Me-Before-You-by-Jojo-Moyes

Will looked as if he were about to say something, and then closed his mouth.
He stared at the table and shook his head a little, but he was smiling.
‘Well, Louisa, I imagine your job at the moment takes up an awful lot of
mental energy. And I don’t suppose this young man is the easiest of clients.’
‘You can say that again.’
‘But Will is quite right about seeing possibilities. Here’s my card. I’m on the
board of a charitable organization that encourages retraining. Perhaps you would
like to consider something different in the future?’
‘I’m very happy working with Will, thank you.’
I took the card that she proffered regardless, a little stunned that this woman
would have the slightest interest in what I did with my life. But even as I took it,
I felt like an imposter. There was no way I would be able to give up work, even
if I knew what I wanted to learn. I wasn’t convinced I was the kind of person
who would suit retraining. And besides, keeping Will alive was my priority. I
was so lost in my thoughts that I briefly stopped listening to the two of them
beside me.
‘ … it’s very good that you’ve got over the hump, so to speak. I know it can
be crushing to have to readjust your life so dramatically around new
expectations.’
I stared at the remains of my poached salmon. I had never heard anyone speak
to Will like that.
He frowned at the table, and then turned back to her. ‘I’m not sure I am over
the hump,’ he said, quietly.
She eyed him for a moment, and glanced over at me.
I wondered if my face betrayed me.
‘Everything takes time, Will,’ she said, placing her hand briefly on his arm.
‘And that’s something that your generation find it a lot harder to adjust to. You
have all grown up expecting things to go your way almost instantaneously. You
all expect to live the lives you chose. Especially a successful young man like
yourself. But it takes time.’
‘Mrs Rawlinson – Mary – I’m not expecting to recover,’ he said.
‘I’m not talking about physically,’ she said. ‘I’m talking about learning to
embrace a new life.’