Matilda's Imagines

In Safe Hands

"Y/n! C'mon, you're up!"

The 16-year-old jumped slightly at the sound of the team trainer calling her name across the physio room. She offered a nervous thumbs-up and slowly peeled herself off the bench where she'd been waiting, heart already fluttering in her chest.

Just a routine check-up. All the girls had to do it.

It wasn't supposed to be a big deal.

But her skin already felt too tight. The buzzing in her head — the kind she'd learned to blame on her ADHD — had started to morph into something else. Something colder.

The little white medical room made her breath catch. Too sterile. Too quiet. Too much like... before.

She tried to focus — to do what Caitlin taught her: grounding, breathing, naming five things she could see — but her fingers were already twitching, and her mouth had gone dry.

"You alright, sweetheart?" the medic asked kindly, gesturing toward the table.

Y/n nodded too fast. "Yeah. Totally. Great. Let's do it."

But as soon as she sat on the exam table and the nurse reached for her arm to check her blood pressure, something inside her snapped.

The grip was gentle, professional — but to her, it felt like a trap.

She flinched back hard. "Don't touch me!"

The medic froze, hands raised. "Hey—no problem. It's alright."

But it was too late.

The walls closed in.

Her breath quickened, shallow and ragged. She could hear her pulse in her ears. Her hands shook violently. She scrambled off the table, backing into the corner like a terrified animal, mumbling, "I can't—I can't—I can't—"

The medic had already called out, "Someone get Mini!"

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Within seconds, Katrina "Mini" Gorry appeared in the doorway, eyes scanning the room like a storm was brewing.

When she saw Y/n crouched in the corner, she moved immediately — calm, slow, low voice.

"Hey, bub. It's just me."

Y/n didn't respond. Her chest was heaving, hands over her ears now, lost in it — the flashbacks, the panic, the feeling of being back in that house with her foster parents where doctors were used as threats, not help.

Mini kneeled a few feet away. "I'm not gonna touch you, okay? Just me here. Just Mini."

Tears spilled down Y/n's cheeks. She was whispering apologies, over and over. "I'm sorry—I didn't mean to—I tried—Mini I really tried—"

"Shhh," Mini said, voice soft as silk but strong as steel. "You did amazing. You're safe now, bub. I promise."

The panic attack rolled on, but Mini stayed, slowly guiding her through breathing exercises — matching her breaths with Y/n's until they found some kind of rhythm.

"Can I sit next to you?" she asked gently.

Y/n nodded, barely.

Mini slid over slowly, settling beside her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Lean on me, love. I've got you."

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Fifteen minutes later, the others found them there — Kyra peeking around the door first, worry etched deep in her face.

"She alright?"

Mini nodded. "Getting there."

Kyra stepped in, followed by Macca, Caitlin, and Lani. None of them spoke loudly. They just slowly formed a loose circle around their baby sister.

Macca pulled out a cherry-flavored juice box — Y/n's favorite — and held it out like a peace offering.

"Got this for you," she said softly. "Payment for scaring us like that."

Y/n cracked the tiniest smile, reaching for it with shaking hands.

Lani knelt in front of her and bumped their foreheads together gently. "You don't have to do that alone next time, you know."

"I didn't wanna make a fuss," Y/n mumbled. "It was just... it felt like... I dunno. I couldn't breathe."

Caitlin leaned against the wall beside her, arms crossed but voice gentle. "You don't ever have to explain. Not to us."

Kyra grinned and flopped dramatically onto the floor. "Next time, I say we all skip medicals and fake our own panic attacks. Solidarity."

Y/n let out a weak laugh — but it was real.

Mini squeezed her tighter. "You're brave, bub. So damn brave. But you don't have to be brave all the time."

Y/n looked around at the circle of women around her — big sisters, teammates, protectors — and for the first time in a while, she didn't feel like she was fighting the panic alone.

"I'm really glad I have you guys," she whispered.

"You've got us," Macca said. "Always."

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