2 Stories That Will Leave You Shook

Resolution

2 months later the first garnishment payment from Kyle showed up in my account for $1,500. We used it to pay off the last of my medical debt from the prosthetic rejection surgery and had enough left over to sign up as volunteer coaches for the adaptive swim program at the Y.

The kids there didn’t care about my missing leg or my gold medal. They just wanted someone to teach them how to float without being scared.

Three different news outlets called that month wanting to pay for exclusive rights to our story, but we turned them all down. Some things weren’t meant to be entertainment for strangers on the internet.

A full year after everything went down, I ran into Stephanie at the grocery store and almost didn’t recognize her. She was wearing a uniform from some restaurant and looked healthier than she had during all the court stuff.

She saw me and started to walk over but then noticed Olivia next to me and changed direction toward the exit instead. Later I found out from Melinda that she was in a job training program and making her garnishment payments on time every month.

Kyle was apparently in court-ordered counseling for his gambling problem and his wages were still being garnished automatically. His wife divorced him and got everything in the settlement including their house.

Olivia and I bought a small place with a garden out back using her VA loan since mine was tied up in the apartment. We planted tomatoes and peppers and spent evenings sitting on the porch planning what we wanted to do next.

The prosthetic works fine now and I swim twice a week just for fun, not for medals or proving anything. Sometimes I still wake up with nightmares, but Olivia knows how to help me through them.

We’re talking about maybe having kids in a couple years once we save up more money. Life feels quiet and normal in a way I never thought I’d have after everything that happened.

And there you go. Another thrilling episode of me oversharing on the internet.

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