stay exactly where I am, and for emphasis, she rests a hand on my chest to ensure I do. Fortunately, that's one of the few places that isn't hurting.

I am conscious of the woman talking to me, in nice, reassuring tones, telling me that emergency services have been called, that I will be alright. She tells me that I don't appear to be bleeding badly anywhere. My fear is that I may be internally.

I hear sirens approaching and am relieved to know that professional help is on its way. "What about the boys, are they okay?" I hear myself asking.

"Oh, I don't know, I only saw you in my front yard. Who are the boys, are they yours?"

"Oh no, not mine. I was walking down the street and these two young schoolboys were walking in front of me. I was about to pass them when the car came out of nowhere. I managed to reach out and push the boys to one side, but I can't remember if the car still hit them."

"Just a minute! Don't move, wait right there." The homeowner leaves me laying on her front lawn, removing that reassuring hand from my chest. I look about me, see some gawkers standing at what is left of the front picket fence, staring at my misfortune. The caring woman returns quickly, once more dropping to her knees by my side, she has a kind, caring face, "They are ok, you don't have to concern yourself with the boys, my neighbour is with them and they seem unharmed. It sounds like you did a very brave thing."

"Oh, I don't know about brave, I just acted on instinct."

We are interrupted by the arrival of two paramedics, who quickly begin to assess my injuries and administer some pain relief. In a short time, they place me on a spinal board. 'Just in case,' they say, and I am transported in an ambulance to the hospital.

I am not aware of much over the next 24 hours. My sister, who seems to be constantly sitting beside my hospital bed whenever I briefly wake, tells me that the doctors have kept me heavily sedated. X-rays reveal that I have a broken right arm, a fractured left wrist, and a broken left leg while my right leg has escaped with cuts and scratches ... severe bruising too. I am hooked up to intravenous drips for sustenance and nutrition.

My still married younger sister is my main closest relative these days. My wife died two years ago. I have avoided entering a new relationship, not that there haven't been a few widows and divorcees that have either indicated their availability or been recommended by friends. Maybe I should have encouraged one of them along the way, but who could have predicted I would have both hands incapacitated for possibly weeks. At least, that's what the doctors tell me. I am likely to need a willing pair of hands around the clock to feed me, hold a glass or cup for me to drink from, and let's face it, pull my cock out of my pants when I need to pee.

I won't even dare worry yet how I am going to wipe my bum. For now, the wonderful nurses here at the hospital attend to that and I have a catheter inserted so I don't have to worry about getting out of bed to pee.

My sister informs me that the police officer investigating the accident has been to visit me in hospital, but I was either asleep or sedated when he called by. He asked my sister to let him know when I am awake and lucid because he needs to complete his report before they can consider if charges will be laid against the woman driver for the injury and mayhem that she caused. The policeman also told my sister that two witnesses to the accident have told how I was a hero to push the two young boys aside and take the full brunt of the out-of-control vehicle's power. He suggested that his superintendent intends to recommend me for some kind of bravery award.

Two nights after the accident, with my sister still maintaining her bedside vigil, a young couple appears in the doorway of my shared hospital room. In the other bed is a man, close to my age, who is recovering from a cancer operation. Initially, I expect this young couple is here to see him because they don't look at all familiar to me. My immediate reaction is more's the pity because the young woman is beautiful ... a great looking blonde, and as the pair head toward my bed and not my neighbour's, I observe that she has a drop-dead gorgeous figure to match the beautiful face. Who can this be?

"Mr. Collins?" the young woman asks in a slightly higher than normal pitched voice, the way women do in particular when they are unsure if they have the right person.

"Yes," I say and nod my head in the affirmative, one of the few parts of my body that I can still move.

I can see the shocked look on her face as she comes nearer to my bed and can now see both of my arms hang suspended by pulleys from the ceiling; likewise one leg. My sister rises from the one chair to give the two visitors access to my bedside.

"My name is Amanda and..." she turns to point to the 30-something man standing behind her "...this is my husband, Matthew ... oh, call him Matt, everybody does. It was our two boys that you so heroically saved from being hit by that car on Monday." She is now up close to the side of the bed, almost brushing my suspended right arm, "Oh my god, you suffered all of this to save our boys. We are both so eternally grateful to you. We have heard from the police, and from the two eyewitnesses, and they all tell us that if you hadn't reacted as quickly as you did, we may not still have our beautiful boys. It was an incredible act of bravery on your part. We came here to thank you, but we had no idea your injuries were so severe. This looks terrible, are you in much pain?"

"Not so much now, they give me painkillers around the clock to take care of that."

She is extremely effusive, is this just a sign of a strong personality, or has seeing the nature of my injuries first-hand made her emotional? She does all the talking while her husband stands back meekly, at the foot of my bed, holding what appears to be my reward for saving the lives of their two children. A brown paper bag wrapped around what looks like it could be a bottle of wine.

She looks back at her husband, obviously spotting the bottle he holds -- their $10 or $20 gift; she turns back to me, tears in her eyes. "Oh my god, we brought you a small token of our appreciation, but our gesture seems totally insignificant, now that we see you here, like this. We are going to have to do more, we must do more, we are both so overwhelmed and will be eternally grateful for your selfless act. I am struggling now to find the words to express how we feel."

Am I undervaluing their generosity, the bottle in the brown paper bag may not be your average bottle of wine, but perhaps an expensive champagne?

My very thoughtful sister steps forward and places her arm around the younger woman, who is pouring her heart out to me, "It's ok, Amanda, my brother is one of the special people. You will find through life that you will come across rare people like him. I am very proud of what he did to save your boys. I can understand you becoming emotional, he doesn't look to be in a good place at the moment, but thankfully, his injuries, bad as they look, are not life-threatening. Mike will get through this and be good as new again. The doctors have assured him of that. It will just take time because of his age."

Amanda is sobbing now, I expect her husband to step forward to take over consoling his wife from my sister, but he remains seemingly emotionless at the end of my bed. I wish that I too could reach out to hug Amanda. It's a long time since I have held such an extremely attractive 30-something woman close. When she first came near, she smelled so good ... I figure her perfume is expensive.

My sister reaches for a couple of tissues from the box on my bedside table and hands them to Amanda to mop up her tears. At last, my visitor is able to speak again, "I am so sorry for being this emotional, the police never explained how severe your injuries are. I never expected to be blubbering like this, but it's the shock of my boys coming so close to death, and then hearing of your bravery, and now meeting you and seeing what you have suffered just to keep my family together. I am so overwhelmed ... what a kind man you must be."

My sister withdraws her consoling hug to Amanda, who stands helplessly by the side of my bed for a moment. Then, she turns to her husband, reaching out for the bottle in the brown paper bag. Taking it from him, she places it on my bedside table, "We would like you to have this, hopefully you do drink wine?"

"I do," I say, confirming with a head nod, "Thank you!"

"There will be more ... I don't know what, but there will most definitely be more. I am sure Matt is as shocked as I am to see you laying here with so many injuries. I want to be able to do something for you, we'll work out what in the days to come. Err, you don't mind if we visit you again." She turns to look at her husband, who gives very little back to her, prompting Amanda to add, "Well, maybe not Matt, he's very busy with his work, but I am between jobs at the moment, so I could come around and sit with you, maybe take turns with your sister, if that's alright? It would make me feel much better."

I am encouraged by her words, but feel the need to say, "You don't have to, Amanda, but if you feel you want to, you're most welcome." Who wouldn't want to have such a beautiful young woman sit beside the bed to help while away the boring hours, strung up like this, unable to scratch my nose. She looks to be around my daughter's age, who I don't see as much lately because she is married with a family and lives overseas.

Negotiating her head around the pulley that holds my right arm suspended, Amanda leans in close and gives me a soft kiss on my forehead. Again, my senses are stirred by the pleasant aroma of her scent. Did my old cock actually twitch then when she leaned in close? There's another thing ... it's going to be some time before I can attend to old reliable, presently impaled on a catheter to attend to my waste fluids.

Amanda withdraws after the chaste kiss, pausing to give me a wonderfully warm smile before turning to my sister and asking for her phone number. Then, she re-joins her silent husband and together they leave. My sister steps forward again, "Well, wasn't she something? I can see that brightened your day."

"What do you mean, sis?"

"Oh, I could see it in your face. You really liked her, didn't you?"

"Yes, she's nice, but I don't know what you're going on about. She's nice and showing her appreciation. Surely, you're not suggesting I am sexually aroused by her?"

"I know you, brother, my guess is you are, but that's ok. You haven't had a lot of joy in your life these past few years, what with Mary (wife) dying and Barb (daughter) moving overseas. I hope this Amanda does come to visit you; it will lift your spirits. If she does, then I'll make myself scarce and you can flirt with her; it will do you good."

"I doubt I'll be flirting with her, sis. For a start, she's married, and she's only so warm to me because I saved her boys' lives two days ago. That's likely to fade in a few days. Although, confidentially, I did feel a little surge down in my loins when she kissed me."

"See, there you go, Michael, and those loins, as you so quaintly put it, haven't been all that active lately."

"That's none of your business, sis."

From behind the curtain in the other bed, my roommate called out, "Why don't I get women who look like that to come to visit me?"

"Because you have to throw yourself under a vehicle to attract someone like that," I retort.

Chapter Two

My doctor did his rounds early, suggesting to the nursing staff that they remove the catheter from my cock. "I don't like to see those damn things fitted for too long. But if we take it out now, it will mean you'll need to call a nurse when you feel the need to pee, and she'll bring you a male urinal bottle."

The contraption he refers to is a bottle with a long neck on it and the nurse will slide the neck opening over my penis whenever I feel the need to pee. After the doctor leaves, a nurse places such a bottle on my table, then sets about removing the catheter.

It would normally feel good to have a nurse's fingers touching my cock, but not in this instance that is not without some pain. A relief to be freed of that item. As my sister implied last night, it has been some time since I've felt feminine touch down there.

A bit after 10 am, a vision appears in my room. It is Amanda, this time without the quiet husband trailing behind. She frowns as she approaches the bed, "Oh, you poor, poor man, how uncomfortable you must be. Is there anything I can do for you?"

My mind whirls at the evil thoughts of what a young woman as attractive as this one is could do for me. I manage to restrain myself, but my roommate in the adjoining bed isn't as discrete and bellows, "There's a lot you could do for me."

Amanda calls back to him through the dividing curtain, "Sorry, but you didn't save my sons from an accidental death, so the offer only applies to this wonderful man here."

Again, a retort from the adjoining patient, "Go for it, Michael."

"Ignore him," I suggest, offering a smile to my very welcome visitor, who doesn't stop beside the bed, but leans over to plant a lovely soft kiss on my cheek. Are we making progress? Last night, my forehead, now my cheek, she's getting nearer my lips.

"So, how are you this morning? Are you feeling any better, Michael?"

"I feel better for seeing you," I dare to suggest.

"Ooh, that's a nice thing to say. What a lovely gentleman you are. The men of my age never think of saying things like that."

She remains close, choosing not to sit in the one visitor chair, but rather standing beside my head, close enough that I again smell her very pleasant perfume.

"I guess Matt's at work?"

"Yes, he is. Just as well really, you may have noticed last night that he's not a very sociable person, not until he really gets to know someone. He's a good husband and father, and I know he is as grateful as I am for the brave thing you did ... it's just that he doesn't know how to show it. On the other hand, I can sometimes be a bit over the top in enthusiasm, and I'm especially so where you are concerned. I am so grateful to you that I want to lavish you with gifts or kind gestures, or whatever. You ask for it and I'll make it happen for you, Michael."

I pass on saying something crass, like 'I suppose a fuck's out of the question.' Instead, I politely tell her, "That's really not necessary. I didn't set out on Tuesday to perform an act of bravery, as you so kindly call it. I simply acted on instinct, and I am sure I did what most people would have done, faced with that situation."

"You are way too modest, Michael." She pulls the visitor chair closer and sits down, "So, tell me all about yourself."

Over the next few hours, we get to know each other. I relate how my wife died a couple of years back, and how our daughter moved overseas because of her husband's work. She, in turn, begins to talk of her life, and it turns out that she and Matt live only a couple of streets away from me. The morning goes quickly and I am surprised that there is no sign of my sister visiting. She has been constant at my bedside since the accident.

I look at the clock, it's nearing midday. Amanda has been here, keeping me company for almost two hours. "I'm surprised my sister isn't here yet," I tell my new friend.

"Oh, she won't be here until mid-afternoon. I called her this morning and suggested we alternate on your visits. Daytime suits me better so I asked if she'd mind not coming in until around three ... that's when I'll have to go and pick up the boys from school. Since the accident, I'm nervous about having them walk home. I know they say that lightning never strikes twice, but for now, I feel better about getting them."

"You really are the little planner, aren't you?"

"I'm sorry, do you not approve of me organising our visiting times?"

"No, no Amanda, it's fine. I'm just amused how you are planning everything for me."

"Michael, you better get used to me. I intend to be in your life for a while now, it's going to take me quite some time until I consider you repaid for helping my two boys grow up to be men."