Chasing Stars ✔️

4.

"I saw the world from the stars' point of view, and it looked unbearably lonely." - Shaun David Hutchinson

She

After my fourth day in the hospital, Dr. B came to see me. I woke up to find her already sitting beside my bed with a book in her hands. Her small reading glasses balanced on the tip of her nose, as always, while she played with the scarf around her neck, twisting the tip of the tissue with her royal blue painted nails.

"I was wondering when I would get to see you, Dr. B," I said, my voice still low from the sleep.

She put her book down and looked at me, smiling.

"Well, I decided to wait until you could speak without feeling like your head was about to explode."

"How very kind of you!" I added sarcastically. I couldn't help a smile, thinking of how we interacted.

When I moved in with the Santos, Sienna insisted for me to talk to a professional. It was the last thing I thought I needed to share my problems, my most personal feelings with a stranger. I resisted it so much. But Dr. B never gave up; she knew how to reach for an angry 16-year-old girl. I could never thank her enough for that.

It was still daunting to discuss certain aspects of my life, to listen to her. There were parts of my past that remained secret, but, over time, Dr. B grew on me. Her enthusiastic personality, her sarcasm, caught me off guard. After all, the woman dealt with depressed people throwing all sorts of problems at her, and still, she had this spirit... It gave me hope, in a way.

"So... I guess we will see more of each other again..." I said softly. "Sienna called you?"

"Yes... and yes. How do you feel about that?"

"I didn't realize we were starting right now." I couldn't resist teasing her.

She laughed, "You know me... I can't be stopped."

We stayed silent for a while. It happened a lot... Over the years, it stopped being uncomfortable. Silence could speak, too. It screamed at times. I learned that through my sessions.

"I would promise not to be very difficult, but I'm not sure I can be true to my word. I can't seem to remember everything. I don't know if it's because of the concussion, or I'm just trying to... you know... shut it down."

"You know how this works, Alexa... we will figure it out as we go. We got this."

Just then, we heard a light knock on the door. Sabrina walked in, offering me a hug. Sienna and John followed her gesture. Finally, Dr. Kronh entered the room, closing the door behind him.

"Am I in trouble?" I asked, looking at all the people around me.

Sienna waved her hand. "Don't be silly. We were just about to discuss some schedules so you can start seeing Dr. B soon. She agreed with some extra sessions for a start, just until she is full time in Westport before her office gets remodeled at St. Patrick's." I saw Dr. B nodding her head in confirmation. "You may also need physical therapy for your wrist. Dr. Kronh has some updates on your last scans..."

That suddenly felt like a lot to process, but I didn't get to analyze it before my sister changed the focus of my attention.

"I'll drive you to therapy when you leave the hospital." Sabrina's hand waved in the air like a school girl eager to answer a teacher's question.

I frowned at her.

"Well, that would be rather difficult, considering you're leaving for Australia in two days. Have you beat your head too?"