"No..." Abigal whimpered looking down at her unmoving legs. "I want to get married soon. I can't be in a wheel-chair!" she gasped her hand flew to her cheek, and she bit her lip. Gritting her teeth, and taking a breath she tried to move her right leg out. It hurt sharply, and she stopped shaking her head "I can't do it....I can't do it..."

****

Andrew nodded, and lifted the bar bell above him again, feeling his shoulder muscles strain and pull. "1.....2........3...." he gasped out lifting it, and lowering it. "4.......5.......6.....7...." he didn't know if he could do another and hesitated before lifting it again. His arms burned, and the healing wound protested.

***

"Stress I suppose" Peter said his eyes, un-lightened and sad, flicked around, gazing at the doctor. "I had a bunch of stress...then it started falling out..." His heart was tight, and his mind a buzz of wonder.

The therapist said to andrew. "You feel pain? That's your muscles working. Take a deep breath and do 3 more."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The thereapist took ABigal's hand and let her to a green, cushioned bench. He held his hand a few inches above her leg. "Try comign up this far."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Miley said, "A friend of ours said she couldn't hang out with us and his girlfirend untill she graduated and a friend of ours' mom blamed him for the friend getting shot."

The phsycologist wrote a few things down. "So why did his mom blame you for her son getting shot? Why are you al not allowed to hang out with this friend? You seem like pretty decent kids."

Andrew took a heaving breath and nodded. "Yeah........8.....9......10!" he gasped and dropped the bar-bell to the side, sighing in great relief. "Oh man my muscles.." he groaned.

***

Abigal didn't even want to try. She shook her head, but he demanded it, so she finally consented. Pinching her eyes shut, she took a breath and tried to lift her leg up as far as he wanted. Tears formed in her blue eyes as she tried and tried, and then when she was almost there she stopped. "no I can't do it any farther! I can't I can't!"

***

Peter looked down. "It was because of my past....I did some pretty bad things....I'm sorry for them now, but people won't accept that!" his voice was choked and he wanted to hug Miley who was sitting next to him. "I don't know why she blamed me for Brian getting shot....I didn't mean for him to get hurt."

Abigal's thereapist siad, "Okay, I won't make you go further. Your doing so good so far." He gave her a sheep of paper. "Try lifting to where i showed you five times and try these at home and we will work on them here too."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Miley put an arm around her cousin, seeing tears drip down his cheeks.

The pschycologist answered, "People arent very accepting. I once went to a congregation where it had a school. When I went to that school, it made me cut my hair above my ears and really nowhere in the Bible does it say a man's hair has to be that short." He shook his head. "When you were baptised into Christ, He added you to the Kindgom of God and nowhere in the Bible does it say people should judge you for what has been washed away." He asked, "Do you mind telling me about your parents?"

"No....I'd prefer not to talk about them" Peter said in an emotional voice remembering his parents. "I-I......I don't want to talk about them"

****

Abigal nodded and stared at him. "Will....I ever walk again? Why do my legs hurt so much?"

*****

Andrew sat up from the mat and cracked his knuckles "That's one work out..." he said and picked up a towel wiping his face and drying his hair. his brown locks were tussled after he was done and he straightened it out. "Where Abby?" he said his tone changing as he looked for his girl friend.

The pscycolgist nodded. "I understand. Mine drove me to depression for years." He asked, "Can you tell me about your school life?"
~~~
Amanda pointed to a mat nearby, as she was waiting for her friends. "She's over there."
~~~~~~~~~~
The thereapist siad, you will if you do these."

"Well...." Peter gulped trying to think of what he should tell him. He wondered what he would think of him if he told him everything....all he had done....and what it had caused. "Well there is bullies at school who are always tormenting me about my hair. They have ever since it got cut, and pulled out once. I guess it's my fault it all happened anyway, I care about my hair too much." he clutched what was left of his soft curls.

******

Andrew turned to see his girl-friend on the brink of tears. a gasp escaped his lips and he hobbled over to her, taking her hand "Abby what's wrong?" he kissed her fingers.

"My legs....they hurt to move.....I can't walk!" she said sadly, looking down at the therapist. "Is there any other way to excersize? This hurts.."

The pshycologist wrote a few things down, then asked, "Why did your hair get pulled out?"

Miley held her cousin's hand, when she noticed him on brink of tears.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The therapist said, "I could see if they get osme pain pills prescribed for you."

Sniffling, Peter wiped his nose on his sleeve, thinking back to those horrible days. Did he really have to tell of all the events leading up to and after his hair being pulled out? It would only pain his heart to remember the sorrow he had had when he was forbidden to see Jen, or the fear he had felt once he knew her father had been told of their 'almost kiss'. Taking a breath, he looked at Miley for a long minute before turning to the psychologist, and clearing his hoarse and broken voice, began. "It was six months ago when it all happened.....it was a school day, Wednesday I think" He could remember ever detail so precisely it hurt to tell of what had happened. He could still faintly feel his hair being ripped out, or the yells of Jen's father, or his own cries. Almost too choked up to continue, he tried to whisper on. "That was the day, a gang of bullies, who I was previously a part of threatened my girl friends life. That scared her parents, and her mother told me she wasn't going to have my past relations harm her daughter. She kept me from seeing my girlfriend except during school. A little while later I was suspended for bringing pills to school. And that, for her Mother and Father, was the last straw. I was banned from seeing her, anytime, any place. No matter what reason." He shuddered at that thought...never being able to see Jen again. He couldn't live like that. "At school the next day, behind a big oak tree in the school yard, Jen (that's the name of my girlfriend) told me of what her parents had said. That after this I was to never speak to her, or hang out with her. At that moment I got so lost in her eyes, I almost kissed her. " he found that the words just poured out of his mouth, something inside him wanted to spill it all now. "That night at a dance I went to, I was horrified to find out that one of the bullies had seen me and Jen talking. He had also seen me almost kiss her. He went and told her father that I had kissed her, when I really hadn't. I walked over and told him I almost had, but not really, and that's when he went after my hair. I ran from him but he caught me and took me out-side where no one could see. Then he ripped my hair out." He felt like crying as he suddenly saw the image flash in his memories. He buried his face into Miley's shoulder. "Oh Miley I can remember it so clearly.." he sobbed.

*****

Abigal vigorously nodded, and swallowed. "Oh Yes. Would you do that for me? I would be so grateful"

Andrew gave her a squeeze and retrieved her blue shawl from a coat hook. He speared it over her legs, which were chilly since she was wearing shorts. "We'll go back to Amanda's house now if you want Abby." his lips found hers, and they slowly kissed, before hesitantly parting. "I want force you to stay here" he whispered in her ear.

*****

Jen walked down the path toward the open doors of the school building. Many kids her age and older, flocked in preparing and dreading another lengthy day of school. Her eyes though were fixed on the crowds of kids, walking running, chattering and yelling. The familiar face she was looking for was no where to be seen in the large crowd and she sighed. "Peter must be feeling sick again....I have to visit him after school." she whispered to herself, wondering what other sorrow had befallen her boy friend.

"Looks like Peter isn't here...." came a sneering voice from behind her, and she turned to see one of the bullies, staring into her face.

"Go away." she cried and fled, running into the building hurrying to not be late for her first class. She entered just as the teacher was calling for them to sit down. An hour of grammar passsed so quickly Jen didn't know where the time had flown. She walked from her first class, to hear a friendly voice call from behind her.

"Jen! Jen!"

She turned to see Brian, his left arm still in a sling coming toward her. "Hi!" he said walking next to her. "Peter's not here....heard from him yet today?"

Miley stroked what was left of her cousin's hair, listening to his racking, heart breaking sobs. She rubbed his back, wanting to stroke what was left of his hair. Still, if she did it would remind him his hair was falling out. "it will grow honey, it will grow I promise."

The thereapist asked, "What do you think would happen if it didn't grow back?" He paused, "It will grow back, but how do you think people's opinions of you would change if it didn't?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jen shook her head sadly, long blonde hair touching her elbows. "Is he okay?"

"They'd make fun of me.......I know they would!" he cried "Everyone would sneer and hate me!" he said despairing greatly of his hopeless situation.

***

"Amanda....would it be okay if we could go back to your house now?" Andrew asked turning to her. "I think it would be best."

***

" I don't know...I haven't talked to him today. I want to go visit him later" Brian said with a sigh, holding his books with some difficulty. He had gotten shot in his left arm, but the bullet had passed through the bone and entered his chest so he was quite wounded. Luckily he had healed, and was getting a little better.

Amanda looked at the paper in her hands. "Sounds good." As they were driving past a dress shop, Amanda asked, "What dress you going to wear? We're doing the wedding this fall, right?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The doctor said, "If you're true friend did, they would have to reach a point where they decide you are more important than your hair or they arent true friends."
~~~~~~~~
Jen asked, "Are you ok?"

Abigal longingly looked out the window. "I hope so Amanda..." she quietly said thinking of the wedding she had spent hours in planning. "But if I can't walk come this fall..." she hid her face, not wanting them to see her crying.

"Oh Abby...." Andrew sympathetically tried to comfort her. "Don't take this so hard....I'm really sorry for all this you two. It was my fault, I wasn't watching the road"

*****

Peter nodded. He knew that Jen was a true friend, and would never leave him. Miley, Justin, and his aunt and uncle would always still love him. He gulped and looked up at the man "Oh I don't needs this...if I went bald....then lost my friends.." he shook his head, not able to bear the thought of it.

****

"Yeah...pretty much. I'm pretty sore, but my Mom said I should go to school." he said with a sigh. "Though I'm going to have to tell coach I can't practice. I don't want to risk it"

Amanda felt her heart melt. "Andrew, it wasn't your fault. It was the other car's fault for not moving."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The pschycologist looked at Peter with sympathy. "I hope it will grow back. Are there any sports you enjoy doing that could take yoru mind off this?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jen shook her head. "What a horrible way to end the season. Looks like Peter won't be able to either." She prayed for Peter to get stronger and better. She prayed for his hair to grow back.

"No..I should have watched the road." Andrew said back, feeling miserable on the inside, knowing he had caused the crash. If only he had paid attention, he cursed himself. "Abby please don't cry....I'm really sorry..."

She didn't look at them, and just wept afraid she would never be able to walk again. Afraid the wedding day she had in visioned and dreamed of so many times would never come true. She was afraid she would never feel the heavy weight of a gold ring on her finger. Brushing hair from her face, she turned to look at Amanda, her cheeks red. "Please excuse me....I just....don't feel well...." she wiped her eyes.

******

"Well yeah...kinda." Peter said and set up a bit straighter. Talking of things he liked, like sports, made him feel better. "I like to play soccer...and I really really want to try out for basket ball."

****

"Yeah.....I'll be healed soon though and ready for soccer next year." Brian said trying to keep up to her. "I'd better get to class before I get in trouble. See you at lunch time"