Just the Way you Are

Military Flashback

From my Whumptober 2021 collection. :)

Hetty was resting on the couch in the living room when all of a sudden, her mind started flashing back to something that happened during the Vietnam War.

She had no idea how it happened. 1 minute she was flying across Vietnam with a few friends, the next minute, she felt this huge blast, then she woke up. On the ground, dazed, confused, the chopper she was on was destroyed, and no one else was alive.

What she knew, was that she had to get out of there before the people who shot the chopper out of the sky came to survey the damage and look for survivors.

A gentle hand on her shoulder napped her back to reality.

'Hey. You okay? You looked like you were having a bad dream.' Granger said.

'How can this be?' Hetty muttered.

'Huh?'

'I was remembering that awful crash in Vietnam. The 1 where it took 5 days for you to find me.'

5 minutes later

'Wait, you mean you actually remembered something from that crash? You haven't been able to remember anything about that crash in years! Have you been holding out on me?' Granger asked.

'No. PTSD thankfully wiped those memories away. But, I have no idea how that memory came back!' Hetty replied.

'Well, maybe your brain has decided that the memory isn't too painful to remember anymore?'

'The only things I remember about that crash, is that it happened, and that it took 5 days to be found, and that I wasn't the only survivor. Anything else, it's all a blank. And probably for a good reason!'

Later

'Well, I spoke with someone over the phone. And yes, it's entirely possible for repressed memories to come back.' Granger said.

'But what if I don't want them to come back? The fact that it took 5 days for me to be found, says quite enough about how terrible the experience was!' Hetty replied, worried.

'Well, 1 of them came back. That must mean something. Didn't you once say that you wished to remember what happened during those 5 days?'

'That was when I was clearly still in pain from recovering from being held in a cage for 3 months!' Hetty exclaimed.

Silence.

Seeing that there was nothing else he could say to her, Granger sighed, and said: 'Well, if any more memories start coming back, I'm here for you.'

'Thank you.'